Cheesecake bunnies are perfect sweet snacks for Easter! These twisted rolls require a bit of patience as they need to rise overnight, but they are definitely worth preparing. They will be a beautiful addition to any Easter table.
Ingredients
Dough
- Milk – 250 ml
- Dried yeast – 2 teaspoons
- Sugar – 75 g
- Eggs – 2
- All-purpose flour – 560 g
- Salt – 0.5 teaspoon
- Butter – 100 g
Cheese filling
- Mascarpone cheese – 250 g
- Fine sugar – 30 g
- Lemon – 1
- Potato starch – 1 tablespoon
- Vanilla extract – 1 teaspoon
Icing
- Powdered sugar – 0.5 cup
- Lemon juice – 2 tablespoons
Additional
- Butter – 2 tablespoons
Preparation
Heat the milk until lukewarm and combine it with yeast and sugar. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes until the yeast activates. In a large bowl, mix together the activated yeast mixture, flour, eggs, and salt. Knead until the ingredients come together, then gradually add softened butter. Incorporate each addition of butter only after the previous one is well combined with the dough. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to a greased large bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 8 hours to allow it to rise.
Mix all the ingredients for the cheese filling until smooth and well combined.
Roll out the risen dough onto a floured surface into a rectangle measuring 30 x 40 cm. Spread the cheese filling over the dough, leaving about 3 cm of dry surface along one of the longer edges. Roll up the dough starting from the long side covered with the cheese filling. Cut the rolled dough into 8 equal pieces.
Unroll each small roll from the side not covered with cheese filling and cut it halfway, ending the cut at the beginning of the filled part. Shape the dry ends into slightly pointed shapes resembling bunny ears and weave them together for a nice appearance.
Transfer the prepared bunnies to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, cover with a cotton cloth, and set aside in a warm place to rise again (about 30-90 minutes). Once risen, brush the bunnies with melted butter and bake for about 20-25 minutes.
Allow the bunnies to cool. Sift powdered sugar through a sieve. Then mix it with lemon juice until a glaze forms. Brush each bunny with the prepared glaze.
