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Kurtoskalacs: A Transylvanian Treat!

October 11, 2007 by Nicole 48 Comments

Roasting Kurtoskalacs

I’m back from Transylvania and I just had to share with you my favorite food discovery! We ate these kurtoskalacs twice and I wish I would have had a chance to eat them a few more times!

Kurtoskalacs are a traditional Hungarian pastry and, depending on who you talk to, they are the oldest Hungarian pastry. History and Geography are two of my worst subjects but Transylvania, which is now part of Romania, was once part of Hungary. Or something like that. Anyway, there is still a sizable Hungarian population in Transylvania and these yummy kurtoskalacs, which I believe originate from Transylvania, are widely available.

Kurtoskalacs Stand

So here’s what I was able to determine after eating some of these tasty Transylvanian treats and watching part of the assembly process. They are made with a yeasted dough, similar to a sweet roll dough. The dough is rolled or cut into long strips and then wrapped around a cylindrical mold. Then it gets brushed with oil and rolled in sugar.

Making Kurtoskalacs

Now for the interesting part. They get cooked over open coals, kind of like the way we roast marshmallows.

Making KurtoskalacsThe spirals of dough are watched carefully and turned so that each part gets evenly browned. When they are perfectly caramelized, they are taken off the coals and rolled in a topping such as crushed nuts, cinnamon, coconut or colored sprinkles. They don’t have to be rolled in the additional topping, it’s up to you. They taste great with just the plain caramelized sugar glaze!

After the additional topping is added, the pastry is slid off cylindrical mold and allowed to cool briefly before being placed in a paper bag and sold to the next lucky customer. The regular-sized kurtoskalacs look huge but since they are hollow, looks are deceiving. I could easily eat one by myself 🙂

Purchasing Kurtoskalacs

They also sell them in a smaller size. The small ones are great if you want to sample a few different flavors at once. The first time we visited the kurtoskalacs stand, we bought the small ones and sampled three different flavors: coconut, cinnamon, and pecan. They were all great but I think I liked coconut the best. Our friends tried one with sesame seeds and loved it!

Purchasing Mini Kurtoskalacs

The second time we visited the kurtoskalacs stand, I decided I had to get a large one. This time we tried it plain and I think it was my overall favorite. The sugar coating is just right…not too crunchy and not too sticky. And the bread is light and airy with a texture that reminded me of the inside of a glazed donut.

But my favorite thing about kurtoskalacs is the way they unravel as you eat them!

Nicole with Pastry

Since I wasn’t able to get photos of the bakers rolling the pastry dough onto the molds, I decided to see if anyone had posted a kurtoskalacs video on the Web. Sure enough, one of my favorite bloggers has a great little video clip of the kurtoskalacs being made. Go visit Ms. Adventures in Italy to check it out.

I also found that another one of my favorite foodbloggers has some experience with kurtoskalacs! Check out the photos and description at Habeas Brulee.

As for the rest of my Transylvanian adventures, you can check out my photos on Flickr. I have only uploaded about half of them but the rest should be up by tomorrow.

See you soon!

Filed Under: Desserts, Will Travel for Food

Previous Post: « I’ll Be Back Soon!
Next Post: Salted Caramel Ice Cream and Other Fall Flavors »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Bela says

    April 28, 2008 at 1:24 am

    You can find information of baking, ovens, bussiness. Visit http://kurtoskalacshungary.hu for more.
    Reply
  2. Helena says

    April 30, 2008 at 7:59 am

    I'm portuguese and I was in Transylvania a few weeks ago. I ate kurtoskalacs by Lacu Rosu, it is DELICIOUS! Does anyone knows the recipe?
    Reply
  3. Christy says

    July 10, 2008 at 4:47 am

    I just stumbled upon your blog when I was looking these things up, trying to figure out what they were. I saw them being cooked on the Chain Bridge over the Danube in Budapest this last weekend and was wild to find out what they were. Unfortunately, I didn't try one. Shame.
    Reply
  4. faith says

    July 30, 2008 at 9:17 am

    Hi! Kürtöskalács is my favorite pastry. Im from hungary, if you need the recipe of kürtöskalács I'll write it down for you. :)
    Reply
  5. Lynda says

    September 18, 2008 at 4:10 pm

    Believe it or not, I feel in love with these in Tel Aviv! There is a divine shop called Kurtash and I had never had anything like this delectible, delicious, de-lovely confections in my LIFE! Anyone have a recipe, or how to buy the molds? Or both? Faith, can you write the recipe for us, if you are still looking at this thread...
    Reply
  6. DERYN says

    November 28, 2008 at 3:13 am

    Great to see these. I have just come back from Budapest and saw them being made in the Christmas market. After a busy day sightseeing our party were looking forward to trying some as pudding after eating the deliceous savoury outdoor food. Unfortunately we left it too late and the stall was closed, we were all so disappointed. All the other pastries I ate in Hungary were the best I have ever eaten.
    Reply
  7. steve says

    November 28, 2008 at 8:33 am

    can someone anyone send me the recipe so i can make this delicious cake called kurtoskalacs i would be most grateful
    Reply
  8. Lynda says

    November 28, 2008 at 4:16 pm

    Anyone, like Faith, still able to give us this recipe? I really would love it!
    Reply
  9. Lynda says

    November 28, 2008 at 4:44 pm

    Guess what I found: A Recipe for Kurtoskalacs! Here we go: (Transylvanian Milk Bread Rings) 6 egg yolks 100-120 g/4-4 oz. butter tsp. salt 2 tbsp.sugar 50 g/2 oz. yeast 500 ml/18 fl. oz. lukewarm milk 1,000g/2 lb. flour sugar chopped almonds Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm mild. Beat the egg yolks and butter together, then add the salt and sugar. Sieve the flour and add the egg mixture and the yeast. Blend together thoroughly. Cover with a cloth and put in a warm place to rise. Turn out onto a floured surface, roll out and cut into long strips – 5 cm/2 in. wide. An alternative way is to divide the dough into small balls, leave to rise and then roll each ball into long strips, 5 cm/2 in. wide. Brush the rolling pin with melted butter and twist the strips, one at a time, on to the pin. Press together with the fingers so that the edges nearly meet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with roughly chopped almonds and sugar. Bake over an open fire, turning constantly until golden brown, or in an infrared oven. They can also be baked in an ordinary oven, but in this case bake without the almond and sugar coating. Remove from the oven when half-cooked and brush with more melted butter and then sprinkle with the almonds and sugar. Finish baking.
    Reply
  10. steve says

    December 3, 2008 at 12:32 pm

    Lynda thank you so much for the recipe will try it at the weekend will let you know how it turns out.Thanks again and merry xmas
    Reply
  11. peter says

    March 25, 2009 at 7:38 pm

    kurtoskalacs sound great. any chance i could find them in boston massachusetts? email me soon.
    Reply
  12. Silvia says

    April 11, 2009 at 12:37 pm

    I wish I could go to Transylvania and eat those delicious kurtoskalacs!
    Reply
  13. steve says

    April 12, 2009 at 12:15 pm

    i loved these cakes so much in hungarary im goinjg to start producing them in the uk if your interested in getting involved it would be nice to hear from you .im in the south east
    Reply
  14. Anne says

    April 19, 2009 at 2:53 pm

    I went to school in Erdely, my Aunt baked kurtos kalacs often for us, I was in my teens, never got the recipe, could I GET IT NOW? 2:56 PM April 19th,2009
    Reply
  15. Lynda says

    April 19, 2009 at 3:19 pm

    Hi, Anne, Take a lookj at several messages above yours and you will see a recipe that I posted. Has anyone tried it, yet?
    Reply
  16. Anne says

    April 20, 2009 at 4:51 pm

    Hi Lynda thanks a bunch for the recipe, I`ll try it and let you know how well I did I have some maps of transylvania for $10.00, 1:500.000, about 40x30 " in size, one can see the names of locations rumanian-hungarian :Motorway, International maim road,National main road, Important connecting road, other road. dirt road, Frontier crossing, Airport, Filling stations, HOTEL MOTEL, HOSTEL, Camping site, spa,ect. ect.,ect,. Later, Anne.
    Reply
  17. steve says

    October 11, 2009 at 6:08 am

    ive loved these cakes and developed a mobile business making and selling these cakes in the south but due to a heart problem i cant carry on.anyone interested in buying this business the first in the uk call 07948718101.ive got everything from hobart mixer,gazebo,generator 6kw,table all ready to work.have done 3 markets only response excellent profit margin unbelieveable.
    Reply
  18. Gigi says

    January 15, 2010 at 12:19 pm

    Please tell me what kind of wood do I have to use in making the mold. Thank you in advance.
    Reply
  19. Gigi says

    January 15, 2010 at 12:23 pm

    Hi Steve: I am from Quito, Ecuador, South America and want to start my business selling these yummy cakes that I tried three years ago in Budapest. Would you please tell what type of wood do I have to used in making the molds? any advice on the business will be appreciated.
    Reply
  20. steve says

    January 15, 2010 at 2:39 pm

    i bought all my wooden rollers from bella in hungry you can get his details off this site.good luck in your new business
    Reply
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