Poale-'n Brâu

Ingredients:

• Flour, 6 cups
• Ricotta cheese, 2 cups
• Sugar, 1 cup
• Eggs, 4
• Water (lukewarm), 1 cup
• Vegetable oil, 1 cup
• Lemon zest (grated), (from 1 lemon)
• Instant yeast, 2 envelopes
• Golden raisins, 100 gr

Preparation:

In a big bowl, add the flour and form a well in the middle.

Add the yeast. Pour the water over the yeast and stir it up until the yeast dissolves.

Add the oil, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 eggs and half the lemon zest to the well.

Using your hands mix everything together and continue kneading the dough for about 10 minutes.

Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover it up with a clean towel, or plastic wrap and let it double in size, in a warm place (2 hours).

While the dough is rising, make the cheese mixture.

In a medium bowl, add the cheese, raisins, remaining sugar, 1 egg, remaining lemon zest and mix it all together.

Place the cheese mixture in the fridge while the dough is rising.

Preheat oven to 180° C.

After the dough has doubled in size, roll it out in a long rectangular so that it’s about 1/2 cm in thickness.

Using a pastry cutter cut it into squares that are 8 cm x 8 cm.

Take each square and roll it up until it’s 15 cm x 15 cm, it will be quite thin, but don’t worry as it will rise quite a bit more.

Place 2 tsp of the cheese mixture in the center of each square.

Fold over each corner of the square over to the middle and pinch in the middle to make the dough stick.

Now fold each newly formed corner over to the middle again and pick it in the middle.

Make sure you pinch it well, otherwise the dough will open up.

Repeat with remaining dough and cheese mixture.

Brush the pastries with egg wash (made with the last egg and 1 tbs milk, beaten together) and let the pastries sit out for another 10 minutes so they rise a bit more.

Bake in the oven for about 30 or 35 minutes, or until golden brown.

Cool on wire racks and sprinkle with powder sugar if preferred (we ommited this).