Brownies with Cherries and Cottage Cheese

Break the chocolate into pieces and place in a bowl, then add the cubed butter. Set up a double boiler — place the bowl with the chocolate over a pot of water (ideally, the bottom of the upper bowl should not touch the water).

Melt the chocolate and butter together into a smooth mixture. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Thaw the cherries and drain off all the liquid that has been released. Roughly chop the walnuts with a knife — not too finely.

Mix the eggs, sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt together well.

Pour in the chocolate mixture and stir to combine.

Add the baking powder and flour, and stir until smooth.

Add the walnuts and cherries and stir to combine.

For the cottage cheese layer — beat the cottage cheese, sugar, and egg together until completely smooth. Add heavy cream or milk to bring the mixture to the right consistency (it should be thick but not overly so), as you'll need to spread it over the surface of the batter. The amount of cream will depend on how wet your cottage cheese is; add a little more if needed (2 tbsp was enough for me).

Grease a baking pan with butter (I use a 25x25 cm pan). It's best to use a pan no smaller than this — the brownies should not be too thick. Spread the chocolate batter in the pan and smooth it out.

Drop spoonfuls of the cottage cheese mixture on top and spread it out.

Using a wooden skewer, toothpick, or the handle of a spoon, swirl the surface of the batter, gently mixing it with the cottage cheese layer. Bake in an oven preheated to 180°C (350°F) for approximately 30–40 minutes.

Be careful not to overbake the brownies — the inside should stay moist. A toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies should no longer come out with wet batter, but it should still have moist crumbs clinging to it. Let cool completely, then cut into rectangular pieces.

Brownies with cherries, walnuts, and cottage cheese — a fantastic dessert for chocolate lovers.