Dry Cottage Cheese Perishky with Rhubarb

The Mennonite Treasury of Recipes really is a wonderful place to find recipes. . .and I have so often overlooked recipes because they had no pictures. I was looking for a unique pastry recipe and I had some dry cottage cheese left from making my Paska spread at Easter. I found this pastry recipe that had been submitted by Miss E. Friesen of Winnipeg. I have changed it slightly and I smiled as I threw it all in the Cuisinart food processor. . .I'm quite sure she used a pastry blender. . in her day. The pastry recipe turned out light and crispy and quite delectable and I'll surely make Miss E. Friesens Cottage Cheese Pastry again.

Cottage Cheese Pastry

• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 cups dry cottage cheese
• 1 cup cold butter

1. Combine the flour and the baking powder in your food processor or a large bowl.
2. Add the dry cottage cheese and the finely cubed butter.
3. Pulse in the food processor until finely crumbed .. .(when I looked at it I really didn't think it would stick together. . but I squeezed a tablespoon of crumbs and found that it held together well. If you are mixing without a food processor . . use a pastry blender or. . .I might even try the whisk on a kitchen machine. . .slowly. . don't make a mess. . . "
4. Dump it out onto the counter and squeeze into a flat rectangular disk wrap in cling film and refrigerate while you prepare your fruit.

Rhubarb Filling

• 5 cups finely chopped rhubarb
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 tablespoons tapioca

1. Mix together the rhubarb, sugar and tapioca.

Making the perishky or a tart or pie by the yard. . .

Once you have the dough chilled, Roll out a third at a time onto a floured counter top. Roll it as thin as for pie dough. . (look at the picture above. . and click on it to enlarge it if you need to) Roll it into a rectangle approximately 10 X 13. Cut the edges to make it straight leaving you with a 9 X 12 inch rectangle. Cut into 3 inch squares. To make the perishky. . .put a heaping teaspoon of rhubarb onto the square and fold together the opposite corners and pinch together. Bring up one of the remaining corners and pinch and then the last one. . and now. .seal with your fingertips . . all the seams. Lay down on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

You may also make a tart. .which I did with one of my third part portions of dough. . or you can simply roll the dough into a long rectangle. . .put it onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. . and put your filling onto the center. . bringing up your sides and pinch them shut.

Depending on how long it takes you to put together your pastries. .there will be accumulated juice at the bottom of your rhubarb filling bowl. . leave that. . if you scoop that up with the rhubarb. . you'll have a messy drippy perishky.

Bake at 350F for about 20 minutes for the perishky and about 30 minutes for a small tart. The perishky will be nicely browned with they are baked through.