Eat With The Espinelis | 008
Ukrainian Páska Bread for Good Friday
Our family has an annual tradition of baking bread or other pastries during Easter weekend. We usually opt for hot cross buns (a family favorite), but this Easter, the Lord led me to try a lesser-known bread known as Páska (Πа́ска). This sweet bread has Eastern European roots, and the name comes from the Greek word for Easter—Pascha (Πάσχα).
If you do a search, you’ll no doubt see variations of the recipe, some adding raisins and others including toppings like icing and sprinkles. You can also express some artistic license by baking in ornate designs such as swirls, twists, and braids. The soft enriched dough has a lot in common with Brioche, Babka, Vánočka, etc., so it’s sure to be a wonderful way to celebrate Easter with your family while ushering in the newness of Spring.
Ingredients:
▢ 1 cup whole milk
▢ 1 cup raisins *optional
▢ 4 cups all-purpose flour
▢ 1/4 cup sugar
▢ 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast**
▢ 1 tsp salt
▢ 2 eggs
▢ 1/4 cup melted butter
▢ 1 tsp each grated orange zest and grated lemon zest optional
▢ 1 egg + splash of water for egg wash
Recipe:
In a small saucepan, add the milk and heat over medium heat until scalded. Remove from the heat. Add the raisins (if you’re using them) to the hot milk and set aside.
Mix flour, sugar, yeast**, and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
Add in the milk, raisins, eggs, and melted butter. Add orange and lemon zest (if using them). Mix with a spoon until a rough dough is formed. Dump onto the counter and knead with your hands until a soft, cohesive dough is formed—about 5-8 minutes.
Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl and allow to rise for about 3 hours in a warm location.
When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down. Split about 1/3 of the dough off for decorations.
Form the remaining dough into a ball, then push it into a disc in a greased, round baking dish, about 8 inches wide and 4 inches deep.
Form the remaining dough into decorations. I like to make swirls, twists, and braids. Use toothpicks to hold in place.
Allow the dough to rise for about another hour.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 176 degrees C
Whisk together egg and water, and brush on the risen dough.
Bake for 35-40 minutes. If the top gets too brown, cover it with foil.
Let cool in the pan. Once it's cool enough to handle, remove it from the pan. Cool completely and store in an airtight container for up to a week.
Notes:
I use instant yeast, which means you don't have to proof the yeast in warm water and sugar—you just add it to your flour and move on! If you're going to use dry-active yeast, you will need to proof it first, so you can use warm milk with some sugar added.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
1 Corinthians 10:31
What’s your favorite baked good that’s associated with Easter?
Leave your answers in the comments section!
If you enjoyed this or thought someone else would—leave a like and share on your social media.
Join the community by becoming a paid subscriber and get access to our entire archive, exclusive content, and the ability to post comments.
If you want to give a gift or donate an annual or monthly subscription to someone, click on the buttons below.
 | A guest post by
|