Happy Easter/Passover/Spring/3-day Weekend
I think I covered all the angles up there, right?
On Sunday, my family will gather together to worship a giant bunny rabbit. Then in chocolate communion we shall eat our god. I like to eat my god eyes first. I don’t like the feeling my chocolate bunny might be watching me eat him. My husband thinks that’s just weird, because “everyone” knows you nibble off the feet first so they can’t run away. Luckily my boys have not picked up on either of our neurotic tics, and they don’t seem to have a preference beyond the fact that they like dark chocolate so much better than milk chocolate.
No reviews today, I just thought I might just share a little bit of my ancestry and their Easter traditions. One end of my family is entirely descended from Germans from Russia, who eventually settled in the American plains states.
Here’s a recipe for an Easter bread called “baska,” which nicely demonstrates the influence my ancestors’ Ukrainian neighbors had on them - click here for the recipe, and a little storytelling, too. And here’s what the process and finished product look like, by Michael M. Miller via NDSU.
If you don’t know much about Germans from Russia, there’s a nice collection of stories available on the internet from North Dakota State University, and it includes a brief time line outlining their history.
April 14th, 2006 at 6:36 pm
Where I came from in Kansas had a huge Volga German population. We were just regular Germans on one side and convict labor on the other. Very cool people, those Volgans, but I never saw that kind of bread. :)
April 14th, 2006 at 10:41 pm
Very interesting…the wandering Germans–kinda like the wandering Jews, eh? F–ked up world; glad you’re here to tell the tale atleast. I’ve got both Jews and Germans in my family–in fact the German is a converted Jew, and while I’m thinking about it, the one Ukranian friend that I was well-acquainted with at one point was a Bronx native who was fluent in Spanish and played Latin percussion. My point? Happy Easter! I tend to break off one piece at a time and listen between limbs.
April 14th, 2006 at 11:08 pm
Mmmmm, Baska - sounds very much like something I used to make called “Fat Cake” (and for good reason) - you take a high quality white bread dough, let it rise once, then knead in lots of sweet butter, sugar, and raisins, currants or whatever dried fruits you like, then bake in small rounds glazed with extra sugar….good times.
April 15th, 2006 at 5:05 am
*bouncing in excitement*
I recognize the bread! Only we call it Kulich. (ch as in “ciao”) Of course I can’t bake it myself, but what wouldn’t I give to eat some of my mum’s right now! *cries* Have an extra one for me, Katie!
April 16th, 2006 at 5:12 am
Three cheers for dark chocolate! And that bread looks yummy. Sigh, to have an oven again… I like to eat hollow bunny ears first. No particular reason for that.
April 17th, 2006 at 3:47 pm
Thanks everyone, and I hope you all had a lovely holiday as well. Sorry to be so spotty around here and responding to you all - I’m all over the place lately, but I really appreciate you guys sharing your own stories and traditions. It makes my day to hear them.