FOOD NEWS
Flódni Is The Hungarian-Jewish Treat Made With Luxurious Layers Of Filling
BY MICHELLE WELSCH
The layered sweet flódni, common in Budapest cafes, contains a combination of different fillings with a sweet, buttery pastry. It's a complex treat that takes effort to make.
With fillings of nuts, seeds, and fruits cooked separately before being stacked together and baked, the finished result makes a lasting impression.
It wasn't until the 19th century that flódni appeared in cookbooks, following in the footsteps of a kind of paste made with cottage cheese, poppy seeds, fruits, and jams.
While individual bakers keep their recipes secret, flódni is generally layers of cake with fillings. Peeled apples are steamed in wine and sweetened with honey and cinnamon.
Poppy seeds are mixed with lemon, and walnuts are stirred with wine, sugar, and raisins. Homemade plum jam is made in a perfect consistency so that it isn't too runny.
Even the pastry dough has variations, from thinner phyllo pieces to richer, thicker layers. Goose fat, butter, potato starch, and matzoh have all made their way into the dessert.
Some flódni is rolled, while others resemble bagels. Some pastries present three fillings instead of four and can even be spiked with punchy ingredients like rum.