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Historical recipe: Russian Easter sweet bread Kulich

Historical recipe: Russian Easter sweet bread Kulich

Name: Historical recipe: Russian Easter sweet bread Kulich
Total time: 3 h 40 min
Cuisine: Russian
Ingredients: 20g Dried active baking yeast; 350ml Warm milk; 200g Caster sugar; 80g Sultanas; 50ml Rum; 750g Plain flour; 5 Eggs; 1tsp Vanilla extract; Salt; 250g Softened butter; 80g Almonds; 80g Chopped mixed peel; 1 Egg white; 250g Icing sugar; 1tsp Lemon juice

Elinor Evans

Published: April 8, 2020 at 3:18 PM

Difficulty 4/10

Total time: 3 hrs and 40 mins

In every issue of BBC History Magazine, picture editor Sam Nott brings you a recipe from the past. In this article, Sam recreates Sam Nott recreates Kulich – a rich, buttery Russian sweet bread usually eaten at Easter, but tasty at any time of year

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Often baked in a coffee tin so its shape resembles that of the hats of Russian Orthodox priests, kulich remains a tasty treat after the restrictions of Lent. Traditionally it is decorated with the letters XB – Христос Воскресе (Khristos Voskrese – Christ is risen).

Ingredients

20g Dried active baking yeast
350ml Warm milk
200g Caster sugar
80g Sultanas
50ml Rum
750g Plain flour
5 Eggs
1tsp Vanilla extract
Salt
250g Softened butter
80g Almonds
80g Chopped mixed peel

For the icing (optional)

1 Egg white
250g Icing sugar
1tsp Lemon juice

Method

For the bread
step 1

Dissolve yeast in 100ml warm milk, add 1/2 tsp of sugar. Soak sultanas in rum. Sift 120g of flour into a bowl, add remaining 250ml milk and mix well. Add yeast mixture, cover, and let it stand in a warm place for 30 mins.
step 2

Separate egg yolks and beat with sugar until fluffy and pale in colour. Stir in the rum, add vanilla and mix. In a separate bowl, add a pinch of salt to egg whites. Whisk until peaks form and set aside.

When pliable add butter, 50g at a time. Knead for 2 mins and form into a ball.
step 3

Add egg yolk mixture to yeast mixture and mix. Fold in the egg whites. Add the remaining flour in small batches, mixing well each time.
step 4

Knead until dough separates from sides of the bowl. Transfer dough to a flat surface and knead for 10 mins. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with cling film and wrap in a tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for 90 mins.
step 5

When dough doubles in size, remove and knead for 2 mins. Knead in sultanas, almonds and mixed peel.
For the icing
step 6

Mix raw egg white with icing sugar and lemon juice. Spread over the top of the bread and let it drizzle down the sides.

Discover more historical recipes, including:

Recipe provided by allrecipes.co.uk

Authors

Elinor EvansHead of digital (web and video)

Elinor Evans is head of digital (web and video)

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Historical recipe: Russian Easter sweet bread Kulich

Ingredients

For the icing (optional)

Method

For the bread

step 1

step 2

step 3

step 4

step 5

For the icing

step 6

Authors