Trdelník is a Czech pastry shaped like a log, commonly sold at street stalls in cities like Prague and Bratislava.
The unpronounceable name of this delicious treat comes from the Slovak word trdlo , which refers to the rotating cylinder around which the dough is wound before baking.
To make it , we'll roll long strips of sweet dough into spirals around a rolling pin or cylindrical object and brush the dough with melted butter, then sprinkle it with sugar and cinnamon. Next, we'll bake this rolled-up dough in the oven, turning it occasionally until it achieves a uniform texture and golden brown.
To achieve the typical rolled shape of trdelník at home, you can use a stainless steel rolling pin—provided it's solid and has no plastic parts—or a solid wooden rolling pin without any coating or varnish—as varnish could release toxic substances when heated in the oven.
Alternatively, you could use a cylindrical borosilicate glass bottle or container (like Pyrex) or a stoneware ceramic bowl. In either case, wrap the cylindrical container with aluminum foil and then cover it with parchment paper greased with butter, which is where you'll place the dough.
Although trdelník was traditionally enjoyed plain or sprinkled with sugar or nuts, in recent years it has been reinvented as a true sweet treat. Today, it's common to find versions filled with all sorts of sweet ingredients such as ice cream, cream, Nutella, fruit, or even hot chocolate.
Recipe Information
- Preparation time : 20 minutes
- Cooking time : 40 minutes
- Total time : 1 hour (plus rising time)
- Servings : 4 units
- Category : Pastry
- Type of cuisine : Central European
- Calories per serving (kcal) : 475
Ingredients of trdelník
- 280g of strong flour
- 100 ml of whole milk
- 60g white sugar (30g for the dough and 30g for the topping)
- 2 medium eggs
- 2 g of dried baker's yeast (6 grams of fresh yeast)
- 2 g of salt
- 40g of unsalted butter at room temperature
- 30 g melted butter (for brushing)
- 1 pinch of cinnamon
How to make trdelník
We begin by mixing 280 grams of strong flour with 100 ml of whole milk, 30 grams of white sugar, 2 medium eggs, 2 grams of baker's yeast, and 2 grams of salt. We knead for 10 minutes until we obtain a smooth dough. At that point, we add 40 grams of unsalted butter at room temperature and knead for another 15 minutes.
Once we have a smooth, elastic, and shiny dough, we form it into a ball and place it in a lightly greased bowl. We cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it overnight.
Preheat the oven to 185°C (365°F) with the top and bottom elements on, and without the fan. Line two oven-safe rolling pins with aluminum foil and then with parchment paper, lightly greased with butter so that it sticks; set aside.
We degas the dough and divide it into 4 portions.
Grease the work surface with a little vegetable oil or butter and stretch each portion of dough with your hands until you get a length of 80-90 cm.
We roll the dough onto the rolling pin, forming a spiral.
We lightly press the rolling pin to even out the thickness of the dough.
We brush the dough with 30 grams of melted butter and sprinkle it with 30 grams of white sugar mixed with a pinch of cinnamon.
Place the rolls on a deep baking tray. Bake for 20-22 minutes at 185°C (365°F), without fan, turning the rolls every 5-6 minutes to ensure even baking and browning.
We remove the trdelník from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes, then we unmold it and let it cool completely on a wire rack.
We serve this delicious Czech sweet either to enjoy as is or accompanied by a sweet cream of your choice.
Easy-to-prepare summary
- We knead the flour with the milk, sugar, eggs, yeast and salt, add the butter and knead again
- We make a ball of dough and keep it in the refrigerator until the next day.
- We lined oven-safe rolling pins with aluminum foil and parchment paper.
- We degas the dough and divide it into 4
- We stretch each portion of dough into a long strip
- We roll the strips of dough onto the rolling pin
- We press to achieve a uniform thickness
- We brush it with butter and sprinkle it with sugar and cinnamon.
- We bake at 185ºC, turning the rollers every 5 minutes to achieve even baking.
- Remove from the oven, let it cool slightly, remove the trdelník from the rolling pin and let it cool completely
- We serve
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