Tvorog Pie — Eggless Cottage Cheese Pie with Vegetable Oil Crust

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Welcome to a recipe that proves you don't need butter or eggs to create a wonderfully tender and delicious pie! This Eggless Tvorog Pie with a Vegetable Oil Crust is a testament to simple, wholesome baking. Tvorog, a staple in Eastern European kitchens, creates a filling that is both creamy and light, with a delightful tanginess balanced by sugar and fresh lemon. The crust is uniquely crisp yet tender, and surprisingly easy to handle. Perfect for a cozy afternoon tea or as a light dessert, this pie is sure to become a new family favorite.

A slice of golden-brown Tvorog pie with a lattice top, dusted with powdered sugar, on a white plate.

Eggless Tvorog Pie with Vegetable Oil Crust

Cooking: 1 hour
Quantity: 6 Servings
Per serving
Calories: 500 kcal
Proteins: 11 g
Fats: 12 g
Carbohydrates: 84 g

Shortcrust Pastry Ingredients

  • 50 ml vegetable oil
  • 50 ml water
  • 120 g granulated sugar
  • 250 g all-purpose flour
  • 0.5 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt

Tvorog Filling Ingredients

  • 200 g dry tvorog (farmer's cheese or quark)
  • 1 lemon
  • 150 g granulated sugar
  • 40 ml heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (level)
  • sesame seeds and powdered sugar for decoration

How to Make Eggless Tvorog Pie with Vegetable Oil Crust

A bowl with flour, baking powder, and grated lemon zest, ready for mixing the pie dough.

Add wheat flour and baking powder, grate lemon zest, and knead the dough.

Rolling out the pie dough thinly on a sheet of parchment paper with a wooden rolling pin.

Take a large sheet of parchment paper and roll out the dough thinly directly on the paper.

Placing the rolled-out dough on parchment paper into a rectangular baking dish.

Transfer the dough into the baking dish so that the edges hang over, then remove the paper.


Combine the vegetable oil, water, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Add the wheat flour and baking powder, grate in the lemon zest, and knead the dough. The consistency should be soft but not falling apart. If it’s too stiff, add a little water; if it’s too soft, add a bit more flour.

The vegetable oil dough is very delicate; it’s easy to roll out but tricky to transfer—it tears, stretches, and loses its shape. Therefore, take a large sheet of parchment paper and roll the dough out thinly directly on it. For my recipe, I used a rectangular pan, so I rolled out a rectangle slightly larger than the pan.

Transfer the dough into the pan, letting the edges hang over, then remove the paper. This recipe uses a small rectangular pan, 20×25 cm (8×10 inches), with low sides of 3.5 cm (about 1.5 inches).

Trimming the excess dough from the edges of a rectangular baking dish to form a neat crust.

Trim the edges of the dough and even out the sides.

Trim the edges of the dough and even out the sides. Gather the trimmed edges into a ball—they will be used for decoration. Place the pan and the dough scraps in the refrigerator for half an hour while you prepare the filling.

A bowl of dry tvorog (cottage cheese) with freshly squeezed lemon juice being added.

Mix lemon juice and dry tvorog.

Adding sugar and flour to the cottage cheese and lemon juice mixture in a bowl.

Add granulated sugar and wheat flour.

Pouring heavy cream into a bowl with the cottage cheese filling ingredients.

Now pour in the heavy cream.


For the filling, squeeze the juice from the lemon whose zest you used for the dough. Strain the juice through a sieve to remove the seeds. Mix the lemon juice with dry tvorog (a type of farmer’s cheese or quark).

Add the granulated sugar and wheat flour. You can use potato or corn starch instead of flour.

Now, pour in the heavy cream. The cream can be replaced with smetana (a type of sour cream) or milk.

Whisking the creamy cottage cheese filling in a glass bowl until smooth.

Thoroughly mix the filling ingredients, mashing the tvorog to remove any lumps.

Thoroughly mix the filling ingredients, mashing the tvorog to eliminate any lumps.

Pouring the smooth cottage cheese filling into the dough-lined rectangular baking dish.

Spread the filling into the baking dish.

Decorating the top of the cottage cheese pie with a lattice pattern made from dough strips.

Cut into strips about a centimeter wide and decorate the top of the pie.

The assembled Tvorog pie with a lattice top, ready to be baked in the oven.

Place the pie in an oven preheated to 200 degrees Celsius for 35 minutes.


Spread the filling into the pan. It’s quite liquid, making it easy to smooth out and fill the entire space with a layer of tvorog.

Roll out the dough scraps and lightly sprinkle with white sesame seeds. Cut into strips about a centimeter wide and decorate the top of the pie.

Place the pie in an oven preheated to 200°C (400°F) for 35 minutes. This is enough time for the crust to become golden and the filling to bake through.

Dusting the golden-brown baked Tvorog pie with powdered sugar using a small sieve.

Remove the pie from the dish and sprinkle with powdered sugar through a fine sieve.

Remove the pie from the pan and sprinkle with powdered sugar through a fine sieve.

And there you have it—a beautiful and delicious Tvorog Pie, ready to be enjoyed! Let it cool slightly before slicing, as this will help the filling set perfectly. This pie is wonderful on its own, but you can also serve it with a dollop of sour cream, fresh berries, or a drizzle of honey for extra indulgence. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. We hope you love this simple yet elegant dessert that brings a touch of Eastern European comfort to your kitchen. Happy baking!