Gubana

Gubana is the most famous Friulian dessert, very similar to our potica. Its name has Slovenian roots and is a derivative of the word gibanica or gubanca. Friulians bake it during major holidays and various celebrations. It differs from potica in its characteristic snail shape, and the filling is also special, containing not only nuts and soaked raisins but also pine nuts.

Details

  • Preparation Time: 150 minutes
  • Cooking Time: 60 minutes
  • Difficulty: 3
  • Spiciness: 0
  • Number of Servings: 12

Ingredients

Dough

  • 600 g Flour, Wheat, bread flour

  • 280 ml Milk, whole milk

  • 100 g Sugar, white

  • 30 g Yeast, dry

  • 1 piece Egg, fresh

  • 2 piece Egg, egg yolk, fresh

  • 160 g Butter, unsalted

  • 0.5 teaspoons Salt, table

  • pieces Lemon zest, fresh

Filling

  • 50 g Butter, unsalted

  • 220 g Raisins

  • 60 ml Alcohol, Rum

  • 100 g Nuts, almonds

  • 100 g Walnuts

  • 100 g Nuts, hazelnuts

  • 50 g Pine nuts

  • 1 piece Egg, fresh

  • 70 g chocolate, dark

  • 1 teaspoon Spices, cinnamon, ground

  • pieces Orange, shell

  • 120 g Breadcrumbs, dried

  • 100 g Sugar, white

Steps

  1. First, prepare the yeast: crumble the yeast into 1 dl of warm milk, add a teaspoon of sugar and a tablespoon of flour, mix well, and let it rise slightly (about 10 minutes).

  2. Mix the remaining milk with the egg and egg yolks, melted butter, grated zest, and the remaining sugar. Sift the flour into a larger bowl and make a well in the center. Salt the flour around the well, pour the risen yeast into the well, and add the milk, egg, and butter mixture. Mix all the ingredients with clean hands or a mixer until you get a rough dough.

  3. Knead the dough well. You should get a pliable and elastic dough that doesn't stick to your hands. Shape the kneaded dough into a ball, place it in an oiled or floured bowl, cover with a clean cloth, and let it rise in a warm place. The dough should double in size.

  4. While the dough is rising, prepare the filling. Lightly toast the almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, and pine nuts in a dry pan. Finely chop the toasted nuts along with the soaked raisins. Mix the chopped ingredients with the egg, sugar, grated chocolate, breadcrumbs, spices, and orange zest.

  5. Place the risen dough on a floured cloth. Roll it out to a finger's thickness in a rectangular shape. First, brush it with melted butter, then evenly spread the prepared filling, leaving about 2 cm of empty edge. Using the cloth, roll the dough from the longer end into a log. Then roll the log into a spiral, tucking the outer edge under the spiral or towards the center. This will form the characteristic snail shape during baking. Place the gubana in a greased round baking dish, cover with a cloth, and let it rise in a warm place for another hour.

  6. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Brush the risen gubana with beaten egg on top. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 60 minutes. It is done when it turns golden brown on top.

Nutrition Information (Per 100g)

  • Calories: 438.73 kcal
  • Fat: 23.3 g
    • Saturated Fat: 7.92 g
  • Carbohydrates: 48.84 g
    • Sugars: 6.9 g
  • Protein: 9.26 g
  • Fiber: 3.77 g

Advice

Instead of rum, you can use Marsala wine or another sweet white wine for soaking the raisins. If desired, you can also add a splash of brandy. Before serving, you can drizzle the baked gubana with sugar glaze or dust it with powdered sugar.