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Hungarian Beigli – Christmas poppy seed and walnut roll cake
Christmas tables would not be complete without poppy seed or walnut beigli. It is often called walnut roll or poppy seed roll, both fillings are traditional and most of the time served together.
These days bakers make beiglis with new fillings, such as chesnuts, cherries, prunes or chocolate.
There is an old belief among Hungarians that poppy seeds, just like lentils, bring good luck to the house, so when consumed for Christmas or New Year’s Eve, people believed it would bring them prosperity in the new year, also, walnuts keep trouble away.
You can make your beigli on your own or buy it from your favorite bakery. The best to pre-order to make sure your Christmas table will not miss this fantastic cake.
How to make Hungarian beigli?
The dough is made of flour, sugar, egg, milk, butter, lard and yeast. The dough can be flavored with lemon or orange zest, I always falvor with lemon zest, it makes the dough so much tastier.
The poppy seed filling contains ground poppy seeds, raisins, milk, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla flavoring. In Hungary we prefer adding vanilla sugar, but you can use extarct too.
For the walnut filling I always add some apricot jam, which is one of the most popular jams used in Hungarian cuisine, is substituted for sugar. The walnut roll filling contains raisins, milk, lemon and orange zest, finely ground and coarsly chopped walnuts. This filling is also spiced with cinnamon and vanilla.
The filling is spread over the dough, which is then rolled up lenghtwise, ensuring that the rolls remain firm.
How to give the beigli surface that shiny, marbled look?
I always get the quieston on how to give the surface that shiny, marbled look? What is the secret? The secret is the egg wash, separate the egg, set the egg whites aside. Gently whisk the egg yolk and brush the top of the rolls. Let them sit until yolk dries, it will take about half an hour or so.
After the egg yolk has dried, brush on the egg white, let it dry in a cool place, if possible not in the fridge.You can leave them overnight and bake the next day. if you follow these instructions, the top of your beigli should look perfect.
How to make powdered sugar in just 30 seconds?
I teach you how to make powdered sugar at home! It is so simple with the sugar of your choice, once you learn this, no need to buy it any more. In addition, since you are making yours fresh, you can skip the corn starch when you make it at home.
You just need a spice grinder, and you can prinkle the freshest powdered sugar in your dessert. My Mom gave me this grinder, it is a popular brand in Hungary but not available in North America. The Secura Electric Coffee and Spice Grinder at Amazon is easily available for anyone, you can even grind your own coffee and different spices.
How to grind poppy seeds?
When I prepare a poppy seeds filling, I always use my coffee grinder, just like when I make powdered sugar. It takes smaller amounts of poppy seeds and grinds them into powder pretty quickly. Add sugar to the poppy seeds, it helps keep the poppy seed from sticking to the inner walls. You need 1 cup of powder for the filling anyway, so just grind the poppy seeds and sugar together.
Another option is that you soak the poppy seeds in water for about 30 minutes, then you can use your food processor to grind them.
Hungarian Beigli - Christmas poppy seed and walnut roll cake
Ingredients
For the dough
- 17.6 ounces all purpose flour 500 grams
- 3.5 ounces unsalted butter 100 grams
- 3.5 ounces pork lard 100 grams
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar 50 grams
- 2 eggs
- 0.5 ounces fresh yeast 15 grams
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 pinch of salt
For the walnut filling
- 2 cups walnuts finely ground, 200 grams
- 1 handful walnuts coarsly chopped
- 1/2 cup milk whole
- 1 cup powdered sugar 100 grams
- 1 pinch ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp raisins optional
- 2 tbsp apricot jam
- 1 coffeespoon lemon zest
- 1 cofeespoon orange zest
For the poppy seed filling
- 8.5 ounces poppy seeds ground, 250 grams
- 1/2 cup milk whole
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp raisins optional
- 1 coffeespoon lemon zest
Other
- 1 egg for eggwash
Instructions
- Dissolve 1 teaspoon of sugar in the lukewarm milk, then add the yeast, wait a few minutes until blooms.
- Mix the flour with the butter and lard by hand. The mixture will be quite crumbly.
- Add 2 whole eggs, the powdered sugar, pinch of salt, vanilla sugar, lemon zest and the yeast/milk mixture. Knead thoroughly. Add more flour if necessary.
- Divide the dough into 4 balls, cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, you have time to make the walnut and poppy seed filling.
- Walnut filling: In a pan heat the milk with the sugar, bring it to a boil. Take the pan off the heat, add the ground and coarsely chopped walnuts, the raisins, the lemon and orange zest, the cinnamon and the apricot jam. Mix well and let it cool completely.
- Poppy seed filling: In a pan heat the milk with the sugar, bring it to a boil. Take the pan off the heat, add the ground poppy seeds, the raisins and the lemon zest. Mix well and let it cool completely.
- Heat the oven to 180°C (355°F). Line a pan with parchment paper.
- On a floured surface roll out each piece of the dough into a rectangle measuring about 12×14 inches (30×35 cm).
- Spread the walnut or poppy seed filling on the dough while leaving approx. 1/2 inch empty edges on each side, and roll up lengthwise. Make sure it is not too tight and not too losse. Carefully transfer the rolls onto the baking sheet.
- Egg wash: Separate the egg, set the egg whites aside. Gently whisk the egg yolk and brush the top of the 4 rolls. Let them sit in the yolk dries, it will take about half an hour or so. After the egg yolk has dried, brush on the egg white, let it dry in a cool place, if possible not in the fridge.You can leave them overnight and bake the next day.
- Prick on the top with a skewer, making sure it goes all the way through. It allows vapor to escape, that could cause the pastry to split.
- Bake the rolls for about 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Keep the rolls in a cool and dry place and slice them only before serving.
Wanting to make this for my Hungarian son in law for Christmas! I could use some help with the measurements conversion! Please!!!
Hello Charity,
Sorry for my late response. Yes, how can I help you?
Agnes
Perfect recipe – just like Grandma made – and not just for Christmas!!!
The Poppy Seed roll is my all time favorite!!!!! I have only tried to make it once, from a recipe my mother had. In this recipe it calls for one sachet of vanilla sugar. How much is a sachet of sugar?
Hello Mary,
One sachet is about 10 grams – a flat tablespoon.
Kind regards,
Agnes
This by far the easiest recipee I’ve seen and it’s in english! My grandma and aunt both make this! Love this it reminds me of when I was a child back home!
I’m going to try it! Thanks for recipe!
Hi Gabirela,
Thanks, I hope it will turn out delicious. Please let me know!:)
Agnes
My favorite filling is dry cottage cheese, a little sour cream and golden raisins for sweetness. Except here in Central Texas dry cottage cheese turo is impossible to find.
I made it twice it turned out exactly like the way nagymama used to make it! Every time I make it I am reminded of her!
I will be making it this year as well!
Gabriela, Thank you so much for your kind words! I’m thrilled to hear that the beigli recipe resonates with you and reminds you of nagymama’s cooking. It’s such a special feeling to recreate those cherished flavors and traditions. Wishing you a delightful time making it again this year! Happy Holidays! :)
how much powdered yeat can be used?
Hi Eva,
Please use 7 grams or 2 teaspoons of powdered instant yeast.
Have a great day!
Agnes
Hi Agnes, do you have an advice so the rolls don’t crack during baking?
Many thanks,
Carol
Hi Carol,
First, please make sure that the filling is not liquidy. Then prick on the top with a skewer, making sure it goes all the way through.
I hope it helps!
Agnes
What temerature?
Hello Zoltan,
Heat the oven to 180°C (355°F).
Kind regards,
Agnes
Hello Zoltan,
How many loaves does this recipe make ?
Hello!
This recipe makes 4 loaves.
Aggie
Hi. I can’t use lard in the recipe. What can I substitute please?
Hello Ricky,
You can use butter instead of lard.
Happy Holidays!
Aggie
I used ghee instead of lard, and worked really well.
I make beigli every year having learnt it from my mother who died 20 years ago. My daughter has become vegan and so I have to make her a special vegan beigli. I shall use vegan margarine, and liquid from tinned chickpeas [aquafaba] instead of eggs. I live in Nottingham and luckily there is a Paprika Store that sells Hungarian ground poppy seeds, among other Hungarian food, so that I don’t have to grind it myself with the expensive poppyseed grinder I purchased some years ago!
Hello Zsuzsanna,
You can use 1 tablespoon of ground linseeds instead of egg. Also, use plant based milk instead of cow’s milk. You mix the plant milk with the yeast, sugar and ground linseeds. Margarine sounds great.
I always use my coffee grinder to grind my poppy seeds. I just pust some sugar in it too, it prevents the ground poppy seeds to be too sticky (because of the oil content).
Happy Holidays!
Aggie
Hi, I don’t have access to vanilla sugar. Can I add some vanilla extract instead?
Thanks, Judit
Hello Judit,
Yes, you can use vanilla extract! Happy Holidays!
Aggie
Hello – I can’t wait to make this today – My Mom used to fill with Lekvar sometimes – do I have to do anything different if I fill with Lekvar?
Hello Zsuzsa,
I have never made it with Lekvar, we just put some lekvar in the walnut filling.
Happy holidays!
Aggie
Hi, I am so excited to try this recipe. What type of flour do you use? I only have all purpose flour, I can use that? would the measurements change? Thank you!
Hello Valentina,
Please use all purpose flour, that is what I am using too. The measurments will not change.
Happy Holidays!
Aggie
Hi, I am so excited to make this.
I only have all purpose flour, can I use it? Would the measurements for flour change?
Thank you,
Valentina
Thank you for posting! My favorite is the gesztenye (chestnut paste) version of the beigli!!
Hi. I made this recipe and my dough came out a bit hard. I’m wondering why? I used my robot to knead the dough for 10 min.
Hi Iszabela,
The differences in American/Canadien and European wheat come down to the amount of gluten and selenium in each.
You may need to use less flour or a bit more milk for the right consistancy.
Hope it helps. :)
Aggie
Hi Agnes, I’m so glad that I found your recipe, my Hungarian mother (also Agnes) and her family were from Johnstown Pa, and made nutroll and poppyseed roll every year. I’m rekindling the Hungarian baking in my family, and hope to make the rolls as perfect as the memory from years ago. Please let me know the thickness of the dough when rolled out; I have seen in other recipes thicknesses that vary from 1/4″ to 1/2″. Thanks so much for your site, you are preserving a culture and history ! Sean
Hi Sean,
The thickness shoud be around 3mm, 1/8 inch. Plese let me know how this recipe woked for you.
Many thanks!
Agnes
Found this recipe and would love to make it the way my grandmother made it. What is a coffeespoon measurement in teaspoons or tablespoons?
Hello Leslie,
1 coffeespoon is about 1/2 teaspoon. Hope this recipe will work for you. Let me know! :)
Happy baking!
Agnes
I printed this with images included and it did not print with images. My Mom used to make this for Christmas and Easter every year as she was 100% Hungarian. I hope to do the same now with this recipe as she’s gone now. Thank you for sharing!
Do you have a recipe for chestnut filling!?
Thank you!
Hi Janice,
I’ve never made it with chestnut filling, unfortunately I don’t have a recipe.
Agnes
I’m allergic to Lemons, what could I use instead?
Hi Cindi,
Use orange zest then. :)
Agne
Is it OK to make the dough the day before filling and baking the beigli? Can I keep the dough in the refrigerator overnight?
Hi Berzsa,
Yes, you can make the dough and the fillings in advance and keep in the refrigerator overnight.
Agnes
My favorite filling is turo with a bit of sour cream and plump golden raisins. It’s too bad though that dry cottage cheese is impossible to find here in Central Texas. My mom has made the filling also with cream cheese and an egg, but that is trickier because sometimes the dough inside won’t bake all the way through.
Hello Barath Agnes,
My grandmother made something similar to this over Christmas holidays when I was young. She passed long ago and her recipes were not passed along to anyone in the family. I will be making both of these over the holidays this year and was wondering if you have ever made a pumpkin filling? I believe she would use a Hubbard pumpkin for this but that is just a distant memory and I could be wrong. Thank you for keeping tradition alive.
Lynelle
Dear Lynelle,
Thank you so much for sharing your heartfelt memories. I’m truly honored that my beigli recipe brings back fond moments of your grandmother’s holiday traditions.
While I haven’t personally made beigli with a pumpkin filling, it sounds like a delightful and creative twist! Your mention of a Hubbard pumpkin adds a unique touch, and I appreciate the nostalgia it brings.
For the traditional walnut and poppy seed fillings in my recipe, I recommend using those specific ingredients to maintain the classic flavors. However, experimenting with a pumpkin filling could be a wonderful way to add a personal touch and continue the tradition in your own way.
If you decide to try the pumpkin filling, I’d love to hear how it turns out. Wishing you a joyous holiday season filled with warmth and delicious treats.
Best regards,
Barath Agnes
Kedves Àgi!
When you state the oven temperature you don’t say whether it’s a fan oven. Could you please clarify for me ?
I’m looking forward to making my first beigli. My brother Bèla and sister Margit have been making them for years. Still, it’s not too late to start at 84! Best wishes from across the pond.
Mihàly
Hello Mihály! :)
That’s a good question, no fan, please.
Absolutely, never too late to start baking beigli! No worries if it breaks, it happens, and the flavor is the same! :)
Szeretettel,
Ági