Potica
 Slovenska potica is variation of rolled pastry. | |
| Alternative names | Potica |
|---|---|
| Type | Pastry |
| Place of origin | Slovenia |
| Region or state | all regions of Slovenia, Carinthia, Province of Trieste |
| Created by | traditional folk food |
| Main ingredients | Sweet yeast dough, ground walnut, butter |
| Variations | tarragon, quark, hazelnut, pumpkin seed, poppy seed, cracklings, bacon |
Potica (Slovene pronunciation: [pɔˈtiːt͡sa], also slovenska potica) is a traditional festive pastry from Slovenia.
The word potica as well as some regional names for potica, like povtica, potvica, etc. are descended from the word povitica. Povitica is derived from the verb 'poviti', which means to wrap in or to envelop, and it signifies a type of pastry that you roll. This type of dessert is common in many Eastern European countries as well as in regions bordering Slovenia, for example, in Friuli in neighboring Italy, they prepare a sweet bread called gubana, in Austria, a roll called Kärntner Reinling.[1]
Varieties
Potica consists of a rolled pastry made of leavened paper-thin dough filled with any of a great variety of fillings, but most often with walnut filling.
The most characteristic poticas are made with ground walnut, tarragon, quark, hazelnut or poppy seed, salted ones even with cracklings or bacon, and other fillings. Potica is a festive pastry and could be baked in two ways: in the oven or directly on the hearth, but original Slovenska potica is a ring-shaped pastry, baked always in the special shaped potica baking mould (ceramic, glass or tin one), called potičnik, which has a conical protrusion in the middle.
Potica is served also every Easter and Christmas in Slovenia and is still very popular even in some parts of the United States.[2][3] For example, potica is a popular offering at many local bakeries in Hibbing, Minnesota based on recipes handed down for generations in the immigrant community.[4]
Potica made with mixed nuts and cinnamon
Potičnik - traditional baking mould for potica
Potica as part of traditional Slovenian Easter breakfast
American potica at Kaiser's Six Point Bakery
Protection regime
Slovenska potica has been registered as a Traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG) in the European Union since April 2021.[5]
See also
References
- ^ "Is it pizza? No, it's potica!". Slovenian Kitchen. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
- ^ Official Slovenian recipe Archived March 10, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Fishwick, Carmen (24 May 2017). "Is it pizza? No, it's potica: the pope gives Melania Trump food for thought". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- ^ MacKay, Carolynn Purpura (2012). "Notes from Hibbing, Minnesota: The Hunt for Potica". America's Test Kitchen Feed. Archived from the original on 2012-03-26.
- ^ "Slovenska potica". European Union. Retrieved 24 October 2021.