Hungarian Christmas Makos Patko (Poppy Seed Horseshoe)

Instructions

FOR THE DOUGH: Sprinkle yeast into lukewarm water, add 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/4 cup flour, stir and set aside in a draft-free corner for 5 to 10 minutes or until mixture foams. Make sure your yeast is fresh or it won't foam.

Scald milk and to it add butter, remaining sugar and salt. Stir until butter melts. Cool until lukewarm and add lemon rind and flavoring of your choice, beat in the eggs, yolks and milk. Combine 2 cups flour, yeast, and beat thoroughly. Gradually add enough remaining flour to make a smooth but pliable dough. Turn out on a floured board and knead for about 10 minutes, adding flour if needed, until dough is smooth and elastic and blisters form on the surface.

Gather dough into a ball, place in a floured bowl, dust top with flour and cover lightly with a towel. Set to rise in a draft-free corner until doubled in bulk--about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down, knead for 2 or 3 minutes.

Prepare dough, and when it has risen, punch down and roll out to a rectangle a little less than 1/4 inch thick. Spread filling over dough and roll up jelly-roll fashion. Bend roll gently into a horseshoe shape and slide onto a buttered baking sheet. OR cut in half and place each half in a buttered 9-inch loaf pan or on a baking sheet. Let rise until almost doubled in bulk.

If you want to ice the roll, brush it with lukewarm water before baking. Otherwise, brush it with egg glaze. Bake in preheated 350 degrees F. oven for about 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool thoroughly before icing. Makes 1 large or 2 smaller coffeecakes.

FOR THE POPPY SEED FILLING: The night before, cover poppy seeds with boiling water and let them soak until the following morning, or wash and parboil for 30 minutes just before grinding. Drain thoroughly and grind in a poppy-seed grinder, or put them through the finest blade of your meat chopper 3 or 4 times.

I use a coffee grinder for this. (or buy ground poppy seeds if there is a store near you that prepares them, but be sure they are not rancid.)

Cream butter with honey. When well blended, combine with cream, poppy seeds and remaining filling ingredients. (Some people prefer to omit the butter and to cook the ground poppy seeds with 2 cups milk and the honey until the mixture is thick. The other ingredients are then stirred in.)

EGG GLAZE: 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water.

WHITE SUGAR GLAZE:

For cookies and cakes, and especially for Lebkuchen.

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
1 teaspoon rum or brandy (optional)
1/2 to 1 1/4 tablespoons hot water, or as needed

Combine sugar, cornstarch, flavorings and rum or brandy. Gradually stir in hot water, a tablespoonful at a time, until you have a smooth thick paste. Spread on warm cookies, or cooled poppy seed cake. If mixture cools and thickens as you work, thin with additional hot water. Sugar sprinkles can be scattered on the glaze before it hardens if you wish.

Visions of SugarPlums

Author's Comments

This is the highlight of the Christmas sweet table in Hungary. The Polish Struclaz Makiem, The Ukrainian Makivnyk, The Yugoslavian Potica and the Putiza of the Veneto region of Italy are made exactly the same way.