Once we decided to host Easter this year, I committed myself to making a traditional Slovak Easter dish. I wanted to honor my husband’s heritage and his family traditions and make sure everyone felt comfortable in our home. My mother in law had mentioned that she really liked pasca bread so I decided to give it a go. The recipe is pretty easy, just make sure you save time for the dough to rise – you’ll need about 2 hours 45 minutes total. I followed this recipe and found it simple enough.
Combine 2.5 c. flour, 1.5 tsp active dry yeast, 2 tbsp sugar, and 1/2 tsp salt in a large bowl. Pour in 1/2 c. warm – not hot – milk, 1 tbsp warm water, 1 egg, and 1/2 stick (55 g.) softened butter. Stir with a wooden spoon before turning it out onto a floured surface to finish working it into a smooth dough with your hands. It’s done when the dough doesn’t stick and feels a bit elastic. Put the ball of dough back into the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rise for an hour. Halfway through, knead it a little. Once it’s done rising (and mine didn’t get huge), pull off a piece of dough about the size of an egg. Then, divide that into four pieces and roll into snakes. Pair off your snakes and twist each group of two so you have 2 two-strand “braids” that you can lay over the top of your ball of dough like a cross. Put the whole thing into a parchment paper-lined and greased baking dish, cover with a kitchen towel, and let it rise for another hour. Brush it with an egg wash and bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.
While a bit denser/crumblier, the flavor was similar to a challah aka sweet. I particularly liked it with a generous spread of butter on top but can see how people might enjoy it with a little jam. Since I’ve never had it before, I can’t say how it stood up, but my MIL claims I did a very good job.
Peaches to Apples 