Uštipci

Uštipci

Course	Dessert
Region or state	Southeast Europe
Serving temperature	Fried
Main ingredients	Yeast, flour

Uštipci (Serbian Cyrillic: Уштипци, pronounced [ǔʃtɪpt͡sɪ]) are doughnut-like fried dough balls popular in Southeast European countries, namely Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, and Slovenia.

Origin

The origin of the uštipci pastry is unknown. The word uštipci comes from the verb uštinuti, which can be translated as "to nip, tweak or pinch".

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is occasionally referred to as peksimeti.

In Croatia, a variant of the dish known as fritule is also made; the two names are commonly used interchangeably for both dishes, though a fritula is typically made with potatoes. In Croatia, a uštipak is typically sweet. The variety piroška (whose name is derived from pirog) refers to a kind of uštipci that can be both sweet (slatka) and savory (slana).

In Slovenia, a variant of the dish similar to fritule is called miške.

Description

They are similar to fritule and also krofne but with more of a soft, bread-like feel. Unlike other dishes from the region, such as krofne, they do not necessarily have to be sweet. In restaurants, they might come with jam, kajmak or with cheese thus fulfilling the role of breakfast staple, dessert, or even a main course. They can also have other ingredients in them which most commonly are apple, pumpkin, but even meat and cheese are possibilities. They are eaten with tea or coffee and also as a dessert. They are also often served with powdered sugar sprinkled on top to make them more aesthetically pleasing. They can go well with jams, Nutella, and Eurocrem.