Christmas has gone by in the blink of an eye, and before we know it it will be Easter. But, before that, many people around the world will observe Lent. Although as a Muslim I don’t observe it, being from Poland there’s one tradition associated with Lent that I still cultivate: Fat Thursday.
Fat Thursday is the last Thursday preceding Ash Wednesday, the start of Lent. It’s widely known as a day of doughnut consumption, and it’s believed that it’s bad luck not to eat at least one on the day.
But there are also other pastries commonly associated with this day, and one of the most popular across Poland is “chrust” or “faworki”, which can be translated as “angel wings” in English.
These Polish angel wings pastries may look complicated, but actually, I found them easier to make than anticipated. If you fancy having a go, here’s a recipe for you!
Polish Angel Wings Pastries: “Chrust” or “Faworki”
Ingredients:
- 2 cups plain flour
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 tbsp of vinegar*
- ½ tsp of sugar
- ½ tsp of salt
- 5 heaped spoons of thick sour cream (Greek yogurt works well too)
- Oil for frying
- Icing sugar for sprinkling
*Usually spirit is used, as it helps to keep the pastry crisp and not absorb too much oil. I, however, keep my kitchen alcohol-free, and vinegar works just as well.
Preparation method:
In a large bowl, add sugar and salt to the flour, followed by the egg yolks, sour cream (or yogurt) and vinegar. Mix it all into a dough – it can get a little sticky because of the cream, just add a little more flour.
Transfer your dough onto a flat surface and beat it with a rolling pin for a few minutes. Form a ball from your “beaten” dough and beat it again for few minutes – the beating of the dough will ensure that the pastry is crunchy, and will form characteristic bubbles while frying.
Roll the dough out, to about 2-3 mm thick. Cut it into rectangles, approx. 3 x 10 cm. Make an incision in the middle of each square, but don’t get all the way to the edges.
Next, you’ll need to grab your pastry rectangles, fold them in half, and put one end through the hole in the middle – this will roughly be the shape you should achieve:
Once your pastries are ready, deep-fry them for few minutes until golden. When they have cooled down, sprinkle them with some icing sugar. The recipe yields quite a few of them, I filled a large tray, with a heap. They disappeared more quickly than I made them though!
If you do give the recipe a try, hope you enjoy the Polish angel wings pastries as much as my family did!
Can I let you in on a secret? I made them for the first time myself, especially to share with you lot at the MKB.
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Celebrating Easter Around The World
Fun Facts About Poland for Kids
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- Polish Angel Wings Pastries: “Chrust” or “Faworki” - February 4, 2019
