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Crispy, thin crust and fluffy, soft core – the sweet ponchiki are heavenly delicious. They are eaten in a flash because they are hard to resist. The Russian farmer’s cheese donut holes are particularly popular with children. You can easily make them at home with just a few ingredients. You can find a detailed ponchiki recipe with the exact quantities and step-by-step instructions below.
Favorite pastry of the Soviet era
The ponchiki, along with the sochniki, shortbread rings with peanuts and tvorog korzhiki, were very popular during the Soviet era. You could enjoy them in cafeterias. If you bought them in a snack bar back then, they had to be eaten immediately on the way home. They were irresistibly delicious when warm and fresh.
Alternatives to farmer’s cheese
I prepared the ponchiki, just like the no flour tvoroshniki and the “palchiki”, with Russian farmer’s cheese tvorog, as it has a rather dry consistency. And you can make the most delicious ponchiki with a dough that contains as little flour as possible.
It is very easy to make your own farmer’s cheese.
Alternatives to tvorog include cottage cheese and ricotta. Drain off the excess liquid.
Correct dough consistency
The dough for the Russian donut holes should have a very sticky consistency, similar to the apple cookies or lemon crinkle cookies. It should not be runny, but not firm either.
The amount of flour specified in the recipe may vary. This depends primarily on the size of the eggs used and the moisture of the farmer’s cheese. Therefore, add flour to the tvorog mixture in portions until the dough has the required consistency.
Shaping ponchiki
The best way to shape the farmer’s cheese donut holes is with lightly floured hands, as the dough is very sticky. The work surface on which you spread them should also be lightly dusted with flour.
But don’t overdo it with the flour. Otherwise the leftover flour could burn to the farmer’s cheese donut holes during frying.
Frying Russian donut holes correctly
You should deep-fry the ponchiki over a medium heat. They should remain in the hot vegetable oil for around 5 – 7 minutes.
If you deep-fry the farmer’s cheese donut holes for too long, they will absorb far too much fat. And vice versa: if they brown too quickly on the outside, they may not yet be cooked on the inside.
Serving ponchiki
In Slavic countries, ponchiki are mainly dusted with powdered sugar. But they also taste delicious with sweetened condensed milk, honey, a fruit, chocolate or caramel sauce.
The Russian donut holes are perfect for breakfast. They are also ideal for dessert after a meal with a cup of tea or coffee. You can also simply snack on them between meals.
The ponchiki taste best fresh and warm, straight after preparation. It’s the same with the Plushki.
These donut holes are
- airy,
- light,
- tender,
- soft on the inside, crispy on the outside,
- moderately sweet,
- heavenly delicious,
- aromatic,
- golden brown,
- with lots of farmer’s cheese and little flour,
- without yeast,
- quick and easy to make,
- ideal for breakfast or dessert,
- popular pastry of the Soviet era.
Easy ponchiki recipe with farmer’s cheese
The ponchiki recipe, which you can find here at the end of the post in the recipe box, is very quick and easy. I used Russian farmer’s cheese tvorog for the dough.
Step 1:
First, puree farmer’s cheese with eggs. Then stir in sugar, vanilla and salt. Now add flour with baking soda and mix to form a sticky dough.
Step 2:
Form small balls from the dough with floured hands and deep-fry them in vegetable oil.
Step 3:
Now you can dust the ponchiki with powdered sugar and enjoy while still warm.
How to make Russian donut holes: tips and tricks
- Instead of farmer’s cheese, you can use cottage cheese or ricotta. Drain off any excess liquid.
- The amount of flour specified in the recipe may vary depending on how dry the farmer’s cheese (or its alternative) is and how large the eggs are. Therefore, add flour in batches until you get a very sticky dough. Remember that the less flour you use, the tastier the ponchiki will turn out.
- Do not stir the dough for too long, but only briefly. Otherwise the ponchiki could taste firm and not fluffy later on.
- Don’t make the farmer’s cheese donut holes too big so that they cook quickly on the inside.
- Don’t put too many ponchiki in the vegetable oil at once, as they will rise when fried.
Farmer’s cheese donut holes video recipe
You can find a short video for the farmer’s cheese donut holes on my Youtube channel. It shows you exactly how to make them at home. If you don’t want to miss any more of my videos, please subscribe to my channel.
Did you make the ponchiki using this recipe? I look forward to your results, your star rating and your comment below on how you liked them.
Also try these recipes for deep-fried pastries:
- Krebli – quick recipe without yeast for fluffy fried pastry
- Piroshki with carrots – vegan recipe for sweet filled buns
- Hvorost – the best recipe with 2 ingredients for Russian angel wings
Ponchiki / Farmer’s cheese donut holes
Ingredients
- 360 g farmer’s cheese
- 2 eggs
- 60 g sugar
- approx. 200 g flour
- 3 g baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
- 1 pinch of ground vanilla bean
- 1 pinch of salt
- flour for hands and work surface
for frying
- vegetable oil
for dusting
- powdered sugar
Instructions
- Place farmer’s cheese and eggs in a mixing bowl and mash them with a fork to a fine paste.
- Add sugar, vanilla and salt and mix.
- Mix flour with baking soda.
- Add the flour mixture to the farmer’s cheese mixture in batches and mix briefly to form a sticky dough.
- Lightly flour your hands again and again, form small balls from the dough (20 g each in my case) and spread them out on a floured work surface.
- Pour plenty of vegetable oil into a high, but not too wide, saucepan so that the farmer’s cheese donut holes can float in it and heat over a medium heat.
- Carefully add the ponchiki in batches to the hot vegetable oil, leaving plenty of space between them, and fry over a medium heat for approx. 5 - 7 minutes until golden brown, turning them with a wooden spoon as necessary.
- Remove the farmer’s cheese donut holes from the oil with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate lined with kitchen paper towels.
- Serve the ponchiki warm, immediately after preparation, dusted with powdered sugar.
Notes
- Instead of farmer’s cheese, you can use cottage cheese or ricotta. Drain off any excess liquid.
- The amount of flour specified may vary depending on how dry the farmer’s cheese (or its alternative) is and how large the eggs are. Therefore, add flour in batches until you get a very sticky dough. Remember that the less flour you use, the tastier the ponchiki will turn out.
- Do not stir the dough for too long, but only briefly. Otherwise the ponchiki could taste firm and not fluffy later on.
- Don't make the farmer’s cheese donut holes too big so that they cook quickly on the inside.
- Don't put too many ponchiki in the vegetable oil at once, as they will rise when fried.
- Note the detailed tips and tricks for preparing the Russian donut holes at the top of the article.
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