One of the customs, when Orthodox Christians and Greek Catholics in Ukraine celebrate Easter on Sunday, May 5 is eating sweet and fragrant Easter bread, or “paska.”
For Ukrainians, the tradition of making paska goes back far in time, perhaps even pre-dating the introduction of Christianity to Kyivan Rus.
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In a country that experienced the Holodomor – a man-made famine during Soviet times, and which chose as its flag a golden field under a blue sky, bread is viewed with a certain reverence.
Ukrainian bakers typically bake symbols right into their paska. They may include a cross – symbolizing the suffering and resurrection of Jesus, spirals – which variously mean a crown of thorns, a bird’s nest, or a rose, and braids – which usually symbolize eternity or the path of life.
Traditionally, Ukrainian families bake paska for relatives and guests when they come to Easter for dinner.
However, in the modern world, when time is usually short, they often buy the paska, saving themselves more time for family and friends.
For the locals amongst you, Kyiv Post has compiled a list of some of best spots to get your hands on the famous easter loaf.
Along with classic paska, there are three other varieties:
Three Milk paska (900 g) – Hr.590
Victoria's Secret paska (950 g) – Hr.690
Coconut paska (500 g) – Hr.650
The weight of the classic paska is 480 g and the price is Hr.480
Order 48 hours in advance.
The most popular paska at Namelaka is pistachio. It's filled with pistachio ganache, covered with pistachio white chocolate and generously strewn with pistachios.
The cost of this paska (890 g) is Hr.1,260.
You can also order classic paska for Hr.750 for 16 pieces, or a large chocolate rabbit for Hr.196.
At the Finik Family shop and coffee shop, you can order paska with dried fruits and nuts. The filling includes cranberries, light and dark raisins, peach, pecans, walnuts, and lemon zest. The cake is covered with Belgian chocolate ganache on top. Weight: 500-530 g. Price: Hr.450. You can order it online or buy it at the restaurant. When ordering from five to 10 pieces, the discount is 5-10 percent, respectively.
The most unusual and one of the most popular paskas at this restaurant is Kyivska. It is made with sourdough, orange, dried cranberries and dried apricots. It's filled with butter cream and hazelnut praline and decorated with white chocolate ganache and the symbol of the country, The Motherland Monument, made of sugar paste. The price of this culinary masterpiece is Hr.990.
For the second year in a row, Honey has been baking special paska with Levito Madre sourdough starter, milk and dark chocolate, honey and butter. Honey paska are decorated with ears of grain, which is a well-known Ukrainian symbol. The price of paska range from Hr.790 to Hr.1300.
The Kremova confectionery makes paska with milk liquid chocolate, which has a fibrous fluffy flesh that resembles clouds above the endless Ukrainian sky. For this paska, you will have to pay a little over a thousand hryvnias. In addition, you can buy paska balls with roasted nuts.
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