Túrótorta

Ingredients

• 10½ ozBiscuitsDigestive biscuits or ladyfingers, for the base
• 4¼ ozButtermelted, binds the biscuit crumbs
• 1⅓ lbquarkdry Hungarian curd cheese, sieved or beaten smooth
• 2⅛ cupsWhipping creamwhipped stiff and folded in
• 7 ozSugarto sweeten the filling; one source uses sweetener instead
• ½ ozVanilla sugarfor flavouring or dusting
• 2⅛ ozVanilla pudding powdercooked and cooled, thickens the filling
• 2lemonuntreated; zest and juice for the filling, slices for decoration
• 8¾ ozMascarponefor a creamier filling (optional)
• ⅓ ozPowdered gelatinedissolved in hot water, sets the filling (optional)
• 1¼ cupswaterfor the pudding and to dissolve the gelatine (optional)
• 2 tbspMilkspoonful by spoonful until the crumb base holds together (optional)
• 4 tbspJamas topping, e.g. forest fruit (optional)
• 3 tbspFlaked almondsfor sprinkling (optional)
• 1Cake glazeone packet, poured over the lemon slices (optional)
• 3½ ozRaisinswashed, for the baked version (optional)

Method

1. Crush the biscuits to fine crumbs by hand or grind them in a food processor. Melt the butter, stir it through the crumbs and, if the mixture still seems dry, add the milk a spoonful at a time until it holds together when pressed.
2. Press the crumb mixture into a springform tin of 18 to 26 cm, smoothing it flat with the back of a spoon or the base of a glass, then chill for at least 30 minutes.
3. Stir the vanilla pudding powder smooth with the water, bring it to the boil while stirring constantly until thick, then leave it to cool completely.
4. Beat the quark smooth with the icing sugar, vanilla sugar, grated lemon zest and lemon juice — work in the mascarpone at this point if you like a creamier filling — then mix in the cooled pudding.
5. For a cake that slices especially neatly, dissolve the powdered gelatine fully in hot water, let it cool to lukewarm and stir it quickly into the quark mixture.
6. Whip the cream until stiff and fold it into the quark cream in two batches, gently, so the filling stays light.
7. Spread the cream over the chilled biscuit base, level the surface and let the cake set in the fridge for 4 to 5 hours, or better still overnight.
8. Decorate at the end: either spread a thin layer of jam and scatter over flaked almonds, or lay on lemon slices and cover them with cake glaze. Chill briefly once more.
9. Run a knife around the edge, release the cake from the tin and cut it into twelve slices.
10. A small trick: dip the knife in hot water and wipe it between cuts, and the layers stay cleanly separated.

Tips and variations

There's plenty of room to take this in another direction. You can skip the gelatine and pudding altogether and make the filling from mascarpone and whipped cream on a digestive biscuit base, topped with jam and flaked almonds — that version really does want a full night in the fridge. Instead of digestives, press the base from ladyfingers and set the cream with vanilla pudding and gelatine, decorated with lemon slices under cake glaze. There's a baked version too, made without any biscuit base: beat the egg yolks with sugar and butter until foamy, add the quark, pudding powder, washed raisins and lemon, fold in stiffly beaten egg whites and bake for 50 to 60 minutes at medium heat, then dust with vanilla sugar. Sweetener works in place of sugar if you prefer. Serve the cake well chilled and cut it only just before it goes to the table.