Hungarian Christmas cake – Beigli
Beigli is a classic Hungarian Christmas cake with a filling of walnuts, fruit of your choice or poppy seeds. It is traditionally served during Christmas and is a must on the Hungarian Christmas table. With its soft but juicy texture, combined with nuts and sweetness, it is a real favorite.
Ingredients (4–6 cookies)
Dough
- 500 g wheat flour
- 250 g butter (cold)
- 80g sugar
- 2 eggs
- 20 g yeast
- 1 dl milk (lukewarm)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- Zest of 1 lemon (optional)
Filling
Choose between two classic fillings:
Walnut filling:
- 200 g walnuts, ground
- 100g sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 cup milk
Poppy seed filling:
- 200 g poppy seeds, ground
- 100g sugar
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla sugar
- 1 egg for brushing
- Icing sugar for serving (optional)
Tip: You can also try a mixed filling with walnuts and dried fruit for extra Christmas flavor.
Do this:
1. Prepare the dough
- Crumble the yeast into the lukewarm milk and let stand for 5 minutes.
- Mix flour, sugar, vanilla sugar and salt in a bowl.
- Cut the butter into small cubes and rub it into the flour mixture until it forms a crumbly mass.
- Add the eggs, lemon zest and yeast mixture. Knead quickly to a smooth dough.
- Let the dough rest under a baking cloth for about 1 hour, until it has risen to double in size.
2. Make the filling
- Finely grind walnuts or poppy seeds. Or use pre-ground poppy seeds .
- Mix with sugar, cinnamon/vanilla sugar and milk until you get a spreadable mass.
3. Assemble Beigli
- Divide the dough into 4–6 pieces. Roll each piece out into a rectangle.
- Spread the filling on top and roll up from the long side, like a rolled cake.
- Place the rolls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush with beaten egg.
4. Bake
- Preheat the oven to 180°C.
- Bake for about 35–40 minutes, until they are a nice golden brown color.
- Let cool completely on a wire rack before serving. Dust with icing sugar if desired.
Serving tips
Cut into thin slices and serve with coffee, tea or hot chocolate. Beigli stays juicy for several days – perfect for Christmas celebrations and as a nice and personal gift.
Enjoy your meal!🇭🇺
Tasty meal!🇸🇪
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