PASKHA

Paskha is traditional among Eastern Orthodox people from Russia, Ukraine, the Baltic countries, and Finland. It's an Easter dessert made of tvorog (Quark), soured cream and butter. Its white colour symbolizes the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paskha is blessed in church on Holy Saturday, along with Easter bread, the lamb, and red eggs. It's very easy to make, typically a no-bake dessert.

 

Włodzimierz Tetmajer - Blessing of Easter Food - 1897

 

The ingredients for paskha are wrapped in a muslin cloth and left to drain for several hours. The cloth is fastened on the upper part of a specially-designed mould and the liquids are collected at the bottom. A small flower-pot will also do the job but Slavic families have their own paskha mould, whose sides are imprinted with the letters "X" and "B" of the Cyrillic script. These are the initials of the Easter greeting Христо́с воскре́с, which means Christ is risen. The mould is also shaped like a truncated pyramid, which represents either the Holy Trinity or Tomb of Christ or the crossing of the Jews from Biblical Egypt. (Paskha means "Easter" and is derived from Pesach, the Hebrew term for Passover. However, the dessert is not traditional in Jewish cuisine.)

PASKHA

There is a great number of recipes for paskha. The most extravagant include sweet cream, meringue, extra fresh butter, alcohol etc. My own version is made from scratch, using basic ingredients.

 

I n g r e d i e n t s

750g Quark

150g soured cream

90g honey, warmed

150g candied fruit peel

100g raisins

50g almonds, slivered

M e t h o d

Soak the raisins for an hour in water (or brandy, if liked). Mix with the rest of the ingredients and stir. Wrap in a muslin cloth, fasten, and place in a small flower-pot. Make sure the cloth does not touch the bottom. Refrigerate for several hours. Remove the cloth, upturn onto a plate, decorate, and serve.