Easter is the most important Christian holiday, and the main symbol of Easter is kulich.
History
Few people know that Easter bread was once flat, and it was only in the 19th century that it took on a tall shape – for the first time in France, high, sweet, and very tasty "rum babas" – cakes soaked in rum syrup – began to be baked. Aristocrats spread them throughout Europe. People loved the cakes, and they started making them at home. Since baking such a delicacy was expensive, and the ingredients were not always easy to find, it was only prepared for major holidays and, of course, for Easter. Gradually, the recipe was modified and "refined." Thus, the famous kulich came to be.
Classic Kulich
Ingredients: 90 ml of water, 70 g of sugar, 240 g of wheat flour (highest grade), 30 g of fresh yeast (or 10 g of dry yeast), 50 g of raisins, 50 g of candied fruits, 85 g of butter, 3 eggs (1 whole egg and 2 yolks), 2 tbsp of zest (lemon, orange, lime), 1 tsp of vanilla sugar, 1 tsp of honey, a pinch of salt, 4 tbsp of cognac or rum.
Preparation: Pour water into a bowl, add dry yeast, 5 g of sugar from the total amount, sift in 45 g of flour, and knead the dough starter. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm place for 30–40 minutes to ferment.
Place 25 g of softened butter in a bowl and add 15 g of sugar. Crack in 1 egg and whisk everything together with a whisk or blender. Add the risen dough starter and 70 g of sifted flour. Mix well, cover with plastic wrap, and place in a warm place for 3-4 hours.
Rinse the raisins and soak them along with the candied fruits in cognac, cover with plastic wrap, and leave to swell. The key here is the lemon zest and the alcohol-soaked candied fruits and raisins – they need to be tasty and soft.
Knead the dough during the fermentation process.
In a mixing bowl, place 50 g of softened butter and 50 g of sugar. Whip the butter and sugar into a fluffy mass. Add the two yolks and whip again. Add the zest of lemon, orange, lime, vanilla sugar, and salt to this mixture. Transfer this aromatic mixture into the dough.
Sift 125 g of flour, change the mixer attachment to the dough hook. First, incorporate the flour with a silicone spatula. Then knead with the mixer in two sessions of 10 minutes, with a 5-minute break between kneadings. Add the raisins and candied fruits to the kneaded dough and knead again with the mixer.
Grease the working surface of the table with vegetable oil, place the dough on it, and fold it "like an envelope" from all four sides, transferring the dough to a clean bowl to increase in volume by 2 times – this will take another 2 hours. Transfer the dough to a mold measuring 18 x 18 cm. Cover with plastic wrap and leave for 2 hours. The first hour, the dough should be kept covered. The second hour – uncovered. Then make a cross-shaped cut on top of the kulich, gently fold back the edges of the cut, and place a small piece of butter inside.
Bake the kulich at 170 degrees for 35 minutes, checking readiness with a wooden skewer. It is recommended to cool the kulich "upside down" to preserve its fluffy structure; for this, pierce the kulich at the base with a wooden skewer and hang it.
Cool for about 6 hours.
TIP:
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The cooled kulich can be decorated with icing, candied fruits, confectionery "beads," etc.
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If you plan to store the kulich for more than 4 days, you can place them in plastic bags or wrap them in a towel, and then put them in an enameled pot – this way, they stale more slowly.
