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My grandmother made these every Christmas morning for forty years. I still remember standing on a step stool, watching her roll out the dough on her wooden board while the house smelled like warm yeast and toasted walnuts.

Walnut poppy seed rolls are a Central European classic that shows up at holidays, special occasions, and Sunday coffee tables across Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and beyond. They’re called different names depending on where you are: beigli in Hungary, makowiec in Poland, orechovník in Slovakia. But the concept stays the same: a tender, enriched yeasted dough wrapped around a sweet, dense filling of ground walnuts or poppy seeds.

The beauty of these rolls is that they look impressive but aren’t actually that difficult to make. The dough is forgiving, the fillings come together quickly, and the whole thing freezes beautifully if you want to get ahead.

What These Rolls Are For

This is holiday baking at its best. People traditionally serve them at Christmas and Easter, sliced thin with coffee or tea. They also make excellent gifts when wrapped in cellophane with a ribbon.

The rolls work for breakfast, dessert, or that afternoon moment when you need something sweet but not overly rich. Each slice has layers of soft bread spiraling around the nutty or seedy filling.

How to Store Them

Wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, these keep at room temperature for 3 to 4 days. For longer storage, wrap them well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight at room temperature before serving. The texture actually improves after a day, once the moisture from the filling softens the surrounding dough.

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 500g all-purpose flour
• 100g granulated sugar
• 7g instant yeast
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 150ml whole milk, warm
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

For the walnut filling:

• 300g walnuts, finely ground
• 150g granulated sugar
• 100ml whole milk
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Zest of 1 lemon

For the poppy seed filling:

• 250g ground poppy seeds
• 150g granulated sugar
• 100ml whole milk
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 lemon

For finishing:

• 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp milk for egg wash

Instructions

1. Mix the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Add the softened butter and work it in with your fingers until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
2. Make a well in the center. Add the eggs, warm milk, and vanilla. Stir until a shaggy dough forms, then knead for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and slightly tacky. A stand mixer with a dough hook makes this easier, but hand kneading works fine.
3. Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour until doubled.
4. While the dough rises, make your filling. For walnut: combine ground walnuts, sugar, milk, honey, cinnamon, and lemon zest in a saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes until thickened. Cool completely. For poppy seed: same process with ground poppy seeds, sugar, milk, honey, vanilla, and lemon zest.
5. Punch down the risen dough and divide it in half. Roll each piece into a rectangle about 30x40cm, roughly 3mm thick.
6. Spread the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a 2cm border on all sides. The filling should be about 1cm thick.
7. Starting from the long side, roll the dough tightly into a log. Pinch the seam and tuck the ends underneath. Place seam-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
8. Cover loosely and let rise for 30 minutes. The rolls will puff slightly but won’t double.
9. Heat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Brush the rolls generously with egg wash.
10. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until deep golden brown. The internal temperature should reach about 90°C (195°F). Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.

Notes

Grinding the walnuts yourself in a food processor gives better flavor and texture than pre-ground. Pulse in short bursts to avoid turning them into butter. For the poppy seeds, you really need to buy them already ground unless you have a poppy seed grinder. Regular blenders and food processors can’t handle whole poppy seeds properly.

The filling needs to cool completely before spreading, otherwise it melts into the dough and makes rolling difficult. I learned this one the hard way.

If the dough springs back when rolling, let it rest for 5 minutes and try again. Patience here saves frustration.