Easter cakes – ritual pastries in orthodox church. It is the high butter bread symbolizing Jesus Christ's revival. Easter cakes prepare for the main Christian holiday – Easter. Together with the painted eggs and a paskha they are the main courses of an easter holiday table.
History and symbolics of an Easter cake
By Christian tradition by Easter – the main holiday of all Christians – bake leavened bread (artos). On it the cross and a crown of thorns – symbols of the victim of Jesus Christ are represented.
In the first easter day together with a religious procession, artos is enclosed around church, then it is left on an analogion, and all week artos is in the temple, and in sacred week leavened bread is distributed to all believers. Artos symbolizes life bread.
Easter cakes are a house analog of artos. Bake them during the Holy Week: on clean Thursday make yeast dough, on Friday bake, and then light in the temple. Prepare Easter cakes with use of yeast which replaces an antiquated feast of unleavened bread. Thus, the Easter cake still symbolizes transition from Shabby to the New Testament. Scientists believe that roots of an Easter cake go to paganism where high bread with eggs were symbols of god of fertility and a machismo – the Phallus. Therefore taste of an Easter cake makes one more sense – a way from pagan obscurantism to light Revival.
Many national signs are connected with Easter cakes. It is considered if Easter cakes were successful wonderfully well – year will be successful and if dough didn't approach, or pastries cracked – not to pass misfortune.
Ready Easter cakes are lit in the temple. Orthodox Christians begin Easter with a prayer and a piece of an Easter cake. Only after that believers start a festive meal. Easter cakes eat all easter week, them it is accepted to exchange, bring on a visit, to give to the family, to transfer to orphanages and hospitals.
Recipe of an ancient Easter cake "Princely"
Traditionally Easter cakes are cooked from very sweet yeast dough. To bake one of the main symbols of Easter – an Easter cake – according to the ancient recipe, it is necessary to take the following products: - 2.5 glasses of milk; - 100 grams of yeast; - 7 eggs; - 3 yolks; - 3 glasses of sugar; - 350 grams of creamy margarine; - 2 dessertspoons of cognac; - 1 glass of raisin; - 0.5 glasses of vegetable oil; - 2.5 kilograms of flour; - 0.5 muscat nutlets; - salt pinch; - vanillin; - carnation; - cinnamon. Following traditions, before doughing for an Easter cake say a prayer, wash up kitchen, clean hands, to a thought and a shower and only then start directly cooking. Nothing has to disturb. It is considered that bad mood, quarrels and conflicts in family can do much harm to pastries.
In the recipe of the "Princely" Easter cake the amount of flour is given approximately. It needs to be added so much how many will take dough which has to be soft and elastic.
First of all, make a sponge dough. For this purpose take a little warm milk, add 100 grams of yeast and a little flour. Mix and put to the warm place for 30-40 minutes. Pour a part of flour into other warm milk and carefully mix that there were no lumps. Then add the eggs which are shaken up with sugar, the kindled creamy margarine, cognac, grated nutmeg and other spicery and a sponge dough. Well knead everything, gradually adding vegetable oil. Then cover with a clean towel and leave in the warm place to approach. When dough rises, press down it and let's rise 2 more times. One of secrets of good pastries – dough has to be stood very well. Touch raisin, wash out, steam out in hot water and put in dough on the second rise. Spread out the made dough in molds. Fill them on 1/3 volumes. Let's rise and put in the warmed oven. Bake Easter cakes at a temperature of 180 wasps until ready. Time of baking depends on density and quality of the test and also oven opportunities. The big Easter cake, as a rule, is baked about an hour. It is necessary to remember that the first time it is possible to open an oven door not earlier than in half an hour after the beginning of cooking. Otherwise dough can settle and the Easter cake won't turn out. After baking decorate Easter cakes with glaze. For it it will be required: - 1 glass of granulated sugar; - 2 egg whites; - 1 glass of water. Mix sugar with water and you boil on silent fire before caramelization. Beat whites in abrupt foam and pour in them in a sugar syrup. Mix, put on fire and heat. Cover ready Easter cakes with glaze.