The cake of Hungary 2025

Selecting the cake of Hungary

The contest is organized by the Hungarian Confectioners Guild, and the jurors are always some of the most skilled confectioners of Hungary. The contest is usually announced around January, and entries are accepted until the end of March. The contestants are confectioners, confectionaries, and other hospitality establishments where you can normally expect to be served cake (mainly cafés or restaurants). Winners are selected around the end of July, just in time before the August 20 celebrations.

The contest has two categories, resulting in two winners in the end: one regular cake and one sugar-free cake. The “sugar free” section of the contest is organized in cooperation with the Egy Csepp Figyelem Foundation for diabetics to raise awareness of diabetes.

Requirements for the cake of Hungary

Each year, contestants are required to meet specific requirements, and use special ingredients for their cakes. In 2025, the topic was “Dobos torte 140”, celebrating the cake created by Hungarian confectioner József C. Dobos and first presented 140 years ago, at the 1885 National General Exhibition of Budapest. As such, contestants were expected to create a cake with the most iconic ingredients of the Dobos torte: sugar or caramelized sugar, butter, dark chocolate, and Bourbon vanilla.

Fun fact! People in Hungary sometimes don’t know that the Dobos torte is named after its creator. Since the word “Dobos” sounds like the adjective form of the word “dob” (meaning “drum”), they just assume that the “drum” in the cake is its unique hard caramel top layer. This makes very little sense, but here we are.

Additionally, ingredients from at least 2 of the following categories were required:

• Herbs and spices from the Carpathian basin (e.g. thyme, lavender, mint, sage, hyssop, yarrow, summer savory)
• Any type of pálinka that is also a Hungaricum (so a Hungarian specialty fruit brandy) or a wine made from indigenous grapes (e.g. Furmint, Kadarka, Kéknyelű, Hárslevelű)
• Fruits indigenous to Hungary (e.g. rowan berries, apricots, cherries, sour cherries, apples, pears, quinces, peaches, plums)

In the first round, the jury tried 34 entries. The most popular fruits to be used were apricots and sour cherries, but contestants used a wide variety including even dogberries and sea buckthorn berries. Sage and thyme were also very popular, just like Kadarka wines and pálinkas made from various fruits.

The cake of Hungary in 2025

This year, the cake of Hungary is the “DCJ: Exercise in Style” (DCJ Stílusgyakorlat), using the initials of József C. Dobos. The basis of the cake is very much like the original Dobos torte, but the cake also has sour cherry jelly and almond nougat, while the layer of caramel is inside the cake instead of on top of it. The cake is covered in chocolate and decorated with almond pralines. To make the cake slices visually more interesting, some of the layers are rotated. The creators of this cake are László Balogh and Roland Kis from Kézműves Cukrászda in Gyula.

The sugar-free cake of Hungary in 2025

The sugar-free cake of Hungary this year is called “Dreamer” (Álmodozó). At first glance, it is more similar to Lúdláb or Rigójancsi – other classic Hungarian cakes with a cocoa-based dough topped with luscious chocolate cream. These basics are complemented by sour cherry jelly made with chia seeds and cinnamon, and crunchy cocoa nibs. The creator is Alfréd Kovács from the Édes Vonal (“Sweet Line”) Confectionary in Vác, who also made the cake of Hungary last year.

Where to try the cake of Hungary?

Both the regular and the sugar-free cake of Hungary is available starting from August 19, primarily at the Street of Hungarian Flavors in the Várkert Bazár, right under the Buda Castle. The cakes will also be available in hundreds of confectionaries all over Hungary – look for signs advertising these cakes in the shopwindows. The list of participating locations are available on the website of the Hungarian Confectioners Guild and of the Egy Csepp Figyelem Foundation for diabetics.

Get a taste of Hungary

Check out the regular and the sugar-free cake of Hungary this year, and decide for yourself if they deserve the praise. If you are from a Hungarian family, this may also make you feel closer to your roots. If you have at least one Hungarian parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, or other ancestor, you might also be eligible for Hungarian citizenship and take advantage of everything it offers, including free movement in the EU. Not sure if you are eligible? Then take our free online test, and get an answer in a matter of minutes.