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Obwarzanek Krakowski

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This bread ring has its own EU-protected status — the same legal shield that guards Champagne and Parmesan.

A braided, ring-shaped yeast bread that's boiled before baking, then topped with poppy seeds, sesame, salt or cheese and sold warm from freestanding wooden carts on nearly every corner of Kraków's Old Town.

Why it's made this way: Obwarzanki have been recorded in Kraków since the 14th century as an affordable, portable bread for market-goers; the boil-then-bake technique gives it a shelf life suited for all-day street selling.