Wallachian Frgal

Frgal - properly valassky frgal, plural frgale - is a yeast-dough pie rolled thin and baked flat to about thirty centimetres across with a topping spread over the whole surface and a crumble scattered on it, cut into wedges to serve. The classic toppings are hruskovy povidla, a thick butter made from dried pears, along with curd cheese, poppy seed, plum butter and apple, and a table often carries several kinds. It belongs to Wallachia, the mountain region of eastern Moravia settled by shepherds from the Carpathians, and it was baked for weddings, feasts and funerals - the size and number of frgale made was a measure of the occasion. It holds EU protected geographical indication as valassky frgal. Bakeries across the region make them and the open-air museum at Roznov sells them; they are best fresh and go dry within a day.

Highlights

• A flat pie thirty centimetres across - thin yeast dough with topping over the whole surface.
• Dried pear butter - the classic topping, alongside curd, poppy seed and plum.
• A feast food - baked for weddings and funerals, the quantity a measure of the occasion.
• A protected name - EU geographical indication for valassky frgal.

When to go

All year. An hour.

Things to know

They go dry within a day - buy fresh from a bakery rather than packaged. Much sold outside the region is industrial. The pear butter version is the traditional one and the hardest to find well made.

Nearby

Roznov open-air museum and Velke Karlovice are in the region.