Pasca

Ingredients

Dough

• 600 gstrong white flour
• 10 ginstant yeast
• 100 gcaster sugar
• 1 tspsalt
• 200 mlwarm milk
• 3egg yolks
• 100 gbutter, softened
• grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tspvanilla extract

Cheese filling

• 700 gfresh cow’s curd cheese, or drained ricotta
• 150 gcaster sugar
• 3eggs
• 100 graisins, soaked
• 3 tbspsemolina
• grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tspvanilla extract
• a pinch of salt

To finish

• 1egg, beaten
• icing sugar, to dust

Equipment

• a 26 cm round tin, lined

Directions

1. Line a sieve with muslin and set it over a bowl. Tip the cheese in and let it drain in the fridge. Give it at least four hours, and overnight is better.
2. Warm the milk to blood temperature and no hotter. Put the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add the warm milk, the egg yolks, the zest and the vanilla. Mix it into a rough shaggy dough. Turn it out and knead it for five minutes. Add the softened butter a piece at a time.
3. Knead each piece in fully before adding the next. The dough will go slack and greasy for several minutes. Keep working it and it will come back together smooth and glossy. Knead for another ten minutes after the last of it goes in. Adding the butter at the start would stop the gluten developing.
4. Put it in an oiled bowl and cover it. Let it rise for about two hours until well doubled. Making the filling is done while it rises. Beat the drained cheese with the sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the semolina, which absorbs moisture and helps it set. Add the lemon zest, vanilla and salt. Drain the soaked raisins and pat them dry.
5. Fold them through the filling. It should be thick and spoonable rather than runny. Take about a third of it and set it aside for the rim. Roll the larger piece out to fit the lined tin. Press it into the base and a little way up the sides.
6. Divide the reserved dough into three equal pieces. Roll each piece into a long rope. Lay the braid around the edge of the base, on top of it. Press the braid gently onto the base so it sticks. The braid must be high enough to hold the filling in. Spoon the cheese filling into the centre. It should come to just below the top of the braid.
7. Cover it loosely and prove it for forty-five minutes. The braid should look visibly puffed. Heat the oven to 170C while it proves. Baking it needs a moderate oven and some watching.
8. Brush the braid with beaten egg, avoiding the filling. Bake it for forty-five to fifty minutes. The braid should be deep golden. Cover it loosely with foil if the braid colours too fast. Testing it is done at the centre.
9. Let it cool completely in the tin. Cutting it warm gives a collapsed slice. Dust it with icing sugar just before serving. Cut it into wedges with a sharp knife. Serve it on Easter morning with the blessed eggs. It keeps for three days covered in the fridge.

Technique

• Drain the cheese for hours, since wet cheese gives a filling that never sets.
• Add the butter after the first knead, or the gluten will not develop.
• Cool it completely before cutting, as the filling sets as it cools.

Substitutions

• Well-drained ricotta in place of Romanian curd cheese.
• Sultanas or chopped dried apricot in place of raisins.

Variations

• With a cross of dough laid over the filling.
• Made without raisins, which some households prefer.
• With a little sour cream beaten into the filling.

History

Blessed at the Orthodox Easter midnight service and eaten first thing on Easter morning.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pasca?

Pasca is a bread & pastry from Romania: sweet Easter bread with a braided rim holding sweetened cheese and raisins. Blessed at the Orthodox Easter midnight service and eaten first thing on Easter morning.

How long does Pasca take to make?

Pasca takes 1 hour plus 3 hours rising of preparation and 50 min of cooking. The recipe makes 1 large pască. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Pasca?

Yes, within limits. Well-drained ricotta in place of Romanian curd cheese. Sultanas or chopped dried apricot in place of raisins.

What is the most important thing to get right in Pasca?

Fold them through the filling. It should be thick and spoonable rather than runny. Take about a third of it and set it aside for the rim. Roll the larger piece out to fit the lined tin. Press it into the base and a little way up the sides.