Yippie, it is easier to buy it that to make it. It requires a special poppy seed mill. Example.
Where I live canned poppy seed filling is sold cheaply in grocery stores, because in my area there are several Polish and German grocers, but you can get it on amazon as well
Otherwise poppy seeds alone take hours to prepare before mixing them with sugar 1:1 by weight, butter, egg whites, raisins, nuts, etc. Poppy seeds have to be soaked, washed, boiled for two hours while frequently removing scum and floating seeds, washed again more than once, chilled, drained, let sit under pressure, ground, etc.
The recipe is ok, Yippee. However you need a standard to compare to. The can of Polish poppy seed filling from amazon that I linked to is what is meant to be Mohn Masse in terms of sweetness and creaminess or else your cake won't be the same. Judging by the amount of Mohn Masse, they definitely use a canned product, a standard two lbs can. Also, judging by the concentration of the poppy seeds in that cake, it will make you very happy after eating a bite, Lol.
I use a dedicated poppy seed mill, the old world type, manual, not electric to grind boiled poppy seeds into a smooth paste. It is so tight, it won't miss a single poppy seed, it will rub and grind every single one of them, releasing their juices, the famous poppy seed milk.
Vitamix and meat grinder won't work. I never used a spice grinder. Coffee grinder definitely won't work, although some other recipes from the website you linked to mention coffee grinder as an alternative to the special poppy seed mill.
You could rub and pound the mass in a stone mortar with stone pestle as it was done in old times, though, but it is very laborious.
The person from the recipe you linked probably used dry poppy seeds straight from the package and electric spice grinder or coffee grinder since they mention 30sec of grinding time.
I found a different Polish brand in a local Russian store today. It's about 1/3 of the price online, which makes me wonder if this brand is okay? If so, it would be nice not having to rely on the online store, where the item you recommended is out of stock.
I have never seen that Prospona brand of poppy seed filling in our stores. Our Polish stores in Toronto only sell Bakalland brand for some reason. Judging by the list of ingredients, they are very similar, so if the price and the baking results satisfy you, go for it!
And yes, in etnic stores it is way cheaper than buying it online. Even Polish bread flour is significantly cheaper than our Canadian flour, even though Polish flour is imported and Canadian wheat is homegrown!
Ah since this thread came up again, and I just made homentaschen last week, wanted to share my new experience. Here in Switzerland they don't sell Mohnmasse, but in the same shop where I buy flour I found milled and steamed poppy seeds (Dampfmohn). I simply boiled them in milk with honey, raisins, and lemon zest (my usual recipe), and it made a great filling.
Thank you mariana! Yes, gives a lot of flexibility to have this option. But the price is steep! These were 8.50 CHF for 200g, enough for just one batch (I made 9 rather large homentaschen with it). I'll see if I can also buy them in Germany next time I'm across the border, probably would be a lot cheaper...
If I can get authentic poppy seed filling at a reasonable price, I'd rather not make it myself. If I do want to try making it at home, I can get raw poppy seeds from the Russian store where I usually buy English fruit tea 🍓🍑🫐 and European ice cream and candies. I never thought this store would have baking ingredients. The owner seemed to be quite familiar with bread making because as soon as I said red rye malt for baking, he immediately directed me to Kavvas syrup???, while his wife was clueless of what I was talking about. And he knew that German red rye malt is made using a different technique. It's definitely good to have a store like this nearby.
There are different kinds of poppy seed cakes, so not entirely sure what you mean, would something I described here fit?
https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/66330/grandmas-poppy-seed-roll-sourdough
Yippie, it is easier to buy it that to make it. It requires a special poppy seed mill. Example.
Where I live canned poppy seed filling is sold cheaply in grocery stores, because in my area there are several Polish and German grocers, but you can get it on amazon as well
Example
Otherwise poppy seeds alone take hours to prepare before mixing them with sugar 1:1 by weight, butter, egg whites, raisins, nuts, etc. Poppy seeds have to be soaked, washed, boiled for two hours while frequently removing scum and floating seeds, washed again more than once, chilled, drained, let sit under pressure, ground, etc.
Example
Basic proportions: 250 g poppy seeds (original, dry weight), 125-250g sugar, 50g softened butter, 1 egg white. Raisins and chopped nuts to taste.
It requires 900 g of Mohn Masse. The rest of the recipe calls for various spices, nuts, and liquor.
I have a spice grinder, a meat grinder, and a Vitamix. Can I use any one of them to grind the poppy seeds?
What do you think of the following recipe? Is it too simple and not appropriate for Mohn Masse?
https://www.chefkoch.de/amp/rezepte/2528941396356331/Mohnback-selber-herstellen.html
Thanks!
Yippee
The recipe is ok, Yippee. However you need a standard to compare to. The can of Polish poppy seed filling from amazon that I linked to is what is meant to be Mohn Masse in terms of sweetness and creaminess or else your cake won't be the same. Judging by the amount of Mohn Masse, they definitely use a canned product, a standard two lbs can. Also, judging by the concentration of the poppy seeds in that cake, it will make you very happy after eating a bite, Lol.
I use a dedicated poppy seed mill, the old world type, manual, not electric to grind boiled poppy seeds into a smooth paste. It is so tight, it won't miss a single poppy seed, it will rub and grind every single one of them, releasing their juices, the famous poppy seed milk.
Vitamix and meat grinder won't work. I never used a spice grinder. Coffee grinder definitely won't work, although some other recipes from the website you linked to mention coffee grinder as an alternative to the special poppy seed mill.
You could rub and pound the mass in a stone mortar with stone pestle as it was done in old times, though, but it is very laborious.
The person from the recipe you linked probably used dry poppy seeds straight from the package and electric spice grinder or coffee grinder since they mention 30sec of grinding time.
I need to know what the real deal is before attempting to make it myself.
Thank you, Mariana!
Yippee
You are welcome, Yippee
💖
Hi, Mariana:
I found a different Polish brand in a local Russian store today. It's about 1/3 of the price online, which makes me wonder if this brand is okay? If so, it would be nice not having to rely on the online store, where the item you recommended is out of stock.
Thanks!
Yippee
Yippee, hi!
I have never seen that Prospona brand of poppy seed filling in our stores. Our Polish stores in Toronto only sell Bakalland brand for some reason. Judging by the list of ingredients, they are very similar, so if the price and the baking results satisfy you, go for it!
And yes, in etnic stores it is way cheaper than buying it online. Even Polish bread flour is significantly cheaper than our Canadian flour, even though Polish flour is imported and Canadian wheat is homegrown!
Ah since this thread came up again, and I just made homentaschen last week, wanted to share my new experience. Here in Switzerland they don't sell Mohnmasse, but in the same shop where I buy flour I found milled and steamed poppy seeds (Dampfmohn). I simply boiled them in milk with honey, raisins, and lemon zest (my usual recipe), and it made a great filling.
Ilya, I saw your homentaschen, they look so yummy! I filled mine with prune filling this year.
You are so lucky that you can buy milled poppy seeds in store! It's the best option for baking. You can do anything with it, really.
Thank you mariana! Yes, gives a lot of flexibility to have this option. But the price is steep! These were 8.50 CHF for 200g, enough for just one batch (I made 9 rather large homentaschen with it). I'll see if I can also buy them in Germany next time I'm across the border, probably would be a lot cheaper...
If I can get authentic poppy seed filling at a reasonable price, I'd rather not make it myself. If I do want to try making it at home, I can get raw poppy seeds from the Russian store where I usually buy English fruit tea 🍓🍑🫐 and European ice cream and candies. I never thought this store would have baking ingredients. The owner seemed to be quite familiar with bread making because as soon as I said red rye malt for baking, he immediately directed me to Kavvas syrup???, while his wife was clueless of what I was talking about. And he knew that German red rye malt is made using a different technique. It's definitely good to have a store like this nearby.
Yippee