Easter in Poland

 

A week ago we celebrated Easter. It's time to tell you all something about some polish Easter traditions.

It all begins a week before the Easter Sunday, on the Palm Sunday. During that day people go to the church with palm-leaf substitutes - handmade bouquets, made of dried flower, grain, branches of willow or box. After it's blessed in the church, it's taken home to provide the benediction for the family and house.



From Wikipedia

We are not going to dwell on religious traditions. We will focus , as always ;-) , on the food.

Have you heard of Pisanki? They are Easter eggs painted with some designs. In some regions of Poland they resemble a small masterpiece. When an egg is painted only in one colour and has no decorations, it is called Kraszanka. Both types of Easter eggs are part of traditional Easter basket.

On Easter Saturday , families are preparing the basket with food, which is carried to the church to be blessed. Everything in the basket has a special meaning - eggs symbolize a new life, bread quotidian food, so it won't be lacking food for the family, salt is a symbol of welfare (as in medioeval times it was very expensive)  and at last meat (f.e. sausages)  is analogue to the Lamb of God. Traditionally the basket is decorated with branches of willow or box. Nowadays you can find inside also lambs made of sugar or chocolate, or even chocolate rabbits. From  Good Friday, until the basket gets blessed, you cannot eat meat!

  

   

Next day, on Easter Sunday, the food blessed in church, is shared between family members during the Easter breakfast. On the table you can find hard-boiled eggs in many forms - with mayonnaise or stuffed, cold meats, sausages, salads and of course żurek.

 

             

Żurek is a soup made from feremented rye flour, served mainly with hard-boiled eggs, white sausage and mushrooms.



In some families it is more popular to prepare white borscht. It's also kind of sour soup , but the difference lies in the type of flour - white borscht is made from wheat flour.

We cant't forget to mention some typical Easter desserts like babkas or mazurek (Pl. mazurki) . There are so many types of them! For example mazurek can be made on waffle or on the shortcake and filled with kind of nougat (meringue with nuts), chocolate or butterscotch. Those with shortcake are decorated with some Easter symbol (see bellow).

 





Easter Monday is a family day in Poland. It is called also Śmigus Dyngus (Wet Monday), because of the tradition to pour some water on  girls and women. That is a pagan practice and it's believed, that it brings the male attraction.
 
You can immagine that it has become a huge fun and both sexes are pouring the water on the others. Kids and teenagers are planning even water battles! So when the weather is good , meaning it's not raining or freezing, better be careful going outside !!!   :-D

And you, how did you spend your Easter?