I saw sękacz for the first time tonight; this many layered cake, resembling a tree or crazy big mushroom, is both dessert and an impressive centerpiece. We stopped by a new pub (more on Piwna Stopa in another post) this evening, and found out it was the owner’s birthday. He was having a BBQ on the back patio with family and friends and insisted that we join them. I can tell you this man is in the right business, he has the gift of hospitality.
We joined them in a toast to the birthday boy, with some homemade cherry liqueur for the ladies and vodka for the men — too bad guys! 😉 Our host promptly fixed plates of food for us, even though we had just come from dinner, so I’m really glad that we logged over 26 miles on our bikes today and that we skipped dessert at the restaurant.
The sękacz was on the serving table. As you can see from the photo, it’s very tall, at least two feet with so many finger-like branches sprouting from the trunk. From across the patio, I wasn’t sure what it was, bread? a giant smoked cheese from the mountains? So I had to ask. It was the birthday cake, a traditional cake from the Eastern part of Poland dating back to the Middle Ages. Sixty eggs went into the batter, and as you might guess, it takes hours to make, definitely a labor of love.
Browned layers like the rings on a tree
You start by building a large fire. A long wooden spool is set up on a spit fireside. The cake batter is dripped over the hot spool and is built up layer after layer after layer, with the drips becoming the tree branches. The cake, when you break off a branch, as the kids had been doing, shows rings just like the growth rings you’d see on a tree.
Second dinner
I’m sorry to say I can’t comment on the taste. We didn’t stay long enough for the cutting of the cake, and I don’t know our host well enough to start snapping off pieces of his cake like the the kids had been doing. I’m sure it was wonderful, and I have the urge to try doing this someday.
An accountant by trade and a food blogger since 2009, Lois Britton fell in love with Polish cuisine during the years she lived in Poznań, Poland. As the creator of PolishHousewife.com, she loves connecting readers with traditional Polish recipes. Lois has a graduate certificate in Food Writing and Photography from the University of South Florida. She is the author of The Polish Housewife Cookbook, available on Amazon and on her website.
Lori
So funny! After all my trips to Poland I learned about this for the first time last week. At each language camp the students present “Polish night.” At the recent Zakopane camp one in the group presenting about food included a mention of this. Our Polish country manager found a section of it at a cukernia and brought it to our evening meal the next day.
polishhousewife
I’ll watch for it in a cukernia! That’s a good idea, I’ll try it before I build a fire and set up a spit! 🙂
Kasia
I have found out about sekacz here in the States, because two of my friends are from the part of Poland when it is popular. I don’t remember ever hearing about it in the 28 years that I lived in Poland:) I have tried it several times, but unfortunately I did not like it.
polishhousewife
If you’re not a fan, I really should find a piece in a bakery before I try doing it myself.
Joy @MyTravelingJoys
In April, one of my husband’s Polish colleagues brought in a generous piece of sękacz for him to take home to me knowing how much I liked sweets. Very kind gesture! The cake was leftover from his son’s first birthday over the weekend. Living in Poland now, I like the tradition of the sękacz, but as a pastry chef, I thought the cake was way too dry once I tasted it. Maybe good to dip in a cup of tea or washed down with a shot of cherry vodka? 😉
Kasia
I agree with Joy. I also find it too dry for my taste.