Mazurek

Mazurek

This Polish pastry is topped with strawberry and apricot jam for a delicious teatime treat.

Mazurek
Serves: Makes 25 (1½-inch) pieces
 
Mazurek is a cake traditionally baked in Poland as part of the celebration of Easter. While this pastry is typically adorned with dried fruits and nuts, this tea-size interpretation incorporates strawberry and apricot jams, creating a stunning design.
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup almond flour
  • 3 large hard-cooked egg yolks, pressed through a sieve
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¾ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ⅔ cup confectioner’s sugar
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon almond extract
  • ⅓ cup strawberry jam
  • ⅓ cup apricot fruit jam
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line bottom and sides of an 8-inch square metal baking pan with parchment paper, letting excess hang over sides of pan.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, almond flour, egg yolks, salt, and cinnamon.
  3. In a large bowl, beat together butter and confectioner’s sugar with a mixer at medium speed until thick and creamy, approximately 3 minutes. Beat in lemon zest, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, stirring until just combined.
  4. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a disk. Cut of one-third of dough disk. Shape into a square, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour. Press remaining two-thirds of dough evenly into bottom of prepared baking pan and freeze for 30 minutes.
  5. Place refrigerated dough onto a piece of lightly floured parchment paper. Using a rolling pin, carefully roll out into an 8-inch square. Using a sharp knife, cut dough diagonally into ½-inch strips. Freeze for 10 minutes.
  6. Using an of set spatula, place strips ½-inch apart, diagonally on top of frozen dough. Place remaining strips perpendicular to first strips, ½-inch apart, diagonally across dough, creating a diamond pattern. Gently press strips into the base layer of dough, creating small wells to hold the jam. Freeze until ready to pipe jams.
  7. Place strawberry jam in a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip (Wilton #12). Place apricot jam in another piping bag fitted with a medium round tip (Wilton #12). Pipe approximately 1 teaspoon strawberry jam into each well of the first diagonal row, making sure not to overfill. Pipe approximately 1 teaspoon apricot jam into each well of the second diagonal row. Repeat this process, alternating strawberry and apricot jams, until all wells are filled.
  8. Bake until pastry is lightly golden and starts to pull away from sides of pan, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool completely.
  9. Using parchment paper as handles, carefully remove Mazurek from pan. Transfer onto a cutting surface. Using a long sharp knife, trim edges. Carefully cut into 1½-inch squares.
Notes
KITCHEN TIP: If dough strips become too soft, return to freezer for 10 minutes. The dough is very delicate and falls apart when it gets too warm.

 

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