“Kosher Salt Preserved stands with Ukraine. We pray that the unprovoked invasion by Russian forces ends soon. We also hope that we all respect the difference between the ambitions of Vladimir Putin with that of the Russian people under his dictatorship. Sí, se puede.”
RELEASED: 1984
Ukrainian Daughters’ Cookbook
From the Ukrainian Women’s Association of Canada, the Daughters of Ukraine Branch.
The Ukrainian Daughters’ Cookbook is a fabulous resource for traditional Ukrainian recipes from Canada. The spiral-bound book, or coil binding, is a favorite here at Kosher Salt Preserved. Invented in 1932, the spiral-bound technique in publishing remains the cheapest way to produce a book. It is responsible for tens of thousands of community cookbooks that would have never seen the light of day without this more affordable production option.
Long live the coil-bound community cookbook! And the Ukrainian Daughters’ Cookbook is a wonderful example of this publishing type and it is a gem!
Featuring classics of the Ukrainian kitchen, including Kolach, an essential recipe wonderfully represented here with a stellar recipe. Kolo in Ukrainian means ring or circle, and the bread that takes its name as its root is a slightly sweet yeast bread.
Kolach has a standard recipe with a few delightful design options. One is braided and shaped into an oblong loaf or twisted into a round braided loaf (very much like a traditional Challah for Shabbat), and sometimes two finished braided rounds are stacked on top of each other.
The ‘stacked’ Kolach will usually have a candle placed in the middle and is an essential part of the Christmas Eve supper (Sviata Vechera). The bread isn’t usually eaten until Christmas day because it contains eggs, and Orthodox Christians traditionally fast for Advent, which for them includes Christmas Eve.
A reminder that Christmas for followers of Orthodox traditions is celebrated on January 7th, which is also the tradition followed in Greece, Russia, Poland, and other Slavic countries.
Kolach is a symbol of good luck, eternity, prosperity, and is also featured at memorial services for the dead.
There is also a lovely recipe for Kutia — see below for a beautiful photo by Kristina Todini of a traditional bowl of Kutia. It is a pearl grain wheat dish featuring wheat berries, poppy seeds, honey, nuts, and dried fruit, and is typical in Ukraine, Belarus, Poland, and Russia.
Kutia is usually a holiday dish served on Christmas Eve and it is one of the twelve dishes that make up the Orthodox Christmas meal.
Kutia is eaten before and after dinner to symbolize a good harvest and fair weather in the coming year. It is also a dish served at memorial services, as it is symbolic of remembrance and celebration of life after death.
The Ukrainian Daughters’ Cookbook is a delightful treasure that demonstrates both the broader European similarities and the singularities of Ukrainian cooking and culture.
Ukrainian Womenʹs Association of Canada, Daughters of Ukraine Branch, 2001, ©1984. Regina, SK. Paperback, spiral, 162 pages.
