Step 1: prepare dried fruits.

Dried apricots, prunes, dried pears, raisins and cherries are washed under running water and put on kitchen paper towels to dry. Then pour the raisins and cherries into a bottle and leave them aside for a while.

Put the dried apricots on a cutting board and use a knife to chop them into pieces about the size of raisins. Then pour it into a container with other dried fruits.

Following the dried apricots, put the prunes on a cutting board and also cut them into pieces. We place them in a bottle and start preparing the pear.

Put the last dried fruits on a cutting board and chop them with a knife into the same pieces as the previous components. Pour finely chopped pear into a common container.

Fill all the ingredients with light rum, close the bottle tightly, shake slightly and leave aside for several hours. Attention: the longer the alcoholic drink is absorbed into the dried fruits, the juicier they will be already in the kulich itself.

Step 2: prepare the almonds.

We spread the almonds in a deep bowl and pour boiling water so that it completely covers the component. We leave the nuts for 5 minutes insist.

After the allotted time, carefully drain the water, and put the almonds on a cutting board. Using a knife, remove the skin. Place the nuts themselves on kitchen paper towels and leave them aside for a while.

When the component is completely dry, transfer it to the blender bowl. Grind the almonds at low speed to the desired pieces. At the end, pour everything into a clean bowl.

Step 3: make a dough blank.

Sift into a large bowl using a sieve 1/2 part wheat flour. Then add dry yeast and, using a tablespoon, mix everything thoroughly.

At the end, pour out the milk in a thin stream, whisking everything in parallel with a mixer at low speed. We should get a thick, homogeneous mass.

Step 4: prepare the butter.

We spread 150 grams butter on a cutting board and, using a knife, cut into small pieces.

Then we move the chopped component into a turkey or saucepan and put on a small fire. Stirring constantly with a tablespoon, bring the oil to a liquid state. Immediately after that, turn off the burner, and set the container aside.

Step 5: prepare the eggs.

Using a knife, break the egg shells, and pour the yolks with proteins into different medium bowls. Pour salt into a container with the latter and 2 drops lemon juice. Using a mixer, beat the ingredients at low speed until a dense foam is formed.

Pour sugar into a bowl with egg yolks and also beat everything with improvised equipment until a homogeneous thick mass.

Step 6: prepare the dough for the dough.

Pour melted butter and beaten egg yolks into a bowl with a dough blank. Using a mixer at medium speed, thoroughly mix all the ingredients until a homogeneous mass is formed.

Then carefully add the whipped proteins to the container in small portions, stirring everything in parallel with a tablespoon. Important: the last component must be introduced with extreme caution so that all the air is retained.

We put the resulting dough in a warm place for 1 hour.

Step 7: prepare the almond cake - the first step.

When the dough increases several times, sift the remaining flour into a bowl and add all the dried fruits and 150 grams chopped almonds. Using a tablespoon, mix everything thoroughly until a homogeneous mass is formed.

Grease the bottom and sides of the baking dish with the remaining piece of butter and sprinkle with a little flour. Put the dough into a container. Important: the form must be half full, as the cake will increase during the baking process 2 times... Then put the dough back in a warm place on 30-40 minutes for lifting. In the meantime, preheat the oven to temperature 200 ° C... After the allotted time has elapsed, put the form with the dough on the middle level in the oven and bake for about 1 hour until a golden brown crust forms on the surface of the cake. Immediately after that, turn off the oven, and take out the mold with the help of kitchen oven mitts. We leave the cake aside for a while so that it completely cools down to room temperature.

Step 8: prepare the icing.

Pour the icing sugar into a clean deep bowl and pour the remaining lemon juice. Using a mixer, beat the ingredients at low speed until a homogeneous thick mass is formed.

Step 9: prepare the almond cake - the second step.

When the cake has cooled down, carefully remove it from the baking dish and put it on a special flat plate. We put glaze on its surface and sprinkle with the remaining almonds. This cake can be stored in cling film or special paper. Therefore, when the glaze hardens, wrap the pastries and put them in a secluded place.

Step 10: Serve the almond cake.

On Easter day, unroll the almond cake and put it on a special flat plate. We serve pastries to the dessert table along with tea or coffee.
Enjoy your meal!

To prepare a delicious Easter cake, you must use only premium flour, finely ground and a proven brand;

It is best to check the finished cake with a toothpick. To do this, pierce the dough with a wooden stick in the center of the baking and see: if there are no pieces of raw dough on it, then the cake is ready and you can turn off the oven. If not, then it is necessary to extend the cooking time by another 7-10 minutes, covering the surface of the cake with food foil;

It is best to bake the cake in a humidified oven. To do this, you can put a special container with water at the very bottom.

Recipe Information

Cooking method: kneading dough, baking.

Total cooking time: 4 h

Servings: 7 cakes weighing 350-400 g each.

Ingredients:

• milk - 500 ml
• flour - 1200 g
• eggs - 7 pcs.
• butter - 300 g
• sugar - 400 g
• salt - 1 tsp
• vanilla sugar - 3 sachets
• yeast - 75 g
• almonds - 60 - 75 g
• raisins (dark) - 125 g
• vegetable oil - 100 ml.

Preparation

1. 
   A real Easter cake cannot be prepared without the main ingredients: flour, butter, eggs, milk, sugar, yeast. In order to achieve a more perfect taste, to improve the aroma of baking, vanilla, raisins, dried apricots, almonds, candied fruits are often added to the cake dough.
   We start by making a dough. For this we need: milk, yeast, sugar and a little flour. Milk should be warm, but not hot (about +37 degrees). At this stage of work, you can wash and steam the raisins by filling them with two glasses of hot water.
2. 
   Put yeast in warm milk. They must be necessarily fresh, because how your dough fits directly depends on them. Fresh yeast has a bright specific smell incomparable with anything else. Yeast that has dried up and stuck in the refrigerator is completely unsuitable. You can knead the yeast on a plate with your hands, with a fork, or chop it into small crumbs with a knife.
3. Stir everything well so that the yeast dissolves in the milk. Sweeten the mixture slightly with a couple of tablespoons of sugar and add a quarter of the flour. Knead the liquid dough and put it in a warm place, covering the bowl with a clean towel or lid. Dough works well if you put a bowl with it on a saucepan of warm water.
4. 
   Meanwhile, we divide the eggs into whites and yolks. Whisk the whites into a soft foam with a pinch of salt. Squirrels will churn better if they are cooled beforehand.
5. 
   Grind the yolks with the remaining sugar into a thick mass. For this I use a food processor. A couple of minutes and you're done.
6. 
   After about 1 hour, the dough ferments well and rises 3-4 times.
7. 
   Mix the dough (upset) with a plastic or wooden spoon and add the yolk, grated with sugar. Then add salt.
8. 
   Melt the butter and pour it into the dough too.
9. 
   Add protein and mix well.
10. 
    Now pour the raisins steamed in boiling water and the almonds ground with a coffee grinder (or a meat grinder) and mix again. Almonds give a special flavor. The more nuts, the better, tastier and more aromatic the baked goods are.
11. 
    Put the sifted flour last. Knead the thick dough. To make it less sticky to your hands, add vegetable oil. It needs to be poured in portions during kneading. We transfer the dough into a bowl that has a volume 3-4 times larger than the volume of the dough. The dough, which is in a small container, can "run away" when it begins to actively approach and increase in volume. Close the bowl with a lid and let the dough rise warm.
12. 
    The test approach took me over 1.5 hours.
13. 
    We fill the forms with lush dough. I fill halfway up the pan, as the dough will double in size when baking. And so that the "mushroom" cap does not form, I put parchment paper into the mold, as shown in the photo.
14. 
    We bake the cakes in the oven at a temperature of 170 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes.
15. Ready-made cakes can be decorated by greasing their top with egg white, whipped with sugar (2 proteins + 1 glass of sugar). The top of the cakes is also sprinkled with multi-colored millet, coconut, poppy seeds, grated chocolate.
    Each Easter cake is a masterpiece in its own way, which you just want to photograph. It is believed that Easter cake brings happiness to the house, and Easter cake with almonds and raisins will also contribute to good health.

Note to the hostess:

• If there are no almonds, you can add 2 tablespoons of finely grated orange zest to the flavoring dough. Cloves crushed in a mortar (1-2 teaspoons) will give the dough an unusual aroma.

There are many recipes for Easter cakes and each one is not like any other. Yeast, custard, curd. With different fillings, glaze and impregnation. Hearty cakes with lots of butter, sour cream and eggs, as well as low-calorie ones on kefir and yogurt - choose any recipe you like and bake.

Just do not forget that you need to bake Easter baked goods in a good mood and mood, then the Easter cakes will turn out to be lush and tasty.

I congratulate everyone on the upcoming holiday of light Easter and treat them to cake with almonds and lemon zest.

To prepare Easter cake with almonds and lemon zest, you will need the following products.

Sort the raisins, rinse and cover with liqueur, cognac or sweet syrup.

For dough, combine warm milk with 1 tsp. sugar, add fresh yeast and stir until smooth. Leave it on for 5-7 minutes.

Add 100 g of sifted flour, stir with a wooden spatula, cover with a towel and heat for 20 minutes.

Remove the zest from the lemon using a fine grater.

Whisk butter softened at room temperature with sugar, vanilla sugar and salt. Add yolks and eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add lemon zest and stir.

Grind the almonds into small crumbs.

Add the remaining flour to the dough and stir with a wooden spatula.

Add the butter-egg mixture to the dough, mix thoroughly. Add the raisins and almond crumbs, pre-squeezed from the liquid. Stir again. Fill the cake tins with dough halfway, cover with a towel and place in a warm place for 40 minutes.

Prepare the icing. Whisk together the icing sugar and lemon juice.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Bake the cakes for 50-60 minutes until golden brown. If the top burns, cover the cakes with foil.

Check readiness with a wooden skewer. Cool the cakes on a wire rack and cover with citrus icing. I got three medium cakes and two small ones, cooked in muffin tins.

Sprinkle the cakes with colored coconut or pastry decoration on top.

Easter cake with almonds and lemon zest is ready. Happy Holidays!

Examination yeast quality.
Pour 50 ml of warm milk (35-37 ° C) into a small deep bowl, add 1 tablespoon of sugar and stir.
Crumble the yeast into the milk and stir to dissolve the yeast (it is convenient to stir with your fingers or a wooden spoon).

Put the yeast mixture in a warm place for 15-20 minutes. The yeast should froth and rise up with a "cap".

Preparation dough.
Pour the remaining milk (300 ml) into a large bowl, add about 80-130 g of sifted flour and mix well (the consistency of the dough will be like a pancake).

Stir the foamed yeast with a fork, pour into the milk-flour mixture.

And mix.

Cover the bowl with the dough with a towel or tighten with cling film and put in a warm place for 40-60 minutes.
During this time, the dough should double in volume, "wrinkle" and begin to fall off.
As soon as the dough began to fall off, it is ready.

Melt the butter and cool.
Break the eggs, separate the whites from the yolks.
Grind the yolks with sugar.
Beat the whites (whisk the whites last, when you need to add them to the dough).
Add yolks with sugar, butter, vanilla sugar, salt and whipped whites into the matched dough - mix everything.
Gradually add the remaining sifted flour and knead into a soft elastic dough. Knead the dough, preferably for at least 1 hour, but less can be done until the dough begins to easily lag behind your hands.
Cover the finished, well-kneaded dough with a towel or napkin and place in a warm place to rise.

While the dough is rising, rinse the raisins, pour boiling water over for 20 minutes, drain the water, dry the raisins and roll in flour.
Pour boiling water over the almonds for 2 minutes, drain the water, remove the peel from the almonds and chop the nuts.

Advice. It is better to peel the almonds in advance (on the eve) and prepare the raisins - this will save time.

Into the dough that comes up, add nuts (leave some of the nuts for sprinkling the top of the cakes) and raisins and knead the dough well so that the raisins and nuts are evenly distributed and put the dough in a warm place again, covering with a napkin.
Prepare tins for baking Easter cakes: put an oiled circle of parchment paper on the bottom of the tins, grease the walls with vegetable or softened butter and sprinkle with flour.

Arrange the matched dough in prepared molds, let the dough rise again, grease the top of the cake with an egg and sprinkle with almonds.

Preheat the oven to 170-180 ° C (the baking temperature is selected individually, depending on the characteristics of the oven).
Bake the cakes for 30-60 minutes (possibly longer). The baking time depends on the temperature and size of the cakes.
The oven does not need to be opened for the first 15-20 minutes, otherwise the cakes may fall off.
As soon as the tops of the cakes are well browned (this will happen in 15-20 minutes), very carefully open the oven and cover the tops of the cakes with foil circles so that the foil completely covers the tops.
Close the oven carefully again and continue baking the cakes until tender.
Readiness is checked with a wooden stick. If the stick comes out of the cake without traces of dough, it is ready.
Carefully remove the finished cakes from the molds, place them on the wire rack, cover with a clean cotton towel and let cool.
The cooled Easter cakes can be glazed and garnished with candied fruit or marmalade.
Put the ready-made Easter cakes in a large, covered with a towel, saucepan, cover and put in a warm place overnight (for example, to a radiator) - the cakes should ripen. Or store it wrapped (each cake separately) in several layers of cling film.

1. First, we need to warm up the milk a little and melt 1 tablespoon of sugar and dry yeast in it.
2. Now, pour 350 grams of flour into the mixture (it must be sifted) and mix well. The dough should not be thick, but like a pancake.
3. Then, put the bowl in a warm place for about 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, melt the butter and let it cool slightly.
5. Separate the whites from the yolks. Grind the yolks with sugar in a separate container.
6. As soon as the dough fits, add yolks, butter, vanilla sugar and salt into it.
7. Last of all, we need to beat the whites and pour them into the total mass. Mix everything thoroughly.
8. And so, now you need to gradually add the sifted flour and eventually knead a soft elastic dough. Knead it until it starts to easily fall off your hands.
9. Then, cover it with a towel and put it in a warm place for it to rise.
10. In the meantime, we need to rinse the raisins, pour boiling water over it for about 15-20 minutes, then take it out, let it dry and roll in flour.
11. In parallel, pour boiling water over the almonds for 2-3 minutes. Peel it off and grind it in any way convenient for you.
12. As soon as you notice that the dough has come up, add chopped nuts into it. It is advisable to leave some of them for decoration.
13. For now, let's start preparing our oven. Put it to warm up to 180 degrees.
14. Next, add the raisins and knead this dough again so that the ingredients are evenly distributed in it. Place the dough again to rise in a warm room.
15. And now, it's time to start working on tins for baking cakes. Lubricate the bottom and sides of the mold with vegetable or butter. Place baking paper on the bottom and flour the sides.
16. When the dough comes up, carefully arrange it in the tins. Then, give it a little more time to rise and brush the top with an egg, sprinkle with almonds.
17. Easter cakes can already be sent to the oven. On average, they should be baked between 40 minutes and 70 minutes. This depends on their size.
18. After about 40 minutes, check the baked goods for readiness. To do this, take a wooden stick (match / toothpick) and pierce the edge of the dough with it. When you get it, the stick should be dry. If there is moisture on it, then the cake is not yet ready. Bake until tender, and you can check every 7-10 minutes.
19. And so, now we need to get the cakes out of the mold and wait until they cool down. It is advisable to put them "sideways" on a soft surface so that they do not crumble.
20. As soon as they cool down, let your imagination run wild. We kept some almonds to decorate the tops. Glaze the tops and garnish with candied fruits.
21. Once you decorate them, fold them into a large container (like a saucepan) and cover with a towel or old blanket. It is necessary to put the "Almond" cake in a warm place so that it "ripens".

That's all. Almond cake is ready for your table. If you like to cook something new every year, then this recipe will definitely come in handy for you. By the way, in order to save time, it is advisable to peel the almonds in advance. This recipe is suitable for those who have been surprising their family with new and new masterpieces for many years now!