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Easter is a holiday rich with tradition.
Most Americans dye hard-boiled eggs, fill baskets with chocolate candies and, of course, prepare a ham for dinner.
But many families cook foods and follow customs of foreign countries, hoping to keep the traditions of their ancestors alive.
We asked some of Utah's ethnic cooks and chefs to share some of these favorite Easter traditions and recipes. Here are their stories:
Mexico: Sonya Alemán grew up with Mexican traditions in Cotulla, Texas. She remembers fondly the process of making cascarones or "confetti eggs" for Easter.
During the year, whenever the family used an egg for breakfast or baking, instead of just cracking the ovals in half, they would punch a quarter-size hole in the top, dump the yolk and whites and save the hollowed out shell.
A few days before Easter the entire family would dye the collection of empty shells different colors, said Alemán, of Salt Lake City. Then the eggs would be filled with tiny paper confetti and a small piece of tissue paper would be glued over the hole.
"It was like a little assembly line," Alemán said of the process. "We would have hundreds and hundreds of them."
The cascarones created an unbearable amount of excitement for Easter Sunday morning when the children would hunt for the hidden eggs and then - this is the best part - sneak up behind unsuspecting family members and break the eggs over their heads, sending out a spray of confetti.
"The key was to catch people by surprise," said Alemán, who keeps the tradition alive with her three children ages 10, 6 and 2. After the egg hunt, families usually prepare a relaxing barbecue or picnic, grilling chicken, beef briskets or even hamburgers.
Alemán said the cascarón is actually a Christmas tradition in some parts of Mexico.
"But for some reason, because of the mix of the two cultures, we celebrate it at Easter time in America," she said.
Hungary: After 40 days of meatless meals, it's not unusual to hear a good Hungarian mother or grandmother proclaim "husvét" to all her Easter dinner guests.
Loosely translated it means "now the meat," explains Al Church, whose mother emigrated from Budapest in 1922.
A traditional Hungarian Easter table will offer spicy sausages called kolbasz , which are eaten with freshly grated horseradish, said Church. "I remember being asleep and smelling those sausages cooking on Easter morning."
The table also had a glazed ham, hard-boiled eggs, sweet breads and a variety of different pastries such as poppy seed strudel, walnut rolls and apricot squares.
"The only vegetable was probably a dish of pickles," said Church, principal of the Academy of Math, Engineering and Science, a public charter school in Salt Lake City.
Church does have fond memories of at least one vegetarian meal his mother made during Lent: paprikas gomba or mushroom paprikas.
Church says he still makes this creamy dish -made of sautéed onions, mushrooms and thickened sour cream sauce served over noodles - for his family.
"Everyone has heard of chicken paprikas, but this version is really wonderful, too," he said.
Italy: In Italy, Easter food is all about lamb, said 83-year-old Josephine Mirabelli. She browns the leg with plenty of garlic and olive oil and then lets it simmer slowly in a bit of white wine.
"It seems kind of simple, but it tastes really good," she said.
The lamb is served with the foods of spring: fresh asparagus, potatoes cooked in the juices of the lamb and homemade pasta such as lasagna or spaghetti with fresh sauce.
The Italian Easter table would not be complete without pizza, which is nothing like the cheese and pepperoni kind found in America. This sweet egg bread, usually round in shape, has a whole egg baked in for decoration.
For dessert, says Mirabelli, the family enjoys crisp, double-baked biscotti with coffee.
Russia: After a midnight service, Galina Pianykh and other Russian Orthodox faithful will gather in the basement of St. George's Orthodox Church in West Jordan for the traditional blessing of the Pascah baskets. The baskets are decorated with beautiful cloths and filled with foods that symbolize Christ's resurrection and new life.
Every basket must have kulich, a tall, dome-shaped bread that has become the symbol of Russian Easter, said Pianykh. It is a rich, sweet bread, made with eggs and butter and topped with a sugar glaze. Kulich, Russian tradition says, should not be eaten the same day it is made.
Accompanying the bread will be paska - which means Easter in Russian. This sweet, creamy "cheesecake" which takes at least two days to make, is usually formed in the shape of a pyramid. In Russia, it is made with a soft farmer's cheese, heavy cream and eggs. In America, the cheese can be difficult to find so cream cheese is often substituted, said Pianykh, who came to the United States with her husband and two sons some 15 years ago when her husband entered a visa lottery in Russia and "won" legal documents to make the trip.
The basket also is likely to have sliced meats, a bottle of wine, and a hard-boiled egg - dyed red using onion skins - to represent Christ's tomb.
After the blessing, the food is eaten as part of the Easter celebration. People greet one another by saying "Christos voskrese" or "Christ is risen." The reply is "voistinu voskrese" or "truly he has risen."
Children and adults play a game in which they take turns trying to crack the colored eggs.
"Its' a big celebration," said Pianykh. "A special day."
Argentina: Argentina is home to countless cattle ranches, which means beef is fresh, inexpensive and served daily in all different forms: grilled, barbecued, fried and even stuffed into pastry dough.
But for devoted Catholics, the meat-eating ends during Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter, says Ariel Battafarano, a native of Buenos Aires and the new chef at the Homestead Resort in Midway.
"You have to abstain from what you like," he said.
That is when fish and vegetables become the main course. Seafood is eaten in many different forms, but Battafarano said one of the most popular is a filling for empanadas, a kind of Spanish turnover.
A few days before the holiday, Battafarano said his mother, like most Argentine cooks, would make "Eastern Threads," a rich egg bread shaped in the form of a crown.
"It is eaten for breakfast on Easter morning," he said, "before the family goes to church."
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* KATHY STEPHENSON can be contacted at kathys@sltrib.com or 801-257-8612.
Paprikas gomba (mushroom paprikas)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 pound white and cremini button mushrooms, washed and cut in half
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon Hungarian paprika (Szeged brand recommended)
1 cup broth (beef, chicken or vegetable)
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup sour cream
Noodles, cooked according to package directions
Heat oil in a skillet. Add onion and cook until soft. Add mushrooms and season with salt, pepper and paprika. Cook 10 to 15 minutes over medium heat until mushrooms are soft. Combine broth, flour and sour cream. Pour into mushroom mixture in pan and cook gently until slightly thickened. Serve over egg noodles.
Source: Al Church
Glazed ham with horseradish relish
Relish:
1 horseradish root, peeled and diced
1 to 2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
Ham:
1 (5 to 7 pound) ham butt or shank
3/4 cup apricot jam
1/4 cup brown mustard
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
For relish, place diced horseradish in the bowl of a food processor. Pour in vinegar and mix until spreading consistency. Add salt and sugar. Taste. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Scrape relish into a serving bowl and set aside.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place ham in a shallow roasting pan. Bake 10 to 15 minutes per pound or according to package directions.
Meanwhile, combine jam, mustard and cloves in a saucepan. Simmer glaze over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
During the last 30 minutes of cooking, brush ham with the glaze. When ham has cooked through, remove from oven. Cover with aluminum foil and let rest 10 to 15 minutes before carving.
Serve ham slices with horseradish relish.
Source: Al Church
Paska (Russia Easter Cheesecake)
2 pounds slightly firm (not creamy) farmer cheese
7 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
Optional additions:
1 cup golden raisins soaked in 1/3 cup hot water, brandy or other liqueur for at least 15 minutes to soften, then drained
1 cup toasted slivered almonds
1 cup high-quality candied fruits
1 cup dried cranberries
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
Special equipment:
Large piece of cheesecloth
6 cup terra cotta flower pot
Fine mesh strainer
To drain farmer cheese, moisten a double thickness of cheesecloth with water. Wring it out and line the inside of a 6-cup flower pot with it. Place cheese inside the pot, pack down and tie cheesecloth over the top. Place a small plate, just large enough to fit inside the pot, directly on top of cheese. Position a heavy weight (a brick covered with foil works well) on top of plate.
Allow the cheese to sit at room temperature for 4 hours. About 1/4 cup water should drain out.
Combine egg yolks and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale yellow and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Transfer yolk mixture to a heavy-bottomed nonreactive pan, add heavy cream and set aside. Wash and dry mixing bowl. Set a fine mesh strainer over it, set aside.
Whisking constantly, bring the yolk mixture to a boil over medium heat. This should take 3 to 5 minutes. Immediately remove from heat, strain yolk mixture into mixing bowl and cool 20 minutes.
Gradually add butter to yolk mixture, stirring with a whisk until butter melts. Cool completely. Add the drained farmer cheese and vanilla to the yolk mixture. Whisk until well blended, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Add the optional ingredients as desired, mixing until evenly distributed.
Reline the flower pot with another piece of double-thick cheesecloth that has been moistened. Spoon the paskha mixture into it. Fold the edges of the cheesecloth over the pot, place the small plate on top and position the weight on top. Refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight.
Remove pot from refrigerator, remove weight and unfold cheesecloth. Place a serving plate over top of the flowerpot and invert the cheesecake onto it.
Carefully peel away cheesecloth. Allow the cheesecake to sit at room temperature for 1 hour before serving.
Decorate with candies or fresh flowers. Serve with sweet bread (such as Kulich). Leftovers should be covered and refrigerated.
Makes 10 to 12 servings.
Source: A Year of Russian Feasts, by Catherine Cheremeteff Jones (Jellyroll Press, $16.95)
Italian Easter bread
3 to 3 1/4 cups bread flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 package active dry yeast (or 1 heaping tablespoon bottled yeast)
2/3 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons butter
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon lemon extract and zest of 1 lemon (or 1 teaspoon anise
extract)
5 hard-boiled colored eggs
Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk or cream
Colored sprinkles, for decorating
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, salt and yeast. In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter until lukewarm. Add dry ingredients and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed. Add eggs and 1 cup flour. Add extract of choice and another cup of flour.
With dough hook, knead dough 5 minutes in mixer. Remove dough and place in a greased bowl. Turn once to grease the top of dough. Cover and place in draft-free place and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Grease a cookie sheet.
Punch down dough. Divide in half. On a floured surface, roll each half into a 24-inch long rope. Twist the two ropes together and form into a ring. Tuck four of the colored eggs into the twisted dough. Place the fifth egg in the center. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a dish towel and allow to
rise 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Bake bread for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven. Combine powdered sugar and milk to form a smooth glaze. While the bread is still warm, brush top with glaze and sprinkle with colored candies.
Makes 1 (12-inch) loaf.
Source: Savor the Memories by Marguerite Marceau Henderson
Easter customs
* MEXICO: Cascarones or "confetti eggs." Eggshells that are dyed, filled with confetti and broken on someone's head.
* HUNGARY: Spicy sausages called kolbasz that are eaten with freshly grated horseradish.
* ITALY: Pizza made with sweet egg bread, usually round, with a whole egg baked in for decoration.
* RUSSIA: Pascah baskets. The baskets are decorated with beautiful cloths and filled with foods that symbolize Christ's resurrection and new life.
* ARGENTINA: "Eastern Threads," a rich, egg bread shaped in the form of a crown that is eaten for breakfast on Easter morning.
Still hungry?
To see a recipe for paska, or Russian Easter cheesecake, visit http://www.sltrib.com/food.