Ostkaka (pronounced oost-kah-kah), meaning "cheese" and meaning "cake" in Swedish, is known as Swedish cheesecake or Swedish curd cake, it is a Swedish

dessert Dessert is a course (food), course that concludes a meal; the course consists of sweet foods, such as cake, biscuit, ice cream, and possibly a beverage, such as dessert wine or liqueur. Some cultures sweeten foods that are more commonly umami, ...

that has its roots in two different parts of Sweden,

Hälsingland Hälsingland (), sometimes referred to by the Latin name Helsingia, is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province or ''landskap'' in central Sweden. It borders Gästrikland, Dalarna, Härjedalen, Medelpad and the Gulf of Bothnia. It is part of ...

and

Småland Småland () is a historical Provinces of Sweden, province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name ''Småland'' literally means "small la ...

, though there are some differences between ostkaka from Hälsingland resembling halloumi in texture, and the soft-grained ostkaka from Småland. Originally ostkaka was made with raw milk and cheese rennet. However, these days most people simply use cottage cheese instead, which is much faster, and gives the same flavor and texture. Ostkaka is an eggy, crustless cake with cottage cheese, ground almonds and lemon zest; it is usually served with whipped cream and jam. The meal is commonly enjoyed at a mild temperature, paired with jam or a fruity sauce like cloudberry,

cherries A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The name ...

raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of several plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the Rosaceae, rose family, most of which are in the subgenus ''Rubus#Modern classification, Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Ras ...

, or

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

, with

lingonberry ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' is a small evergreen shrub in the heath family, Ericaceae. It is known colloquially as the lingonberry, partridgeberry, foxberry, mountain cranberry, or cowberry. It is native to boreal forest and Arctic tundra through ...

being a frequent choice, as well as fruits,

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...

or, occasionally,

ice cream Ice cream is a frozen dessert typically made from milk or cream that has been flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as Chocolate, cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit, such as strawberries or peaches. Food ...

. Despite the similarity in literal translation, ostkaka should not be confused with

cheesecake Cheesecake is a dessert made with a soft fresh cheese (typically cottage cheese, cream cheese, quark or ricotta), eggs, and sugar. It may have a crust or base made from crushed cookies (or digestive biscuits), graham crackers, pastry, ...

. Swedes commonly refer to the latter using its English name, occasionally dubbing it "American cheesecake", to prevent misunderstanding. Nevertheless, Scandinavian restaurant menus occasionally mix up the two.

Traditional recipes

Ostkaka is traditionally produced by adding

rennet Rennet () is a complex set of enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals. Chymosin, its key component, is a protease, protease enzyme that curdling, curdles the casein in milk. In addition to chymosin, rennet contains other enzymes, su ...

to a warm milk and flour mixture and letting the

casein Casein ( , from Latin ''caseus'' "cheese") is a family of related phosphoproteins (CSN1S1, αS1, aS2, CSN2, β, K-casein, κ) that are commonly found in mammalian milk, comprising about 80% of the proteins in cow's milk and between 20% and 60% of ...

coagulate. It is then baked in an oven, and gently reheated before serving. It should be served warm - never hot, as this will nullify some of its flavor.

Hälsingeostkaka

This is only made with the base ingredients, with local variations being some cream or sugar added, but regardless less sweet than the other kind. The press-strained curd is further pressed into a baking dish and baked at medium heat until fully set. Whether it should receive a fine coat of saffron or not is still up for heated debate. When cold, it can be stored until serving, at which time it is sliced and reheated in the oven in a bath of cream until it just begins to boil. By the time it is served, the heat should have evened out through the dish to perfect temperature.

Smålandsostkaka

Cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this proces ...

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

, eggs,

almonds The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera by corrugations on the sh ...

and bitter almond are added to the curd, which is strained but not pressed, to create a batter that then is poured into the baking dish. Traditionally, the Småland variety is cooked in a large copper pot. This is said given rise to a tradition of allowing guests to take their portions from the centre of the Ostkaka, thereby avoiding any traces of copper that may have leached into the mixture where it is in contact with the pot. Said as often is that the centre is the creamiest and most succulent, and thus more suited to offer the guests. Either way, the dish is baked to the consistency of scrambled eggs before taken out.

Simplified recipes

Since the process of curdling milk is somewhat complicated, alternative recipes intended for home cooking instead use

fresh cheese There are many different types of cheese, which can be grouped or classified according to criteria such as: length of fermentation, texture, production method, fat content, animal source of the milk, and country or region of origin. These criter ...

as a base to simulate the texture of the dessert.

National Day

Since 2004, the "Day of Ostkaka" is celebrated on November 14 in Sweden. It was established and is promoted by Ostkakans vänner ("Friends of Ostkaka"), a non-profit organization founded in 2003. Similar curd cake recipes are also found in America and Russia, often under the name "Angel Tears" curd cake.Творожный пай «Слезы ангела»
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References