Pączki and the day built around them
Pączki (pronounced roughly POONCH-kee; singular pączek) are rich, yeasted doughnuts made with eggs, butter and sometimes a splash of spirits that keeps them from absorbing too much oil. They are denser and more golden than American jelly doughnuts. In Poland they are eaten on Fat Thursday before Lent. In the US, Polish communities in places like Chicago, Detroit's Hamtramck and Buffalo celebrate on Fat Tuesday, now widely called Pączki Day. Traditional fillings include rose hip jam and powidła, a thick plum butter, along with custard, raspberry, apricot and prune. Expect long lines and early sellouts; many bakeries take preorders by the dozen.
Polish breads and cakes
- Rye bread: sour, dense loaves, often with caraway, sold by weight or the loaf.
- Makowiec: a rolled yeast cake with a thick spiral of sweet poppy seed filling, made for Christmas and Easter.
- Sernik: cheesecake made with twaróg, a fresh farmer's cheese, often baked on a shortcrust base.
- Szarlotka: apple cake with a crumbly crust.
- Babka: a tall, eggy Easter cake, distinct from the swirled Jewish babka.
- Kołaczki: small cream-cheese dough cookies folded around apricot, raspberry or poppy seed filling.
- Chruściki (angel wings): thin, twisted fried dough dusted with powdered sugar.
Russian and Ukrainian specialties
Russian-speaking and Ukrainian bakeries bring a different set of cakes. Napoleon is many thin layers of puff pastry with custard cream, finished with crumbs. Medovik layers honey-caramel sponge with sour cream or condensed-milk frosting. Ptichye moloko (bird's milk) is a soufflé cake under chocolate glaze. On the savory side, look for pirozhki stuffed with cabbage, potato or meat, and Ukrainian pampushky, soft rolls brushed with garlic oil and served with borscht.
Easter and Christmas orders
Before Easter, bakeries make baskets of breads and cakes for the Święconka blessing, and Orthodox communities prepare kulich, a tall saffron or citrus bread topped with icing, often served with paskha, a sweet cheese mold. At Christmas, makowiec, gingerbread (piernik) and poppy seed pastries are in demand. Order a week or more ahead for both seasons.
Many Polish and Russian-speaking bakeries double as small delis, with kielbasa, pierogi, smoked fish, farmer's cheese and imported sweets on the shelves. That makes them a one-stop shop for a holiday table. If you are new to the cuisine, buy a quarter of a sernik and a small piece of makowiec to try before committing to whole cakes; both are sold in slices at most counters. Layered cakes like Napoleon and medovik freeze surprisingly well when wrapped tightly, and they thaw overnight in the refrigerator with little change in texture.
