Paska (or Pascha) - Traditional Easter bread 3 cups milk, scalded
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 cup melted butter
6 eggs, beaten
2 cakes yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
12-14 cups flour In a large bowl combine milk, sugar, salt, butter and cool to lukewarm. Save 2 tablespoons of the beaten eggs (egg wash for later) and add the rest to the milk mixture. Crumble the yeast in the water & let stand for 10 minutes. Add to the above mixture. Add the flour, two cups at a time, until the dough can be handled. Turn out onto a floured board and kneed for 15 minutes. Place the ball of dough into a greased bowl rolling it to grease the dough all the way around and let rise for 1 1/2 hours in a warm draft free area (like next to the coal stove or the furnace... or in an oven which has been preheated to 200 degrees and then turned off). Knead again and let rise a second time for 45 minutes. After the second rising, shape into four loaves and place in greased 2 quart pans. Let rise for another 45 minutes. Brush the tops of the loaves with the reserved beaten egg. Bake at 325 for 1 hour. |
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