Did y’all miss my musical references? And my love for alliteration? Of course you did! That’s why you clicked on this title!
I’m bringing you the deliciousness of Chimney Cake, a sweet, sweet topic. Because let’s face it, life can be kind of a bummer these days and what better to cheer us up than something sweet? In moderation of course, lest we get insanely fat, but a treat is something we all deserve from time to time.
So following a massive drumroll (insert here), I am going to tell you about one of the best sweet pastries ever to have grazed your pancreas. The chimney cake, known in our lovely neck of the woods as kürtőskalács. The one and only! Weeeell, maybe not. Anyway, read on and drool.
Kürtőskalács is made from sweet, raised dough (raised by yeast), which is then spun into a strip and wrapped around a cone-shaped baking spit (seriously, baking jargon is sooo not sexy), and rolled in sugar. It is then baked over charcoal – traditionally, at least – and basted in butter until the pastry is baked and the sugar is caramelized to a golden brown crust.
While still hot, the sticky outside is often rolled into some additional goodies, such as walnuts, cinnamon, desiccated coconut or whatever else the gastronomically-inclined come up with. Best consumed fresh off the charcoal, trust me!
A sweet history lesson
The name refers to a stovepipe (kürtő), since the fresh, steaming cake in the shape of a truncated cone resembles a hot chimney.
The first known record that hints at a family of cakes baked on a rotating spit over cinders dates back to Medieval times (about 1450) and is found in a manuscript from Heidelberg.
In the 16th century, the cake evolved into different branches. Hungary, Romania, Czechia, Lithuania, Poland, France, Germany, Austria and Sweden all have their own version.
The first known recipe of our kürtőskalács originated in Transylvania, from a cookbook from 1784. It became a Hungaricum in 2015 because who wouldn’t want to claim this crunchy, yet soft sweet miracle?
Okay, I’m even boring myself with the history lesson here. Let’s get on with the good stuff.
Your options to enjoy chimney cake in this fair city of ours.
Édes Mackó
I’d definitely visit this one, if for nothing else, the name, which means ‘sweet bear’.
Take a gander at their Instagram page and I guarantee that you will drop everything on the spot and run! They are taking a modern approach, making chimney cakes into regular cakes and all kinds of sinful desserts. And, for the gastrointestinally-impaired such as myself, they offer gluten-free and vegan treats as well.
So. You still there?
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“Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy chimney cake”
If you are looking for the atmosphere of your grandma’s kitchen and the lovely smells coming from her oven, look no further than Kató Néni Finomságai (Auntie Kató’s Delicacies).
Their motto: Money can’t buy happiness, but it can buy chimney cake and that’s almost the same. I have to say, I agree.
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Gelateria Pichler
While ice cream season is almost upon us and that in and of itself is wonderful news, we should not belittle the fact that chimney cakes can be filled with ice cream. But should they be? You decide for yourself when you visit Gelateria Pichler, where you can indulge in craft ice creams, home-made chimney cakes or, you guessed it, both!
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Hoppácska!
If you are in the mood for an extra twist on a great classic, Hoppácska! (Oopsie) might be your place. They have exciting flavor combos as well as savory options! While I admit, eating savory chimney cake sounds downright unnatural, I’m nothing if not open minded. If all else fails, their sweet options should definitely make your mouth water.
If you want to give into absolute, balls-out indulgence and acquire what clearly and exclusively has to be the most intense sugar-rush of the century, I know just the place!
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Chimney cake shop
Like they say, a picture’s worth a thousand words. I could write an ode, I could put one adjective after the other to describe chimneycakeshop.hu but alas, I think the Instagram photos should speak for themselves.
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Would you prefer to make your own? How adventurous of you! The internet is full of recipes so go nuts!
Kürtőskalács is an absolutely tasty treat, something to strike nostalgia in our hearts and put smiles on our faces. Whether you go for the plain ol’ traditional flavors or venture into some of the modern twists and turns, you will surely experience something remarkable.