Nutritional value and composition of Easter cake

The Easter cake contains vitamins B, A, PP, C, D, H, E, choline, and the chemical composition is rich in:

• calcium, sodium, potassium, phosphorus, chlorine;
• iron, zinc, iodine, manganese, selenium, fluorine, boron, vanadium;
• silicon, cobalt, nickel, tin, titanium, aluminum.

The cake has such a rich composition thanks to multiple additives from nuts, raisins, dried apricots, dried fruits, as well as cardamom, nutmeg, butter, eggs (yolks), etc.

100g of store-bought Easter cake contains:

• Proteins – 5.5.
• Fats – 15.8.
• Carbohydrates – 43.3.
• Kcal – 331.

Easter cake is baked from dough in the shape of a cylinder in special baking pans. Raisins, cardamom, vanilla, candied fruits, and nutmeg are added to the dough, and the finished Easter cake is coated with icing from powdered sugar and egg whites and decorated with multi-colored powder, marmalade, and special Easter decorations in the form of Easter symbols.

Baking Easter cake at home

Of course, baking a holiday cake so that it turns out tasty, beautiful and doesn’t ruin your mood is not an easy task. But you should definitely try it, the main thing is to really want it. Anyone who is at least somewhat familiar with yeast dough should definitely try it, and everything will work out!

Ingredients (dough):

• premium flour – 500g;
• milk – 1.5 cups.
• eggs – 6 pieces;
• butter – 150g;
• margarine – 150g;
• sugar – 2 cups;
• yeast – 40-50 g;
• salt – ½ teaspoon salt;
• raisins, candied fruits, almonds – 50g each

• white of one egg;
• powdered sugar – ½ cup;
• lemon juice – 1 tablespoon.

Preparation.

1. Dissolve the yeast in 1 glass of warm milk with 3 tablespoons of sugar. Place in a warm place for the yeast to rise. When foam appears on the surface, the mixture is ready.
2. Pour in the remaining warm milk, add butter, margarine, sugar, eggs, vanilla and salt. Mix until smooth, gradually adding flour. Then put it in a container, cover with a towel and leave to rise. The dough should rise by 2 times.
3. We take out the dough and mix in raisins, candied fruits, crushed almonds and put them back into the container to rise.
4. Preparing baking dishes. To do this, lubricate them with fat. When the dough has doubled, take it out and separate it piece by piece so that the mold is 1/3 full. Leave the finished forms to rise the dough.
5. The oven is heated to a temperature of 180º C. Place the forms on a baking sheet and bake for an hour. Before removing from the oven, pierce with a wooden stick to check readiness (it should be dry). We take the finished cakes out of the oven, let them stand for 20 minutes and carefully remove them from the molds.
6. Cover the warm Easter cakes with a glaze of egg whites and powdered sugar, whipped into a stiff foam, and decorate the top according to your taste and desire. Happy Easter celebrations!

The gentle spring sun is becoming more and more favorable to us every day. It is during this period of awakening of nature that our soul awakens, on the eve of Easter - the brightest and most long-awaited Christian holiday, which follows Great Lent, aimed at cleansing the spirit and body of a believer.

Easter or the Resurrection of Christ is one of the oldest Christian solemn dates when the resurrection of Jesus Christ is celebrated.

Easter period

Christians celebrate Easter for 40 days - as long as Christ himself appeared to his disciples after the Resurrection. Before this period, believers fast, refusing to eat animal products (meat, fish, dairy products, etc.) and alcohol. Only a few times during Lent it is allowed to eat fish and drink wine (Annunciation and Palm Sunday). In 2013, Easter falls on May 5th.

Easter traditions and rituals

In Rus', Easter has been celebrated since the end of the 10th century. The Resurrection of Christ is a national and beloved holiday, so it is not surprising that it is accompanied by many traditions, rituals and rites passed down from generation to generation.

Traditionally, on the eve of Easter, people not only fasted, but also tidied up their homes, made symbolic gifts and souvenirs with their own hands, painted eggs, prepared Easter eggs and baked Easter cakes.

On Easter, a solemn night service is held, since this day is the most important holiday on the church calendar. The priests conduct a service among their flock, and everyone who observes Great Lent can confess and receive communion on this day.

With the onset of Easter night and the next forty days, it is customary to greet each other with the phrase “Christ is Risen!”, to which one must respond “Truly He is Risen!” After the greeting, it is necessary to kiss three times (make Christ). On Easter days, you need to visit your neighbors and exchange Easter cakes, colored eggs, and souvenirs with appropriate symbols.

The Easter fire is one of the most important attributes of the holiday. It plays an important role in worship and public festivities. This is a symbol of the Light of God, bringing enlightenment to all peoples of the Earth after the Resurrection of Christ. On Easter, Christians wait with bated breath for the rise of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem, which is then solemnly delivered to the countries of the world through churches in different cities. Believers strive to light their candles from it. After the festive service, Christians take home lamps with fire, maintaining which throughout the year protects the family from misfortunes and bestows God's blessing.

After the festive service, the churches illuminate the Easter meal with holy water: Easter, Easter cakes, colored eggs, wine and those products that believers want to put on the festive table for breaking the fast after fasting. Eggs are painted in different shades, but the traditional color remains red, as a symbol of eternal life. At Easter, it is customary to put large letters “ХВ” with a lamb on cottage cheese. They try to prepare dishes for the Easter table on Maundy Thursday, so that on Good Friday they can devote themselves to prayer.

In the last week on the eve of Easter (Holy Week), the bells in Orthodox churches are silent, but on Easter itself the gospel begins to ring joyfully and solemnly. Throughout the next week after the Resurrection of Christ, anyone has the opportunity to climb the church bell tower and ring in honor of the holiday.

Recipes for preparing the main culinary attributes of the Resurrection of Christ

Kulich is one of the dishes that must be on the festive table on the day of Christ's Resurrection. To make the celebration a success, it would be useful to use the traditional Easter cake recipe presented below.

Kulich traditional

Ingredients:

For the test:

Live yeast – 25 grams;
- milk – 200 ml;
- sugar – 1 glass;
- three eggs;
- flour – 800 grams;
- vegetable oil – 120 ml;
- butter – 100 grams;
- a mixture of raisins and dried apricots – 100 grams.

For the glaze:

- egg whites – 2 pieces;
- powdered sugar – 50 grams.

Preparation Aromatic holiday baking begins with the yeast being thoroughly kneaded in a bowl. Then 100 ml of milk, two tablespoons of flour and two tablespoons of sugar are added to them. The mixture of ingredients is placed in a warm place for half an hour.

Meanwhile, in a separate container, mix three eggs, butter and sunflower oil, a glass of sugar and 100 ml of milk. The yeast mixture is added to the same container, which should rise slightly. Mix everything well, cover with a towel and leave at room temperature for an hour.

After an hour, small pieces of raisins and dried apricots are added to the mixture, which should be well mixed with the dough. After this, the dough should rise. As soon as it rises a little, you need to crush it slightly, repeating the procedure 3 times. Next, the dough mass must be kneaded for 30 minutes, adding flour little by little. The dough is divided into parts and distributed into baking molds, which must first be greased with butter. Easter cakes are baked for 40 minutes in an oven (temperature 200 degrees).

The finished cakes are removed from the oven, covered with a clean towel and thus cooled.

Glaze It is made by beating powdered sugar with egg whites in a mixer until a homogeneous white mass is obtained. The tops of each cooled Easter cake are smeared with the finished glaze, after which they are sprinkled with multi-colored confectionery powder.

The calorie content of the dish is 360 kilocalories per 100 grams: 6.9 grams of protein, 14.7 grams of fat, 50.1 grams of carbohydrates.

How to reduce the calorie content of main Easter dishes

Experienced housewives who are trying to watch their figure replace high-calorie wheat flour in Easter cakes with rye flour. Instead of chicken eggs, it is better to use quail eggs, which contain fewer calories. For dyes, it is also better to take quail eggs. To reduce the amount of carbohydrates in Easter cake, it is advisable to replace granulated sugar with honey or fructose.

Meat dishes on the Easter table should be made from veal or rabbit, as these products are considered lighter and more dietary; fish is also welcome.

Recipe for diet cake with kefir

Ingredients:

Kefir – 500 ml;
- honey – 500 grams;
- quail eggs – 9 pieces;
- vinegar;
- soda;
- rye flour – 800 grams;
- a mixture of dried fruits, nuts and candied fruits – 100 grams.

Kefir, soda, quenched with vinegar, and eggs are mixed, then flour is slowly added to them. The consistency of the mixture should become elastic, not liquid, like pancakes. The dough must be kneaded well, eliminating the possibility of lumps forming. It is recommended to grind dried fruits, candied fruits and nuts in a blender and only then add them to the dough. Next, the mass is distributed into baking molds and sent to the oven for 45 minutes (200 degrees). To decorate the top of the Easter cake, you can make whipped egg whites or melt chocolate with vegetable oil.

The calorie content of the dish is 167.0 kilocalories per 100 grams: 4.2 grams of protein, 1.1 grams of fat, 35.2 grams of carbohydrates.

Home decorations for Easter

Decorating your home with Easter attributes and original decorations is an exciting and fun activity that all family members can take part in. So, what decorative themed elements can you make yourself?

"Miracle Basket" Place woolen threads of different green shades in an ordinary small wicker basket with a high handle; they will play the role of spring grass. Place multi-colored paints, artificial flowers, and fabric butterflies on top of the improvised “greenery.” Wrap the handle of the basket with a green ribbon and a beautiful bow. This unusual Easter basket can be a decoration for a holiday table, a gift for a loved one, or a creative decor for the kitchen.

"Easter ball". In any store for decoration, we buy an inexpensive ball made of threads and wire, wrap it around it with multi-colored ribbons, artificial flowers, sequins, plastic dyes, decorative cherries, bows, feathers and everything that comes to mind and is at hand. Such Easter balls are hung under the ceilings of the hallway, nursery, and living room.

"Easter tree". To create this composition you will need a dry voluminous branch of any tree. A branch of a suitable size is placed in a vase and decorated like a Christmas tree. But this time, not New Year's toys are used, but paints of different colors made of plastic, birds made of fabric, decorative butterflies, and ribbons. Instead of regular bare branches, you can use willow twigs.

Good luck and joy to you on the bright holiday of Easter!

05.04.2018

Easter is approaching, which means that boiled chicken eggs, traditionally painted in bright colors, will appear on every table.


On Easter Sunday, according to custom, families will compete to see whose eggs are stronger and, of course, eat them afterwards. And later, for a few more days, adults and children will have to finish eating Easter eggs; some will take them with them to work and school. In this regard, the question arises, how many eggs can you eat without harm to your health?


Calorie bomb?


It is well known that 50 grams of hard-boiled egg contains about 75 kilocalories. Its nutritional value is 0.5 grams of carbohydrates, 6.5 grams of protein and 5 grams of monosaturated fat, which are found in the yolk.


It would seem that there are few calories, but hard-boiled eggs take a very long time to be digested by the stomach - at least 3 hours. You definitely shouldn't eat them at night. On the contrary, soft-boiled eggs are easily digested, and nutritionists do not prohibit including them in dinner. By the way, the opinion that raw eggs are healthier is wrong. Raw egg whites are poorly digestible and strain the stomach. In addition, in its raw form the risk of salmonellosis infection increases. Remember to wash your eggs thoroughly before eating.


But the difference between homemade and factory eggs is very obvious. Laying hens practically do not move in industrial poultry farming conditions, which leads to a shift in the balance of fatty acids and other changes in composition. Many people consider factory eggs to be dietary, but this is not entirely true. Eggs from domestic chickens are much healthier due to the amount of microelements and vitamins, and even under conditions of increased calorie content, they are healthier than factory eggs.


There is also an opinion that this product increases cholesterol levels. Indeed, eggs contain a lot of cholesterol: an average egg contains 213 mg. According to nutritionists, a person is not recommended to take more than 300 mg of cholesterol per day, and one egg, according to these calculations, covers its limit by more than two-thirds. An increase in total cholesterol in the blood is dangerous for humans, but it has virtually nothing to do with chicken eggs. In addition, as studies have shown, this product does not increase bad cholesterol; on the one hand, it increases the amount of cholesterol in the blood, and on the other, it reduces its concentration with the help of phospholipids.


How many pieces?


The breakdown of eggs into micronutrients can be scary for anyone. And this is harmful, and even that is not useful. But nutritionists do not advise completely abandoning this product, which is very useful in reasonable quantities. After all, eggs allow the body to receive healthy fats and proteins. During Easter, you should control the number of eggs you eat so that these few days do not harm your figure and health. For a healthy diet, it is not recommended to eat more than three eggs a day.

Easter Kulich rich in vitamins and minerals such as: vitamin A - 22.2%, vitamin B1 - 53.3%, vitamin B2 - 55.6%, choline - 17.6%, vitamin B5 - 14%, vitamin B9 - 11, 9%, vitamin H - 15%, vitamin PP - 11.6%, phosphorus - 14.9%, chlorine - 17.3%, cobalt - 25%, manganese - 24.8%, molybdenum - 11.3%

What are the benefits of Easter Kulich?

• Vitamin A responsible for normal development, reproductive function, skin and eye health, and maintaining immunity.
• Vitamin B1 is part of the most important enzymes of carbohydrate and energy metabolism, providing the body with energy and plastic substances, as well as the metabolism of branched amino acids. A lack of this vitamin leads to serious disorders of the nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems.
• Vitamin B2 participates in redox reactions, helps to increase the color sensitivity of the visual analyzer and dark adaptation. Insufficient intake of vitamin B2 is accompanied by impaired condition of the skin, mucous membranes, and impaired light and twilight vision.
• Kholin is part of lecithin, plays a role in the synthesis and metabolism of phospholipids in the liver, is a source of free methyl groups, and acts as a lipotropic factor.
• Vitamin B5 participates in protein, fat, carbohydrate metabolism, cholesterol metabolism, the synthesis of a number of hormones, hemoglobin, promotes the absorption of amino acids and sugars in the intestines, supports the function of the adrenal cortex. A lack of pantothenic acid can lead to damage to the skin and mucous membranes.
• Vitamin B9 as a coenzyme they participate in the metabolism of nucleic acids and amino acids. Folate deficiency leads to disruption of the synthesis of nucleic acids and proteins, resulting in inhibition of cell growth and division, especially in rapidly proliferating tissues: bone marrow, intestinal epithelium, etc. Insufficient folate intake during pregnancy is one of the causes of prematurity, malnutrition, and congenital deformities and child development disorders. A strong relationship has been shown between folate and homocysteine ​​levels and the risk of cardiovascular disease.
• Vitamin H participates in the synthesis of fats, glycogen, amino acid metabolism. Insufficient consumption of this vitamin can lead to disruption of the normal condition of the skin.
• Vitamin PP participates in redox reactions of energy metabolism. Insufficient vitamin intake is accompanied by disruption of the normal condition of the skin, gastrointestinal tract and nervous system.
• Phosphorus takes part in many physiological processes, including energy metabolism, regulates acid-base balance, is part of phospholipids, nucleotides and nucleic acids, and is necessary for the mineralization of bones and teeth. Deficiency leads to anorexia, anemia, and rickets.
• Chlorine necessary for the formation and secretion of hydrochloric acid in the body.
• Cobalt is part of vitamin B12. Activates enzymes of fatty acid metabolism and folic acid metabolism.
• Manganese participates in the formation of bone and connective tissue, is part of enzymes involved in the metabolism of amino acids, carbohydrates, catecholamines; necessary for the synthesis of cholesterol and nucleotides. Insufficient consumption is accompanied by slower growth, disturbances in the reproductive system, increased fragility of bone tissue, and disturbances in carbohydrate and lipid metabolism.
• Molybdenum is a cofactor for many enzymes that ensure the metabolism of sulfur-containing amino acids, purines and pyrimidines.

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