Quark???? Quark!

Friends of mine run #ArmadaleFarm Dairy Products http://www.armadaledairyproducts.com/ and among other things, they make Quark! This incredibly versatile cheese product can be used in a multitude of ways – in both sweet and savoury concoctions. I’ve used it in cheesecakes, lasagna and today, in Cinnamon Buns and icing.

#HettySmyth sent me a recipe to try and it’s well worth the effort!

It helps to have a stand mixer, but it’s not crucial. I rounded up all of my equipment and ingredients and set to work!

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Preheat the oven to 375ºF

Dough

250 g Quark cheese

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup melted butter 

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 ¼ cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

In a stand mixer, place the Quark cheese, milk, white sugar, butter and vanilla.  Beat until smooth and fluffy, scraping the bowl periodically.

 In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.  Put the dough hook on your stand mixer.  On low speed, gradually add dry ingredients until well incorporated. 

Turn out onto a flowered surface.  Roll into a 9×15”- ish rectangle.  Spread a healthy layer of room temperature butter on the dough, leaving a ½” border.

Filling

2 tbsp maple syrup

2/3 cup dark brown sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

¼ tsp nutmeg

Mix together the brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and maple syrup.  Spread in an even layer on top of the dough and pat into the butter.

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Roll the dough tightly starting from the long side.  Cut into 1” size pieces with a  serrated knife.  Arrange in a greased 9” square or round pan.  Bake for 20-25 minutes.  

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Quark cheese frosting

250 g Quark cheese

1/4 cup room temperature butter

½ teaspoon salt 

1 cup of icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon (or less, to taste)

Place Quark and butter in a stand mixer.  Mix on high until mixture is smooth and fluffy (this may take several minutes).   Gradually add the salt and icing sugar.  Beat well until the mixture is smooth.  Note- you should not need to add any milk.   If the mixture is too stiff, simply beat longer.   Pour the frosting over the warm cinnamon buns, covering the entire pan.  Let set for 5-10 minutes.  Enjoy!

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