Festival bread is made to celebrate a particular event or holiday, with ingredients and flavors often reflecting the occasion. It can be a traditional food of a country or region, such as Swedish semla or German Stollen, or it may be a particular season of the year, like Easter bread such as Kulich.
The bread is typically shaped into a round or loaf shape, and it may be frosted after baking to make it even more attractive. Some are topped with various nuts or dried fruits. The most common ingredient is sugar, but other sweeteners, such as honey or maple syrup, can also be used. Other spices, such as cardamom or cinnamon, may be incorporated into the dough.
Many recipes include a center filling made of ground almonds or other finely chopped nuts and flavored with a bit of sugar and lemon juice. This is usually covered with a dusting of powdered sugar to serve as a decoration and enhance the taste of the dessert. A variation on this recipe uses the whole egg, which is beaten with the sugar to create an especially light and fluffy batter.
The earliest festival breads were made with unleavened flour, as instructed by the teachings of Moses. This unleavened bread, known as matzoh, is served at Passover and other Jewish holidays to remind Jews of their escape from slavery in Egypt. The pharaoh’s last-minute decision to free the Hebrews meant that they had to leave without stopping long enough for their bread dough to rise.
Other holiday-themed festival breads are challah, the traditional Friday night dinner bread of Jewish communities in eastern Europe and North America. A version of challah shaped into braided loaves is also called “shepherd’s pie” and is popular for Thanksgiving in the United States.
A variant on challah is lebkuchen, which is baked for the Jewish Christmas holiday. It is similar to stollen, and it also has an almond paste center and is usually topped with powdered sugar before serving. It is also shaped into the form of a baby Jesus wrapped in swaddling clothes.
Another festive bread is tsoureki, which is a rich plaited bread that is traditionally eaten at Easter in Greece. It is shaped into a plait, and a hard-boiled egg, which is dyed red to represent the blood of Christ, is inserted at one end to symbolize the crucifixion.
Chico residents had the opportunity to try some of these treats at the local Bread Fest, which was held Sunday and showcased the talents of members of the Chico Bread Guild. This is an annual event that brings together bakers and bread enthusiasts to sample artisanal bread, learn more about the craft, and meet other people who love all things bready. The festival features hands-on workshops, panel discussions, and a happy hour, and it’s open to everyone who loves bread. Those who are professional bakers can attend the second day of the festival, which is more intensive.
