Trdelnik: the tongue-twister treat

Trdelnik – say that slowly and be sure to unroll your tongue at the end of it – is a traditional slovakian pastry in the shape of a hollow cylinder. A long rope of sweet dough is rolled on to a thin wooden or metal rod and then baked on an open fire and coated with sugar and cinnamon and nuts (traditionally only walnuts).

I first came across it in the small pretty UNESCO town of Cesky Krumlov. And then everywhere in Prague. The trdelnik shop was one of the highlights of the Easter market at the old town square, calling out to people with that buttery, sugary, pastry smell. Let’s just say I was sold – at the first sniff. I tried various versions, even one with a coating of chocolate inside. I remember reading or hearing that trdelnik means tasty but I am not sure about that. But who cares about the meaning; it was del.iii.cious.