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Favourite Hungarian ingredients – jam
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Making homemade jam (or ‘lekvar’ in Hungarian) is a traditional Central European custom. Even though nowadays, you can buy the most exotic jams in stores, nothing beats the homemade version. Hungarian gastronomy relies on the use of jam, too, and some of the most famous Hungarian desserts prove this as well.
‘Lekvar’ is not exactly the same as jam, which usually refers to the Western and Northern European alternative. While ‘lekvar’ is a homogenous mass that is made 100% from the ripened fruit and some added sugar, jams contain pieces of fruit and can be made without cooking, too.
The first use of the word ‘lekvar’ can be dated back to the 1350s. Since then, it has conquered most of Central Europe, including Hungary, and the preparation of it has a long tradition. It is most often made of apricot and plum, but other varieties exist, of course.
Rákóczi cottage cheese cake
Some ingredients seem to go better with homemade ‘lekvar’ than others. One such ingredient that is the base of the Rákóczi cottage cheese cake is cottage cheese. The sweet mixture of the apricot jam together with the cottage cheese layer and the beaten and piped egg whites make this dessert absolutely irresistible. Perhaps this is why, nowadays, you can not only get these flavours in the traditional form of the Rákóczi cottage cheese but also in muffins, as an ice cream flavour or even as mousse in a cup.
If you want to try the traditional recipe, click HERE.
Zserbó cake
It is not a coincidence that zserbó once again makes this list. One of the truly irresistible combinations is the walnut filling together with some homemade apricot jam and chocolate. The layer of ‘lekvar’ may be subtle at first, but as the cake gets older (which actually only makes it better – is another benefit of the dessert), the flavours get more set and more accustomed to each other. Just like the Rákóczi cottage cheese cake, zserbó can also appear in the forms of bonbons, pancakes or ice cream. If you want the traditional recipe, though, click HERE.
