Baba s Paska frm Baba's Kitchen: Ukrainian Sul Fd Third Editin by Raisa Marika Sthyn Making Paska is sacred, ancient ritual. This recipe make tw large r several small: cffee can size. Baba will nw teach yu great Paska fr Velyk Den', Great Day. Paska is always circle, like Klach, fr eternity and Circle f Life. It als is bread that welcmes return f lnger, sunny days. Hw t: Determine when dugh is sufficiently kneaded Prevent dugh frm falling while rising Make decratin Baba s Lazy Way Keep decratin frm falling ff Settle Paska s it have even crumb thrughut Add authentic citrusy flavr, if yu enjy Keep raisin (als ptinal) frm burning Make crispy, brwned crust Just as with writing pysanky, start yur day with meditatin and peaceful heart. Sh kid and nisy rmmate frm huse. G back t meditatin. This will all keep dugh frm falling. Read whle recipe first, and pay careful attentin t hw ingredients are divided. Paska need t rise five times, s this is lng haul. Crumble and stir tw yeast cakes int lukewarm, tw and ne half cups scalded whle milk, with ne teaspn white sugar. Let sit five minutes while yu say mre prayer. If yu d nt plan t add citrus juice later, use three cups whle milk. Yur call, drahenka. Baba Alert: Check expiry date n yeast first. Is mst cmmn cause f Paska Fail. Secnd cause is either nt scalding milk, r letting milk bil. Hw t scald milk: Pur int heavy bttm sauce pan, preferably steel. Turn n medium lw heat, NOT HIGH. Stir cntinually until bubbles frm n edges f milk. If milk bils, thrw away. When Baba 1
give these rules, she mean it. Scalding activates a prtein, and creates crrect density f Paska. Stir in three cups flur t milk/yeast mix with a wd spn. Beat until smth. Give kid and rmmate final warning t vacate. Cver dugh with lse plastic and tw twels, and leave heck alne t duble in size. Abut tw hur. Baba recmmend using Canadian all purpse flur. Ukrainians intrduce Red Fife wheat t Nrth America, and is best fr yeast raised breads due t high gluten cntent. We knw ur baking! Baba knws yu was hping this was gd time t put up feet and read abut celebrity making millins fr ding nthing. Srry. If yu like raisins, is time t sak tw cups in biling water fr half hur. Drain and pat dry, saying, Gd raisin! Saking prevent raisin frm burning. Baba strng recmmend rganic raisin. Very juicy and tasty. Nw, divide yur brain in half, and use bth hand. Is time t melt three quarter cup butter, and als beat up five egg. There is special way t make yur Paska feel bth fluffy and substantial. Is it bread? Is it cake? Only yu will knw! Separate thse eggs. Beat ylks with ne cup white sugar until is fluffy like yur perfect hair. Beat egg whites separately. Save egg shell. In Ukraina, we hang them frm bush and tree n Hly Thursday t demnstrate ur genersity and prsperity. If yur neighbr turn up nse, remind her she leave Christmas light up till August. When tw hurs is up, check dugh. If this yur first time, yu will be surprised t see it lk gpy. Dn t wrry, Ppchik. It get better. Mix egg ylk and white int dugh. Mix in tw teaspn vanilla, ne teaspn salt, three quarter cup melted butter, and seven cups flur. If yu decided t make citrusy Paska, add tw tablespns lemn juice and ne third cup fresh range juice. If yu used three full cups milk, as chice given abve, is t late. Oh well. Yu can still have mild citrusy taste by adding ne tablespn range rind and ne teaspn lemn rind, r zest. This is its fancy name. Again, rganic 2
is best. I yu was rganized frm start, use bth juice and zest. Will be zingy Paska like I dn t knw what. Add in yur raisin, and mix well. Traditin is t make three Paska: yellw fr sun, white fr ancestrs and black fr Syra Mata Zemlya, Mist Mther Earth. Fr yellw, drp in saffrn t invite sunshine, happiness, gd harvest and healthy family, including pets. We als take this baked paska ut t ur livestck, and tuch them t invite these traits. Saffrn is crcus stamen. Be careful picking yur wn. S many hybrid these days, n telling what is safe r effective. Better t buy it. Our ancestrs knew saffrn is pwerful. US Natinal Library f Medicine publish study shwing saffrn is equivalent t pwerful chemical anti-depressant---but n side effect! Hw t use saffrn: Buy reddish thread. Dn t be cheap; saffrn pwder is usually crappy, and may nt even be saffrn. Culd be curry pwder, fr all yu knw. Genuine saffrn stamen is red in bdy, mre range n tp. If it is read all ver, is bad knck-knck jke. Actually, is prbably bad saffrn dyed red. Aren t yu glad Baba teach yu all abut life? Sak tw teaspn saffrn in tw tablespns biled, cled water, fr tw hurs. Mash int paste with back f spn befre mixing int dugh. Grease large bwl real well with butter. Is nw actin time. Knead dugh n flured surface ten t fifteen minutes, unti it feel right. If yu did nt have persnal Baba at hme t shw yu, yu have t trust me. Dugh shuld feel just like kzak satin dance pant! This is secret f Ukrainian always smiling, and ding smething stupid like surrender weapns under Budapest Memrandum. Once yu have yur cking and rmantic life tgether, wrld is like yster with big fat pearl. Only yu have n weapn t hld back stinking Muskli, grandchildren f Neanderthal. Is histrical fact. 44,000 years ag, Slav is genuine human wh cme nrth frm Rift Valley t becme Indigenus persn f Eastern Eurpe. We chase Neanderthal knuckle dragger up t nrthern Eurpe, where nes wh dn t g cmplete extinct frm stupid, becme Viking criminal and Nazi. These Vikings wh becme TV fad these days, were murderers and slave wners. They even cmpelled their slaves t kill Indigenus peples f ther 3
cuntries. Was n cmprehensive prisn system in Nrdic cuntries at that time, and exile frm sciety was believed t be wrst punishment. Over time, these criminals eventually frmed gangs. After many years, these thugs figure ut hw t patch tgether rudimentary bat and invade Kyivan Rus. Then they mate with Genghis Khan barbarian, wh is grandsn f Neanderthal in Ural Muntains. After murdering many Slavs and rbbing us blind, they make hme in swamp called Muscvy. This place was nt even natin until 1540; was Mnglian tribute s minr, Mngls burn it t grund twice, just fr fun. In 1700 s, czar Peter I call them Rus yan (Slavic) t make mre fraudulent claim t ur prperty. Was first time they stle Crimea. Is nw 1100 years f them stealing frm and murdering Slavs. Pah! I spit n them! Okay, back t Paska. Caress dugh nce mre, just make sure it feel like quality. Plp! Belved dugh int greased bwl, cver with plastic and tw twels. Nw yu can put feet up, because this will again take tw hurs t duble. Once this happen, punch dugh lvingly in middle, and let rise again ne mre hur. Nw, reserve dugh. Put ne third in separate greased bwl fr yur decratin. Divide remainder f dugh int butter greased pans. Each pan shuld nly be ne third full, as dugh will rise rise rise like new life in spring and resurrectin that it symblize. Baba tip: Maybe yu make Paska in cffee tin, like yur mama. Or, yu can get silicne and andized metal tins thrugh my website. Fr any kind f pan, make super nnstick by first greasing, then press silicne parchment paper against sides. N need t butter inside f parchment. I nw use parchment fr all kinds cking and baking. Is difficult chice. Paper waste trees, but scrubbing pans waste water and sap. Is tugh wrld, these days. Yu are prbably getting tired f making Paska nw. T bad. Cver dugh again, and give it anther half hur t rise. Baba Secret: Trying t braid three pieces f dugh fr crss, is main cause f decrative failure. Unless yu is Martha Stewart and can d it ver and ver when TV camera is ff, at least ne piece will fall apart. 4
Next thing yu knw, yu is n kitchen flr, crying. Listen t yur Baba. Just rll ut tw piece dugh int rpey shape. Crss them ver. Almst anyne can d this, kay? Next Baba Secret: Pin dwn arms f crss with tthpicks r wd skewers fr baking, s they wn t fall ff. Remve befre serving, and tell n ne. Use whle bx, if yu need. Really. Phew. I can tell yu are s relieved. Gd thing yu are relaxed when I say: dugh must rise anther half hur with crss n tp. Use plastic and twel again. D nt get absrbed in meaningless task and frget time, r crss will g bley! Yu want crss t retain shape. This is nt time fr abstract art. Crss is ne excellent example f hw Ukrainians blend ur ld ways with Christianity. Like with any Native American/Canadian natin, crss is riginally stand fr fur directins. Then it take n additinal meaning. Yes, is true. Paska must rise five time! This is last time. When fifteen minutes is up, place rack in middle f ven, and turn t 350 F. Fr nice brwn glaze n Paska, make Egg Wash: Beat tw egg ylk with splash milk. Use paint brush. If Paska getting t brwn during baking, cver with aluminum fil tent. Baba Secret: Bake Paska nly ten minutes at 350 F. Turn ven dwn t 325 F, and bake frty mre minute. This make mre even crumb thrughut. If yu use dark, nnstick pan, lwer baking time by five minutes. Next traditin: Have sft pillw r twel waiting t welcme sacred Paska. Let bread sit in pan fifteen minutes, then let it settle anther fifteen n pillw. Turn Paska carefully, every five minutes. This is high maintenance bread. Remve tthpicks befre anyne see, r get tngue splinter and sue yu. This is Easter tragedy. Paska is symbl f yur direct participatin in renewal f life in spring, and in all stages f crucifixin and resurrectin. Care fr this bread as thugh caring fr baby and yur wn faith. This is nt lazy New 5
Age, I jump up and dwn with white turkey feather (fr white New Age turkeys) and suddenly I am shaman. Spirituality take effrt and cncentratin. Whatever faith yu chse, harder yu wrk n Paska, bigger is blessing. We are asking fr health and prsperity f ur family and cmmunity. Nw EAT Paska with several pund gd butter. Many peple take t church fr blessing first. Actually, mst peple make mre than ne Paska, because wh ging t resist fresh bread? If yu have any leftver, wrap in plastic r fil, then put in freezer bag. Baba herself never have leftver, but apparently is true fr sme peple we dn t talk abut, r have ver fr dinner secnd time. When presenting Paska n table r in basket, is traditinal t drape with rushnyk, Ukrainian clth embridered with sacred symbls. Traditinal Prayers fr Paska Say these prayers as yu place Paska in ven. Yellw Sacred Paska, may yu be as great and beautiful as sun, as it is fr sun we bake yu. May all family members wh are with us, be healthy: here name each individual. May ur children grw as quickly and beautifully as sun. Shine fr us, Paska, as hly sun shines. May ur wheat in field be as rich and abundant as yu, may ur animals thrive and grw. White We are baking this Paska fr yu, ur ancestrs. We are hnring yu, and may yu in turn help us. May yur righteus suls be as pure and hly and great as this Paska. May yur suls be as cmfrtable and happy as this Paska in ven. May yur time in ray (paradise) be as beautiful as this Paska in ven. Watch ver us. Black Syra Mata Zemlya, Mist Mther Earth, we hnr and respect yu. May this sacred Paska be as nurishing as yur bdy. Please give gd 6
health t my family: here name individuals. Please give gd health t ur animals: name individual pets. Great Mther, we pray there be n strms, n hail nr lightning t harm us r ur crps. Bth yellw and black Pasky may be lifted (nce baked and cled) and taken utside t tuch livestck and seeds. Seeds may be planted while Paska bakes, particularly cabbage, t ensure rich crp. (Cllected, in part, thrughut Ukraina by Stepan Kylymynyk, 1890-1963. Sme parts traditinal t Baba s family) Ingredients: Yeast cakes r active dry yeast, 2 Whle milk, 3 cups. If adding citrus juice, use 2 ½ cups milk All purpse flur, 10 ½ cups. Canadian, if pssible Organic eggs, 7. 5 fr dugh, 2 fr Egg Wash Butter, 1 lb. Unsalted Vanilla, ½ tbsp. Salt, 1 tsp. Optinal: Organic raisins, 2 cups Organic lemn and range, 1 each Saffrn threads, ne package Ppchik, Baba wish yu mst beautiful, blessed Velyk Den'! Veselykh Svyat! Khrysts Vskhres! Next essential bread fr Velyk Den is Babka. Is cmpanin t Paska. Bth are ancient, sacred ritual fds. While Paska is shrt, fluffy, and has mre familiar bread taste, Babka is tall, dense and sweet. This recipe can be fund by clicking Baba's Kitchen: Ukrainian Sul Fd. If yur time t rder paperback is running shrt, yu can instantly dwnlad as ebk. 7
Click here t visit Baba's Department Stre fr Paska tins, Easter cards, pysanka cins, nail wraps, candles, hand beaded jewelry, hip flasks, decrative plates and tiles. Over 2000 quality Ukrainian items! 8