Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Happy Reformation Day: Now for Tomorrow!


Hi All,
Hope you're having a great time today, celebrating the birth of the Reformation.
Tomorrow, however, is All Saints Day, so let's celebrate this day in style!

Minor Festival and Colour.
All Saints Day
1st November
White

"The Commemoration of All Saints" was first celebrated in the East. The feast is found in the West on different dates in the eighth century. The Roman Martyrology mentions that this date is a claim of fame for Gregory IV (827-844) and that he extended this observance to the whole of Christendom; it seems certain, however, that Gregory III (731-741) preceded him in this. At Rome, on the other hand, on May 13, there was the annual commemoration of the consecration of the basilica of St. Maria ad Martyres (or St. Mary and All Martyrs). This was the former Pantheon, the temple of Agrippa, dedicated to all the gods of paganism, to which Boniface IV had translated many relics from the catacombs. Gregory VII transferred the anniversary of this dedication to November 1.
Things to Do.
All Saints' Cakes
(Heiligenstriezel; Strucel Swiateczne; Mindszenti Kalacska)

On All Saints' Day in some parts of Europe, this festive cake is baked. It is a sweet dough, made of braided strands. These "All Saints' Cakes are called Heiligenstriezel in German, Strucel Swiateczne in Polish, Mindszenti Kalacska in Hungarian.

The next day, the same dough is used to make figures. Boys receive a cake in the shape of a hare, and the girls are given a cake in the shape of a hen. (This is an interesting combination of fertility symbols and "spirit bread".)

INGREDIENTS
· 8 cups flour
· 2 cups milk
· 4 yeast cakes
· 8 egg yolks
· 2 cups sugar
· 1 teaspoon grated orange rind
· 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
· 1/2 cup soft butter
· 1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS
Dissolve yeast cakes in 1/2 cup of the milk. Make thin sponge by mixing yeast with rest of milk and 1 cup of flour. Mix thoroughly, sprinkle top lightly with flour and set aside to rise. Add salt to egg yolks, beat until thick and lemon-colored. Add sugar, rinds, and mix with sponge. Add two cups of flour, alternating with the milk, and knead for half-hour.

Add remaining flour and butter and continue to knead until the dough comes away from the hand. Set in warm place to rise until double in bulk. Separate dough into four parts, roll into long strips and braid into loaf. Brush top with lightly beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with poppy seed. Let rise. Bake in 350° oven for one hour.

Recipe Source: Holyday Book, The by Francis X. Weiser, S.J., Harcourt, Brace and Company, Inc., New York, 1956

Photo credit: 'for us 2' by spiz

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home