Ukrainian-Style Easter Cake

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp raisins
• 3 tbsp rum
• 0.5 cube fresh yeast (21 g)
• 180 g lukewarm milk
• 500 g flour
• 100 g sugar
• 1 pinch salt
• 100 g butter
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• butter (for the pan)
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tbsp milk
• 150 g powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 150 g marzipan dough
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• various food coloring

Instructions

1. 1.

   Soak the raisins in rum.

2. 2.

   Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm milk. Mix flour, sugar and salt; put into a bowl and make a well in the center. Pour in the yeasted milk and dust with a little flour from the edges. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 15 minutes. Add butter, egg, yolk and the rum-soaked raisins to the dough and knead by hand or with an electric mixer until smooth. Cover and let rise for another 60 minutes. Divide the dough into two tall greased oven-safe pans and let rise again for 30 minutes. Whisk milk with the yolk and brush the dough with it.

3. 3.

   Preheat the oven to 180 °C (350 °F) with upper and lower heat and bake the cakes for 1 hour.

4. 4.

   Meanwhile, whisk powdered sugar with lemon juice.

5. 5.

   Knead the marzipan dough with powdered sugar and color it differently. Shape flowers, leaves and a cross from it.

6. 6.

   Remove the baked cakes from the oven, let them cool, carefully lift them out of the pans and allow them to cool completely on a wire rack. Brush with the powdered sugar glaze and decorate with marzipan flowers, leaves and the cross. Let dry and serve.