Papsapka looks like cottage cheese bundles, but it still differs. This oddly named pastry, which means priest’s cap in English, refers to the form of biretta, a square cap with three or four peaks or horns, sometimes surmounted by a tuft.

Papsapka is made from a potato dough, which contains yeast. The dough needs to rise only once, it takes 15-20 minutes after filling and forming the bundles. The filling is usually fruit jam or fruit butter, but you can also use cottage cheese if you want.

Ingredients:

• 500 g (~1lb + 1 1/3 oz) boiled potatoes
• 300-350 g (~2 1/2 – 2 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 25 g fresh yeast (2 tsp dry yeast)
• 100 ml (~1/2 cup) milk
• fruit jam
• 1 egg for brushing the top

Mash boiled potatoes with a potato ricer and let them cool completely.

Dissolve yeast and 1/2 tablespoon of sugar in lukewarm milk.

Add flour, egg, salt, 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar and activated yeast to the potatoes and knead into a smooth dough. Since this dough doesn’t need to rise after kneading, you can fill and form it immediately.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a floured surface roll out the dough into a thin rectangle and cut into 10×10 cm / 4×4″ squares. Place some fruit jam in the middle of the dough, then fold up corners to center, pinch and tweak them to seal the edges.

Place the bundles onto the prepared baking sheets and brush their tops with slightly beaten egg. Let them rest for 15-20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 356°F. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Feel free to dust the bundles with powdered sugar.