In Kraków, breakfast on the move is a braided ring of bread bought from a street cart. The obwarzanek is made from two or three strands of dough twisted together into a ring, dipped briefly in boiling water and then baked, which gives it a glossy, golden crust and a dense, chewy, faintly sweet crumb. It is thinner and crustier than a bagel, its distant relative, and comes topped with poppy seeds, sesame or coarse salt. The city's blue carts sell well over a hundred thousand of them a day, which suggests that Kraków has never seriously considered any other breakfast.

The history is long and unusually well documented. The royal accounts of Queen Jadwiga's court record obwarzanki bought for the queen in 1394, and for a long time only bakers granted a special privilege were allowed to make and sell them. Since 2010, the name obwarzanek krakowski has been protected by the European Union, so only bakeries in and around the city may sell it under that name. What you make at home is therefore, strictly speaking, a Kraków style bread ring, and it is no less delicious for the legal distinction.

They are made with six humble ingredients and need no special equipment. A basket of them warm from the oven is just the thing to pass round on race weekend.

The dough

Ingredients

• 4 cups (500 g) bread flour
• 2 teaspoons (7 g) instant yeast
• 1 tablespoon (12 g) granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons (9 g) fine salt
• 1 1/4 cups (290 ml) lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil

Method

1. Put the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in the bowl and stir. Add the water and oil and mix with the dough hook on low, or with your hand, until there is no dry flour left.
2. Knead with the dough hook on medium speed for 8 minutes, or by hand on an unfloured counter for 10 to 12 minutes, pushing the dough away with the heel of your hand and folding it back.
3. Put the dough in the oiled bowl, turn it to coat, cover with plastic wrap and leave it in a warm place for about 1 hour.

Shaping, boiling and baking

Ingredients

• 3 quarts (3 liters) water
• 1 tablespoon (20 g) honey or sugar
• 3 tablespoons (25 g) poppy seeds
• 3 tablespoons (25 g) sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt

Method

1. Heat the oven to 450°F (230°C) with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Put the water and honey in the wide pot and bring to a boil. Put the toppings on the three shallow plates.
2. Turn the dough onto the counter and press out the air. Weigh it and divide it into 16 equal pieces, about 2 oz (50 g) each, using the scraper. Keep them covered with the towel.
3. Roll each piece under your palms on the unfloured counter, starting in the middle and moving outward, into a thin rope about 14 inches (35 cm) long. If the dough springs back, leave it for 5 minutes and try again.
4. Lay two ropes side by side and pinch them together at one end. Twist them around each other along their whole length, like a rope. Bring the two ends together to form a ring about 5 inches (13 cm) across, overlap them by 1 inch (2.5 cm) and pinch and roll the join firmly to seal. Set on a lined baking sheet and repeat to make 8 rings.
5. Lower 2 or 3 rings at a time into the boiling water with the slotted spoon. Boil for 30 to 45 seconds, until they float and puff slightly, turning them once. Lift them out, let them drain for a moment, and set them back on the baking sheet.
6. While each ring is still damp, press its top into one of the plates of toppings, poppy seeds, sesame or salt, and return it to the sheet, topping side up. Make some of each.
7. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, swapping the trays between the racks halfway through.
8. Move the rings to the wire rack and let them cool for at least 10 minutes. They are best eaten the same day, while the crust is crisp.

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