Poppy Seed and Walnut Roll

Name: Poppy Seed and Walnut Roll
Prep time: 50 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 40 min
Yield: 14 servings
Cuisine: Austrian, Polish
Ingredients: 2.5 cups All-Purpose Flour; 0.33 cup Butter; 2 whole Eggs; 0.13 pinch Ground Cinnamon; 1 whole Instant Rice; 1 whole Lemon; 1 cup Poppy Seeds; 0.67 cup Raisin; 2 tbsp Rum; 0.25 tsp Salt; 0.5 cup Sugar; 0.5 tsp Vanilla Extract; 1.67 cups Walnuts; 0.75 cup Whole Milk

Breakfast 🍳Dessert 🍰Snack 🍿 Austrian 🇦🇹Polish 🇵🇱 Low-Sodium Vegetarian 🥦Comfort-Food Pescatarian 🐟

Poppy Seed and Walnut Roll is a Croatian-style sweet yeast bread swirled with two classic fillings: a nutty walnut-raisin blend and an aromatic poppy seed-raisin mixture. The loaf bakes up tender with a golden crust and fragrant hints of lemon, vanilla, cinnamon, and rum—perfect for holidays, coffee breaks, or a cozy weekend treat.

Prep50 mins
Cook50 mins
Serves14
DifficultyMedium

1

Place the flour in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on High for 30 seconds. Stir in the dry yeast. Stir in the 1/2 cup sugar, egg yolks, salt, zest of 1 lemon, the 1/3 cup melted butter, and warm milk until a dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the surface is smooth and shiny, about 10 minutes. Alternatively, use an electric mixer to knead the dough until smooth and shiny, about 5 minutes.
2

Shape the dough into a ball; cover it and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
3

Meanwhile, make the walnut filling: combine the walnuts, the 1/2 cup sugar, 2/3 cup raisins, rum, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and a pinch of cinnamon. Pour in the boiling milk and stir until everything is combined.
4

For the poppy seed filling, put the poppy seeds and milk in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook until the milk is steaming, about 5 minutes. Add 1/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup raisins, lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, and cinnamon; stir to combine. Let both fillings cool to room temperature, about 20 minutes.
5

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease a large baking sheet or line it with parchment.
6

Roll the dough into a 3/8-inch-thick rectangle. Brush the rectangle with melted butter. Spread the walnut filling over half of the dough; spread the poppy seed filling over the remaining half of the rectangle.
7

Roll each half of the dough toward the center, press the two halves together at the middle, and carefully transfer the roll to the prepared baking sheet. Let rest for 10 minutes before baking.
8

Bake in the preheated oven until the top and bottom are golden brown and the fillings are hot, about 50 minutes. Cool completely before slicing, about 1 hour.