Potica

CathyZ

Well-known member
POTICA

The dough:

1 cake (3/5 oz) compressed yeast

1 tbsp sugar

1/2 cup lard (yup- lard. If you MUST, use really good unsalted butter)

1/2 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup milk, scalded and cooled

4-1/2 cups all-purpose, unbleached white flour

1-1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp chopped fresh lemon zest

Mix yeast and 1 tbsp sugar. Cream lard and 1/2 cup sugar in large mixer bowl. Add eggs. Beat well. Add vanilla, yeast, milk, 2 cups flour, salt, nutmeg and lemon zest. Beat well. Stir in 2 cups flour until mixture forms a ball. Use remaining flour to lightly knead dough. Dough will be soft and slightly sticky. Place in a greased bowl, cover and let rise in warm place until double- about 2 hours. Punch down dough. Cover the table with a cloth and flour cloth generously (I use a small strainer like you would with powdered sugar) Place dough in center and roll into a rectangle, about 30 X 20 inches. Begin stretching dough by hand from center outward in all directions. Dough will become very thin- stretch to almost cover the table. Dough will be as thin as "skin". Spread carefully with cooled filling- if filling becomes "stiff", add a little very warm water. Roll like a jelly roll. Trim off ends, cut swiftly into three rolls and place side by side in a greased 9X13 pan- or in loaf pans. Cover lightly with cloth and let rise in warm place for about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375. Quickly brush tops with melted butter if you like. Bake 10 minutes; reduce heat to 325 and bake 50-60 minutes longer- the loaves should sound hollow when tapped. If you are baking in individual loaf pans it will not take as long. Let cool a bit then cut the rolls apart and cool completely on a rack. Be careful as you can easily break the roll until it is cool.

Filling:

1 cup milk

1/2 cup each honey, white sugar and packed brown sugar

1/4 cup butter

6 cups ground walnuts (about 1-1/2 lbs)

1 tsp each cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg

2 eggs

Heat milk, honey, sugars and butter to boiling- do not worry if mixture appears curdled. Stir in walnuts, cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg. Cook 10 minutes and cool to lukewarm. Beat in eggs, one at a time.

 
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