Easter was so nice we decided to celebrate it twice!
This year Ukrainian Easter falls on the sunday after Easter. Which lends itself to discounted Easter chocolate and jelly beans. Score !! It also means we have another week to take our time in making Paska. Also known as Easter Bread. A lot of cultures have a variation of the same sweet easter bread recipe. This is the version that my grandmother brought over from the “old country”, also known as Ukraine. (So of course that means there is a dollop of sour cream in the recipe!)
The great part of this recipe is that no kneading is needed. You can save that arm workout for the gym.
The most difficult part of this recipe is having the patience to wait for the yeast to do its thing and rise properly. We have a headstart thanks to Fleischermann’s rapid rise yeast. But science can only do so much. Without letting the dough rise at various stages of this recipe, you risk having a very dense and dry bread. So clear your schedules and set your timers because this is one of the few recipes where you cannot rush and expect great results.
Perhalps I should have added “a pinch of patience” to the recipe?
Easter Bread (Ukrainian Paska)
Ingredients
- 10 Eggs
- 3 cups Sugar + 1 TBSP
- 2 packages Rapid Rise Yeast (Fleischmann's)
- 2 TBSP Vanilla Extract optional
- 3 cup Milk
- 1 stick Butter
- 1/2 cup Oil
- 12 cups Flour approximately
- 1/2 cup of warm water
- A dollop of Sour Cream optional
- Smooth canister such as a coffee/juice can to bake in
Instructions
- Take the tablespoon of sugar along with packets of yeast and put it into a medium sized mug. Fill the mug half way with warm water. Put it in a warm place and wait until it rises.
- Separately, on the stovetop, heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan. So the butter is melted and the milk is frothy.
- Combine the sugar, eggs and oil together in an electric mixer. (For added flavor you can add in sour cream or vanilla (or both) or lemon juice for taste) Then add in the heated milk and butter mixture. Blend.
- Switch the blade on the mixer to be the batter paddle. Then gradually add in flour. Beat the dough to be the consistency of sour cream. It should stick to your finger if you touch it. And bounce back to the dough. The thinner the batter the more likely it will fall while baking. If the batter is too thin, you can add more flour.
- After the dough is the right consistency, Put it in a bowl at least 3 times the size of the mixing bowl. Put a cover on the large bowl and leave it in the oven on the lowest temperature (140degrees) to rise, for approximately 30 mins.
- Meanwhile, line the smooth (not ribbed) canisters with aluminum foil on the bottom and the sides and spray with baking spray such as Pam.
- Once dough has risen, spoon the dough into the baking canisters so that they are 1/4 full. Covered the top of the canister in aluminum foil. Put it back in the oven at 275 degrees. After 20 mins it should rise about half way. After the dough has risen half way. Uncover the canister and continue to bake for approximately 20 more mins until the dough has risen close to the top of the canister. Then turn up the oven temperature to be 350 degrees until its fully baked. Use a skewer to check if it is baked thoroughly.
- Decorate with royal icing and enjoy!
