Slovenian potica

With all of you who haven't yet dared to bake this queen of the holiday table, we share a classic recipe for walnut potica. Every family has its own recipe, often passed down from generation to generation, but if this isn't the case for you, or if you simply want to try something new, we're sharing a recipe for a true Slovenian potica, which is also part of the Taste of Ljubljana.

INGREDIENTS

Dough:

• 3 tablespoons lukewarm milk
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 20 grams yeast
• 1/2 liter warm milk
• 100 grams unsalted butter
• 2-3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• a little rum
• grated lemon zest
• vanilla sugar
• 750 grams all-purpose flour
• 2 egg yolks

Filling:

• 1000 grams cleaned walnut kernels
• 2.5 deciliters hot milk
• 150 grams unsalted butter
• grated lemon zest
• 250 grams sour cream
• 2 vanilla sugars
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• stiff peaks from 2 egg whites
• 50 milliliters rum

PREPARATION METHOD

Dough:

In a small bowl, pour 3 tablespoons of lukewarm milk, add a teaspoon of sugar, and yeast. Mix and set aside in a warm place to rise.
In a larger bowl, combine warm milk, unsalted butter, 2-3 tablespoons of sugar, a teaspoon of salt, and warmed flour. Mix well and add the risen yeast and 2 egg yolks. Beat the dough vigorously with a spoon for 20 to 30 minutes. Sprinkle the beaten dough with flour on top, cover, and place the bowl in a warm place to rise.
Once the dough has risen, sprinkle a working surface with flour, roll out the dough to the thickness of a finger, and cut it into a rectangle. This provides a surface for spreading (applying) the filling.

Filling:

Finely grind the walnut kernels, reserving 2-3 handfuls for sprinkling. Pour hot milk over the ground walnuts and let them cool.
Mix the cooled walnuts with lemon zest, sugar, vanilla sugar, sour cream, butter, egg yolks, rum, and finally stiff peaks from 2 egg whites.
Spread the filling evenly over the dough. Sprinkle the spread filling with 2-3 handfuls of ground walnuts.

Roll the dough tightly into a roll and place it in a round, buttered potica baking dish. The ends of the roll should meet well. If the roll is too long, cut it, and bake the cut portion separately in a smaller square baking dish.

Cover the potica in the baking dish with a cloth and place it in a warm place to rise.

Before baking, brush the potica with beaten egg. Bake it in the oven at 180°C (356°F) for about 45 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 150°C (302°F) and bake for another approximately 25 minutes.

Remove the potica from the baking dish so that the top is on the bottom, and let it cool. Sprinkle it with powdered sugar and serve sliced into wedges.