www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall PEEPS!

I really am surprised by that....

Even American Protestant and Catholics have some kind of special meal on Easter Sunday, and traditionally, they dress up for the day too.

Something called Easter Brunch has now become popular in restaurants too.

Whatever--the idea is a festive family meal to celebrate the holiday.

Ofcourse, since I have Episcopalian cousins, I do know that describing an Easter feast is relative.
How my cousins loved to visit our 'yiayia' on her Easter...because the buffet table was full of Greek specialties.

If I am not mistaken, don't Ukrainians and other Slavic Christians prepare an Easter basket of yummy food to be blessed on Easter morning? --(a lovely tradition if there ever was one, I must say!)

Love,
Alice

Easter or the chocolate eating orgie as it is for most here does not get much in terms of special foods. My parents always took the feast from the Church to the family table. My sister who live in Melbourne (that other Greek city) adds Greek festal breads etc to the table. Also having a Russian and Ukrainian population some of their festal foods also end up gracing the same table.

My Mum has taught my sisters to make an English Simnel cake for Easter.
http://www.chippingnorton.net/Features/simnel%20cake.htm

ICXC
NIKA

Aaahhh, you mean to tell me that dark 'Dutch' processed (processed with alkalie) chocolate, made with no milk products is not a fast food..??mik ..seriously...

Simnel cake - ah yes , now that is something - but it's not an Easter cake .

That was the cake baked and taken home by girls in domestic service on Mothering Sunday [ NOT Mothers Day ]

Mothering Sunday is/was the Sunday of Mid-Lent and traditionally Serving girls were given the day off to go home - with a posy of flowers and a Simnel cake. The fast was lightened for this and these cakes were extremely rich fruit cakes [ but not as heavy or as rich or as alcoholic as Christmas cakes ] , baked with a layer of marzipan in them and then covered after baking [ and cooling] with Apricot jam [ always apricot never anything else as far as I know - perhaps Incognitus knows better ] and another layer of marzipan with 11 little balls of marzipan round the edge as decoration.

Why the 11 wee balls of marzipan - well think of the significance there

Now this was when there was a bit of feasting - in the houses as daughters returned home for the day.

Now however feasting , if it is done , is purely commercial with restaurants offering special menus etc - but it's not really because of the idea of Easter and celebrating after the Fast and its culmination in the Glory of Easter.

One curious factoid coming up now

After Easter in France they start advertising for Pentecost - the butchers must really make a killing here - everyone apparently eats veal for Pentecost - the advertising slogan is "Le veau de Pentecote "

Anhelyna

Maybe this will help:

The Paska bread in the Easter basket is the reminder of Christ as the Living Bread. The ornamentation that decorates the top of the Paska; crosses, twists, rosettes, letters, pine cones are done with great love.

http://www.carpatho-rusyn.org/easter.htm
http://www.agapeicons.com/site/1286684/page/796121

A funny story about PEEPS,
My Priest absolutely hates them and so during the blessing of the Pascha baskets one of the teens (i've done it once) manage to slip some peeps into his basket. They are now blest and he has to eat them!

In Christ,
Katie g

Or burn them?

Mmm - toasted Peeps! Nothin' better on a cold Southern California night!

Served on a stick, toasty warm and soft, hmmmm, they actually may be edible? :rolleyes: They also if burnt well enough could be the modern day whole burnt offering.

In IC XC,
Father Anthony+