#BakeForUkraine Easter Bread (Paska)

Inspiration comes from many sources and for this post it was the world-wide movement, "Bake for Ukraine," where money raised by selling baked goods is then donated to supporting organizations. 

As it’s just me in my kitchen, I selected a recipe for a traditional Ukrainian Easter Bread known as Paska which tasted exactly like what I know as Hot Cross Buns. This braided loaf glazed with powdered sugar icing and sprinkles will be donated to a local Community (Homeless) Lunch along with a monetary donation to the World Central Kitchen's Ukrainian fund. You just need warm weather and half a day to join in solidarity with others around the planet sending good thoughts for peace. 

My Paleo Marin Rating: 2.5 Persimmons + 2.5 for #BakingForUkraine = 5 Persimmons*

Notes to plan ahead:

There are two rising times for the dough, the first for 45 minutes and the second for 30 minutes after braiding the dough. Cooking time is about 25 minutes. I purchased a silicone pastry mat (shown below) which made the whole process more enjoyable. You will need a vegetable spray for the bowl that the bread rises in and for the baking pan. Preheat the oven to 375º F. while the braided dough is rising.

Ingredients:

About 6 cups all-purpose flour (Note: I used 2-3 extra cups of flour to get the dough to the right consistency)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

4 1/2 teaspoons instant dry yeast (or two packets)

1 1/2 cups warm milk at the temperature called for on your yeast package instructions (mine was between 120 - 130º F)

28” x 20” Silicon Mat 
Amazon Image and link here

6 tablespoons melted butter

3 eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon vanilla

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

For the glaze: 2 cups powdered sugar w/ 4 tablespoons milk; Sprinkles 

Directions:

Please watch the Quiet Kitchen YouTube video for instructions on how to make the bread. It is a pure delight with soft music, short written instructions in English and Ukrainian, and someone demonstrating how to make the bread every step of the way. Our only revision was adding additional flour to the 6 cups to get the dough to the right color and consistency as shown in the video. 

#Easter #Paska #hotcrossbuns #BakeForUkraine #desserts #sweets #peace #Ukraine #WCK #love #easterrecipes #saveukraine #instaukraine #quietkitchen #ChefsForUkraine #ChefsForTheWorld

Googling "Baking for Ukraine" brings up over 100,000,000 links. To see what local chefs are doing in the Bay Area, see the link here. The recipe for this post is from the Quiet Kitchen. Next time, I might try the Paska recipe from Baking with the Iron Maiden.

*My Paleo Marin Rating between 1-5 Persimmons

I try out these recipes so you don't have to (and modify them for Paleo where possible). The rating will reflect my opinion of the final result in terms of taste, ease of preparation, nutrition, and sometimes, cost.