Cornulețe with borș and tomato juice

Name: Cornulețe with borș and tomato juice
Ingredients: 21 g fresh yeast; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 4 tablespoons granulated sugar; 250 ml oil; 250 ml borș; 100 ml tomato juice; 700-800 g white flour; 200 g sour cherry preserves; 100 g icing sugar

Season - Cornulețe with borș and tomato juice by Romanita P. - Recipia

Cornulețe with borș and tomato juice, Romanian crescent pastries, are served for dessert, including on fasting days, dusted while still slightly warm. The dough, made with oil, borș (a sour fermented bran liquid) and tomato juice, rises, then is filled with sour cherry preserves and baked until puffed and lightly browned. I choose a tart borș that isn’t too salty, so I can measure the salt separately. Preparation: 30 minutes. Cooking: 20 minutes. Resting: 90 minutes. Total time: 140 minutes. Servings: 12. Approximately 490 kcal and 6 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

21 g fresh yeast
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
250 ml oil
250 ml borș
100 ml tomato juice
700-800 g white flour
200 g sour cherry preserves
100 g icing sugar

Preparation

1. Crumble the yeast into a large bowl and mix it with the salt and sugar until it dissolves. Pour in the oil, borș and tomato juice, then gradually work in the flour until you have a rich, easy-to-shape dough. 2. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and leave the dough to rise for at least 1 hour in a spot away from drafts. 3. Heat the oven to 170°C. Dust the work surface with flour, tear off orange-sized pieces of dough and roll them out with a rolling pin. 4. Use a pastry wheel to cut each piece into 8 triangles. Put sour cherry preserves at the base of each triangle and roll it up towards the tip to shape the crescents. 5. Arrange them on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake for 20 minutes, until puffed and lightly browned. 6. Put the icing sugar in a large, sturdy bag. Take the tray out of the oven and carefully transfer the warm pastries to the bag; shake it gently, then arrange them on a platter and leave to cool for 30 minutes.

Notes

Borș can be more sour or saltier from one batch to the next; if it’s salty, add only a pinch of salt to the dough. Choose preserves with a thick syrup that stays on the spoon, since a runny filling can leak out at the seam. If you roll the triangles thicker than about 3 mm, the pastries may need a few extra minutes in the oven. I split the work into two batches when I want them ready for coffee after lunch, without rushing the rise. In shape and filling, they’re like the usual tender crescent pastries, but the dough starts with borș and oil. You can replace the sour cherry preserves with 200 g thick plum butter. They contain gluten from the flour. I arrange them on a small platter beside black tea, with a little icing sugar kept separate. Store them in a closed tin at room temperature for up to 3 days.