Prepare the legendary Smelyansk pies, just like at the train station. Poppyseed filling recipe

The blogger noted that these pies have become a real legend – they are sold at bus stops, train stations and bazaars. Their main feature is a huge amount of poppy seed filling, which is almost never found in ordinary baked goods.

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg flour;
• 500 ml milk;
• 40 g fresh yeast;
• 200 g sugar or powdered sugar;
• 4 eggs;
• 150 g butter; a pinch of salt;
• vanillin optional.

Poppy filling

• 500 g poppy seeds;
• 500 g powdered sugar;
• 700ml. milk;
• 100 g butter.

Preparing the poppy seed filling

1. Place poppy seeds into a deep saucepan. Go through it, removing any debris. There is no need to wash or soak the poppy seeds.
2. Pour milk over poppy seeds and mix well. Place the saucepan over moderate heat and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. When the milk begins to actively boil, the poppy seeds will gradually swell and increase in volume. Once boiling, reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer until most of the milk has evaporated.
3. Turn off the heat and leave the poppy seed under the lid for several hours (overnight is possible) so that it infuses well.
4. When the poppy seeds have cooled, add soft butter, add vanilla, add powdered sugar, mix everything thoroughly. After this, grind the mass with a blender.
5. For a more delicate texture, you can additionally pass the poppy seeds through a meat grinder with the finest grid.
6. If the filling turns out to be too liquid, add 3 tsp. semolina and mix well. The filling should be thick and aromatic.

Preparing dough and dough

1. Crumble fresh yeast into a bowl. Add 1 tbsp. l. powdered sugar, a few tablespoons of warm milk and a little flour.
2. Stir until the consistency of thick sour cream. Leave the dough in a warm place for 15 minutes. If bubbles and a fluffy “cap” appear on the surface, the yeast is working.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, remaining powdered sugar and a pinch of salt. Beat the mixture with a mixer until light and fluffy.
4. Melt the butter in the microwave and add to the eggs. Stir. Pour in the remaining warm milk and stir again.
5. Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the center. Pour the prepared dough into it and mix a little with the flour. Then gradually pour in the liquid egg-milk mixture and start kneading the dough with a spoon. When the dough becomes thick, continue kneading with your hands. Knead the dough for about 15 minutes. It should become soft, smooth and elastic, leave your hands well and gather into a ball.
6. Lightly grease your hands with vegetable oil and form the dough into a ball. Lightly grease the bowl with oil and place the dough there. Cover with cling film and towel. Leave in a warm place for 90 minutes until the dough has doubled in size.
7. Knead the risen dough slightly. Divide it into pieces of approximately 120 g and roll into balls. Cover them with film and leave for 10 minutes to allow the dough to rest a little.
8. Roll each ball into a thin cake. Stepping back a little from the edge, lay out the poppy seed filling. Wrap the dough into a roll, carefully sealing the filling inside. You will get an oblong pie.
9. Place the pies on a baking sheet. Leave them for 30 minutes to proof.
10. Preheat oven to 180 °C. Place a baking sheet with water on the lower level of the oven – this will help the pies not to burn on the bottom. Bake the pies for about 50 minutes until golden brown.
11. To make the pies look as market-like as possible, brush the ends with additional poppy seed filling. It creates the effect that there is so much filling that it literally comes out.

The pies are very soft, aromatic and with a lot of sweet poppy seed filling.