Potica Traditional Slovenian Nut Roll Recipes

POTICA - TRADITIONAL SLOVENIAN NUT ROLL

Steps:

• Stir the sugar, salt and ¼ cup butter into hot milk.Cool to lukewarm. (a drop on your wrist won't feel hot)
• Sprinkle the yeast over warm water in a large bowl. Stir to dissolve.
• Stir in lukewarm milk mixture to the yeast mixture.
• Add 2 eggs and 2 ½ cups flour to the yeast mixture. Use a wooden spoon to mix in the ingredients until smooth.
• Gradually add in the remaining 2 cups flour; knead by hand until the dough is stiff enough to leave the side of the bowl.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased large bowl. Turn dough over - greased side up - and cover with a towel.
• Let the dough rise in warm place (85F) free from drafts, until doubled in size - about an hour.
• In a medium bowl beat the eggs slightly. Add the walnuts, brown sugar, ⅓ cup of melted butter, cinnamon and vanilla.Stir until well blended and set aside until needed.
• When the dough has risen, punch it down and turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Cover the dough with a bowl and let rest for 10 minutes.
• Roll the dough out to a 30×20" rectangle.
• Spread the walnut filling on top of the dough, leaving 1 inch of the edge uncovered around the entire dough.
• Starting from the wide side, begin rolling up the dough tightly (jellyroll style). Seal by pinching the edges of dough with your fingers.
• On a large greased cookie sheet or seasoned baking stone, form the roll into a large coil.
• Let the potica rise in a warm place (85F), covered with a towel, for one hour.
• Preheat oven to 350F.
• Brush the potica with 2 Tablespoons of melted butter.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown.
• Cool on wire rack before cutting.

POTICA (SLOVENIAN NUT ROLL)

Steps:

• We traditionally bake potica in a cake pan called Poticnik. It's similar to a bundt cake pan, so you can use that or use a loaf pan. Grease with butter or lard and set aside.
• In a small bowl knead together yeast, sugar, and lukewarm milk. Set aside for 10 minutes for the yeast to grow. In a large bowl combine all-purpose flour, yeast mixture, and egg yolks. Knead for a minute, then add melted butter and salt. Knead for about 10 minutes by hand or use an electric mixer and knead until the dough is nice, soft and elastic, for about 5 minutes (using a mixer). Cover with cling film and set aside for about 50 - 60 minutes or until doubled in size.
• Put the walnuts in a bowl of a food processor and pulse for a few seconds at a time until the walnuts are fine. Transfer to a large bowl. In a saucepan combine heavy cream, floral honey, sugar, butter, rum (optionally), lemon zest and ground cinnamon. Place over medium-high heat, bring to a boil, then pour over the walnuts in a bowl. Stir to combine to get a nice walnut filling. Set aside for the mixture to cool to room temperature. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites with sugar to get stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites into the walnut mixture and stir to combine. The walnut filling mixture should be light, yet stirred well.
• Preheat your oven to 190 °C / 375 °F. Generously dust your working area with flour. Roll the dough into a 40 cm x 35 cm / 16-inches x 13.5-inches rectangle, thickness 0.5 cm or 0.2-inch. Using an offset spatula, spread the walnut filling in an even layer over the dough. Starting at the shorter edge nearest you, tightly roll up into a tight log. Brush off any excess flour. Transfer the potica roll to the prepared pan so that the seam is looking upward. Make sure that the ends of the log are tightly pressed together or the potica won't be as pretty and the filling will spread out while baking.
• Cover the potica with a towel or cling film and let stand at room temperature until doubled in size, about 45 - 55 minutes.
• If you want to proof the potica overnight, you first need to leave out the first bulk proofing. Once you knead the dough, leave it to rest at your working surface for about 15 minutes, then roll the dough into a rectangle and spread the walnut filling over the dough. Roll, transfer to your prepared pan. Cover with cling film or towel and place in the fridge to proof for about 8 - 12 hours. Then, place the cold potica into your preheated oven to bake.
• Using a brush, gently brush the potica with lukewarm milk. Use a skewer to poke holes all over the top of the potica all the way through to prevent air bubbles from forming and separating the filling from the dough. Transfer the potica to the preheated oven. Bake for 45 minutes at 180 °C / 355 °F. Then lower the heat to 160 °C / 320 °F and continue to bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until the nut roll is puffed and golden brown. Let cool slightly, for about 5 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack and remove the pan. Leave the potica to cool, then sprinkle with icing sugar and serve. Enjoy.

POTICA (CROATIAN NUT ROLL)

Steps:

• Stir yeast into water.
• Mix butter, milk, sugar, and salt.
• Add egg yolks, yeast mixture and 2 cup flour.
• Mix thoroughly.
• Add remaining flour and turn dough out on a floured surface.
• Knead until smooth, elastic and does not stick to surface.
• Place in greased bowl and let rise 1 hour.
• Grease your baking pan.
• Filling: mix milk, salt, margarine and sugar.
• Heat slightly until margarine melts and sugar is dissolved.
• Add nuts then to stretch mixture you can fold in beaten egg whites.
• After it has risen, divide into 4 equal parts.
• Do not knead.
• Roll each piece to about 1/8 inch thick.
• Spread with cooled filling.
• Roll jelly-roll style and place seam down in a greased pan.
• Let rise for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Bake 40 - 45 minutes.

POTICA

Steps:

• In a small mixing bowl, dissolve yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar, and 3 tablespoons of the flour in warm milk. Mix well, and let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large mixing bowl cream the butter with the remaining sugar. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the yeast mixture, remaining milk, 4 cups of flour and the salt; mix well. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Lightly grease one or two cookie sheets. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and roll Out to 1/4 to 1/2 inch thickness. Spread each piece with melted butter, honey, raisins, walnuts and cinnamon. Roll each piece up like a jelly roll and pinch the ends. Place seam side down onto the prepared baking sheets. Let rise until double in volume. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 60 minutes or until the top is golden brown.