Delicately tart yet rich and creamy – this is the perfect cake when you’re craving something homemade with a slightly special twist.
Sometimes, all you need is one great cake recipe. This sea buckthorn curd cake is exactly that – once you bake it, you’ll want to make it again. The result is balanced: not too sweet, not too sour, just what a thoughtfully made cake with simple ingredients should be. Lime adds a light freshness to the filling, while sea buckthorn berries give the cake its unique character. The texture is creamy and soft but not overly airy. The crust is gluten-free.
In Estonia, we traditionally use curd (kohupiim in Estonian) in baking – a fresh, grainy dairy product somewhat similar to farmer’s cheese, quark, or dry cottage cheese. If you can’t find curd, quark or a mixture of ricotta and Greek yogurt can work well as a substitute.
Ingredients
Crust
- 100 g unsalted butter, softened
- 50 g unrefined cane sugar
- 1 egg
- 100 g rice flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
Filling
- 500 g vanilla curd (or quark)
- 200 ml heavy cream
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp potato starch
- 2 tsp vanilla sugar
- 100 g unrefined cane sugar
- Juice of ½ lime
To serve
- Frozen sea buckthorn berries (for topping and on the side)
Instructions
Crust:
Mix the softened butter and sugar until combined. Add the egg and whisk until smooth. Stir in the rice flour and baking powder. Press the dough evenly into a buttered 24 cm (9.5 inch) springform pan, covering the base and the sides (up to 3–4 cm / ~1.5 inches).
Filling:
Place all filling ingredients – curd, cream, eggs, sugars, starch – into a large bowl. Whisk until creamy. Add the lime juice, mix again, and pour the filling onto the crust.
Bake in a preheated oven at 175–180°C (350°F) for 45–50 minutes. Let cool completely before serving.
Top with frozen sea buckthorn berries and serve with a few extra on the side.
Tips:
- For a lighter, airier texture, beat the filling for 3–4 minutes before baking.
- If you prefer a denser, more traditional curd-like texture, mix just until combined.
- When pressing the dough into the pan, try to keep the edges even for a nicely shaped crust.
Culinary Origins: Curd is one of the oldest dairy products in the world. Archaeological evidence suggests that long before the invention of cheese or yogurt, people were already making a simple curd-like substance by fermenting milk. The ancient Romans called it lac concretum – “hardened milk” – and often ate it sweetened with honey.
In Estonia, curd has held a special place in traditional cooking for centuries. It was easy to make, nourishing, versatile, and perfect for both savory dishes and sweet treats. In our case, it produces a perfect sea buckthorn curd cake. Curd is also valued for its high protein content, but for our ancestors, it was also a practical way to preserve food and avoid waste.
