Paska Bread

Recipe By Tiffany Leyda
Rating
Published Jan 1st
Prep 30m Cook 50m Additional 5h 20m Ready In 6h 40m
Servings 3 round loaves Calories 599.6

This traditional Polish egg bread is wonderfully light with a slightly sweet flavor.

Recipe Ingredients

  • 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
  • ½ cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 3 cups warm milk
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 6 eggs, beaten
  • ½ cup white sugar
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon lemon zest
  • 12 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Cooking Directions

  1. 1 Proof the yeast in 1/2 cup warm water in a large bowl until slightly frothy.
  2. 2 In the meantime, dissolve 1/2 cup sugar in the warm milk; allow to cool to lukewarm. Once cooled, add the milk mixture to the yeast mixture along with 4 cups of flour. Mix well with a wooden spoon. Cover and put in a dark, warm place until the mixture is bubbly and doubled in size, about 2 hours.
  3. 3 Stir in the beaten eggs, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup butter, salt, and lemon peel. Stir well to blend. Begin adding the remaining flour a cup at a time to form a very soft dough.
  4. 4 Knead the dough on a floured board until soft and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 2 hours. Punch dough down, and allow to rise again for 30 minutes.
  5. 5 Divide dough into three parts (see Cook's Note). Shape into slightly rounded loaves, and place on greased baking sheets. Let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Beat 1 egg with 1 tablespoon water; brush onto loaves.
  6. 6 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
  7. 7 Bake in preheated oven until loaves are deep brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Once they are done, brush the tops with melted butter for a soft crust.

Nutrition Facts

  • Calories 599.6
  • Carbohydrate 98.3 g
  • Cholesterol 106.1 mg
  • Fat 15.4 g
  • Fiber 3.2 g
  • Protein 15.7 g
  • Saturated Fat 8.6 g
  • Sodium 160.8 mg
  • Sugar 13.5 g

Chef's Notes

This recipe can be shaped into 3 large loaves or 6 small ones. (Check small loaves at about 30 minutes during baking.) You may use orange peel in place of the lemon zest, if you prefer.

Reviews

  1. Kenneth Holloway Mar 22, 2011 10:40 PM
    This is the recipe that my Slovak Grandmother made every Easter. We used to make 4 types of breads, rolls, and desserts from the basic recipe. First we'd make standard bread using loaf pans. Then we'd make poppyseed and nut rolls by rolling the dough out into a square sheet of dough about 1/2" thick - Read more ...
  2. LadySparkle Jul 2, 2010 05:28 PM
    WOW!! Very good recipe! I'll use this frequently. I used 1/4 c. less sugar 2 c. ff 1/2 & 1/2 and 1 c. ff milk 3 cups WWW flour and butter instead of margarine. I upped the salt to 3/4 tsp because I used unsalted butter no lemon zest and no egg wash but I - Read more ...
  3. Sarah Jo Jun 1, 2010 10:25 PM
    Okay, so.....here's the thing. I made the bread dough according to the recipe, only cutting it in half. I actually used the dough for cinnamon swirl bread. I used my Kitchen Aid mixer for the prep, proofing the yeast with the sugar and warm milk/water in the mixer bowl for ten minutes. When the yeast - Read more ...
  4. Tetya Apr 27, 2010 06:39 PM
    The Paska was good but not great. I am Ukrainian and Paska is a must for the Easter. So I tried this recipe and some other recipes. I think 12 cups of flour is way too much. SO my Paska came out little heavy, and not sweet enough. For the top we make a "frosting" - Read more ...
  5. CJW Feb 12, 2007 04:00 AM
    I followed "meisert's" advice and reduced the recipe by 2/3. I used less flour than called for, stopping at a soft dough, and putting the loaves in round pans (dutch oven, souffle dish)I would add more lemon zest. It's wonderful toasted with honey!
  6. Honey Apr 18, 2006 04:20 PM
    The bread looked beautiful but just did not have any flavor sorry.
  7. BARBJACK Aug 13, 2004 08:23 PM
    I read in one of the reviews not to use the mixer so instead I divided the dough in half thinking that would solve the problem. It burned out the motor (425 watts) of my heavy duty kitchenaid. At a 175 repair bill this was the most expensive easter bread I have ever made! That - Read more ...
  8. CHRISTA Nov 6, 2003 07:48 PM
    EXCELLENT FLAVOR. WILL ADD DRIED FRUIT NEXT TIME TO HALF OF IT. MADE THREE MASSIVE LOAVES. MOIST. WONDERFUL
  9. MEISERT Nov 6, 2003 07:47 PM
    Of all the Paska recipies I have tried this one has turned out the best quality bread. The quanity made it a little difficult to work with my kitchenaid mixer, but that was minor compared to the quality. I would recommend this to anyone. Just make 2/3 of recipe to manage better.
  10. ANNA H. Nov 6, 2003 07:47 PM
    This recipe is wonderful & true to its origin. It was just as I had remembered my Great Aunt making. Thank you for sharing such a treasure.
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