Easter bunnies - baking for Easter. Buns *Easter birds* and *Easter bunnies* - can be baked from Easter cake dough Easter bunny recipe from marzipan

Every time we prepare for the Bright Resurrection of Christ, we experience a special mood. Even in those years when religious holidays and rituals were banned, people secretly painted eggs and baked Easter cakes. Traditions were passed on from generation to generation, carefully preserved. However, there are also some among them that are not so widespread. For example, did you know that in addition to Easter cake, other baked goods are also prepared for Easter? One option is Easter bunnies. These could be cupcakes, buns, cookies. They turn out delicious and amazing to look at. Today the culinary site will tell you how such rabbits are prepared from dough without special molds.

Easter Bunny - symbolism of Easter

It is customary for Catholics to decorate their homes and tables for Easter with figurines of rabbits in a wide variety of designs. However, they look great next to the usual colored eggs, Easter cakes and cottage cheese Easter. And just like in European countries, in our homes charming bunnies symbolize well-being.

In general, researchers believe that the rabbit is a pre-Christian symbol. It is this animal that many European peoples have associated with the Goddess of Fertility and the Spring Equinox since ancient times. But with the mixing of pagan and Christian holidays, the prolific furry animal found its place alongside eggs, hens, larks and lambs.

A variety of baked goods in the shape of a hare for Easter are gradually gaining popularity in Russia. It is especially popular with children who love these harmless animals in any form. Try it and add some zest to your Easter treat. And we will tell you how to do this simply, without using special forms.

Easter cupcake in the shape of a bunny

If you are thinking about what to bake for Easter, besides Easter cake, try this recipe. No special forms or complex manipulations are required, and the result will certainly please you.

Basically, you can use any cupcake or biscuit recipe you like. The difference between this option is the large number of eggs. The dough turns out tender and retains freshness for a long time. This Easter cake is a worthy addition to the traditional Easter cake.

Ingredients:

• eggs – 6 pcs.;
• granulated sugar – 1 cup;
• butter – 250 gr. (we recommend using high-quality, real butter, since the taste of the finished product directly depends on this);
• flour (wheat, premium) - 2 cups (pour them generously, heaped);
• baking powder for dough – 2 tsp;
• alcohol (cognac, rum, vodka, whiskey, liqueur - your choice) - 2 tbsp. l.
• raisins (you can add dried apricots, prunes, nuts if desired).

Don't worry about the presence of alcohol in baked goods. During the baking process, the alcohol will disappear, leaving only a subtle aroma, for the sake of which the drink is introduced into the recipe. However, if you are absolutely against it, replace the alcohol with water. But in this case, be sure to add vanillin or other confectionery flavoring.

Attention! The amount of ingredients is indicated for 1 cupcake. To make an Easter bunny, you will need two identical round cake layers. If you don't have two round pans of the same diameter, you can bake the cakes one after the other. The main thing to remember is that you will need double the amount of food.

Just like when making yeast dough, all foods must be warm, room temperature. So be sure to take them out of the refrigerator in advance.

For decoration you will need colored icing and confectionery sprinkles. You can use traditional protein glaze for Easter cakes, or you can try making a lemon variation.

Ingredients for glaze:

• 2/3 cup powdered sugar;
• 1.5-2 tbsp. spoons of lemon juice.

To prepare the glaze, sift the powdered sugar, then gradually add lemon juice and mix. The exact amount of juice should be determined by the thickness of the glaze itself. If it is too thick, add a few more drops of juice (or water). If it turns out too liquid, add more powder. The main thing is to ensure that the mass is homogeneous, without lumps.

Properly prepared lemon glaze hardens very quickly, so pour it over the Easter cake immediately after cooking.

Preparation:

• The first step is to sort, rinse and pour boiling water over the raisins. While the dough is starting, it will have time to steam and cool to the desired temperature.
• Take a large container and sift the flour into it.
• Add softened butter and sugar to the flour. Grind everything by hand into soft plastic crumbs.
• Add baking powder and mix thoroughly again.
• Add eggs to the dough. Important point: add eggs strictly one at a time! Break, mix until smooth, break the next one.
• When the dough is ready, pour alcohol into it, add flavorings (if using them) and steamed raisins (along with the liquid in which they swelled).

The finished dough has the consistency of thick sour cream - shiny, oily.

Transfer it to the pan and bake in an oven preheated to 200°C for about 30 minutes. After this, reduce the temperature to 160 o C and keep our Easter cake for about 30 minutes. We check readiness with a sharp wooden skewer - inserted into the baked goods, it should come out dry.

When both cakes are ready, taken out of the mold and cooled, we begin to transform them into an Easter bunny.

All “magic” operations are presented in the photo below. As you can see, one of the cakes remains intact. We cut the second into 3 parts according to the diagram, from these parts we will get the ears and bow with which our Easter bunny is decorated.

All that remains is to decorate our baked goods with icing and confectionery sprinkles. To make eyes and a nose, you can use raisins and multi-colored dragees. If you prefer cream, you are free to use it by adding suitable food coloring.

This is not the only option for making an Easter bunny cupcake. You can also try this method:

Easter buns in the shape of bunnies

“Live” yeast dough in itself is a symbol of spring, awakening, growth. And therefore it could not be more appropriate on the Easter table. You can use your usual recipe for baking buns, changing only the shape of the products. Just imagine how happy your children will be when they see adorable bunnies on the table!

A very tender, soft dough is obtained according to the following recipe:

Ingredients:

• 350 gr. medium fat sour cream;
• 3 eggs;
• 80 ml water;
• 30 gr. "raw" yeast;
• 3 tbsp. spoons of granulated sugar;
• 0.5 teaspoons of salt;
• 700 gr. flour.

Just like when we prepare Easter cake, all ingredients should be brought to room temperature. Only in this case will the yeast dough rise and the baked goods will be fluffy.

Preparation:

The golden color and subtle aroma will tell you that the Easter bunny buns are ready.

By the way, the buns can be made with filling – poppy seed or any other. To do this, we first roll each ball into a small “ribbon”, onto which we place the filling, and then roll it into a sausage-flagellum. The main thing is not to reach the part that will turn into ears.

Easter buns in the shape of rabbits can be baked in other ways, shown in the photo:

The same methods can be used to bake Easter cookies from shortcrust pastry. Ruddy, appetizing rabbits will look great next to tall or cottage cheese.

Happy holiday to you!

According to popular belief in Germany, Easter eggs, oddly enough, are laid not by chickens or ducks, but... by hares. And this is not an April Fool's joke, this is an Easter tradition that is followed by the population throughout Northern Europe. From here, along with settlers, the tradition of honoring Easter bunnies moved to North America. The roots of this custom lie in the pagan past of the peoples living in these territories.
Nowadays, the Easter bunny is the favorite of all European children. From the point of view of adults, it, like the egg, symbolizes life and fertility. On the eve of Easter, rabbits can be found everywhere: on curtains and towels, on doors and windows, they can be chocolate, plush, wooden, ceramic or, for example, wax.
Well, we’ll try to make them from dough!
**
I bring the recipe to FM "Getting ready for Easter" And
**

**
The amount of dough is designed for 12-15 pieces
For the test:
Premium wheat flour 500 g
Milk 200 ml
Sugar 2 tbsp.
Honey 1 tbsp.
Eggs 2 pcs.
Instant dry yeast 1.5 tsp.
Salt 1 tsp.
Butter 75 g
For lubrication:
Butter
Dough.
Place all the ingredients for the dough in a bread machine bucket and turn it on for kneading the dough. When the dough is ready, transfer it to a plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator overnight.
After 12 hours, take out the dough, lightly knead it to release the air (no more kneading), divide into 12-15 parts, roll each into a ball and cover with film for 20-30 minutes to keep warm.
Molding.
From each ball we roll a sausage 18-20 cm long. In our minds, we divide it into three equal segments. We bend the right third and connect it to the left end of the central third, so that we get a closed loop. This will be the torso. We cut the free edge of the left third along - these will be the ears. The picture shows what a “snail” should look like. Now we throw the ears from left to right (on the back) and press the dough at their base, forming a head.

(photos enlarge by click)
Transfer the prepared rabbits to a baking sheet. When the sheet is full, cover the rabbits with film to prevent them from getting airy and leave to proof. During the process, you will have to adjust the shape of the head a couple of times so that the figure does not blur. We make the last adjustment before baking. Then brush the rabbits with melted butter and place them in an oven preheated to 200C. Reduce the temperature control to 160C and bake the buns until browned. This will take 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on them so they don't overcook. Brush the finished hot buns again with melted butter. And now they are beautiful, shiny, fragrant and delicious, ready for the holiday!
**
Questions and answers.
In principle, you can take any dough to your taste. The only condition is that it should not be soft, otherwise the rabbits will blur and lose their shape. You know, there is such a comparison - like a baby’s bottom... such elasticity is just what you need.
I love these bunnies so much that every time I bake some buns, I make several of them. The main photo shows rabbits made from the same dough as in the recipe, and I took step-by-step photos using a different one, so don’t be surprised that the dough looks different.
Also, I don’t recommend trying to make eyes and noses out of raisins or anything else for the rabbits before baking. In the oven they will certainly move to the side or fall off. Checked! It is much more convenient to “draw facial features” on already baked products.

These delicious and original Easter bunnies will definitely delight children and decorate your Easter baskets! And due to the use of boiled eggs colored with food coloring, they are also safe. The taste of bunnies is not cloyingly sweet, because we add little sugar, but it is very rich, pleasant and aromatic! We really hope that you will like the recipe and will allow children to happily help their mothers in the kitchen, experimenting with the design of Easter bunnies. Bon appetit and Happy Easter!

Author of the publication

She was born into a military family, so during her life she managed to live in many cities and countries of the USSR and Russia, and also acquired an irresistible passion for travel, new knowledge and the cuisine of different countries. From her travels she brings back not only souvenirs, but also new recipes. Now he lives in the south of Austria, on the border with Italy. The cuisine of this region uniquely combines the traditions of Austria, Italy and Germany.

• Recipe author: Inna Belyaeva
• After cooking you will receive 10 pcs.
• Cooking time: 2 hours

Ingredients

• 1 kg wheat flour
• 14 g dry instant yeast
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 100 g sugar
• 10 g vanilla sugar
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 80 g butter
• 3 pcs. egg
• 350 ml milk
• 10 pcs egg
• sugar
• 1 piece egg yolk
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 2 tbsp. water

Cooking method

Boil and cool 10 eggs in advance. You can use eggs painted for Easter. All ingredients should be at room temperature, and the milk should be warm, about 40 degrees. Sift the flour into a large bowl, mix with yeast, salt, white and vanilla sugar. Wash one lemon and remove the zest from it using a fine grater (only the yellow layer). Add zest to flour. Cut butter at room temperature into cubes and add to the dough along with the eggs. Pour in warm milk and knead the dough for about 10 minutes. Cover with a napkin and place in a warm, draft-free place for 1 hour, then knead and leave for another 30 minutes.

From the risen dough, cutting with a knife, make 10 balls, weighing approximately 90 grams. Weighing is necessary to ensure that the hare figures are the same. Do not forget to cover the workpieces with a clean towel so that the dough does not dry out.

From the prepared balls, roll into a sausage in your hands, thickened on one side and elongated on the other side. The length can be determined by “trying on” a boiled egg, that is, take the egg that you will use for decoration, roll it with dough and determine the required length. All others should be adjusted to the first one.

Turn on the oven and preheat to 190 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Take the previously prepared boiled eggs and roll the dough sausage around the egg, forming the front legs and body of the hare. It’s better to start from the thin end and go counterclockwise to the bottom of the egg - this way the thick side of the dough pieces will be the bunny’s feet. It is better to form bunnies immediately on a baking sheet so as not to transfer them.

Then form the head (small ball), ears and tail of the hare from the remaining dough. Insert raisin eyes.

Mix the yolk with two tablespoons of water and two tablespoons of milk. Using a pastry brush, brush the resulting hare pieces (dough only). Sprinkle with sugar sprinkles or any other sugar of your choice.

Bake for 15 minutes in an oven preheated to 190 degrees until golden brown.

Easter bunnies ready! Bon appetit!

DIY souvenirs for Easter. Master class with step-by-step photos

Knyazeva Irina Anatolyevna, teacher of Branch No. 1 of MBDOU No. 137 of Penza

The master class will be of interest to educators, additional education teachers, children of middle and high school age, their parents and simply creative people who are ready to create gifts with their own hands.

Purpose: for a gift, a holiday souvenir.
Target: making a gift for Easter with your own hands
Tasks: Arouse interest in this type of activity, teach the simplest skills of working with sawdust dough, and cultivate creativity and independence in children. To interest and involve parents in joint leisure activities with children.
Technique: modeling

Rules for working with PVA glue

1. When working with glue, use a brush if necessary.
2. Take the amount of glue that is required to complete the job at this stage
3. It is necessary to apply the glue in an even thin layer
4. Try not to get the glue on your clothes, face, or especially your eyes.
5. After work, close the glue tightly and put it away
6. Wash your hands and work area with soap and water

Materials for sawdust dough:
small sawdust; PVA glue; vegetable oil; starch.

Craft materials:
Acrylic paints; sandpaper; egg container; glue "Titan"; self-hardening plastic (I have: manufacturer PAULINDA, called super dough); brush; toothpick; scissors; PVA glue; a bead placed on a toothpick or a stack of balls; wire; a piece of plasticine; eyes; stack; board; cling film or file

Stages of work:

Sawdust dough recipe:
2 cups sawdust;
0.5 cup starch;
5 tablespoons of PVA glue;
0.3 glasses of water;
1 teaspoon vegetable oil.

Sift fine sawdust through a sieve.
Dissolve PVA glue in water. Mix the starch and sawdust well, and slowly add water mixed with PVA glue. Then add oil, stirring constantly. The resulting dough is similar to shortbread.

If the dough is thick, add glue, if liquid, add sawdust. The consistency of the dough depends on the sawdust. It has been noticed that if you replace the water in the recipe with PVA glue, the craft dries faster.
Let's make a bunny
Make a hole in the container and glue a piece of plasticine on the back side. Insert a toothpick into the plasticine.

Make an egg from the dough, 6–7 cm high.

Place the egg on a toothpick coated with PVA glue.

Lubricate two pieces of wire, 2 cm long, with PVA glue and insert them into the place where the ears are attached. Dry slightly.

Make two drops

and flatten them a little using a stack.

Next, take the stack with the ball and make a depression in the eye.

We coat our body, where the ears will be, with PVA glue, and put the blanks on the wire.

Roll into a ball with a diameter of 0.7 cm

Glue it in place of the tail.

Roll the dough into a small ball and glue it in place of the spout.

Roll the dough into a drop.
Press it lightly against the board so that one side is flat. Lubricate the bunny's tummy with PVA glue.

Glue the testicle onto the body.

Roll the dough into two small drops. Lightly press the droplet on top with a stack and use the stack to make notches.

Next, we coat the palms of the hands with glue and glue to the torso and testicle.

Roll two small sausages.

Glue them to your palms.

Smooth with a brush soaked in PVA glue.

Remove the toothpick from the plasticine. Cut off the excess tip of the toothpick with scissors or a stationery knife.

Let's make the legs. We make two droplets and flatten them a little with the help of a stack.

Next, take the stack and make 2 veins.

We coat our body, where the paws will be, with PVA glue.

Glue the paws.

It is good to apply them to the body with a brush moistened with PVA glue.

Dry.
You can use sandpaper to create a smooth surface.
Paint with paints

Glue the eyes with Titan glue.

Let's draw the eyelashes and mouth.

It turned out to be such a bunny.

Another option for coloring a bunny.

Making a wreath of forget-me-nots.
Roll 5 balls with a diameter of 0.3 cm from blue plasticine. And one ball from yellow plasticine. Place a yellow ball in the center and lightly press it against the board. Place 5 more balls around the ball.

Stack with balls, make a depression on each petal.

If there is no such stack, then you can replace it with a bead placed on a toothpick

The result is a forget-me-not flower.

We make six more flowers in the same order.
Make seven droplets from green plastic. Use your thumb and forefinger to flatten them.

Use a stack to make veins.

You can use mold.

We make a cap
Roll a ball with a diameter of 0.7 cm, then flatten it (it turns out to be a “pancake”).

Roll up a small sausage (peak), sharpen it at both ends and bend it slightly.

Glue the visor to the cap.

Dry. Using Titan glue, glue the flower onto the headdress.

Decorating Easter bunnies.
Using PVA glue or Titan glue, attach the flowers around the hare's ears.

Glue leaves between forget-me-nots

To grease the top and decorate:

• 1 egg yolk from a medium egg weighing about 65-68 grams.
• milk 3.2% fat 1 tbsp. spoon
• some dark raisins (preferably small ones) and almond petals for decoration (optional, but recommended)
• powdered sugar for sprinkling the finished “bunnies” (optional)

For the test:

• yeast 15 gr. fresh or 1 sachet (7-10 g.) dry
• milk 3.2% fat 300 ml
• granulated sugar 100 gr.
• natural or artificial vanilla sugar 1 level teaspoon
• salt a pinch
• butter 82.5% fat 50 gr.
• finely ground whole grain wheat flour 150 gr.
• premium wheat flour about 345-350 gr.

STEP-BY-STEP COOKING RECIPE

In advance (1.5-2 hours before preparing the dough), remove the amount of butter required for the recipe from the refrigerator and leave it at room temperature until it becomes very soft and creamy, or soften it in the microwave immediately before cooking.

Turn on the oven and heat it to 3-3.2 (about 170-175°C) (so that you can put the dough on it if there is no other warm place, for example, a radiator, for it).

In separate containers, measure the amount of granulated sugar required according to the recipe for the dough, adding vanilla sugar and wheat flour to it.

Heat the milk in a saucepan or aluminum bowl over low heat until warm (38-40 °C), then pour it into a bowl for kneading dough with a volume of about 3.5 liters and add 1 small heaped teaspoon of the total amount of granulated sugar ( without stirring). Crumble fresh or add dry yeast on top. Let the yeast soak for about 5 minutes.

After the time specified in step 4 has passed, add all the remaining previously measured granulated sugar with vanilla sugar, salt to the yeast and sift through a fine sieve about 210 g. from the entire norm of flour. Mix everything until smooth with a mixer with regular whisks at low speed, then add softened butter to the dough, stir in and add another 50 grams. from the previously measured amount of flour for the dough, sifting it through a sieve and also mixing with a mixer.

Gradually, in 2-3 additions (to feel the structure of the dough), add the rest of the flour (after scraping off the dough stuck to the mixer beaters) and knead the mass with your hands until it becomes homogeneous and elastic and does not lag behind the hands and walls dishes. Knead the dough thoroughly and for quite a long time, in the process, first collect the mass from the edges of the bowl to the center, and when you get a lump, stretch it by the ends several times, immediately folding it back - as a result, the dough will be better saturated with oxygen and will be fluffier. As a result, it should turn out soft and elastic, but it is acceptable if it is a little sticky to your hands.

Form the finished dough into a ball and place back in the bowl. Cover the bowl with the dough with plastic wrap and place in a warm place for 60-90 minutes until the volume of the dough increases by about 2-3 times. If you have time, you can leave the dough to rise at room temperature, then the proofing process can take about 2-2.5 hours.

When the dough has risen, it is very advisable to knead it into a ball and, covering it with film, let it rise again in a warm place or at room temperature so that the finished buns have a particularly airy texture. But if you don’t have this option, go straight to the next point.

Turn on the oven and heat it to 3-3.2 (about 170-175°C) (if you have not done this before). Line a large baking tray for baking rolls (size 28x38 cm) or any other one you have with a similar or slightly larger area with non-stick baking parchment (it is not necessary to make sides). Wash the raisins for decorating the preparations with running water and dry on a paper napkin, if necessary (if the raisins are large), cutting each into 2-3 parts.

Knead the risen dough with your hands in a bowl and divide into 14 equal parts (preferably using a scale). Roll each one into a ball and begin to form future “bunnies”, starting with those that were made first and, if possible, covering the “unused” ones with plastic wrap (so as not to dry out). To do this, take the ball in your right hand and squeeze it with the thumb and forefinger of your left so that ⅔ of the dough (the future head of the bunny) remains in the palm, and ⅓ (the ears) is “squeezed” out, while maintaining the “liner” with the main part. Then place the workpiece on the table and cut ⅓ of the part in half lengthwise with a sharp knife into two halves, spread the “ears” thus formed with your hands to the sides and trim. Insert a knife into the center of the “muzzle” and make a deep longitudinal cut towards the bottom of the “muzzle”, to the very edge of the workpiece (without cutting through the dough at the edge, otherwise parts of the muzzle will move apart during proofing!). Also, using a knife, outline the bunny’s nose and eyes, piercing the workpiece in the appropriate places with a knife all the way through. Decorate the “nose” and “eyes” of the workpiece with small raisins or pieces of them (sinking them into the dough with a knife so that they do not fall out of it during proofing and baking), and insert two “teeth” - almond petals - into the “mouth”. see photo). Do the same with the remaining balls one by one, placing them at a distance from each other on a previously prepared baking sheet when ready. When the baking sheet is full, cover it on top with a paper towel and place it in a warm place (for example, on a heated oven) so that the pieces fit well, increasing in volume at least twice (then the finished buns will be especially fluffy and tender). Leave the blanks that do not fit on the table at room temperature to wait in the wings under plastic wrap.

When the preparations on the baking sheet are suitable, beat the egg with 1 tbsp in a separate small container. spoon of milk and carefully (so as not to displace the almonds and raisins), but quite generously, brush the top of the workpieces with the resulting mixture using a pastry brush. Place the baking sheet with the preparations in the oven and bake them until browned at 3-3.2 (about 170-175°C) for about 20-25 minutes or according to the recommendations in the instructions for your oven for baking yeast dough.

Remove the finished “hares” from the oven, let them cool a little (5 minutes) on the baking sheet, and then transfer them to a plate using a serving spatula. Replace the parchment on the baking sheet and place the remaining pieces on it. Brush them with beaten egg and milk and bake immediately as described in step 11 (they no longer need to rise further). It is advisable to let the “bunnies” sit for 6-12 hours, after which you can serve them to the table, if necessary, cutting off the burnt bottom with a bread knife with a serrated blade using a sawing motion.

You can store the prepared bunnies at room temperature for up to 2 days in an open container (over time they dry out and become crispy).

Useful advice

I liked adding 50 g to the dough. light raisins and 50 gr. peeled walnut kernels. If you plan to follow my example, after step 4 (while the yeast is swelling), wash the raisins under cool running water, dry with a paper towel and cut into 2-3 pieces if they are large. Grind the nut kernels into small or medium grains with a sharp knife. Place everything in a bowl and sprinkle nuts and dried fruits with 1 tbsp. spoon with a medium heap of flour from the total amount measured for the dough, thoroughly mixing them with it (this is necessary so that they do not settle down the crumb during baking), and add it to the dough - at the stage of manual kneading in step 6, after adding all flour, thoroughly mixing them and the remaining flour with which they were sprinkled into the dough. I just don’t recommend molding “bunnies” with such “filling”: they end up with a lumpy surface, which doesn’t look very aesthetically pleasing. It’s better to divide the dough into the same number of pieces at the shaping stage and roll them into round buns, placing them on a baking sheet lined with non-stick parchment when ready. Then make a shallow cross-shaped cut on each with a sharp knife and then see the recipe. By the way: If you add raisins and nuts to the dough, you can replace half the norm (150 ml) of milk in the dough with 10% fat cream: in this case, the buns will turn out a little denser, but with a more pronounced creamy taste.

Note to the hostess

To make the “bunnies” especially healthy, I use 150 grams in the recipe. finely ground whole grain wheat flour. If you don’t have one, add the same amount of regular premium wheat flour to the dough.