Jagodzianki Recipe

Jagodzianki are a traditional Polish blueberry sweet bun. They pair perfectly with coffee and tea or on their own as a dessert. Find the recipe below.

Our Story

I know it’s the middle of summer, but I can’t help but start to dream about blueberry season in Alaska. Growing up in the north, I have always looked forward to the time of year when we would go out as a family and gather berries in the forest by our cabin. I have fond memories of hearing the “plunk” sound as the berries landed in my bucket. I always returned from berry picking with blue fingers and lips, and with more blueberries in my belly than in my bucket.

This summer, we’ve been a little homesick for Poland as Covid has canceled all of our travel plans. We’ve found one of the best ways to deal with homesickness is cooking. Our kitchen has been filled with all sorts of Polish delicacies such as naleśniki (a Polish crepe), pierogi and fresh soups and salads.

Damian has fond memories of eating Jagodzianki as a kid in Poland. He says that his mom would bring home a large basket full of the buns because each one cost less than a quarter. Like all good Polish moms, she would always encourage him to eat as many as he could. He remembers eating them with friends and family and making a giant mess. They would laugh to each other as they were quickly covered in shades of blue and purple.

Today, we thought it would be fun to combine traditional Alaskan ingredients with a traditional Polish recipe and therefore decided on Jagodzianki. Jagodzianki is a type of yeasty blueberry sweet bun. The sweetened blueberries are tucked inside a blanket of fresh yeasty dough. The buns are baked and lightly coated with a sweet glaze.

Here is the recipe we followed, translated and adapted into English from Domowe Wypieki.  We were delighted with how the buns turned out and can’t wait to share them with our family. The next time we can travel to Poland, stopping to eat a fresh locally made jagodzianki is at the top of our list!

Jagodzianki AKA Sweet Polish Blueberry Buns

Yields 16 Buns

Ingredients

For the Dough

• 500g (4 Cups) All Purpose Flour
• 250ml (1 Cup) Whole Milk
• 50g (4 Tablespoons) Sugar
• 11g (1 Tablespoon) Active Dry Yeast
• 75g (1/3 Cup) Softened Unsalted Butter
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 Egg

For the Filling

• 500g (1 Pound) Blueberries
• 3 Tablespoons Powdered Sugar

For the Egg Wash

• 1 Egg
• 1 Tablespoon Whole Milk

For the Glaze

• 1 1/4 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 3 Tablespoons Boiling Water

Instructions

1. Warm the milk to 110 degrees F. Mix the warm milk with 1 teaspoon of sugar, yeast, and 4 tablespoons of flour. Stir until dissolved and let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes.
2. Add the remainder of the flour to a large bowl as well as the rest of the sugar and salt. Mix together.
3. Add the egg, softened butter and yeast mixture to the flour blend. Knead together with your hands, mix with a wooden spoon or use a dough hook on an electric mixer. The batter should be thick but should not stick to your hands.
4. Cover the bowl with a cloth and set aside to rise in a warm place until it doubles in size (about one hour).
5. While dough is rising, mix the blueberries with the powdered sugar. Set aside.
6. Sprinkle flour over a counter or pastry cloth. Turn out the dough and divide into 16 even pieces. (We did this by rolling the dough into a log shape about 16 inches long. We divided this in half, and then divided the half in half, and so on…)
7. Using your hands, pat and flatten each piece of dough into a circular shape about 4 inches in diameter.
8. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place a heaping spoonful of blueberries into the center of each piece. Gently fold and pinch the edges to seal together. Place the seam side down on your baking sheet. (If you are having trouble getting your dough to seal, trying brushing the edge of the dough circle with a little water or dipping your fingers in some water to help close the bun.) Place the buns on a baking tray and make sure to leave a few inches between each bun. (We fit 8 buns nicely on a baking tray.)
9. Preheat over to 350F (180C). While the oven is heating, allow the buns to rest for 10 minutes and prepare the egg wash. To make the egg wash, combine 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of milk. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the top of each bun before putting in the oven.
10. Bake the buns for about 20 minutes, or until a nice golden brown color. The buns may open slightly due to the amount of filling in them. Some of the blueberry juice may leak out, but they buns should remain in tact and full of filling.
11. Remove buns from oven and cool. While buns are cooling, prepare the glaze. Mix the powdered sugar with boiling water. Once the buns have cooled, spread the glaze over the top.

Smacznego!

Notes

• We prepared the buns using a scale and metric measurements. I have converted the measurements to the best of my ability using an online calculator. If possible, I recommend using a scale for more accuracy.
• If you don’t have blueberries, you can also replace the filling with another berry such as raspberries or strawberries. You could also fill the buns with jam or even Nutella!

Learn more about Polish cuisine!

If you have any questions about the recipe, contact us!