Pozsony was a beautiful historic city of Hungary and at present, it is part of Slovakia. Pozsony was renamed Bratislava in 1919. Hungarians understandably continue to call it Pozsony. Pozsonyi kocka is a sweet pasta dish, named after the city of Pozsony or after the chef with a similar name. I could not find sufficient data on its origin, but if anyone knows for sure, I would appreciate the information. Pozsonyi kocka is reminiscent of the vargabéles, instead of túró, the pozsonyi highlights poppy seeds. The poppy seeds must be finely ground, and the best way to do that without a poppy seed grinder is to use a small handheld electric coffee grinder. It’s a little time consuming to grind in small batches, nevertheless the coffee grinder does the job. Few people have the powerful poppy seed grinder in Hungary, indeed most people buy ground poppy seeds. The original recipe calls for square pasta, but since I just made lebbencs pasta the other day, that is what I used. However, any broad leaf pasta will work well.
POZSONY SQUARES
1 pkg. extra wide pasta [250g or 8 oz]1 Tbsp butter, melted
cooking spray
fine bread crumbs for sprinkling pan
4 egg whites
1/8 cup sugar
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
sprinkle of salt
1-1/2 cups full fat sour cream
rind of 1 lemon, finely grated
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup poppy seeds, finely ground
1/8 cup liquid honey
icing sugar for sprinkling
• Cook the pasta according to package directions.
• Drain and rinse under cold running water.
• Place the drained pasta in a large mixing bowl.
• Toss with 1 Tbsp of melted butter and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 325F.
• Spray a rectangular pan with cooking spray and sprinkle with fine breadcrumbs. Set aside.
• Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
• Add 1/8 cup of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Set aside.
• Next, beat the egg yolks, 1/3 cup of sugar, 2 tsp of vanilla extract and a sprinkle of salt until thick and foamy.
• Stir in the sour cream.
• Add the lemon rinds and the raisins.
• Finally fold in the beaten egg whites.
• Gently fold the sour cream egg mixture into the buttered pasta.
• Spread half of the pasta mixture in the prepared pan.
• Sprinkle the top with the finely ground poppy seeds.
• Dot the poppy seeds with the honey.
• Top with the remaining pasta mix and place in a preheated oven for 40 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes.
• Slice into squares and sprinkle with icing sugar.
• This is best if eaten warm. Heat up leftover squares in the microwave.
Pozsony
