Makówki
Makówki is a sweet poppy seed-based bread dessert from Central Europe. The dish is considered traditional in Silesia, where it is served almost exclusively on Christmas Eve. It is also popular in other parts of Poland as well as in eastern Germany, Slovakia and in Hungary.
Outside Silesia
Makówki are also well known in Brandenburg and Berlin under the name Mohnpielen. Theodor Fontane in his travels through the Margraviate of Brandenburg wrote about Mohnpielen and other dishes.A similar dish made with slices of Kifli in Hungary is called mákos guba.
Version of this dish called Opekance is known in Slovakia, it is prepared during Christmas time as fasting food. Opekance are prepared with poppy seeds or ground nuts.
In Poland, outside of the Silesia region, the dish is widely known as makiełki. This is particularly common in Poznań and in Łódź, where Silesian migrants settled during the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century.
Preparation
The main ingredients are sweet white bread and finely ground poppy seeds boiled in milk with butter. Other important ingredients include dried fruit, almonds and other kinds of nuts. It is flavoured with sugar, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and rum.The bread is cut into thin slices and layered in a clay pot or more often a glass or crystal bowl. After each layer, the sauce of the boiled poppy seeds, with flavouring and nuts, is poured so that the bread is well soaked. The top is decorated with some extra nuts and fruit. The dish is served cold, at least several hours after preparation.