Vdolky, Czech Fry Cakes

Do you want to taste a piece of a real Czech delicacy? Try a vdolek aka vdoleček, topped with plum jam and sprinkled with grated tvaroh. I have an easy old-fashioned recipe for this cute little fry cake for you. 

What Is Czech Vdolek?

Vdolek is a yeast-raised deep fry cake without filling, but with jam spread on top. It is usually also flavored with some grated tvaroh (quark), a scoop of sour cream, whipped cream, or a similar kind of contrast frosting.

We have different names for vdolky (plural) in the Czech Republic, such as dolky or vdolečky. 

Bohemian fried vdolky cakes are also known as Bavorské vdolečky, from the German Bundesland Bavaria, which neighbors the Czech Republic.

Vdolky also resemble other Czech famous fry cakes, koblihy (which you may know as berliners). However, koblihy are filled with jam inside and don't have any spread on top. 

You could call a doughnut or a beignet the closest analogue to the vdolek in the United States.

Ingredients

For vdolky dough, you'll need:

• Milk; must be lukewarm to activate the yeast
• Unsalted butter; for enhanced flavor
• Granulated sugar; to sweeten the dough and feed the yeast
• Instant yeast; Czechs usually use fresh yeast but vdolky can be made with instant yeast without any problems
• All-purpose flour
• Pinch of salt
• Eggs
• Rum; for a better taste, our favorite is Czech "tuzemák" or "Božkov"
• Flour to dust the worktop
• Vegetable oil for frying

Ingredients for vdolky topping:

• Plum jam
• Hard tvaroh

Instructions

Homemade vdolky fry cakes are easy to make, just consider the time the dough needs to rise and the vdolky to fry.

STEP 1: Flour, yeast and milk

• Add the flour to a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center.
• Place instant yeast into the well, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sugar.
• Pour in about ½ cups of lukewarm milk. Stir the yeast, sugar, milk, and little flour with a wooden spoon.
• Leave it in a warm place for 30 minutes; the yeast mixture should start bubbling. 

STEP 2: Mix the butter, milk, eggs, sugar

• Melt the butter and let it cool for a bit.
• Add it to the rest of the milk in a bowl. The mixture can't be hot, only warm.
• Add eggs, sugar, a pinch of salt, rum, and whisk everything. 

STEP 3: Make a dough

Add the mixture to the flour with proofed yeast and make the dough, either by hand with a wooden spoon or using a kitchen mixer with a proper attachment. The resulting dough should be a bit sticky, not too dense. This helps in making fluffy and pillowy vdolky.

STEP 4: Let the dough rise

Let the dough rise in a warm place for 45-60 minutes. The dough's volume should be twice as big as before. 

Read my tip for the guaranteed rising of yeast dough below.

STEP 5: Cut vdolky

Dump the risen dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out so that it's about ½ inch thick (not too thin!). Cut the round shapes out with a flipped glass. Cover with a clean kitchen cloth and let it rise again for 20-30 minutes until puffy.

STEP 6: Fry the vdolky

• Meantime, heat oil for frying in a pot over medium heat. 
• Before you fry a vdolek, make a shallow dump with your index finger in the middle. Put a vdolek into the hot oil carefully, with the hole facing downwards.
• Fry until golden brown, then flip the vdolek and fry the second side. It's quick, about 1 minute on each side.
• Remove fried vdolky from the oil carefully and place it onto a rack. 

STEP 7: Garnish vdolky

Spread the plum jam on the surface of the vdolek on the side with a hole. Sprinkle with grated tvaroh.   

Topping

Fried vdolky are usually topped with plum jam and grated tvaroh. Tvaroh is a variety of fresh cheese, a typical ingredient in Czech cuisine.

I know that tvaroh is hard to find abroad. You can use dry ricotta, a scoop of sour cream or whipped cream instead. Then dust the vdolky with powdered sugar.

If you really want to go all out with the topping, you can use any tried and trusted cream cheese frosting, which works well for you.

You can use any type of solid jam instead of plum jam. 

Here is a traditional český vdolek bought at the Czech Mašek’s bakery:

Cook's Tips

• The best place for letting the yeast dough rise is an inactive oven. Place a pot with hot water on the bottom of the oven, move the shelf rack grid to the middle position, and put an uncovered bowl with dough on it. Close the oven. This warm and humid environment is the best for the safe and guaranteed rising of yeast dough. 
• Enriched yeast dough like this takes a lot of time to rise due to the amount of butter.
• When you roll out the dough and make individual fry cakes out of it, avoid adding too much flour, or you'll have very heavy and dense fry cakes.
• The hole in the middle of the fry cake should not go through. It's just a shallow hole, which can fit more jam when being topped.

FUN FACTS: Czechs often don't eat the vdolky as a dessert but as a main course! They're a popular dish in school cafeterias.

FAQs