A recipe that takes you right back to a school canteen - nostalgic Lithuanian Poppy Seed Buns with Chocolate Glaze! These retro poppy seed rolls are a cousin to cinnamon rolls but with a twist—baked on their side with the swirl of filling facing sideways, just like pain au chocolat. The end result is a deliciously unique classic Lithuanian buns that you’ll want to bake again and again!
And if you're wondering, these Poppy Seed Rolls are known as Aguoninės bandutės or Bandelės su aguonomis.
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Chocolate Glazed Poppy Seed Buns - School Canteen Classic
Back in the 90s and early 2000s (and probably way before then), Lithuanian Poppy Seed Buns were a school canteen classic, found in every single school or workplace canteen. They were certainly part of my daily diet (alongside Lithuanian Sweet Cheese Buns and Lithuanian Rock Cakes (Roksai)), perfect with a cup of tea as a mid-morning snack between classes.
While less often baked at home, perhaps due to multiple elements that all take time, there's nothing quite like a home-baked bun. This great recipe is ideal for using up poppy seeds that typically go to waste after making Lithuanian Poppy Seed Milk for Christmas Eve.
Rather than batch-baked, these individual rolls are a wonderful way to use those leftovers during the holiday week, turning them into delightful poppyseed rolls that feel like a cherished family recipe.
Love chocolate, but cannot be bothered to bake anything? Skip the oven, and make this no-bake Lithuanian Chocolate Cake (Tinginys)!
Ingredients and Substitutes
Do not be put off by a long ingredients list - you will have the ingredients at home already or be able to get them in most grocery stores. You can find all the quantities and detailed instructions in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. But here's the shopping/ cabinet raiding list:
- all-purpose flour: also known as plain flour. You may also use strong white wheat flour (a.k.a. bread flour).
- instant yeast: also known as fast-action yeast or active dry yeast.
- white granulated sugar: used in the dough and the filling. You may also use superfine (caster) sugar.
- salt.
- water: using lukewarm water will speed up the proofing process.
- unsalted butter: at room temperature. If you're using salted butter, reduce the amount of salt in the recipe by ¼.
- eggs: you need 1 small egg for the dough and another egg, separated into egg white for the filling and egg yolk for the egg wash.
- poppy seeds: dry poppy seeds will be soaked in water overnight.
- vanilla bean paste: or vanilla extract.
- semi-sweet chocolate: dark chocolate. You may use a bar and break it up into pieces or use chocolate chips. If you find dark chocolate too bitter, you may use milk chocolate, although it's not typical to use for these Lithuanian buns.
- heavy cream: also known as double cream.
Variations
As with many traditional recipes, every family have their own variation. There are a few things you can try next time to make these buns your own.
- Use warm milk instead of water in the dough to make it even richer.
- Add half a teaspoon of cardamom to the dough - it goes well with the poppy seeds.
- Add a tablespoon of orange or lemon zest to the poppy seed filling. Or you can use some mixed candied peel!
- Stir in half a teaspoon of cinnamon into the chocolate glaze.
- These Poppy Seed Buns are not always made with chocolate glaze in Lithuania. They are sometimes enjoyed without it, or with a streusel topping instead.
Step-By-Step Method
There are three main elements of these buns: a simple enriched dough recipe, poppy seed filling, and chocolate glaze. Let's jump in!
The Night Before: Soak Poppy Seeds
The night before, place poppy seeds in a small bowl or a jug and pour boiling water over them. Cover and leave them to soak overnight.
Make The Dough
1. The next day, add the milk and butter to a small pan and place it on low heat until the butter melts. Leave the mixture to cool down (it should be about your body temperature).
2. Place the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl of a stand mixer and stir to combine. Add an egg and milk mixture and run your stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook attachment for 10-15 minutes until the dough is smooth and wrapping around the dough hook (it will be quite wet though).
3. Scoop the dough into a clear large bowl, cover and leave in the warm spot to rise for 1-1.5 hours. It will puff up, but may not double in size, and that's ok.
Make The Poppy Seed Filling
4. While the dough proofs, make the poppy seed filling. Drain and rinse the poppy seeds, then drain them again and leave them in a sieve for a few minutes to extra moisture drips out.
5. Place the poppy seeds in a food processor or a powerful smoothie maker, and pulse a few times to mash them up. Drain them again if needed.
6. Mix poppy seeds with sugar and lightly whisked egg white.
Assemble Poppy Seed Buns
7. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
8. Once the dough has doubled in volume, knock it back and, on a lightly floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll it out into a large rectangle measuring approximately 30x15cm (12x6in).
9. Spread the poppy seed filling across the rolled-out dough. Roll the dough into the log (from the long side), and place it on a floured surface seam side down. If you have extremely uneven edges, you may need to trim them.
10. Cut the roll into 8 equal pieces.
11. Arrange the poppy seed buns on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 5 cm around each one. Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap and leave them to rise again for 20-30 minutes in a warm spot.
12. Preheat the oven to 190 C (380F).
13. Lightly whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl with a drop of water or milk. Brush the tops of the buns.
Baking and Cooling
14. Bake the Lithuanian buns for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown and puffed up.
15. Transfer them onto a wire rack to cool down to room temperature.
Chocolate Glaze
16. In the meantime, place the chocolate pieces and cream into a small saucepan, and heat it over low heat stirring continuously until the chocolate melts (to be safe, you can melt the chocolate over a double boiler).
17. Pour the chocolate glaze over each poppy seed bun, and leave the glaze to set before enjoying!
Storage
These Lithuanian buns are best on the day that they are baked! But if you have leftovers store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Whilst they will be dryer the next day, they will still be more delicious than store-bought buns.
You may also freeze the buns, but for best results, do so before you glaze them with chocolate. Simply wrap each bun in plastic wrap, then place them all in a freezer bag and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw thoroughly before glazing with chocolate.
More Lithuanian Baking Recipes
Let's bake up a storm! Try Lithuanian Easter Bread this spring or make some deliciously sweet treats! Here are some of my favourite childhood desserts from Lithuania:
Lithuanian Poppy Seed Buns With Chocolate Glaze
Equipment
- Stand Mixer With A Dough Hook Attachment
- Hand Mixer
- Large Baking Sheets
- Parchment Paper
- Pastry brush
Ingredients
For The Dough:
- 200 g (1⅓) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon (5g) instant yeast fast-action yeast
- 50 g (¼ cup) white granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 50 ml (3½ tbsp) milk
- 50 g (3½ tbsp) butter at room temperature
- 1 egg small
For Poppy Seed Filling:
- 100 g (⅔ cup) poppy seeds
- 1 egg white reserve egg yolk for egg wash
- 2 tablespoon sugar
For Egg Wash:
- 1 egg yolk
For Chocolate Glaze:
- 100 g (¾ cup) semi-sweet chocolate dark chocolate
- 50 ml (3½ tbsp) heavy cream double cream
Instructions
The Night Before
- Place poppy seeds in a small bowl or a jug and pour boiling water over. Cover and leave them to soak overnight.
Make The Dough
- The next day, add the milk and butter to a small pan and place it on low heat until the butter melts. Leave the mixture to cool down (it should be about your body tempearature).
- Place the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl of a stand mixer and stir to combine. Add an egg and milk mixture and run your stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook attachment for 10-15 minutes until the dough is smooth and wrapping around the dough hook (it will be quite wet though).
- Scoop the dough into a clear large bowl, cover and leave in the warm spot to rise for 1-1.5 hours. It will puff up, but may not double in size, and that's ok.
Make Poppy Seed Filling
- In the meantime, make the poppy seed filling. Drain and rinse the poppy seeds, then drain them again and leave in a sieve for a few minutes to extra moisture drips out.
- Place the poppy seeds in a food processor or a powerful smoothie maker, and pulse a few times to mash them up. Drain then again if needed.
- Mix the poppy seeds with sugar and lightly whisked egg white.
- Line a large baking sheet (or two) with parchment paper.
Assemble and Bake
- Once the dough has doubled in volume, knock it back and, on a floured surface, roll it out into a large rectangle measuring approximately 30x15cm (12x6in).
- Spread the poppy seed filling across the rolled-out dough. Roll the dough into the log, and place it on a floured surface seam side down (trim the sides if they are extremely uneven).
- Cut the roll into 8 even pieces.
- Arrange the poppy seed buns on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 5 cm around each one. Cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap and leave them to rise again for 20-30 minutes in a warm spot.
- Preheat the oven to 190 C (380F).
- Lightly whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl with a drop of water or milk. Brush the tops of the buns.
- Bake the Lithuanian buns for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown and puffed up.
- Transfer them onto a wire rack to cool down to room temperature.
Chocolate Glaze
- In the meantime, place the chocolate pieces and cream into a small saucepan, and heat it over low heat stirring continuously until the chocolate melts (to be safe, you can melt the chocolate over a double boiler).
- Pour the chocolate glaze over each poppy seed bun, and leave the glaze to set before enjoying!
Nikki says
I ended wasting so much poppy seed. I’d cut the poppy seed in half.
Ieva says
That's ashame! We love these buns very well stuffed with poppy seed mixture, but I appreciate we all have different preferences 🙂