Brânzoaice (also called rătișă, grăbițel, palaneț, poale’n brâu, pampuschi) is a #cheese-filled pie made of leavened dough, a traditional Romanian dish.

Rainy Day… breakfast/sweet cheese #pastry…. cozy morning treat…rainy morning pastry treat

DifficultyBeginner

Yields1 Serving
Prep Time15 minsCook Time25 minsTotal Time40 mins
 For Dough:
 600 g type 000 flour (for cakes)
 3 egg yolks
 120 g butter (82% fat)
 350 ml warm milk
 50 g sugar
 30 g fresh yeast (or 10g dry yeast)
 10 ml vanilla essence
 zest from one grated lemon
 a pinch of salt
 For the Filling
 500 g fat cottage cheese (or quark)
 2 eggs
 200 g sugar
 15 g vanilla sugar (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
 2 tsp grated lemon zest
 a pinch of salt
 100 g semolina
 150 g raisins soaked in rum
 For greasing
 1 beated egg
Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 6


Amount Per Serving
Calories 1074
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 27.2g42%
Saturated Fat 15g75%
Cholesterol 246mg82%
Sodium 338mg15%
Potassium 508mg15%
Total Carbohydrate 169.5g57%
Dietary Fiber 5.4g22%
Sugars 73.8g
Protein 32g64%

Vitamin A 0%
Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 14%
Iron 41%
Vitamin D 86%
Magnesium 0%
Zinc 0%
Selenium 0%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.


Step 0 - take the butter out of the fridge a few hours (1-2 hours) before so it gets to room temperature. The butter should not be too melted, but not too rigid so the temperature of the butter should be between 18 and 30 degrees Celsius (give or take).
Warm the milk. Again, the milk should be bellow the boiling temperature, but warmer. 45-60 degrees Celsius should be ok.

Step 1: - mix the warm milk with sugar and yeast

branzoaice-sugar-yeast-milk

Step 2: - slowly add the yolks and keep mixing

branzoaice-sugar-yeast-milk-yolks

Step 3: - add the butter to the mixture

Step 4: - mix the flour with the mixture from the steps above

branzoaice-flour-yeast

Step 5: - add the salt, lemon zest and vanilla to the mixture and keep mixing. After the dough gets harder, start mixing with your hands.

Step 6: - let the dough rise until it doubles its size

Step 7: - during the time the dough rises, prepare the cheese filling for the pastry (branzoaice).
Start by putting the cheese into a bowl and add the eggs, sugar, vanilla sugar, vanilla essence, salt, raisins and zest and mix everything together.

Step 8: - add the semolina to the above mixture and keep mixing

Step 9: - split the dough into smaller pieces

Step 10: - flatten the section into a rounded shape

Step 11: - fill the dough pastry section with cheese mixture and try to make a rose shaped pastry like in the video and put them on an oven tray

Step 12: - preheat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius at least for 15-20 minutes before putting the tray into the oven

Step 13: - before putting the tray into the oven, put some beaten egg on top of the roses - on top of the filled dough

Step 14: - again, make sure you preheat the oven. It's a critical step, step12.
Put the baking tray with the filled dough into the oven and bake for 10 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. After the 10 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 160 degrees Celsius and keep the pastry for another 15 minutes. Check from time to time to make sure you are not burning them in case the oven is small.

branzoaice poale-n brau

 

Ingredients

 For Dough:
 600 g type 000 flour (for cakes)
 3 egg yolks
 120 g butter (82% fat)
 350 ml warm milk
 50 g sugar
 30 g fresh yeast (or 10g dry yeast)
 10 ml vanilla essence
 zest from one grated lemon
 a pinch of salt
 For the Filling
 500 g fat cottage cheese (or quark)
 2 eggs
 200 g sugar
 15 g vanilla sugar (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
 2 tsp grated lemon zest
 a pinch of salt
 100 g semolina
 150 g raisins soaked in rum
 For greasing
 1 beated egg

Directions

1

Step 0 - take the butter out of the fridge a few hours (1-2 hours) before so it gets to room temperature. The butter should not be too melted, but not too rigid so the temperature of the butter should be between 18 and 30 degrees Celsius (give or take).
Warm the milk. Again, the milk should be bellow the boiling temperature, but warmer. 45-60 degrees Celsius should be ok.

2

Step 1: - mix the warm milk with sugar and yeast

branzoaice-sugar-yeast-milk

3

Step 2: - slowly add the yolks and keep mixing

branzoaice-sugar-yeast-milk-yolks

4

Step 3: - add the butter to the mixture

5

Step 4: - mix the flour with the mixture from the steps above

branzoaice-flour-yeast

6

Step 5: - add the salt, lemon zest and vanilla to the mixture and keep mixing. After the dough gets harder, start mixing with your hands.

7

Step 6: - let the dough rise until it doubles its size

8

Step 7: - during the time the dough rises, prepare the cheese filling for the pastry (branzoaice).
Start by putting the cheese into a bowl and add the eggs, sugar, vanilla sugar, vanilla essence, salt, raisins and zest and mix everything together.

9

Step 8: - add the semolina to the above mixture and keep mixing

10

Step 9: - split the dough into smaller pieces

11

Step 10: - flatten the section into a rounded shape

12

Step 11: - fill the dough pastry section with cheese mixture and try to make a rose shaped pastry like in the video and put them on an oven tray

13

Step 12: - preheat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius at least for 15-20 minutes before putting the tray into the oven

14

Step 13: - before putting the tray into the oven, put some beaten egg on top of the roses - on top of the filled dough

15

Step 14: - again, make sure you preheat the oven. It's a critical step, step12.
Put the baking tray with the filled dough into the oven and bake for 10 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. After the 10 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 160 degrees Celsius and keep the pastry for another 15 minutes. Check from time to time to make sure you are not burning them in case the oven is small.

branzoaice-pastry