Pinca (also called sirnica) is a rich yeast dough, made with a lot of butter (sometimes lard) and eggs, flavored with citrus zest, candied and/or dried fruit, rum or rosewater. It is shaped into a round loaf that is cut with kitchen scissors and brushed with egg wash before baking. In the past, pinca was the pride of almost every household, each had their own family recipe. In Croatia, it was traditionally made on the Saturday and baked on Easter morning – but is now eaten throughout Easter.
For a long time I was avoiding making this sweet bread. It was just never made in our family. Then I tried several recipes and wasn’t impressed, to say the least. It was ok while it was still hot, but when cooled, it turned into a dry loaf of bread. Nothing special, nothing that would interest me. So after a few recipes, I forgot about it. However, this year I had to prepare some traditional Easter recipes and finally gave in and gave pinca another try. I was determined to make it work this time. And so it did. It worked wonderfully. I got soft, light and foamy dough that remained soft and not even a bit dry after 2-3 days (I wrapped the remainings in plastic wrap). It had a wonderful flavor – this time I used both candied fruit and raisins. Pinca is great with some butter and a cup of coffee or tea.
This rich dough is made for special occasions and is not something you can make in a hurry. Pinca takes some time and there are several things to consider when making it, as it will result in beautifully soft and foamy dough. 
How to Make Pica – Traditional Croatian Easter Bread
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Prep Raisins:
- Soak raisins in rum and set aside.
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Dough Mixture:
- Sift flour into a large mixing bowl. Incorporate salt, sugar, and vanilla sugar.
- Dissolve yeast in warm milk and mix into the flour. Add eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, and citrus zests. Stir in candied fruit and rum-soaked raisins.
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Kneading:
- Knead until a soft, elastic dough forms, approximately 10 minutes. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 1 hour).
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Second Rise:
- Punch down the dough, then knead in melted (but cooled) butter and lard. Cover and let rise again until doubled.
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Forming Loaves:
- Shape the dough into five round loaves and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Rest for 30 minutes. Cut a cross on top of each loaf with kitchen scissors.
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Egg Wash:
- Beat 1 egg and brush the top of each loaf. Let stand for an additional 10 minutes.
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Baking:
- Preheat oven to 356°F (180°C). Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden.
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Final Touch:
- While hot, brush the loaves again with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar.
Recipe Notes:
- Ensure milk is warm to touch for the yeast to activate properly.
- Allow dough to fully double during both rising periods for best texture.
- The cross-cut on top of the loaves is traditional and helps the bread bake evenly.
Pinca – The Traditional Croatian Easter Bread
- Total Time: 65 minutes
- Yield: Makes 5 loaves 1x
Description
This sweet bread is a Croatian Easter tradition. Rich, soft, and flavorful, its worth the effort!
Ingredients
For the dough
- 6 1/4 cups (750 g) all-purpose flour
3/4 cup (175 g) sugar
1 packet (8 g) vanilla sugar
5 large eggs
5 tbsp (75 g) unsalted butter, softened
5 tbsp (75 g) lard or additional unsalted butter
2/3 cup (150 ml) milk, lukewarm
1/2 cup (120 g) sour cream
2 1/4 tsp (7 g) active dry yeast
1/4 tsp (1.5 g) salt
Zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
1/3 cup (40 g) raisins
1/3 cup (50 g) candied citrus peel
Rum, for soaking raisins
For finishing
- 1 egg, beaten
Pearl sugar or coarse sugar (optional)
Instructions
Place the raisins in a small bowl and cover with rum. Let sit while preparing the dough.
Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl. Add the salt, sugar, and vanilla sugar and mix to combine.
Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm milk, then add to the flour mixture. Add the eggs, sour cream, lemon zest, and orange zest.
Drain the raisins and add them along with the candied citrus peel. Mix until a dough forms.
Knead for about 10 minutes, until the dough becomes soft and elastic.
Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
Punch down the dough and knead in the softened butter and lard until fully incorporated.
Cover again and let rise until doubled in size.
Divide the dough into 5 equal portions and shape each into a round loaf.
Place the loaves on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let rest for 30 minutes.
Using kitchen scissors, cut a cross into the top of each loaf.
Brush the tops with the beaten egg and let stand for 10 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 356°F (180°C).
Bake for 30–35 minutes, until the loaves are baked through.
Brush the hot loaves again with egg wash and, if using, add pearl sugar or coarse sugar over the top.
Allow to cool before slicing.
Notes
- To ensure even baking, use a kitchen thermometer to confirm the internal temperature reaches 190°F (88°C).
- For a richer flavor, use high-quality, unsalted butter and lard.
- Leftover Pinca can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or frozen for up to 2 months.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Baking
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Croatian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 loaf
- Calories: 400
- Sugar: 50
- Sodium: 200
- Fat: 20
- Saturated Fat: 10
- Unsaturated Fat: 8
- Carbohydrates: 60
- Fiber: 3
- Protein: 6
- Cholesterol: 100
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Pinca different from other Easter breads?
Pinca is a Croatian sweet bread flavored with citrus zest, vanilla, and sometimes rum. It has a distinctive cross scored into the top before baking, and the dough is enriched with eggs and butter for a tender crumb.
Why does Pinca dough need multiple rises?
The enriched dough, heavy with butter and eggs, needs longer rising times for the yeast to work through the fat. Two or more rises develop better flavor and a lighter, airier texture in the finished bread.
How should I store Pinca to keep it fresh?
Wrap the cooled bread tightly in plastic wrap or place it in an airtight container at room temperature. It stays soft for two to three days. After that, slicing and toasting it brings back much of the original texture.
The imperial units are incredibly messed up. This says “1 lb (40g)” and “1 lb (75g)” and “1 lb (750g)” and “1 lb (90g)”. Luckily I’ve been sticking to the metric except for the giant bowl of raisins I have soaking in a half shot of rum, so I’m not too screwed up.
Holy crap Gary, that’s awful, so sorry about that. Our automatic conversion clearly messed up in this case, luckily most seem to have used the old metric measurements. The recipe is updated and should properly reflect the metric AND imperial units now. Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention, much appreciated!!
I made this today, and it turned out completely amazing. Fantastic bread recipe, that I will definitely use – not just for Easter!
Oh dear, this is such a fantastic recipe!
This is the perfect easter bread recipe. So fluffy, so sweet, so light – I mean this is just perfect.
Love this recipe! I was introduced to Pinca by a Croatian friend and although I am vegetarian and prefer spicy food, I find the food my friend makes to be tasty and just lovely :)
Just made this for the Croatian/ France final in the World Cup watching party. Croatia lost but these rolls WON. Moist, delicious, full of flavor but not too sweet. We did ours with raisins, dried cranberries and prunes. We also did the first rise over night in the fridge, which helps with these sort of enriched breads- the extra fruit, alcohol and fat retard the yeast process. 3 rises for this worked great – first as mentioned over night in the fridge, second was an hour in a proofing drawer, third was once the rolls were separated for 30 minutes – but probably could have gone for 15-30 more minutes. in the oven for 33 minutes and out they came, just right :)
I am trying to find a recipe for mastnica(not sure of spelling). Its a yeast bread rolled with cottage cheese, eggs, butter and onions.
Because the tradition here is to use candied ones
No candied fruit is necessary – why not chop up dried fruit?
Wonderful recipe. I made your recipe this Easter. I like it better than my usual Italian Easter bread. Very flavorful with fruits and lard.
Since candied fruit is usually available only at Christmas (in my area), I guess I’ll have to wait until then to make Pinca. (I’m pouting as I type this.) :)
Tamara, your recipes, photographs, and words are beautiful. Your passion certainly flavors your “work.” Thanks for sharing!
thank you Christine! Christmas is also great time to make this type of flavorful dough :)
Hi.
Your Pinca Easter bread is wonderful my partner loved it and also my self, if you have the time for sending me some recipes that you could think are interesting please I will appreciate it.
Keep loving food and the art of cooking.