Karpatka

01 / ABOUT THE DISH

About the dish

This popular Polish cream cake usually consists of two layers of pâte à choux coupled with a thick layer of creamy, vanilla-flavored pastry cream. Occasionally, the bottom crust is replaced with shortcrust pastry, while the top is always made with pâte à choux. When sprinkled with powdered sugar, the uneven top of the cake resembles the snow-capped Carpathian mountains, hence the name. Though not much is known about its origin, the earliest mention of karpatka dates back to 1972. Considered to be a close relative of the more popular kremówka , the cake is a staple in Polish pastry shops, but it is also a common home-cooked dessert.