Cozonac cu nuca is a traditional Romanian sweet bread filled with lots of walnuts. This delight is usually a Christmas tradition but can be enjoyed all year round.
I don’t bake Romanian sweets very often, but I wanted a familiar taste the other day, and cozonac cu nuca is precisely that.
I remember my grandma used to do lots of them, and the smell in our house of freshly baked goods was absolutely mouthwatering. She used to do them with walnuts and poppyseeds. My absolute favorite was the one with poppyseeds, but since here I can’t find them, as they are not allowed, I used walnuts.
Honestly, it was the first time I tried to bake it at home, and I’m happy with the result. Of course, I couldn’t wait, and I needed to cut it hot straight from the oven. Absolutely mouthwatering. Not only does it looks gorgeous, but it tastes fantastic. It is not really sweet at all, but nutty. It is light and fluffy and goes great as a snack or with my morning cup of coffee.
Cozonac cu nuca is one of the most loved and appreciated Romanian sweets.
The recipe is simple, but there are some basic rules for the success of this walnut roll. All ingredients should be at room temperature, eggs should be fresh (preferably country eggs), milk and butter should be high in fat, and flour and yeast should be of good quality and kept in ideal conditions. The filling should be neither heavy nor wet, as the roll will not rise properly.
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Now let’s see the ingredients that we need for this Cozonac cu nuca (Romanian Walnut Roll) Recipe (2 big cozonaci):
- 1 kg flour
- 200 g sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 7 g dry yeast
- 6 egg yolks
- 500 ml milk, warm
- 150 g butter, melted
- a splash of vanilla extract or rum
For the walnut filling:
- 300 g walnut kernels
- 100 g sugar
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 150 ml milk, hot
For brushing on top:
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp milk
- 4 tbsp syrup (sugar + water)
How To Make Cozonac cu nuca (Romanian Walnut Roll) Recipe Step by Step:
In a bowl, sift the flour together with yeast and salt. Add lightly beaten egg yolks and warm milk, in which you have previously dissolved the sugar. Start to knead by gradually adding the melted butter. Knead until you get a dough that no longer sticks to your hands.
Place the dough in a bowl greased with oil.
Cover with a kitchen towel and leave it to rise until it doubles in volume, about 2 hours.
In the meantime, prepare the filling. Add the walnuts to a food processor and pulse a few times until the nuts are finely ground, then place them in a bowl. Add sugar and cocoa powder. Pour the hot milk little by little. It may take more or less.
Mix well until you get a creamy filling that can be spread.
Divide the dough into four. Roll each dough into a rectangle on a lightly oiled surface, spread the walnut cream on each rectangle, and then roll each rectangle into a roll.
Weave the rolls two by two and put them in the slightly greased loaf pans. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave them to rise for about an hour. Mix the egg yolk with milk and brush the top of the loaves.
Bake the cozonaci in the hot oven at 180ºC for about 45 minutes. When you take them out of the oven, brush them with sugar and water syrup.
Let it cool (if you can), then slice and enjoy.
Nutritional Information:
Happy Baking!
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Cozonac cu Nuca (Romanian Walnut Roll)
Ingredients
- 1 kg flour
- 200 g sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 7 g dry yeast
- 6 egg yolks
- 500 ml milk, warm
- 150 g butter, melted
- a splash of vanilla extract or rum
For the walnut filling:
- 300 g walnut kernels
- 100 g sugar
- 2 tbsp cocoa powder
- 150 ml milk, hot
For brushing on top:
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp milk
- 4 tbsp syrup (sugar + water)
Instructions
- In a bowl, sift the flour together with yeast and salt. Add lightly beaten egg yolks and warm milk, in which you have previously dissolved the sugar. Start to knead by gradually adding the melted butter. Knead until you get a dough that no longer sticks to your hands.Place the dough in a bowl greased with oil.
- Cover with a kitchen towel and leave it to rise until it doubles in volume, about 2 hours.
- In the meantime, prepare the filling. Add the walnuts to a food processor and pulse a few times until the nuts are finely ground, then place them in a bowl. Add sugar and cocoa powder. Pour the hot milk little by little. It may take more or less.Mix well until you get a creamy filling that can be spread.
- Divide the dough into four. Roll each dough into a rectangle on a lightly oiled surface, spread the walnut cream on each rectangle, and then roll each rectangle into a roll.Weave the rolls two by two and put them in the slightly greased loaf pans. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave them to rise for about an hour. Mix the egg yolk with milk and brush the top of the loaves.
- Bake the cozonaci in the hot oven at 180ºC for about 45 minutes. When you take them out of the oven, brush them with sugar and water syrup.Let it cool (if you can), then slice and enjoy.
Looks delicious 😋
Thank you very much!
So beautiful! You should be proud indeed!
Thank you very much dear Dorothy!
Impressive and looks so delectable. 🌝
Thank you very much Suni!
This is absolutely gorgeous! Love the filling!
Thank you very much!
Oh my…
😉 Still at diet? 😋
yup
I hope you’re feeling better!
I am, thanks for asking.
Wow, what a yummy looking roll! 🙂 Do you guys have Walnut trees growing in Romania as they have them in Moldova?
Thank you! Oh yes! When I was little I had my swing on a huge walnut tree in my grandparents’s garden 😉😍
When was walnuts time, I used to eat them “raw” and my fingers were always black from peeling the skin off from these “raw” walnuts ☺️
A beautiful looking result well presented
Thank you very much Derrick!
That looks lovely. It a little like a babka.
Thank you! Yes, it’s very similar to babka, just that have walnuts 😉
Looks delicious 😋
Thank you very much!
Nicely done Chef 🙂 is this recipe in your book then?
Hahaha! Thank you Rory! It wouldn’t be bad 😅
Tasty and hits the eyes 👀, peace
Thank you! I’m very glad you like it!
Ribana, this looks wonderful … almost too good to cut into but wow, the inside is incredible and so wish I could have a taste! 😀
The aroma was so nice that I couldn’t resist for it to cool so I needed to cut it while hot 😋 Super delicious! I wish I could send you all ☺️
I want to reach in and grab a pierce!
That would be great 😉
What a beautiful loaf, and it looks so yummy!
Thank you☺️
That is one good looking loaf! and so enriched! walnuts & cocoa in the filling …. wow!
Thank you very much! It’s really delicious 😋
Wow looks delicious. I haven’t attempted to make a yeast bread in quite a while. I really should do that soon. I love walnuts. It’s making me hungry just thinking about them!
Thank you very much! This is really very easy to make but super delicious! Walnuts and cocoa are a great combination 😋
This looks absolutely delicious!
Thank you very much!
Delicious Romanian walnut roll. This is a fantastic recipe with great pictures. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you very much! It is delicious and easy to do 😉
Love the recipe and photos. I ate a lot of cozonac growing up for Christmas and Easter. A delicious sweet treat indeed.
Thank you very much! I’m glad you like it! It’s a lovely childhood treat 😋😉
Love it! You added so many healthy ingredients in it like walnuts 👍🏻
I’m glad you like it! It’s super moist and delicious with a lovely crunch from the walnuts 😉😋
Do you have any advice on getting the crumb more open and stringy? For rolling the dough do you seal the seams? Made this with 2.5 hour proof and 1 hour final proof. Got great oven spring and rise but the crumb was fairly dense. Fantastic flavor though. But looking to have it more similar to your texture.
Probably the dough was too dense…to have a soft, light and fluffy roll, you need to get the dough at the right consistency and do not over knead it…knead it just until the dough doesn’t stick to your hands anymore…
No need to seal the seams, just place the roll with the openings at the bottom.
Practicing, you’ll get the right consistency 😉 Happy baking 😉🤩