Túrókrém

Ingredients

• 10½ ozquarkcrumbly Hungarian fresh cheese, pressed through a sieve or stirred smooth
• 1⅓ ozsugargranulated or icing sugar, adjust to taste
• 1vanilla sugar1 sachet
• ½ cupCreamstirred in liquid or whipped and folded in
• 5¼ ozsour creaminstead of or in addition to cream for a slightly tangy cream
• 1lemongrated zest, optionally juice, for freshness
• ½ tspcinnamonto spice the cream (optional)
• ⅔ ozchocolatemelted as a middle layer or grated for garnish (optional)
• 3½ ozstrawberrieschopped into the cream and for garnish (optional)

Method

1. Smooth the cottage cheesePress the cottage cheese through a fine sieve, or beat it hard with a whisk until there are no lumps left.
2. Stir in the sour creamStir the sour cream into the cottage cheese. If you like your túrókrém denser, pour in the whipping cream unwhipped now and stir everything into a smooth mixture.
3. Sweeten and tasteStir in the sugar and vanilla sugar and taste. Depending on your cottage cheese, you may want a little more or a little less sweetness.
4. Flavour with lemon or cinnamonIf you're using lemon, wash it in hot water, finely grate the zest and stir it in, adding a squeeze of juice for extra freshness if you like. For a warmer, spiced note, add a little ground cinnamon.
5. Fold in whipped creamFor a lighter, airier túrókrém, whip the whipping cream to stiff peaks instead and gently fold it into the cottage cheese mixture with a spatula so it doesn't lose its volume.
6. Add the strawberriesIf you're using strawberries, chop them small and fold some of them into the mixture, keeping the rest aside for the garnish.
7. Chill the túrókrémCover the túrókrém and let it chill in the fridge for about 1 hour so the flavours can come together.
8. Fill glasses and garnishSpoon the túrókrém into glasses, adding a middle layer of melted cooking chocolate if you like, and top with the remaining strawberries or some grated cooking chocolate.

Tips and variations

Túrókrém is wonderfully adaptable. Stir in warm vanilla pudding made with milk and pudding powder and layer it with melted cooking chocolate for a dessert in a glass, or blend it with yoghurt and strawberries and layer it with ladyfingers dipped in vanilla milk and a spoonful of jam. Thickened with a cooked egg yolk and vanilla base, gelatine and mascarpone cream, it even makes a cake filling, and a sugar substitute works fine if you'd rather skip the sugar. For something completely different but just as good, go savoury: mix the cottage cheese with sour cream, red onion, garlic, grated carrot and chives, season with salt, pepper or mustard, spread it on bread and top with radishes. Serve the sweet version well chilled, and only add the strawberries on top just before serving so they stay fresh.