Homemade poppy seed filling to use in cookies, cakes, and desserts.
Prepare it from scratch within minutes with the help of my how-to guide.
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In this recipe, I'm sharing how to make a delicious home-made poppy-seed paste.
You can use it as a filling in various baked goods, such as a poppy-seed rolls and buns, strudel, stollen, and as a rich layer in a cake.
It is much better than the store-bought variety and is effortless and quick to make, the whole process only takes 10 minutes.
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Ingredient Tips
Depending on your geographical location, you will be able to have access to the different varieties of poppy seeds.
You can use both, black and white types for this recipe.
You can make this recipe vegan by using any nut milk, such as soy milk, almond milk, oat milk, or coconut milk.
You can also create an alcohol-free version by omitting the alcohol or by using liquor aromas.
You can also personalize the poppy seed paste further by adding any spices that would complement your pastries, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, dry ginger, vanilla, cardamom, and lemon zest.
How to make Poppy Seed Filling?
Here is an overview on how to make your own black or white poppy seed filling.
The complete recipe with US and metric measurements is located at the bottom of this post.
Step 1
If you are using white poppy seeds, dry roast them briefly over high heat while shaking the pan until the aroma is released and the seeds have turned a golden brown.
If you are using black seeds, skip this step and proceed directly to grinding the seeds.
Step 2
Grind the poppy seeds.
You can use a food processor or grind the seeds into a paste by using the traditional mortar and pestle method, which is more labor-intensive.
You can also find special hand grinders that are made for grinding poppy seeds.
Step 3
Add the ground poppy seeds to a saucepan and add ⅔ of the milk, mix well and heat on low heat for a minute.
Add the remaining ingredients (sugar, semolina, salt, vanilla sugar, rum, and the remaining milk) until the mixture begins to bubble.
Remove from the heat and let the paste cool before handling.
📖 Recipe
Poppy Seed Filling Recipe
Ingredients
- 3.5 ounces Poppy Seeds
- 6 ounces Milk
- 1.8 ounces Sugar
- 1 ounce Semolina Flour *see Notes
- pinch Salt
- Vanilla Extract a few drops
- 1 ½ Tablespoon Rum
Instructions
- If you use white poppy, dry roast them in a skillet to activate the flavors. If you use black poppy seeds, you don't need to do that because black poppy are already instense.
- Grind poppy seeds in a regular blender with a small jar or in a spice or coffee grinder.
- Add the poppy seeds to a nonstick saucepan and pour in ⅔ of the milk. Mix over a slow to medium heat setting.
- Stir in the other ingredients (sugar, semolina, salt, vanilla, rum, and the remaining milk) and combine.
- Continue to cook over a low heat setting and keep on stirring until the content turns into a thick paste consistency.
- Allow the poppy filling to cool and use in your baking or store and user another day.
Notes
Equipment
- Grinder
Nutrition
Uses
Traditional Central and Eastern European preparations using a poppy seed filling are associated with Christmas and are makowiec (poppy seed stollen roll), strudel, mohnstriezel, kolaches, knödel, and dessert noodles (schupfnudeln).
In Jewish cuisine, poppyseeds play an important role during the Purim festival and a variety of pastries with a poppy seed filling can be seen on the festive table, such as hamantaschen, rugelach, and babka.
Both the black and white varieties of poppy seed are used in Turkey.
The most famous preparation using a white poppy seed paste is the katmer, flaky flat bread with a sweet and savory white poppy seed filling.
Storing Instructions
The poppy seed filling can be stored for up to 5 days in the fridge in an airtight container.
But it is best to prepare it freshly, as the oils in the poppy seeds get rancid.
The paste can be frozen in batches and thawed in the fridge overnight to be used for baking the next day.
FAQs
As with most spices, dry roasting poppy seeds lends the seeds a more intense flavor as the heat causes the oils to release. Since the black poppy seeds already have a quite intense flavor, you do not need to dry roast them. Dry roasting white poppy seeds, on the other hand, enhances their flavor and gives the seeds a lovely golden color.
The poppy plant is the infamous source of opium, but the seeds, while containing traces of opiates, do not have any narcotic properties. In fact, they contain a lot of nutrients, such as antioxidants and microelements. Because of the poppy’s bad reputation, growing poppies has been banned in several countries, such as the US. But the import of poppy seeds is allowed. Please note that consumption of poppy seeds can produce a positive result on drug tests. Also, pregnant women should limit their consumption of poppy seeds to a small amount.
I'm going to try it! How lond do you think it can be conserved in the fridge?
Thanks in advance!
Miguel, I think you can keep it up to a week max in the fridge (cool dairy compartment), however, it might get a bit hard during that time in the fridge, so it makes sense to use it up as soon as possible. Eventually, you could freeze the poppy seed paste too but then defrosting it might be not so nice because the paste can get soggy.
Dear Helene Dsouza, I live in Romania and here are used heavily poppy seeds as such, and rarely poppy seed paste. In fact, I did not even know what's poppy seed paste. But recently I bought a book for Christmas cakes and there I found some cakes using "poppy seed paste." I started looking: what does it mean? In certain areas of Romania are often uses a homemade paste such as a cream, but much simpler. It is used as a filling for cakes. Boil the poppy seeds in milk with sugar and vanilla until thick. Also these seeds sprinkled on cakes ("cozonac" as a Panetone Italian, but traditional Romanian) or added to cakes. Glad I found here how to prepare pasta poppy.
Sorry for my English!
Hi Criss, thanks for your message 🙂
Yes you use the Poppy seed paste for cakes such as in this poppy seed Stollen. It's a delicacy around Christmas and basically poppy seed paste can be used in all kinds of baked cakes and breads. For example you could use it to make yeast breads or sweets such as "snails". Poppy seed paste gives flavor and makes it all the more interesting. no worries your English is fine btw. 😉
I think that it's probably not that it's illegal to take the seeds out of the country, as it is to take them into some nearby countries. Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Singapore have total bans on poppy, in one of those countries (I think the UAE) a traveller was jailed for having poppy seeds (or supposedly just one single seed) on his clothes! Maybe they heard that story passed down through a few people?
There's also a Turkish poppy seed paste (haşhaş ezmesi) that's just plain ground poppy seeds. Not sure whether it's roasted or not first. The one I got from the store is a light brown, a bit darker than the paste in the picture where you're pouring in the milk.
thanks for the wonderful informative and helpful post.
In Karnataka we make 'gasgase payasa' poppy seed kheer and yes we use it kurmas and other savory dishes too.I just love the flavor it adds and the tiny bite it adds in certain dishes.
I love a good DIY! I made my own tahini using sesame seeds... so I know this one is a good recipe for poppy seed paste too. Love doing it at home and saving money. 🙂
That's a good DIY post...we use poppy seed paste heavily in certain Andhra and Tamilian Dishes..and there are even special sweets made with it..it's a compulsory pantry ingredient..:)
I have never seen white poppy seeds before! I wonder why you could not take them out of India? I am not a huge fan of poppy seeds but in a paste I am sure they are much better than when left whole 🙂
I've never heard of poppy seed paste but I can see how it could be used lots of baked goods. I do love poppy seeds so I can imagine the intensity of this paste.
I've never noticed the difference in strength between the black and white poppy seeds but I'll be sure to focus on it next time I have some.
I definitely know what you mean though about them getting stuck in between your teeth, it looks awful especially if you're out and about without a toothpick. Like you I avoid those when out in public.
Nice recipe I'll have to try this.
That is so interesting! I had no idea that there was white poppy seeds! You learn something new every day 😀
They are so flavorful Helen. Love using poppy seeds in many dishes.
You know, my mom would grind poppy seed dessert, need to ask her for the recipe.
When I visit Europe and especially when I visited Ukraine, there are desserts everywhere filled with poppy seeds. I remember sitting in a tiny coffee house with a country marker right in the middle of the cafe that once was the border between Poland and Ukraine. I ate my first pastry with poppy seeds there. I've loved them ever since.
Seems delicious. Just waiting to try it out ; just in time to add some flip to our christmas cookies.
yeah just in time as you said it in connection with the Christmas cookies! 😉
wow, I didnt know this was even possible. I could use this paste in so many things! I love it!
Wow, it is not often I come across a recipe where I think "I have NEVER seen this before"! Thanks for this! I love the idea of jarring it up to have on hand 🙂
Wow I love poppy seed in desserts, this paste would be pretty handy 😀
Never tried it but I intend to now!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I love poppy seeds! Poppy seed cake is one of the best going. Never made a paste with them, though, and I don't think I've even tasted it. Really interesting recipe and post! Thanks.
Mmmhhh, wonderful! Perfect when used as filling in beigli.
Cheers,
Rosa