March Plans

 Even though it's only the first of the month ,March is a holiday rich one. There's St.Patrick;s day  followed by Purim. Pam Sunday and Easter Sunday end the month. Throw in bridal showers for those May and June brides and you have a lot fo planning and cooking to do.

St Paddy's Day may be the easiest to prep for. Its just corned beef and cabbage , right? Actually there's a lot more . You may want to make homemade colcannon, that yummy mix of kale and cabbage cooked with mashed potatoes and garlic or onions. The dish becomes labor intensive if you use homemade mashed. The colcannon only takes about ten to fifteen minutes to crisp up like a giant potato pancake. The're also Irish soda bread.If you used up your flour for some Valentuines' day cookies and cakes then it;s time to go out and ge tmore along with raiins for this treat. If you;re celebrating Purim, then it's also baking . This time is hamentasen ,  filled cookies to symbolize eating Hamen's ears or pockets. The dough must be chilled before being rolled out, and cut into triangles. They then have to be filled with either poppyseed or Mohn, prune, Levkar or apricot filling. These can be a lot of work especially if you;'re making tow or three dozen for a party. You may also want to bakes a loaf or two of kulich a challah type bread too.

Pam Sunday and Easter also mean a lot of planning, cooking and baking. This is the time to start planning if you want a smaller dinner or a large one with family and friends. Usually Palm Sunday is spent with the immediate family while Easter is a bigger gathering. You could have just a small ham with some trimmings for Palm Sunday and save the big family brunch for Easter a week later. Most families serve ham or incorporate it into quiches and frittatas . You could also  serve a whole ham accompanied by a cheesy strata full of eggs and cheddar. Bake mini muffins in different flavors as well . These are perfect for the little ones. As for dessert, a traditional Easter lamb shaped cake is always nice. Just remember that this is labor intensive and you'll need a lot of flour , sugar and butter for the cake and frosting./ Since this is also the month for bridal showers now is the time to start planning for bridesmaids and mothers. If the weather grows warm and Springlike, then think of a back yard tea party with sandwiches and small cakes. Again the couple's mothers can also get together and prepare hot dishes such as roasts and sides for an indoor sit down dinner if that's more preferable.

March is here and with it a host of holidays. Start deciding and planning what you want to make and bake. Be prepared for this busy month ahead.

Orthodox Easter Fasts And Feasts

This is Holy Week in both Greek and Russian Orthodoxy, It is a time of strict fasting followed by glorious feasting celebrating the Lord's resurrection. Ancient traditions are honored and acted upon with recipes passed down for generations. They reflect the people and the lands that created them.

The Orthodox  Easter has to follow Passover , since it takes the New Testament literally and is
based on the Julian calendar (while Catholics and Protestants celebrate the Gregorian calendar one). Both religions have heavy fasting periods, especially around Lent (there is also a Christmas fast too). Even the weeks before Lent have purifying fasts where meat and other animal products are not allowed but dairy and eggs are permissible . The Lenten period kicked off with a Clean Monday fast where no food is eaten the first Monday until Wednesday evening. This is the longest fast in the church calendar. The second through the sixth  weeks sees them nix almost everything except fruits vegetables, wheat products and water. This makes for sparse  but healthy eating. Luckily they can eat nuts so peanut butter and bread provide some sustenance Wine and oil are only allowed on the weekends. There is a meal eaten on Holy Thursday then strict fasting (absolutely no food) on Good Friday. It is broken on Holy Saturday after the liturgy of Saint Basil. Fruit and some wine are allowed for sustenance.

Both Greek and Russian Easters are glorious affairs . The Greeks have a light meal after midnight mass to ease into eating. Some roast a whole lamb on a spit while others also roast goaton Easter Sunday. Both are usually stuffed with rice, pine nuts, cinnamon and raisins. The Russians  celebrate with   the tasty stroganoff, beef strips in smetana or sour cream or chicken kiev, a rolled and breaded chicken breast filled with garlic butter and herbs. Bread is important with both. The Greek Orthodox bake a fluffy challah like loaf studded with bright red eggs. The braids  called tsoureki symbolizes the Holy Trinity while the eggs are symbolic of Christ's blood. The Russians go wild with their Easter breads too and create the large airy kulich. This is a bread that bakes in coffee or juice cans and resembles the Italian panettone or pan d'oro in shape and height but is spiced with saffron and cardamon. A thick confectioner's glaze is poured on top and then topped with a heavy dose of colorful sprinkles. Cheese is also a big Easter treat There is pashka a kind of cheesecake mold that has Pascals symbols on it.It's  a rich mix of farmer's cheese , heavy cream , egg yolk and sugar. The Greeks have a savory  and sweet cheese dishes ,depending on the location.

The Oerhodox Holy week is an interesting time, beginning with fasts and ending with feasts. The foods to end celebrate are amazing, rich in tradition and in flavor. They are true gems passed dow from generation to generation.

Fun Easter Baking

Easter brings about all sorts of holiday baking, from traditional to the whimsical. Whether it's a rich Russian Orthodox cake to basket cupcake, nothing beats them as a nice end to a dinner with family and friends.They're the perfect compliment to those chocolate eggs and marshmallow Peeps.

It's mostly Italy and Eastern Europe that give us centuries old Easter pies and breads. Southern Italy has the pastiera.It is a ricotta and egg pie, with a buttery crust. Lemon zest, candied fruit , vanilla and cinnamon are blended together along with the dairy and 1/2 pound of  cooked wheat.It's history comes from the baptism ceremonies on Easter night during the reign of Emperor Constantine/ Another traditional Italian Easter cake is La Colomba or the dove. You can buy this however a homemade one is always better appreciated.This is from the Lombard region where Milano is and it is true of Northern Italian baking.It is redolent with butter and almonds along with candied fruit. Yeast gives it its rise and sugar crystals give it a bright sparkle.A week after the Western Easter is the Orthodox which is an all out time to bake.The Russians make kulich,  which resembles a pan d'oro, topped with a thick layer of icing.It is baked in a coffee can to give it that unique tall, tubular  shape.Like the Colomba it is a yeast cake and chock full of eggs , butter, raisins and almonds.Orange rind, vanilla and the exotic spice of cardamom also round out its' unique flavor while its.  icing is a simple lemon glaze made with confectioner's sugar.

Of course there is a fun, and playful side to Easter baking.One of the most favorite and most made are the Easter egg cookies.You can use your own recipe or simply buy the Pillsbury prebaked ones. For the icing you can use an already made one like Betty Crocker,a buttercream or a dyed glaze. The simplest is the glaze.It holds the best and is a great canvas for different decorations. You can use an icing pen to write the kids' names or a variety of sprinkles , dragees and sanded sugars  to come up with fun stripes or polka dots. Bunny and chick cookic can also be fun, For "fluffy" looking ones sprinkle on regular coconut flakes for the bunnies and dyed yellow ones for the chicks.Dying coconut is easy, Dribble gel frosting into a bowl of the shreds and stir until every piece is colored. Spoon and spread the flakes  on waxed paper until completely dry. Another cute idea are Easter basket cupcakes.Make any kind of flavor and then ice with a simple buttercream frosting. Roll the cupcake edges in green dyed coco nut or pipe green icing around the top. Add jelly beans , chocolate eggs or a Peep on top. The handle is a curved green pipe cleaner For added sweetness you can glue on a regular satin mini bow or flower on them. 

Easter baking is both traditional and fun. No matter what you create , a rich kulich cake or an Easter egg cookie, it's sure to be a treat.They are sweet holiday endings that give a finishing flair to a Spring dinner.