Simple advice for a better life.

Zucchini Fritters 2Zucchini season is not here yet, but before long, it will be here, and I will have enough zucchini to feed an army.

Zucchini and Summer Squash are always part of my veggie planting list, as they do not require too much TLC, and continuously produce throughout the season.

Zucchini make a nutritious vegetable side dish, or a yummy casserole, but I came across, and tried, a great new recipe, for Zucchini and Goat Cheese Fritters.

The first time I tried this recipe, I did not have Goat Cheese on hand, so I used Cottage Cheese instead, and they still tasted great.  My next batch was with PrimoTaglio Garlic & Herbs Goat Cheese, and they were just as delicious.

I made some modifications to the original recipe, by adding other veggies, to suit my taste.

Ingredients:

  • 2 medium zucchini
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup of scallions, chopped
  • 1 medium clove garlic, minced
  • 1 medium carrot, shredded
  • 1 Tbs. red peppers, chopped
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 oz. goat cheese (or cottage cheese)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 tsp Black pepper
  • Canola oil, for frying

Directions:

  1. Wash the zucchini.
  2. Shred on a large eye grater, over a colander.
  3. Mix in salt, and let the juices drain out.
  4. Squeeze out more moisture from this mixture, with your cupped hands over a colander, or you can use cheese cloth, to make them even dryer.
  5. Place squeezed zucchini in a medium bowl.
  6. Beat egg slightly, and add to zucchini.
  7. Sprinkle the flour over the zucchini, and mix it in to incorporate.
  8. Mix in chopped scallions, garlic, carrots, and peppers.
  9. Mix in black pepper.
  10. Fold in cheese.
  11. Heat 1 Tbs oil in a sauce pan.
  12. Drop 1/4 cup mounds of of zucchini mixture into the hot oil, flattening them with the back of a spoon to form pancakes, and spreading them about 1/2 inch apart, so they don’t stick together, and are easy to turn over.
  13. Fry for about 3 minutes on one side.
  14. Turn them over, and fry for another 2-3 minutes.
  15. Remove them onto a plate lined with a double layer of paper towel, to absorb any extra oil.

Serve them hot with a dollop of sour cream, plain yogurt, mushroom gravy, or as plain as they are.

I love sour cream, but tried to cut down on calories, so I had mine plain.

Spring Garden – New Additions

Pansy - 2012This year’s early, and quite warm spring, allowed extra time to spend in the garden.

Last fall I divided most of my perennials, to share with family and friends, so this spring I was very busy rearranging my east side flower patches.

I will share new pictures once all the plants get bigger, and begin to blossom.

My sister also loves gardening, and always surprises me with new seeds of popular European flowers.  I am anxiously awaiting this year’s flowers from those seeds, as one of them used to be my mom’s favorite.

Oh yes, there will be more pictures.

My daughter is quite a gardener as well, and this year she started a raised bed herb garden, which I will  share with you in future posts.

The new addition to my west side flower patch is a new flowering plant, called Anemone.

Anemones- hot pink and white 2012

Anemones are perennial plants, hence planted last fall, and are blooming since early May.

Anemones- hot pinkAnemones- white

This is a close up shot of the pink and white Anemone flowers, for your enjoyment of their beauty.

Aren’t they gorgeous?

spring garden 2012

I also added some Pink , White, and Yellow Tulips, to this year’s spring flower beds.

Pink Tulips 2012

Here is a close up of the Pink Tulip, slightly injured by an unexpected frost.

White Tulips - 2012

The White Tulips, my new addition as well, are just as gorgeous.  They have much fuller blooms than the regular tulips, and I totally adore them.

Yellow Tulips - 2012

The Deep Yellow Tulips are also amazingly beautiful.

Yellow and Purple Irises

Yellow Irises

These Irises are two years old now, and doing very well by producing larger and fuller blooms.

I hope you enjoyed the display of new additions to my spring garden.

Enjoy your gardening, and share your thoughts and pictures.

We naturally associate children with mothers, so this post is perfect for Mother’s Day.

Moms always work so hard to provide love and comfort for their families, that do not set aside enough time to relax, enjoy life, and have fun.

If you spend some time around small children, you will agree that what they say, is not always what you expect to hear.

They mean well, but how they say it, can often times turn out sounding quite hilarious.

Today I will share with you an email excerpt I received from a friend, which will definitely lighten up your day, and put a smile on your face.

KIDS WERE ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.

THE FOLLOWING STATEMENTS ABOUT THE BIBLE WERE WRITTEN BY CHILDREN.

THEY HAVE NOT BEEN RETOUCHED OR CORRECTED.

INCORRECT SPELLING HAS BEEN LEFT IN.

1. IN THE FIRST BOOK OF THE BIBLE, GUINESSIS.

GOD GOT TIRED OF CREATING THE WORLD SO HE TOOK THE SABBATH

OFF.

2. ADAM AND EVE WERE CREATED FROM AN APPLE TREE.

NOAH’S WIFE WAS JOAN OF ARK.

NOAH BUILT AND ARK AND THE ANIMALS CAME ON IN PEARS.

3. LOTS WIFE WAS A PILLAR OF SALT DURING THE DAY, BUT A BALL OF

FIRE DURING THE NIGHT.

4. THE JEWS WERE A PROUD PEOPLE AND THROUGHOUT HISTORY THEY

HAD TROUBLE WITH UNSYMPATHETIC GENITALS.

5. SAMPSON WAS A STRONGMAN WHO LET HIMSELF BE LED ASTRAY BY

A JEZEBEL LIKE DELILAH.

7. MOSES LED THE JEWS TO THE RED SEA WHERE THEY MADE

UNLEAVENED BREAD, WHICH IS BREAD WITHOUT ANY INGREDIENTS.

8. THE EGYPTIANS WERE ALL DROWNED IN THE DESSERT.

AFTERWARDS, MOSES WENT UP TO MOUNT CYANIDE TO GET THE TEN

COMMANDMENTS.

9. THE FIRST COMMANDMENTS WAS WHEN EVE TOLD ADAM TO EAT THE

APPLE.

10. THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT IS THOU SHALT NOT ADMIT

ADULTERY.

11. MOSES DIED BEFORE HE EVER REACHED CANADA THEN JOSHUA LED

THE HEBREWS IN THE BATTLE OF GERITOL.

12. THE GREATEST MIRICLE IN THE BIBLE IS WHEN JOSHUA TOLD HIS

SON TO STAND STILL AND HE OBEYED HIM.

13. DAVID WAS A HEBREW KING WHO WAS SKILLED AT PLAYING THE

LIAR.

HE FOUGHT THE FINKELSTEINS, A RACE OF PEOPLE WHO LIVED IN

BIBLICAL TIMES..

14. SOLOMON, ONE OF DAVIDS SONS, HAD 300 WIVES AND 700

PORCUPINES.

15. WHEN MARY HEARD SHE WAS THE MOTHER OF JESUS, SHE SANG THE

MAGNA CARTA.

16. WHEN THE THREE WISE GUYS FROM THE EAST SIDE ARRIVED THEY

FOUND JESUS IN THE MANAGER.

17. JESUS WAS BORN BECAUSE MARY HAD AN IMMACULATE

CONTRAPTION.

18. ST. JOHN THE BLACKSMITH DUMPED WATER ON HIS HEAD.

19. JESUS ENUNCIATED THE GOLDEN RULE, WHICH SAYS TO DO UNTO

OTHERS BEFORE THEY DO ONE TO YOU.

HE ALSO EXPLAINED A MAN DOTH NOT LIVE BY SWEAT ALONE.

20. IT WAS A MIRICLE WHEN JESUS ROSE FROM THE DEAD AND

MANAGED TO GET THE TOMBSTONE OFF THE ENTRANCE.

21. THE PEOPLE WHO FOLLOWED THE LORD WERE CALLED THE 12

DECIBELS.

22. THE EPISTELS WERE THE WIVES OF THE APOSTLES.

23. ONE OF THE OPPOSSUMS WAS ST. MATTHEW WHO WAS ALSO A

TAXIMAN.

24. ST. PAUL CAVORTED TO CHRISTIANITY, HE PREACHED HOLY

ACRIMONY, WHICH IS ANOTHER NAME FOR MARRAIGE.

25. CHRISTIANS HAVE ONLY ONE SPOUSE.

THIS IS CALLED MONOTONY.

Red Rose - Fall bloomGorgeous Zinnia FlowerWhite Hibiscus  flower close up

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!!

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies 2I have tried several great recipes for chocolate chip cookies, but this is one is my favorite.

These jumbo cookies are full of chocolate goodness,with crispy bottom, yet a soft and chewy middle.

Total perfection wrapped up superbly in one and all.

They are super delicious while still warm, with the semi-melted chocolate chips oozing out of them, and still scoring high points the next day;  after that, there were only few crumbs left here and there…

One recipe yields 24 jumbo cookies.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie

Ingredients:

  • 4 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/4 cups granulated white sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 Tbs. vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, or chunks (12 oz package)
  • 1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Directions:

  1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  2. Set aside.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, combing softened butter (see tip below), brown sugar, and granulated white sugar.
  4. Beat at medium speed for about 6 minutes, scraping the sides often (at least once every 2 minutes).
  5. Add one egg at a time, beating again for a minute after each addition.
  6. Add vanilla, and beat another minute, scraping the sides few times.
  7. Reduce speed to low, and gradually keep on adding the flour mixture, while still continuously mixing and scraping the sides (about 3-4 more minutes).
  8. Fold in dark and white chocolate chips.Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies spaced out   for baking
  9. Drop 1/4 cupfuls of dough (I used ice cream scooper) onto ungreased cookie sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart.  Each mound is about 2 1/2 inches in diameter, but expands to 4 1/2 inches, or more, during baking.

10.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies - one batch

11.  Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly golden on top.  Do not overbake.

12.  Remove from oven, and let stand in a baking sheet for 1-2 minutes, to slightly cool off and firm up.

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies on a cooling rack

13.  Using a spatula, remove cookies onto a cooling rack, and cool completely.

14.  Store cooled cookies in an airtight container, or a zip-lock plastic bag.

ENJOY!!

TIP: To soften butter, I cut it up into about 1 Tbs. chunks, place it on a microwave safe plate, and zap it for 20 seconds.

Lemon- Blueberry Drop SconesScones are a wonderful accompaniment to tea, which I love to drink, as I am not a coffee admirer.

My daughter found this recipe on line.  It sounded simple enough, yet delicious, and since we had all the ingredients on hand, it was a perfect time to move forward with the project.

There can never be a wrong time to bake in our house, and if a new recipe sounds great, then there is that much more drive to go for it.

We were very pleased with the final results.

These scones have more moisture in their texture, thus resembling muffins, which makes them different from our other scone recipes.

The lemon glaze adds a refreshing tangy flavor to their overall delicious taste.

We made over a dozen of scones from this single recipe.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup lemon yogurt
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted (we used butter)
  • 1 cup fresh,  or frozen blueberries (do not thaw before use).  We used fresh blueberries

Glaze:

  • 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  2. In another bowl, combine the yogurt, egg and butter.
  3. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.
  4. Fold in blueberries.
  5. Generously grease a baking sheet.
  6. Drop batter onto greased baking sheet, by heaping tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart.
  7. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned.
  8. Combine glaze ingredients.
  9. Drizzle over warm scones.

Enjoy these delicious Lemon-Blueberry scones with your tea, coffee, or a nice tall glass of cold milk.

Dora ThemeAnother Birthday party for my granddaughter.

This year’s Birthday Party’s theme was Dora The Explorer, with her whole entourage, whom all the little girls totally adore.

My daughter, as always, went all out with her craft talent, imagination, and lots of planning effort, to prepare a wonderful and fun Birthday Party for her daughter.

I will share some pictures, for your pleasure, and some fresh ideas for your next party planning.

The invitations were handmade, to resemble a “Backpack”, one of the main characters in the Dora adventures.  The inside of the invitation was in a form of a map, also very fitting with the theme.  Very original and cute!

Dora the Explorer party invitation Dora Birthday Party Invitation - Back side

She made these out of construction paper, plus the use of her stamping tools, and with a helping hand from the Birthday Girl, who loves crafts, and helping her mom with all fun projects.

Dora Theme Birthday Party Invitation -Inside view

This is the inside of the invitation, resembling a map, which Dora always carries in her backpack to help her navigate her travels (for confidentiality and protection of identity, I blocked off the personal information about the party.  Basically, I do not trust cyberspace that much….and  recommend that you shouldn’t either!)

Wall decoration 2Wall decoration 4

Wall decoration 3Wall decoration 5

The “Birthday Princess” was helping her mom to color these giant pictures of the other significant characters in Dora the Explorer adventures, and used them to decorate the walls of the party rooms, in addition to the numerous balloons, including a giant balloon of Dora, of course.

Birthday Fun Food and Snack table

The main snack table is ready for the party, and each food item is appropriately identified to go with the party theme.

Cheese Doodles Cheese and crackers

“Swiper No Swiping” Cheese Doodles, Isa’s Cheese & Crackers

Salsa and Chips
The Fiesta Trio’s Salsa & Chips

Veggie snacks - Tico's veggies

Tico’s Veggies

This was a very popular snack with the little ones.  Today’s Moms are doing a great job with introducing their children to not only steamed veggies, but also raw ones.

Stars Jello Jigglers   - Dora Theme

Jello Jigglers was another favorite snack with the Birthday Girl and all her guests.

These were cut out into star shape, once again, to match the Dora party theme, as well as an easy finger food for those little fingers.

There were also star-shaped, freshly made toasted Melted Cheese Sandwiches, totally enjoyed by the young birthday crowd, paired well with other snacks and veggies, plus individual ice cream cups. (Parents of course had their own “grown ups” food for their meal).

The party attendants also had lots of fun activities outdoors, as Mother Nature cooperated with gorgeous weather.

Easter Eggs ready to be found More Easter Eggs ready to be found

The whole back yard was  full of over a hundred of Easter Eggs filled with candy and small toys, strategically strewn all over the grassy area,  ready for a fun egg hunt.

Bean Bad Toss, crossing under the river tunnel

Here is two more outdoor games set up for everyone’s enjoyment, as prerequisites to the egg hunt game.

These are: Dora’s Bean Bag Toss game, and Crossing The Tunnel under The River challenge.

Backpack

Each party attendant was equipped with a specially made “Backpack” , and a map to follow to execute each consecutive event.

The Birthday Girl’s mom was also assisting with further instructions, to help the games move along in a fun way.

The parents had fun watching their little ones having fun, and capturing it all on their cameras and videos.

Dora's Bean Bag game

The first game was a Dora Bean Bag Toss.   Everyone received 4 bean- filled bags, which they needed to toss into the pockets of the Dora Target.

The youngest players needed to get a little closer than the older ones, and that was OK, as long as they had fun doing it.

Crawling through the tunnel

According to the map, the next obstacle was to crawl through the tunnel, to cross under the river, to reach the egg hunt event.

The river was constructed out of a plastic slip-and-slide, positioned over a toy tube tunnel.

The kids had lots of fun playing these games, then running quickly to line up for the egg hunt.

Play yard

Once all the eggs were collected into their backpacks, they still had energy to enjoy the activity gym in the back yard, before going back in for some cake and cupcakes.

Dora Theme Birthday Cake

Dora The Explorer chocolate flavored Birthday Cake, selected by the Birthday Girl, and prepared by a local bakery, was a dream come true for all Dora admirers.

Rainbow cupcakes Rainbow cupcakes - Princes Platter

There were some vanilla flavored rainbow cupcakes, available for those who did not care for a chocolate flavored cake.

Party time was almost over, as most of the party goers needed their nap by now (including their parents or grandparents…), but as always, everyone got to keep the special backpack full of fun stuff inside their Easter Eggs, and in addition they also were treated to additional party favors.

Party Favors

Each guest received a Dora coloring book, and a special 4-pack of multi-color playdough, to add to their backpack treasures.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and felt like you also attended the party (without feeling burned-out, or indulging in the additional calories of party food….)

March treats - Chocolate Rum Cake - serving piece

March treats - Phillo Pastry cups with chocolate and raspberries

I have been so busy with Easter preparations, and spring gardening projects, that April almost passed me by, yet I have not posted any pictures of the March Birthday treats at the office.

I am sure you will agree, from viewing the pictures above, that once again, Sue prepared some scrumptious treats for our birthday celebrants.

This month we “gently” indulged in a low sugar Chocolate Rum Cake, which was out of this world, and low sugar/fat Phyllo Pastry Shells partially filled with melted Dark Chocolate, topped off with a fresh raspberry, and for added touch and nutrition, sprinkled with almonds.

We also had low calorie/fat/sugar mini brownie cupcakes, but I did not get a chance to snap a picture of these treats.

We are so lucky to have at least one person, every month, to celebrate their birthday, thus special treats for  the office bunch as well.

Everyone is becoming very health conscious these days, and of course summer vacation time is  fast approaching (trips to the beach….bathing suits… weddings… ), so we all agreed to narrow down our office treats to only once a month event.

Since I am not the baker of these treats, I am only sharing pictures with you, rather than a recipe.

Three layer jello - serving pieceIn my previous Jello Dessert post, I promised to share a European recipe from my sister-in-law, for a Three Layer Jello mold.

This is one of my family’s favorite jello desserts, because it can be made from regular jello, or sugar-free jello, without jeopardizing its texture, or taste.

The recipe is quite simple, but it does require a little patience, to allow for the waiting time between each layer, to completely solidify.

Even though this recipe is for only three layers, you can easily make it into 5 layers, by adding one more layer of jello (Lime or Grape), and splitting the cream cheese filling into 2 thinner layers (which I personally prefer to do).

Ingredients:

  • 2 – 6 oz. packages of Jello (regular of Sugar Free), your choice of flavor
  • 1 – 2 oz. package of Lemon Jello
  • 2 – 8 oz. packages of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup Powdered Sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. Vanilla or Lemon extract

Directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan, bring to boil, 1+1/2 cups of water.
  2. Mix one 6-oz package of jello into the boiling water.
    Three layer jello - Orange jello layer
  3. Remove from heat, and pour into a glass casserole dish, 9 x 13 inches.
  4. Set aside for about 15 minutes, until the jello stops steaming.
  5. Place the dish with the jello in the refrigerator, to cool completely, and to solidify.
  6. In a small saucepan, bring to boil 1 cup of water.
  7. Mix in the 3 oz package of Lemon Jello.
  8. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool, until saucy, but not solid.
  9. While the jello is cooling, place the cream cheeses into a medium missing bowl.
  10. Add the extract, and mix for few minutes.
  11. Add the powdered sugar, and keep mixing until, light and fluffy (15 minutes)
  12. Set aside.
  13. Mix in the saucy Lemon Jello, until well incorporated.
    Three layer jello - cheese layer step 1 Three layer jello - cheese layer
  14. If the refrigerated jello is completely set by now, spread the cream cheese/jello mixture over it.  Smooth it out with a back of a spoon, or a rubber spatula.
  15. Place it back in the fridge to cool, and solidify.
  16. Prepare another 6-oz. package of jello same way as the first one, with only 1 + 1/2 cup of boiling water.
  17. Remove from heat, and set aside to cool, but not to turn saucy.


    Three layer jello - full size 3
  18. Once the cream cheese/jello layer is firm, pour the second cooled jello over it.
  19. Decorate to your preference. I used strawberry and grape slices.
  20. Cover with Saran wrap, place it back in the fridge, until cooled completely and solid, or overnight.

Enjoy!

Jello wedge - serving piece

Everyone loves jello, or at least most of us do.

Three layer jello - Orange jello layer

Jello desserts can be plain and simple; prepared in a single serving dish, then served in chunks.

I love my jello served with whipped cream on top. How about you?

Jello Mold - 2

Jello can be mixed with other ingredients, such as cream cheese and fruits, and turned into a more festive dessert.

Slice of jello dessert

Jello can also be used as a top layer of a cake, and served as an elegant, after dinner  dessert.

Jello in a Grapefruit shell

Today’s jello recipe is somewhat plain, but at the same time, very creative.

It takes some prior planning, as you can see in the above picture, I used hulled out grapefruit shells, as individual vessels for the jello.

Directions:

  • You simply cut your grapefruit, lemon, or orange, in half, consume the fruit, but save the shell.  You need to preserve the shell undamaged, or your jello will leak out.
  • Orange shells do not need any additional preparation, as long as you remove the orange sections carefully, as not to damage the shell.
  • Grapefruit however, requires additional careful removal of the remaining section fibers, after you scoop out most of the sections and the juice.
  • I also peel out some of the white pulp attached to the section fibers, to leave a nice clean shell.
  • If you need more than one day to save up enough shells, that is fine, as long as you keep them refrigerated , or leave them out in the open air, for a day or so.  They will begin to dry out slightly, but this will not affect their performance.
  • Once you have enough shells, cook your jello per package directions, but use only HALF of the recommended amount of water, to make a firmer jello, thus easier to cut into serving portions.
  • Position your fruit shells on a platter.
  • Fill each shell all the way to the top, with cooked jello.  Hot will not hurt it, and warm will be fine as well.
  • Cool completely. I cool mine at room temperature until mostly set, then I transfer them into the fridge, in a more convenient container.

Jello wedge  -  in a Grapefruit shell

  • Before serving, use a sharp knife, and cut each shell into serving wedges.
  • First, I cut each shell in half, as above.

Jello wedges

  • Then, I cut those halves, into three even sections.  Therefore, you will get 6 jello wedges from each 1/2 grapefruit shell.

This dessert was a huge hit with my four year old granddaughter.  She absolutely loved eating these jello wedges, as if they were orange sections.

This is a fun way to serve  jello at kid’s parties!!

I used Lime jello, for a more springy color for Easter Sunday, but any flavor is suitable.

The grapefruit aroma of the peel, does slightly permeate into the jello, but does not affect it adversely.

Using the fruit shells for serving jello, eliminates washing the serving dishes.  The leftover peel can be chopped up, and thrown into your garden to add acidity to your soil, or shredded in your garbage disposal, to freshen it up.

It is an all around winner!, no matter how you look at it.

Stay tuned, as my next post will also be dedicated to jello dessert;  European recipe shared by my sister-in-law.

Paska 2012Easter is just around the corner, so all the necessary preparations for this Holy, and very traditional holiday, have to be planned well in advance, to be fully achieved in a timely fashion.

Ukrainians, and many other nationalities, enjoy many very rich traditions associated with Easter celebrations.

You can click on the links below, to learn more about the Ukrainian Easter Traditions.

This weekend was Paska Baking time for me and my daughter, as well as my 4 year old granddaughter, who not only loves to watch, she also was a very enthusiastic helper.  We are so blessed to have her in our family.

As a result of about 10 hours of Paska Baking time, we ended up with 9 round Paska loaves, as pictured above ( the small “roll” like loaf, was a left over dough from our decorations, so we decided to bake it for the youngest member of our family, who is only 10 months old).

We doubled our original recipe (in the link above), and implemented some changes to the second batch of dough, just to test the theory passed on to us by our friends.

In the second batch, we replaced 2 cups of regular flour, with 2 cups of CAKE flour, and used only 1/4 cup of melted butter plus 1/4 cup of Canola oil.  We also kneaded the dough for about 30 minutes in the bowl, and skipped the kneading on the floured board.

My oven seems to be baking better at lower temperatures, so I bake my paska for 15 minutes at 350 degrees F, and another 30 minutes at 325 degrees F, rather than the 15 @400, and 30 @350.

Paska - cross section

Here is a cross-cut section of our paska bread.  As you can see it turned out very light, and fluffy.

The paska with the cake flour was fluffier than the regular recipe, and the one with the mixture of butter and oil crumbled less, than the one with butter only.

Per baking tips from my mom, I always brush the tops of my baked, still slightly warm paska, with melted butter, to give them a nice finish, and to soften the crust.

Since I bake my paska at least a week before Easter, so to keep it nice a fresh, I freeze it until Easter Saturday.

Once the bread is totally cooled off, I wrap it in aluminum foil, place it in a freezer bag, and freeze it.  I also store it in a zip-lock bag after blessing of the basket, to keep it from drying out by Easter Sunday.

In my previous post about the different bakeware for baking paska, I promised that if I find more information about my favorite pans, will share it with you.

Paska baking containers

I stopped at a local Goodwill store, and to my surprise, I found several similar (brand new) pans, and bought them all @ one dollar each.

Most of them still do not have any manufacturing information on them, however one set was made by KOBE mixing bowls, designed exclusively for JC Penny, made in Indonesia.

Also, some of the flower designs of these bowls, resemble Corningware dinnerware, wouldn’t you agree?

If you still need to bake your Paska, now you have additional tips on the original recipe, and the paska bakeware.

Enjoy your Paska Baking experience.  Please share your pictures and tips.

HAPPY EASTER!

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KHRYSTOS VOSKRES – VOISTYNU VOSKRES !- (in Ukrainian)

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KHRYSTUS ZMARTVYCHVSTAL – PRAVDZIVIE ZMARTVYCHVSTAL! (in Polish)

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KRISTUS ER OPSTANDEN! -  JA HAN ER SANDELIG OPSTANDEN! (in Danish- shared by one of my readers)

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CHRIST IS RISEN – INDEED HE IS RISEN!

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