Polish Easter Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Combine 1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons butter, sugar, and egg in a bowl; beat with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in mashed egg yolks. Add flour, ground almonds, and lemon zest. Knead into a dough. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Roll out 2/3 of the dough on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle the size of the baking sheet. Lay onto the prepared baking sheet. Roll remaining dough into finger-thick rolls. Press dough rolls onto the cake in a diamond-shaped pattern. Brush rolls with beaten egg.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Pour 1/4 cup water into a saucepan. Sprinkle gelatin powder on top. Let stand until softened, about 1 minute. Place over low heat; stir constantly until granules are completely dissolved, about 3 minutes.
• Heat cherry and apricot preserves in 2 small pots over low heat until hot. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Mix half of the dissolved gelatin into each flavor. Alternate filling the diamond shapes of the cake with the 2 different flavors. Arrange sliced almonds and candied cherries into flower shapes on top.

Steps:

• Heat milk almost to boiling, stir in sugar, salt and butter, and cool to lukewarm. Pour lukewarm water into a large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over water; stir until dissolved. Add milk mixture, eggs and flour; beat vigorously for 5 minutes. Cover and let rise in warm place, free from draft, for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down; mix in half of the lemon peel and the almonds and raisins if desired. Pour dough into greased and floured 1 1/2-quart casserole. Let rise for 1 hour. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 50 minutes; let cool in pan for 20 minutes. To make the icing, beat together the confectioners' sugar and the tablespoon of milk. Drizzle glaze on top of the cake, and sprinke with lemon peel. Garnish with candied cherries.