Pasta for dessert? With poppy seeds? That must be one of those wonderfully odd, very Polish ideas, right?
Today I’m finally trying it myself. In Poland we call it kluski z makiem – tender noodles tossed with a rich, fragrant poppy seed filling that’s full of honey, nuts and dried fruit. It’s the kind of dish that feels humble and a bit quirky, but also cozy and festive, like something you eat in a warm kitchen after coming in from the cold.
And then I learned it’s not just Polish weird Christmas pasta at all, but a whole Central European thing. Travel a bit further and you’ll meet its cousins: Hungarian mákos tészta, Czech and Slovak nudle s mákem or rezance s makom, and Serbian nasuvo sa makom – different names, same idea of simple pasta turned into a sweet, poppy‑seed hug in a bowl. Here, in my Kraków kitchen, I’m making the Polish version from scratch, but you can just grab your favourite shop pasta, mix it with a good poppy seed filling, and taste this shared holiday tradition in under ten minutes.
Polish Christmas Poppy Seed Pasta
Tender homemade noodles tossed with rich Polish poppy seed filling – a simple, nostalgic Christmas Eve dessert.
Ingredients
- 150 g all-purpose flour
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup of poppy seed mixture (see my recipe for traditional poppy seed filling)
Directions
In a bowl, make a well in the flour. Add the egg yolks, whole egg and olive oil, then mix with a fork until combined. Knead by hand (or with a mixer and dough hook) until the dough is smooth and elastic. Shape into a ball, wrap in plastic and let rest for about 30 minutes. Roll the dough out thinly on a floured surface and cut into ribbons. Cook the pasta in a large pot of lightly salted boiling water for 3–5 minutes, until just tender. Drain well. Toss the warm pasta with the poppy seed mixture. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Magda's Cauldron 
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