How To Make:

Povitica

The Zajednicar, Jan. 3, 1996:

Kansas City, KS - In 1993, Emily Novak and Don Wolf in Kansas City, put their talents together and produced a video tape on "How To Make Povitica". All the proceeds beyond the cost of producing the tape go to St. Theresa's Orphanage in Zagreb, Croatia.

The sales have been steady with over 1400 orders going throughout the United States and Canada. This December, Juanita Copeland, the owner of a local Cook Book shop in Kansas City, asked if she could market the video tapes in her store. We agreed with the stipulation that the profits go to the orphanage. Emily Novak, who is the "star" of our video was asked to sign autographs at the store along with giving out free samples of the bread.

Within two days, over 140 video tapes were sold at $20 each and the orders are still coming in. A local TV show will feature the video and the food editor of the Kansas City Star newspaper has also written an article about the tape. We were told that the article may be syndicated and the whole country will know how to order the tape on making Povitica.

And this brings us to a little mystery which we would like to have some help with from our readers.

We have heard this Croatian bread called Orahnjaca, Potica or Povanica. But in the village that Emily and my family come from, Gerovo, in Gorski Kotar, we call it Povitica. There is even a commercial baker in Kansas City that markets the bread as "Strawberry Hill Povitica". (Strawberry Hill being the region where our ancestors settled at the turn of the century.) What do you call it where your ancestors came from? What is the origin of the word Povitica? E-mail me here.

If you would like a video tape on how to make this wonderful bread which also includes a short history of Strawberry Hill and backed by tamburitza music by our local musicians, make out a check for $US 24.50 ($20 for tape + $4.50 shipping) to Povitica, and send it to:

Wolf Photography
3117 Merriam Lane
Kansas City, Kansas 66106

If you need it quicker, call my office, Wolf Photography, 913/384-9653 and my wife Mary will take your order. Sister Katarina and the children of St. Theresa's Orphanage in Zagreb will be thankful.

Don Wolf
Wolf1936@aol.com

Please visit my website at: http://www.Wolfphoto.com/

How To Make:

Makovnjaca and Orehnjaca

Let me just add that this is not a bread but a cake. In fact it's a Croatian walnut roll. I have copied these two related recipes from Croatian Cuisine written by Alojzije and Ruzica Kapetanovic.

MAKOVNJACA
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(Poppy Seed Roll)

3 1/2 c. flour
3/4 c. milk
1/4 c. sugar
2 cakes yeast
2 egg yolks
1 tsp. lemon rind, grated
6 tbsp. melted butter
1/4 tsp. salt

Allow the yeast to rise in one quarter cup of warm milk until doubled in size. Sift the flour into a deep bowl. Make a well in the center and place the yeast in the well. Add the remaining milk, sugar, egg yolks, lemon rind, vanilla, butter and salt. Mix together well and beat with a wooden spoon until blisters begin to form on the dough. Place in a greased bowl, cover with a damp towel and allow to rise in a warm place for about an hour or until doubled in bulk.

Divide the dough into two sections. Roll each section out very thin, brush with melted butter and fill with poppy seed filling. Roll like a savijaca* by filling the edge of the table-cloth on which the dough was rolled out. Place the two sections of MAKOVNJACA on a well greased baking sheet and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place for another half hour. Brush the rolls with a well beaten egg white and bake at 350 F for about an hour until they become golden. Cool before slicing and serving.

Filling:

2 c. ground poppy seeds
1/2 c. sweet cream
3 tbsp. raisins
1/2 c. sugar
4 tbsp. honey
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbsp. rum
1 tsp. lemon rind

Mix the finely ground poppy seeds, the lemon rind, raisins, sugar and cinnamon. Spread this mixture over the rolled out dough. Heat the cream. Combine the cream, honey and rum and pour this mixture over the poppy seeds. Roll the MAKOVNJACA up like a sajivaca.

* savijaca is 'a roll' in Croatian.

OREHNJACA
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(Walnut Roll)

MAKOVNJACA dough
1/2 c. melted butter
3/4 c. sugar
1 c. hot milk
2 tbsp. strawberry jam
1 lb. walnuts, ground
1 tsp. grated lemon peel
1/4 c. raisins
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. rum

Prepare the OREHNJACA dough in the same manner as the MAKOVNJACA dough.
Pour the scalded milk over the walnuts. Combine with the remaining ingredients and allow to cool before spreading over the dough. Fill with the walnut filling. Bake according to the directions for MAKOVNJACA.

Article contributed:

Date: Sat, 12 Jul 1997 12:22:01 -0600
Subject: Croatian Cakes
From: "Barry S. Marjanovich" <bsmarjan@freenet.calgary.ab.ca>
Newsgroups: soc.culture.croatia

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