Pinca / Pinca - Croatian Easter bread

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Dugo nisam voljela pincu (sirnicu) niti se u našoj obitelji pripremala za Uskrs. Nekoliko puta sam joj ipak dala šansu, jer volim raditi s tijestom i iz znatiželje, ali se pomalo razočarala. Ne znam, volim domaći kruh (nema boljeg), obožavam domaća peciva, obožavam i slatka peciva s cimetom itd. ali pinca, dobra dok je topla, malo suhonjava kad je hladna...Ova je predivno mekana, sočna i mirisna!

Nakon nekoliko dana ova je sirnica bila prekrasno mekana (stajala je zamotana u plastičnu foliju) i zadržala svježinu. Naravno da mi je i dalje najbolja topla, ali me zaista ugodno iznenadila.

U mnogim je hrvatskim krajevima pinca tj. sirnica oduvijek bila jedan od najvećih Uskrsnih gastronomskih simbola. Nekad je ovaj slatki kruh bio ponos svake kuće i domaćice su se, moglo bi se reći, natjecale koja će napraviti ukusniju pincu. Svaka je kuća imala svoj recept. Pinca se odlikuje tamnijom bojom nakon pečenja koja se dobije premazivanjem jajetom. Također, ovaj se slatki kruh zareže po površini prije pečenja te posipa krupnim šećerom (kojeg u nedostatku slobodno zamijenite običnim sećerom) nakon pečenja. Zbog bogatstva sastojaka mogli bismo ju prozvati kolačem. Bogato tijesto priprema se s mnogo pažnje, daje mu se vremena i pušta ga se da se diže po nekoliko puta, obogaćuje ga se najboljom masnoćom, većim brojem svježih domaćih jaja, aromama ruže, kruškovca ili ruma te grožđicama i raznim suhim i/ili kandiranim voćem. Kruh je to koji zaslužuje posebnu prigodu, nekoć rađen tradicionalno na Veliku subotu, pekao se na Uskršnje jutro i poklanjao gostima kao znak dobrih želja.

Kao i kod svakog tijesta, morate mu dati vremena. Bolje je zamijesiti malo mekše tijesto, koje se kasnije kad ga premijesite malo doradi brašnom. Mast tijestu daje divnu mekoću, ne samo kod pince nego i u mnogim drugim receptima. Tijesto je sočno i nimalo suho. Ako niste ljubitelj, zamijenite ju maslacem. Probala sam i samo s maslacem i sa pola masti-pola maslaca, i mislim da je s dodatkom masti ipak malo bolja. I još jedna stvar - ako ste u mogućnosti doći do njih, svakako se za pincu preporučaju svježa domaća jaja, dat će joj prekrasnu žutu boju. Ako se tijesto dovoljno i lijepo dignulo, nećete trebati peći pincu duže od 30-35 min. Od ove količine tijesta napravila sam 5 pinci srednje veličine.

                                                                        cherry flower

Tijesto:

• 750 g glatkog brašna
• 2 vrećice suhog kvasca
• 170 g šećera
• prstohvat soli
• 1 vanilin bourbon šećer
• 75 g maslaca
• 75 g masti
• 150 ml toplog mlijeka
• 80 g kiselog vrhnja
• 3 cijela jaja
• 1 žutanjak
• 40 ml ruma
• 40 g grožđica
• 50 g miješanog kandiranog voća
• fino naribana korica 1 naranče
• fino naribana korica 1/2 limuna

Premaz:

• 1 umućeno jaje 
• šećer za posipanje

1. Neka svi sastojci budu sobne temperature.
2. Grožđice natopite u rumu.
3. Prosijte brašno u posudu u kojoj ćete mijesiti tijesto. Dodajte mu sol, šećer, vanil šećer.
4. Kvasac razmutite u toplom mlijeku pa dodajte brašnu. Dodajte jaja i žutanjak, kiselo vrhnje, naribanu narančinu i limunovu koricu. Na kraju dodajte kandirano voće i grožđice zajedno s rumom. Zamijesite mekše tijesto. MIjesite ga dugo, 10-ak min. Pokrijte čistom krpom i ostavite na toplom da se udvostruči (oko 1 sat).
5.  Nakon što se tijesto udvostručilo, dobro ga premijesite zajedno s otopljenim i prohlađenim maslacem i mašću. Pokrijte čistom krpom i ostavite na toplom da se ponovo udvostruči (oko sat vremena).
6. Tijesto oblikujte u okrugla peciva i slažite na pleh obložen pek papirom. Pustite da se odmore na toplom 30 min.  Škarama zarežite po površini i premažite umućenim jajetom. Pustite da odmaraju još 10 min.
7. Za to vrijeme zagrijte pećnicu na 180 C. Pecite 30-35 min.
8. Vruće pince premažite umućenim jajetom i posipajte šećerom.

                                                         Pinca - Croatian Easter bread


Pinca (also called sirnica) is a traditional Croatian Easter sweet bread. It is a rich yeast dough, made with a lot of butter (sometimes lard) and eggs, flavored with citrus zest, candied and/or dried fruit, rum or rosewater. It is shaped into a round loaf that is cut with kitchen scissors and brushed with egg wash before baking.

In the past, pinca was the pride of almost every household, each had their own family recipe. It was traditionally made on the Saturday and baked on Easter morning.

For a long time I was avoiding making this sweet bread. It was just never made in our family. Then I tried several recipes and wasn't impressed, to say the least. It was ok while it was still hot, but when cooled, it turned into a dry loaf of bread. Nothing special, nothing that would interest me. So after a few recipes, I forgot about it. However, this year I had to prepare some traditional Easter recipes and finally gave in and gave pinca another try. I was determined to make it work this time. And so it did. It worked wonderfully. I got soft dough that remained so and not even a bit dry after 2-3 days (I wrapped the remainings in plastic wrap). It had a wonderful flavor - this time I used both candied fruit and raisins. Pinca is great with some butter and a cup of coffee or tea.

                                                                  pinca before baking

This rich dough is made for special occasions and is not something you can make in a hurry. Pinca takes a lot of time and there are several things to consider when making it, as it will result in beautifully soft dough. This dough rises 3 times, it is crucial to give it enough time to rest and rise. If it rises properly, you will need to bake it for 30-35 minutes. Longer baking often results in dry dough. Also, I like to make the dough on the soft side and then later work a bit more flour into it. Make sure the ingredients are at room temperature. I used 1 part butter and 1 part lard in my dough. Lard makes it especially soft and pliable. If you don't like it, you can substitute it entirely with butter. It is good to add fat to the dough after the first rising, because sometimes fat inhibits the rising.

Dough:

• 750 g all purpose flour
• 2 sachets (14 g) dry yeast
• 170 g sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1  sachet vanilla sugar
• 75 g butter
• 75 g lard
• 150 ml warm milk
• 80 g sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 1 egg yolk
• 40 ml rum
• 40 g raisins
• 50 g mixed candied fruit
• finely grated zest of 1 orange
• finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon

Egg wash:

• 1 whisked egg
• sugar

1. Soak raisins in rum.
2. Sift flour into a bowl. Add salt, sugar and vanilla sugar.
3. Dissolve yeast in warm milk and add to the flour mixture. Add eggs, yolk, sour cream and citrus zest. Then add candied fruit and raisins together with rum. Knead until soft dough forms. Make sure to knead it for about 10 minutes. Cover with clean kitchen towel and let rise in warm place until doubled in size (about 1 hour).
4. Punch the dough and knead it again, adding melted and cooled butter and lard. Cover with clean kitchen towel and let rise in warm place until again doubled in size.
5. Shape the dough into 5 round loafs and place them onto baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  Let them rest for 30 minutes. Using kitchen scissors, cut a cross into the surface of each bun. Brush the surface with whisked egg and let stand for 10 minutes.
6. Preheat oven to 180 C.
7. Bake for 30-35 minutes. While still hot, brush again with whisked egg and sprinkle with sugar.


I hope you're enjoying beautiful spring weather, blossoming nature and all the seasonal food! Take care and have a great week. I have some projects to take care of in the next couple of days and can't wait :)

                                                                          peach flower