From ceremonial Christmas cesnica to flatbread and sweet pastries, bread is a mainstay of Serbian cuisine. Here are top recommendations of bakeries according to the Belgradian:

Bread, Burek and Buns in Belgrade Bakeries

• Čarli – in Brace Jugovic 16, is a very old bakery near Republic Square with a small but excellent choice of products. The homemade bread is specially recommended.
• Aca – in Svetogorska 25, offers an interesting combination of pastries in different shapes and tastes including traditional pumpkin pie.
• Pekara Djuroski – in Visnjieva 3, is popular with locals for the tasty whole-wheat rolls.
• Trpković – in Nemanjina 32, features additive free breadsticks, burek and croissants.
• Toma – in Kolarceva 6-8 on the main square in Belgrade, is a large bakery crowded day and night, offering burek, pitas and pastries, as well as sandwiches.
• Taze – in Vasina 3, offers mouth watering macrobiotic pastries.

Bread is also an essential part of Serbia's cultural tradition, so much so, a museum is dedicated to it. Meanwhile, the family Slava tradition – featuring the ritual of blessing bread – has been given UNESCO status:

The Serbian Slava is unique to Serbian heritage. Each Serbian Orthodox family has its own patron saint whom they honour as their protector within a tradition called slava, meaning celebration. Serbs are the only people in the world to have such a tradition which is why it has been recognised by UNESCO, added it to their Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list.

Slava rituals include the pouring of wine over the Slava cake, a type of sweet bread specially prepared and decorated by the host's wife, which is then cut crosswise, rotated and broken into four parts and lifted up. During the ritual, thanks are given to the family's saint and prayers are said for prosperity. A generous meal in the host's home for family, friends and neighbours ensues.

The Museum of Bread, in the village of Pecinci in Vojvodina, celebrates the importance of bread to Serbian culture. Founded by painter Slobodan Jeremic in 1998, the museum features many artefacts telling the history of bread. This includes the first population census in Novi Sad, dating from 1698, which lists no less than 20 bakers.

The museum also houses traditional implements and machinery used in making bread, from ploughs to corn huskers. The centrepiece of the collection is an extensive display of ritual breads illustrating their diversity. Different breads are used for different occasions including weddings, births, christenings, deaths and slavas.

Please contact Jovanka Ristich on +44 (0) 7889 425 725 or email Jovanka@ipr-online.co.uk for more information and feature ideas.