Kulitsch
Kulitsch ( Russian Кули́ч ) is a mostly round Easter bread from Russia .
It is a type of cake that is baked from sweet yeast dough enriched with large amounts of eggs and butter . Typically, raisins and spices such as vanilla , cardamom and / or nutmeg are added to the dough , and the upper side of the Kulitsch is coated with powdered sugar or glaze .
The kulich belongs beside colored Easter eggs and the junket Paskha to traditional dishes in Russia for Orthodox Easter are prepared. They are usually consumed to break the fast on Easter Vigil, after Lent (also known as the "great fast" in the Orthodox Church) has ended and the fast is broken . For Customs , it heard the kulich together with the Easter eggs and the Paskha bless to have. For this purpose, the meals are brought to a church on Holy Saturday, where they are first placed on a large common table. It is customary to put a candle in the center of the kulitsch and light it. The priest then blesses the Easter dishes with prayer and sprinkling with holy water . The food blessing takes place in most churches on Holy Saturday , in some, however, only in the evening during the celebration of Easter Vigil.
In the country, the preparation of the Kulitsch at Easter was traditionally a particularly important ritual that required a lot of responsibility from the housewife preparing it . An unsuccessful Kulitsch (for example, if the dough was not completely baked through or the crust became too brittle) was perceived as a bad omen . A good Kulitsch, on the other hand, was a sign of a good and successful year.
Web links
- Description of the Kulich and related customs on the website of the Russian Ethnographic Museum (Russian)
- Kulitsch recipe and tips for preparation (German)