Mohnstriezel

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large mixing bowl
• •Rolling pin
• •Sharp knife or bench scraper
• •Baking sheet lined with parchment paper
• •Small saucepan
• •Wire cooling rack
• •Pastry brush
• •Poppy seed grinder or spice grinder (if grinding whole seeds)

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the raisins

   Put the raisins in a small bowl and pour the rum over them. Give them a stir and leave them alone for at least an hour, longer if you can manage it. The raisins need time to drink up the rum and turn plump and fragrant. If you skip this or cut it short, you'll have dry, hard little raisins sitting in your filling doing nothing useful.

   You can soak these overnight. They only get better the longer they sit. Cover the bowl so the rum doesn't evaporate.
2. 2

   Make the dough

   Warm the milk until it's just lukewarm, about the temperature of a comfortable bath. Dissolve the yeast in the milk with a pinch of the sugar and let it sit for five minutes until it turns foamy on top. That foam tells you the yeast is alive and working. If nothing happens after ten minutes, your yeast is dead and you need fresh. Put the flour in a large bowl. Add the sugar, salt, Vanillezucker, and lemon zest. Make a well in the center. Pour in the yeast mixture, the egg yolks, and the whole egg. Begin mixing with a wooden spoon, then add the softened butter in pieces as the dough comes together. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for eight to ten minutes until it's smooth, elastic, and springs back when you press a finger into it. This dough should feel soft and a little tacky, but it shouldn't stick to your hands in sheets. If it does, add flour a tablespoon at a time.

   Enriched doughs take longer to develop gluten because the fat and sugar slow things down. Don't stop kneading at five minutes and think you're done. The dough will tell you when it's ready: it becomes silky and almost stretchy, like pulling warm taffy.
3. 3

   First rise

   Shape the dough into a ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a clean tea towel and put it somewhere warm, not hot, for about an hour and a half, until it doubles in size. The top of the fridge works. So does a turned-off oven with just the light on. Yeast wants gentle warmth, not a sauna. If you rush it with too much heat, the dough will rise fast but taste flat.

4. 4

   Cook the poppy seed filling

   While the dough rises, make the filling. In a small saucepan, bring the milk, sugar, and butter to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the butter melts. Remove from the heat and stir in the ground poppy seeds. They'll absorb the liquid and turn into a thick, dark, slightly gritty paste. Add the honey, lemon zest, cinnamon, breadcrumbs, and the rum-soaked raisins with any leftover rum. Stir everything together and let it cool completely. The breadcrumbs are doing quiet but important work here. They absorb extra moisture so the filling stays put inside the braid instead of leaking out the seams while it bakes. Don't leave them out.

   Ground poppy seeds go stale quickly because of their high oil content. Buy them from a shop with good turnover or, better yet, grind whole poppy seeds yourself in a spice grinder or the old-fashioned way with a Mohmmuhle (poppy seed mill). The flavor difference is night and day.
5. 5

   Roll and fill

   Punch down the risen dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll it into a large rectangle, roughly 40 by 30 centimeters. The dough will want to spring back. Let it. If it fights you too hard, walk away for five minutes and come back. The gluten needs to relax, and forcing it only makes things worse. Spread the cooled poppy seed filling evenly over the surface, leaving a two-centimeter border on all sides. Be thorough. If the filling is patchy, your slices will have bald spots of plain dough with no poppy seed in them, and that's a disappointment nobody needs.

6. 6

   Shape the Striezel

   Starting from the long edge closest to you, roll the dough up tightly into a log, tucking the filling in as you go. Pinch the seam to seal it and place the log seam-side down. Now, using a sharp knife or a bench scraper, cut the log in half lengthwise from end to end. You'll see the dark poppy seed spiral exposed in cross-section. Turn both halves so the cut sides face up. Pinch the two strands together at one end, then twist them around each other, keeping the cut sides facing upward so the filling stays visible. Pinch the other end to seal. Transfer the braided loaf carefully to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Tuck the ends underneath slightly to give it a clean shape.

   The twist doesn't need to be perfect. It's meant to show off the contrast between golden dough and dark filling, and even a slightly uneven braid looks beautiful once it's baked and glazed. Confidence matters more than precision here.
7. 7

   Second rise

   Cover the shaped Striezel loosely with a tea towel and let it rise for another thirty to forty minutes. It should puff up noticeably but won't double again. While it rises, preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F) with the rack in the center. Don't rush this second rise. If you put it in the oven too soon, the braid will tear open in ugly places as the dough expands. Give it time and the oven spring will be gentle and even.

8. 8

   Glaze and bake

   Brush the entire surface of the Striezel with the egg wash, getting into the crevices of the braid. The egg wash is what gives you that deep golden, lacquered finish. Scatter pearl sugar or sliced almonds over the top if you like. Both are traditional. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top is a rich, deep amber and the loaf sounds hollow when you tap the bottom. If the top darkens too quickly, tent it loosely with foil for the last ten minutes. The internal temperature should reach about 88°C (190°F) if you have a probe thermometer.

   Rotate the baking sheet halfway through. Most home ovens have hot spots, and turning the loaf ensures even color on both sides of the braid.
9. 9

   Cool and serve

   Let the Mohnstriezel cool on a wire rack for at least thirty minutes before slicing. I know the smell will make this difficult. But the filling is still setting as it cools, and if you cut into it too early, the poppy seed layer will smear instead of holding its shape in a clean, dark spiral against the golden crumb. Slice with a sharp serrated knife. Serve it at room temperature with good butter and strong coffee. Or just as it is. It doesn't need anything else. Mahlzeit!

Chef Tips

• •The quality of your poppy seeds matters more than anything else in this recipe. Freshly ground Waldviertel poppy seeds from Lower Austria are the gold standard. If you can find whole blue poppy seeds (Blaumohn), buy those and grind them yourself. Pre-ground poppy seeds from a jar that's been sitting on a shelf for six months will taste dusty and flat, and no amount of rum and honey will save them.
• •Vanillezucker is not vanilla extract. Austrian baking depends on this distinction. Real Vanillezucker is caster sugar infused with actual vanilla bean, and it gives a rounded, warm sweetness that liquid extract can't match. Make your own: bury two split vanilla pods in a kilo of sugar and wait a week. You'll use it in everything.
• •If the dough springs back aggressively when you try to roll it, cover it with the tea towel and walk away for five to ten minutes. The gluten needs time to relax between stretches. Forcing it will only give you a dough that fights you and a filling that won't spread evenly.
• •Mohnstriezel keeps beautifully for three to four days wrapped tightly in foil at room temperature. After day two, toast the slices lightly and spread with butter. It also freezes well for up to a month. Wrap the whole loaf in cling film, then foil, and thaw at room temperature for three hours before serving.

Advance Preparation

• •The raisins can soak in rum for up to 24 hours. Longer soaking only improves them.
• •The poppy seed filling can be made a day ahead and refrigerated. Bring it to room temperature before spreading, as cold filling will resist spreading evenly and shock the dough.
• •The fully baked Mohnstriezel freezes well for up to one month. Wrap tightly in cling film and foil. Thaw at room temperature for three hours.
• •You can shape the Striezel the evening before, cover it tightly with cling film, and refrigerate overnight. The next morning, let it come to room temperature for about an hour, then proceed with the egg wash and baking. The slow, cold rise actually develops more flavor in the dough.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 125g)