Karjalanpiirakka or Karelian pies

You know that I have a special devotion to the Nordic countries and everything around them. From its landscapes, the people, its culture and, of course, its wonderful and different gastronomy. I have only been able to be there once, for the moment, but I hope and wish that there will be many more. Today I leave you a very different recipe to what we are used to and that is a real delight, Karjalanpiirakka or Karelian pies.

These pastries or pies are traditional in the Karelia region, a town that occupies a large area shared between Finland and Russia. What can we expect from them? A delicious delicacy… salty. Yeah, salty, it’s not sweet.

History and tradition.

Karelia’s pie was introduced in the years 1600-1700 to the present day region of eastern Finland, from where it reached the rest of Finland and even Sweden. The first written information about these pies dates back to 1686.

Traditionally, the basis of these cakes is made with rye flour, although in some regions such as North Karelia and Karelia Ladoga, they are prepared with a mixture of wheat and rye flour to improve cooking. It is said that authentic Karelia pies should not contain less than half of the rye flour in their base.

The most common fillings in the past were barley and talkkuna. The latter is a traditional roasted flour mixture from Estonia and Finland consisting of barley, rye, oats and pea flour. It was a non-perishable food that could easily be transported and eaten as a snack by brushing it with butter. Nowadays it is used to make some desserts or as part of the breakfast with milk, buttermilk or kefir with blueberries.

Thanks to trade, rice and millet, arrived in Finland in the 17th century, but it was only within reach of the wealthiest. It was during the nineteenth century when it was exported to the countryside and gradually became accessible to the entire population using as variations of fillings for these pies.

Potato cultivation began in Finland at the end of the 1720s and, in the 19th century, was first introduced as a stuffing together with buckwheat.

Nowadays.

Today the most traditional recipe is made with a thin rye base and a rice filling accompanied by munavoi, egg butter. The latter is one of the most popular innovations in Finnish cuisine, a mixture of butter and chopped hard-boiled egg.

Karelia’s pies became a symbol of Karelian culture in the 1900s. To the point of being present in many pastry shops in the main cities.

It is said that after the Winter War and Continuation War in Finland with the Soviet Union, the rural population of Savo visited a woman who ran a bakery. She offered them the Karelian pies and they were delighted with both the cakes and the kind gesture of that woman. It was from that moment onwards when this cake became part of Finland’s cultural heritage and since then we can find it in different places.

Creating new versions.

From this pie, many versions and creations based on it emerged:

• Kakkara, baked in a pan.
• Kalitta, crab pie similar to Karelia’s pie, but with more abundant filling.
• Keitinpiiras, similar to a crêpe.
• Kukkopiirakoiksi, crescent-shaped, especially in the south and isthmus of Karelia.
• Kukkonen, smaller and circular size. It is usually filled with carrot, boiled egg and raisins.
• Perunapiirakka, circular pie with potato filling.
• Pyörö, circular pie about 3,9 inches (10 cm) in diameter made with sour dough or oats. In the 1930s they were very popular pastries in cafés. Stuffed with mashed potatoes or semolina.
• Sipanniekka, very similar to Karelia’s pie but with a wider opening. They are usually prepared on Sunday mornings and eat at midday accompanied by a stew. Made with corn, mashed potatoes and talkunaa or barley.
• Sultsina, made in Ladoga Karelia and North Karelia. A thin dough is prepared and baked in the oven on embers, it was filled at the time of eating. They are stuffed with porridge, they are closed in the same way that we fold the puff pastry to make a palm tree and they are painted with abundant butter.
• Tsupukka, is made in a similar way to a crêpe, it closes in half and again in half, leaving a conical shape.
• Vatruska, (I left this one on the blog some time ago) in a circular shape with the edge folded towards the inside. The filling can be seasoned with eggs, sugar, cream and raisins.