Gluten Free Syrniki (Сырники) Russian Cheese Cakes

Just got back from a trip to Moscow where we had these wonderful little cheese cakes at the breakfast buffet at the Moscow Marriott Tverskaya.  I was doing a gluten challenge at the time, but have gone back to my gluten-free life since returning.  More about that later...

We loved the cheese cakes so much that I found a recipe online and made them this morning with Jules' All Purpose Gluten Free flour.  They tasted just like the ones we had in Moscow.  It's like having cheesecake for breakfast.  You serve them with powdered sugar and sour cream.  The cheese inside is slightly sweetened tvorog ( a soft cheese like Farmer's Cheese).  You can get the real thing at international markets.  The one I used was salt-free and unsweetened.  I added sugar to make the cakes.  Recipe follows.  The name Syrniki comes from the Russian word for cheese "Syr' (Сырь)".

Syrniki

500 g Tvorog or Farmer's Cheese
3 egg yolks or two whole eggs
4-5 Tablespoons sugar (to taste, I used 4 T and a pinch more)
1 tsp vanilla (original recipe called for 1 tsp vanilla sugar)
100 g flour ( I used an all-purpose gluten free flour)
mixture of Canola oil and butter (about a tsp of each for frying)
pinch of salt

Stir the cheese well with a fork or use a blender or stand mixer.  Add the egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and a pinch of salt and mix.  Sift the flour and add to the mixture and mix again.  WIth a spoon dipped in water, spoon out tablespoons of dough, roll them in flour and form into patties.  Heat oil and butter in a non-stick skillet and add syrniki when oil/butter starts to bubble.  Cook over medium heat until browned on both sides.  Remove and place on a platter.  Serve with powdered sugar and sour cream.

Enjoy!
Karen, herself