Springtime traditions at Easter
We appreciate rituals for our well-being and quality of life. Examples of rituals include our personal habits such as drinking coffee in the morning, daily meditation, or celebrating certain holidays. Wedding ceremonies and birthday celebrations also consist of a number of customs.
In an often uncertain and rapidly changing world, rituals and traditions offer stability and predictability, and with them, the anticipation of an event. They connect us as human beings and create a sense of community and belonging. They can strengthen social bonds and foster a feeling of connection within a group or community.
Especially during the holidays, we enjoy many customs that have developed over years or even centuries. At Easter, Easter customs are an opportunity to celebrate spring, symbolize the return of life, and share the joy and hope of this season with family and friends. These include, for example:
- Egg dyeing and Easter egg hunts: Dyeing eggs is one of the best-known Easter traditions. Children often search for hidden Easter eggs in the house or garden, which is a popular game.
- Easter Bunny: The Easter Bunny is a symbol of Easter, especially in many Western countries. He traditionally brings children Easter eggs and sweets by hiding them in gardens or houses.
- Easter meals: Many families gather for a festive Easter meal, which often includes traditional dishes such as lamb, ham, fish, or other regional specialties.
- Easter bonfires: In some regions, Easter bonfires are lit to welcome spring and symbolically drive away the darkness of winter.
- Easter decorations: Decorating houses, churches and public places with Easter decorations such as daffodils, rabbit figurines and spring flowers is widespread.
The Ryans have an Easter bread every year.
For over 20 years, Easter has been a time of family traditions and sweet treats at the Ryan's. One of these traditions is baking Easter bunnies and other Easter figures from delicious Easter bread. My children always look forward to it with great excitement, and every year each of my three daughters shapes her own bunny from the light and airy yeast dough.
Even now, as grown children, they still enjoy baking and, of course, eating together. Over the years, they've created many bunnies – from cute Easter bunny faces to standing or sitting bunnies, and even bunnies with long ears.
Sometimes we even bake sweet Easter eggs to complete the variety of our Easter creations. And the ingredients vary from year to year. Guitard chocolate chips are still a firm favorite for giving the bunnies faces and contours. Occasionally, the delicious chocolate chips are replaced with cranberries. But vanilla extract or vanilla paste is always a must.
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The individual ingredients are adapted according to the desired dietary needs. For example, butter can be replaced with margarine or avocado oil, making the bunny lactose-free or even vegan. Gluten-free flour can also be used instead of wheat or spelt flour. Vegan milk alternatives are increasingly appearing on menus as an alternative to cow's milk. And then there's the question of what to eat with it? Well, American Heritage has many wonderful jams and fruit spreads that are indispensable on our breakfast table – Wild Maine Blueberry Jam , Cinnamon Apple Jelly, and, quite un-Americanly, sometimes Nutella or an alternative nut spread.
Discover our best-selling jams!
Wild Maine Blueberry Jam from Stonewall Kitchen
For us Ryans, baking our delicious Easter bread is not just a culinary tradition, but also an opportunity to spend time together, create memories, and share the joy of Easter. It's a wonderful way to spend time as a family and celebrate the joys of spring. We would love to share this joy and are therefore sharing our beloved family recipe:
We take:
500 g wheat or spelt flour
42 g fresh yeast
1/4 liter of lukewarm milk or a plant-based substitute
50 g sugar
1 pinch of salt
75 g butter or margarine
1 egg or egg substitute
1 tsp vanilla extract
and milk for brushing and chocolate chips for decoration
Crumble the yeast packet into the flour and add a little lukewarm milk. Mix everything together and let the dough rest, covered, for 15 minutes. Then sprinkle the sugar and salt around the edge and pour in the remaining milk, the melted butter, and the beaten egg. Knead the mixture into a smooth dough and let it rise for another 30 minutes. Roll the dough out to a thickness of 1 cm and cut out bunnies, Easter eggs, or other shapes. Decorate the bunnies with chocolate chips or cranberries. Brush the baked goods with milk and bake at 200°C until golden brown.
Our favorite products for this recipe:
Overall, Easter baking is not just a culinary tradition for my family and me, but also a time for shared experiences and joy. Every year we look forward to spoiling our loved ones with our delicious Easter treats and creating new memories. I hope you too can discover the joy of Easter baking and that these recipes bring you as much pleasure and enjoyment as they do us. Happy Easter and happy baking!
Enjoy,
yours, Sabine Ryan
