German Russian Easter Bread aka heaven!

Sorry, no picture as there are many viruses out there attacking flicker feeds. If you google "russian easter bread" and look at the images (don't click any!) you can see what the glory looks like! Although, i would recommend a thin, light frosting unlike some of those pictures that look like they have a cup (literally) of frosting on them. yikes! A traditional decoration in our family was jelly beans, cut in half and they will stick right in the frosting. This particular recipe is from Janice Hegel.

A few notes: you can use regular water instead of potato water, you can use milk instead of cream and there was no cooking time listed in the recipe. I would say probably at least 30 min maybe? To get the domed shaped loaves, you would use metal coffee cans :) You can also add a few drops of yellow food coloring to achieve a more festive looking loaf.



Mix together and set aside:

• 3 pkgs dry yeast
• 1 cup water
• 1 Tbsp sugar

Cream:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup shortening

Add:

• 2 tsp anise extract
• 2 cups potato water
• 10 beaten egg yolks
• 2 Tbsp salt
• 1 cup cream

Add the yeast mixture. Slowly add flour (10 to 11 cups) to make a soft dough. Do not work dough too much. It should be soft and somewhat sticky (you will not knead it, just mix in the bowl). Add 1 cup raisins. Cover with towel and let rise until double. Punch down and place in greased pans about 1/3 full. Let rise again until double. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown and done. Frost with powdered sugar frosting and decorate.