Polish Poppy Seed Filling Recipe - Polish Foodies (2024)

Want to buy authentic Polish food in the US? Visit Polana.com. Enter the coupon code FOODIE15during checkout to get 15% OFF (minimum order $60).

• Blog, Christmas

Polish poppy seed filling is a sweet jam-like filling used in Polish Christmas and Easter snacks and dishes. Easy to make at home, this poppy seed filling is rich and tasty.

What Is The Polish Poppy Seed Filling Used For?

This traditional Polish filling made of poppy seeds and dried fruit is often used in the makowiec rolls that are presented at the Christmas dinner table along with other Polish delicacies such aspiernik – gingerbreador keks – fruitcake.

A rich decadent filling made with poppy seed, orange peel, cranberries, apricots, and walnuts, it can be eaten plain on toasted bread or as a topping for buttery pastries.

But the best use of this Polish poppy seed filling is as a base for many Polish dishes including:

• makowiec
• pierogi with poppy seeds
• kluski z makiem
• poppy seed cheesecake
• Easter poppy seed cake (mazurek makowy)

How To Make Polish Poppy Seed Filling

First step. Don’t worry! There isn’t enough morphine in the poppy seed filling to have any major effect on you or anyone else eating it.

Rinse the poppy seeds. Put them in a steel pot with milkand or water and cook for half an hour. While the poppy seeds are cooking, dice the apricots and keep them ready.

Once the poppy seeds are cooked, grind them a few times to form a smooth paste.

Add the chopped walnuts, and the remaining ingredients to the seed paste and mix well. You can use the mixture as a filling for different pastries such as makowiec or kluski z makiem.

Tips To Make Poppy Seed Filling

• You can soak the poppy seeds in milk or water.
• You can replace walnuts with other nuts of your choice – pecans, almonds, hazelnuts.
• If you don’t find cranberries, replace them with dried cherries or blueberries.
• For a different flavor, replace the orange peel with candied lemon peel or mixed candied peel.
• It’s best to refrigerate the Polish poppy seed filling for 10 to 20 minutes before using it as a spread.

FAQs About Making Poppy Seed Filling

What Do I Do If I Can’t Find Poppy Seeds?

If you can’t find poppy seeds or don’t want to cook the poppy seeds, you can buy Polish ground poppy seed paste and use it as a replacement.

If Poppies Contain Opium, Is It Safe To Eat This Poppy Seed Filling?

Food regulations observed by poppy seed growers ensure that only poppies that have a very low morphine content are harvested for food purposes. So yes, it’s safe to eat this poppy seed filling.

How Should I Grind The Poppy Seeds?

Poppy seeds are a little difficult to grind. The traditional method of grinding was to use a mortar and pestle and took a long time. However, nowadays if you use a spice grinder or a coffee grinder, it should work pretty well.

How Long Can I Store This Polish Poppy Seed Spread?

You can store the sweet jam-like Polish poppy seed mixture in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 days or in the freezer for 4 to 5 months.

How To Make Poppy Seed Filling?

Pin For Later:

Did you like this Polish poppy seed filling recipe? Let us know in the comments below!