Pască, a delicate Romanian Easter cake

Name: Pască, a delicate Romanian Easter cake
Ingredients: 400 g cream cheese; 60 g powdered sugar; 60 g butter (at room temperature); 6 egg yolks; 200 ml whipping cream (30% fat; at room temperature); 10 ml vanilla essence or lemon juice; 80 g flour; 6 cold egg whites; 1/8 teaspoon fine salt; 100 g powdered sugar

Dessert - Pască, a delicate Romanian Easter cake by Rozalia I. - Recipia

Pască, a delicate Romanian Easter cake, is made with separately whipped egg whites folded into a cream cheese mixture, then baked tall like a cake, with no pastry base. The center stays soft, delicate and slightly moist, like a slow-baked Easter pască; I prefer to slice it only once it has cooled completely. Preparation: 20 minutes. Cooking: 60 minutes. Resting: 60 minutes. Total time: 140 minutes. Servings: 10. Approximately 390 kcal and 7 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

400 g cream cheese
60 g powdered sugar
60 g butter (at room temperature)
6 egg yolks
200 ml whipping cream (30% fat
at room temperature)
10 ml vanilla essence or lemon juice
80 g flour
6 cold egg whites
1/8 teaspoon fine salt
100 g powdered sugar

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Separate the eggs and refrigerate the egg whites. 2. Beat the cream cheese with 60 g powdered sugar until smooth. Add the butter and beat until combined, then add the lightly beaten egg yolks, whipping cream and vanilla essence or lemon juice. Mix until you have a soft, smooth batter. 3. Sift the flour over the mixture and beat just until incorporated. The batter should be creamy and lump-free. 4. Beat the cold egg whites with the salt until foamy. Add 1/3 of the 100 g powdered sugar and beat until dissolved, then add the remaining sugar and beat on high speed until you have a glossy, firm meringue. 5. Beat 1/3 of the meringue into the batter with the mixer. Add the rest and gently fold it in with a spatula, lifting from the bottom. Pour the mixture into a 26 cm cake tin lined with baking paper and tap the tin on the table a few times. Wrap the base of the tin in aluminum foil. 6. Bake for 60 minutes at 160°C, until browned on top. Leave it to cool for 60 minutes in the oven, with the door ajar.

Notes

Have a slice with black tea. Keep it covered in the fridge for up to 3 days; before serving, leave it out on the counter for a little while so it isn't very cold. Firm Philadelphia-style cream cheese gives a more set center than soft, spreadable cream cheese. If the cream has less than 30% fat, the mixture may be runnier. Sometimes pască sinks if it is taken out of the oven while still hot. Contains dairy, eggs and gluten.