Okrugljak’s recipe for Poppy Seed Roll

Makovnjača is a yeast-based cake traditionally prepared for holidays and festive occasions. It is a classic when it comes to Croatian traditional desserts.

Preparation time: 2 hours

Ingredients for the dough:

30 g fresh yeast

400 g soft flour

250 g butter

1 egg

1 egg yolk

60 g sugar

200 ml milk

Ingredients for the filling:

400 g ground poppy seeds

2 tbsp honey

150 g sugar

lemon zest

egg white foam

200ml milk

Directions:

Heat the milk; add the sugar and the fresh yeast. Put in a warm place for the yeast to rise.

Crumble the butter into the flour, add the egg, egg yolk, sugar and the yeast mixture and make the dough. Leave the dough to rise for 30 minutes.

Pour the hot milk over the ground poppy seeds, sugar, honey and lemon zest. Mix well and add the egg whites foam. Combine gently.

Knead it briefly and divide into three pieces. Roll out each piece, cover with the filling and roll into small strudels. Bake at 180°C for about 45 minutes. Sprinkle the warm strudel with icing sugar.