Grandma Fickelscherer's Nut Roll
Mom had this recipe for Nut Roll in her recipe box. It was in her handwriting with "(Ma's)" after the name of the recipe. After doing some research, my guess is Grandma made this for the holidays.
From Wikipedia: "A nut roll is a pastry consisting of a sweet yeast dough (usually using milk) that is rolled out very thin, spread with a nut paste made from ground nuts and a sweetener like honey, then rolled up into a log shape. This 'log' is either left long and straight or is often bent into a horseshoe shape, egg washed, baked, and then sliced crosswise.
"Nut rolls resemble a jelly roll (Swiss roll) but usually with more layers of dough and filling, and resemble strudels but with fewer and less delicate dough layers. Fillings commonly have as their main ingredient ground walnuts or poppy seeds. Nut rolls can be found in the United States and in Slavic European nations' cuisines. Regional variations on nut rolls are part of weddings, for Easter and Christmas, as well as other celebrations or holidays."
I also found this at Red Star Yeast's web site: "Favorite Eastern European rich walnut-swirled coffee bread. Traditionally served at Easter and Christmas." See Potica. Grandma's recipe is quite a bit different than this recipe. The walnut filling in that recipe contains egg, a bit of milk, butter and cinnamon. The dough uses 1 cup milk, less sugar and eggs. So while the idea is the same, the dough and fillings are quite different. The Potica recipe may be a more modern version than Grandma's.
Filling:
1 1/2 lb. walnuts (ground)
1 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. vanilla
[brush the dough with milk and add a tablespoon or two of flour to keep the filling from forming a gap in the swirls]
Mix all together and let stand over night.
Dough:
3 c. flour
1/2 lb. butter
1 c. sugar
4 eggs (beaten)
1 1/2 yeast cakes
little less than 1/2 c. luke warm water
1 Tbsp. salt
Dissolve yeast in little less than 1/2 c. luke warm water. Mix flour, butter, salt and sugar together. Add eggs and dissolved yeast. Add flour and knead until dough does not stick. Let rise until double bulk. Roll out dough. [The dough is usually stretched out very thin for nut rolls.] Spread nut mixture. Let rise one hour and bake.
[Dust with confectioner's sugar?]
The instructions end there, but given Wikipedia's description (see above), the dough should be rolled out very thin. After spreading the walnut mixture on the dough, it should be rolled up into a log. The recipes I found on the Internet bake the roll on a greased sheet in a preheated 350-degree F oven for 30 - 45 minutes.
Other Fillings I Have Found:
- Make a poppy seed filling: The walnut-based filling is very traditional in Hungary but so is poppy seed filling.
- Change your choice of nut: Although walnuts are both traditional and very versatile, you can swap them out for any other nut you have on hand. Pecans are an easy alternative but hazelnuts or almonds are also good. Ground pistachios are a relatively costly alternative but their vivid green color is striking in this kind of recipe.
- Add Apple and Cinnamon to the filling: One recipe I found added 1 large apple, peeled and grated, and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon to the walnut filling.
- Add Raisins
