Buckwheat Tree cake with butter

Tree cake – its origin and history

It was known that Tree cake (Šakotis) are baked in Europe already in the fifteen decade. It was baked by monks and recipes were a secret. Today there are known about 60 recipes of Tree cake. Cakes are also popular in Latvia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Portugal, Sweden, Turkey, Japan, and other countries. In each country, Tree cake differ in their look, form, number of branches and even taste and the composition. Every country has its traditional Tree cake. The price also varies due to its height: the lower – the cheaper.

What is Tree cake and how it ended in Lithuania? First of all, it is a high, hollow confectionery item which is made of many thin layers. Cakes are made of wheat flour, sugar, eggs, sour cream, and other ingredients. The dough poured on a turning roller drops and bakes on the heat at the same time. It is believed that Tree cake ended in Lithuania during the beginning of the twenty-first age from Germany. In Germany, it is called “baumkuchen” – a pie-tree. It is called that because when different layers are poured, it can be seen that on Tree cake there are flutes like those on trees. When Tree cake is cut, you can calculate how many times the dough was poured. In some other regions of Lithuania, Tree cake is called as raguolis, raguotis, bankuchenas. And that is because of the unusual German name and amazing look of this confectionery item. In Lithuania, the traditional form of Tree cake is a spruce: bigger “branches” are on the bottom and smaller on the top. Probably every kid would want to break delicious little horns (thrones) as soon as possible.

Tree cake made of buckwheat flour baking and composition

Firstly, Tree cake made of buckwheat flour are special due to the way how they are made and their rich composition. JSC „Lašų duona“ Tree cake is baked of buckwheat flour, many eggs, margarine or butter, sugar and sour cream. The prepared dough is poured on a special roller which is above the fire or a stove. The roller is turned to form little horns. Then again a layer is poured and again it has to be baked until the layer becomes golden. This process is repeated many times until buckwheat flour Tree cake of a desirable diameter is baked. Some people try to repeat all the process of making it at home; they bake it in the oven and pour the dough in thin layers in a flat vessel, however, to bake the real Tree cake, a roller is a must. Thus the product baked at home can be only a cousin of Tree cake.

How to serve Tree cake made of buckwheat flour

Tree cake made of buckwheat flour is usually served in pieces without anything else. It is a very great way, however, not the only one on how deliciously to use it. Tree cake can be filled with a whip or whipped cream. If there are broken pieces, you can use it for a wonderful cake tinginys (lazy cake) to make. Also, you can use Tree cake made of buckwheat flour crumbs for a layered dessert – some crumbs of Tree cake, curd cream, and strawberries. Of course, the energetic value of Tree cake is quite high, therefore, enjoy these desserts very carefully. If you want to send Tree cake made of buckwheat flour abroad not in pieces, fill its inside with sweets. If you want something exceptional, you can put pieces of cake into ice-cream, decorate it with berries and fruits – transform a boring dessert of several layers in a glass into a piece of art in a plate. Free your imagination that all these plates would be different as there are no identical horns on this confectionery item.