Viški cviti

01 / ABOUT THE DISH

About the dish

Viški cviti is a dry, brittle cookie from the Adriatic island of Vis, shaped into decorative flowers and petals and flavored strongly with anise. The cookies have long been associated with important island celebrations, especially weddings and baptisms, and have been made for centuries in Dalmatian coastal communities. Before modern baking powder became widely available, ammonium bicarbonate was used to give the cookies their light, crisp texture. This also helped them keep for months when stored in stone pantries. The stiff dough is made by working rendered pork lard into plain wheat flour, whole eggs, and granulated sugar. The main flavor comes from a specific liquid mixture. Whole milk is brought to a boil and poured over baker’s ammonia, causing an immediate and strongly scented chemical reaction. This mixture is then added to the dough along with grated lemon zest, orange peel, and a generous splash of strong anise liqueur. The dough is rolled out with a wooden rolling pin until it is only a few millimeters thick. A fluted pastry wheel or sharp metal blade is then used to cut it into decorative flower and leaf shapes. The pieces are arranged on flat metal baking trays and baked in a hot oven until the edges become very pale golden. The sharp smell of ammonia disappears completely during baking. The flavor can be changed by replacing the anise with sweet maraschino liqueur, dark rum, or strong grape rakija. These alternatives give the cookies a fruitier or sharper alcoholic note that helps balance the flavor of the pork fat. Another variation replaces the lard with softened cow’s butter. This produces a noticeably softer and more crumbly texture, so the cookie breaks apart more easily instead of having the firm snap of the lard-based version. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, they are glazed while still very hot. A pastry brush is used to coat them with a diluted mixture of anise extract and water. Each cookie is then dipped into a bowl of coarse crystalline sugar, which sticks to the wet surface and forms a thick, sparkling coating as the liquid evaporates. The coated cookies are left at room temperature for several hours until the sugar crust becomes completely hard. At large banquets or family gatherings, Viški cviti are usually served stacked in deep glass bowls or arranged across wide wooden boards. They are eaten as dry, aromatic sweets alongside small glasses of thick, sweet prošek dessert wine or strong black coffee.