Having grown up in the US, I remember the poppy seed rolls that my grandfather used to bring home to accompany our Sunday dinner. That was the extent of my poppy seed experience. Here in Belgrade, they're put to a different use in the form of poppy seed cake roll like the one pictured above. Sometimes raisins are added, too. My husband LOVED this cake very much, but I never acquired a taste for it, since poppy seeds for me are for dinner rolls, not sweets.This is a Happy Birthday photo is for my very, very good friend, Marianne, who is now in New York, but who, dare I hope, will return to Belgrade in the not-too-far-off future. Marianne and I weathered many storms here, including the NATO bombing of 1999, and she has been a faithful friend.
Enjoy your cake, Marianne. This cake comes from your favorite shop, and I even made you a Turkish coffee, but it's cut off on the photo.... Come on over and get the real thing.
(And all of you come back on Saturday for Yankee's one-year anniversary!)
