Kutia (Polish Christmas Dessert)
Servings: 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup (190g) wheat berries you can also use bulgur
- 1 cup whole poppy seeds (150g) or 1 1/2 cups of ground poppy seeds (150g)
- 1/2 cup (65g) raisins
- 1/4 cup (45g) dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup (45g) dried apricots
- 3/4 cup (100g) skinless whole almonds
- 1/2 cup (50g) walnuts
- 1/2 cup (160g) honey
- 1/4 cup (30g) powdered sugar
- zest grated from 2 oranges or you can add some candied orange zest
- 1/4 cup (60g) heavy cream optional
- 1/4 teaspoon orange extract optional
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract highly recommended
- 1 vanilla bean or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Soak wheat berries: rinse wheat berries on a sieve, put in a medium/large bowl, cover with cold water (about 2 inches or 5 cm above the level of wheat berries), and let to soak for 8-10 hours.1 cup (190g) wheat berries
- Cook wheat berries: Drain and discard the water. Add wheat berries to a pot and cover with fresh water (about 3 cups). Cook for 30-45 minutes. (it can take for up to 3-4 if you have a hard variety of wheat berries, just try if the berries are soft). Drain and set aside.
- Prepare poppy seeds:1 cup whole poppy seeds (150g) or 1 1/2 cups of ground poppy seeds (150g)
- If using round poppy seeds: Add poppy seeds to a medium bowl and pour in 3/4 cup boiling water. Let sit for 5 minutes. Drain on a sieve, but not very thoroughly, discard excess water. They are ready to use.
- If using whole poppy seeds: cook them for 5 min, drain excess water but not thoroughly, poppy seeds still need to be wet. Ground in the meat grinder or a good food processor (only if using whole poppy seeds, not poppy seeds that are already ground). If it is too difficult, add a small amount of water. It should have a paste consistency but be still slightly chunky (check out photos in the body of the post for reference).
- Prepare nuts: Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spread walnuts and almonds on a baking sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes or until lightly browned. Chop roughly.3/4 cup (100g) skinless whole almonds, 1/2 cup (50g) walnuts
- Prepare dried fruit: add raisins, apricots, and cranberries to boiling water and let sit for 10 minutes, drain and roughly chop.1/2 cup (65g) raisins, 1/4 cup (45g) dried cranberries, 1/4 cup (45g) dried apricots
- In a small pot, warm up the honey until warm and melted.1/2 cup (160g) honey
- Cut vanilla bean in half and scrape out the seeds.1 vanilla bean
- Assemble: Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and stir until well combined. Place in the fridge to chill and for the flavors to meld, for a couple of hours.1/4 cup (30g) powdered sugar, zest grated from 2 oranges, 1/4 cup (60g) heavy cream, 1/4 teaspoon orange extract, 1/4 teaspoon almond extract, 1/8 teaspoon salt
- Remove from the fridge 30-60 minutes before serving.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Heavy cream is added for a rich flavor and mouthfeel and to make the dessert less thick and dry. It is optional. If you haven't drained your poppy seeds well and they are watery, you may need to not add it at all. On the other hand, if you have dried your poppy seeds too thoroughly, you may need to add some more heavy cream if the dessert is too dry.
- Calories = 1 serving (1/8 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!
Nutrition
Calories: 417kcal