You don't have to be a professional to know how to bake a loaf for a wedding. It is enough to put your soul into the process of making a cake for a wedding, having a few hours of free time and a good mood. And, of course, this wedding dish is prepared with love, as well as prayer.
Wedding loaf traditions and rituals
They began to bake loaves since the formation of Rus'. This baking required a special approach; not everyone could start preparing a loaf for the newlyweds. Only married women with children were allowed to knead the dough. Housewives had to be experienced in cooking. This was done so as not to spoil the loaf and so that the guests would like it.
The loaf should turn out lush, rosy, and rich. This will mean a happy family life, good luck in business, and prosperity. Only women with a kind soul who do not envy the newlyweds were allowed to prepare the loaf. It was necessary to prepare bread with good thoughts; it was with them that the loaf was fed. What kind of energy was present during the preparation meant that the same atmosphere would reign in the family.
As noted, the loaf has a round shape, and for its decoration, sprigs of wheat were made from elastic dough. The shape of the circle signifies the sun, which grew the ears of corn, which were later processed into flour. An interesting fact is the origin of the word “loaf”. The fact is that the loaf is so named for a reason. It is combined from two words: “cow” - from ancient Slavic means bride and “ai” is translated as a man, a bull. Thus, the loaf is a fruit that should unite the newly formed family.
Details of floral ornament
Everyone knows approximately what a wedding loaf should look like. Photos present it as a round and tall bread, the top of which is decorated with flowers, ears of viburnum, bunches of viburnum, and oak leaves. Stems are the easiest plant decoration to prepare. Elastic dumpling dough can be rolled into very thin ropes. Even a child can make viburnum berries. You need to roll small balls of dough. In the colored version of the loaf, you can tint it with paprika powder. These balls should be cut in half and the semicircles should be placed in clusters. Creating spikelets (a symbol of fertility) will be somewhat more difficult. Roll out the dough into small sausages (two to three centimeters long). Using nail scissors, we make cuts on the sides to make it look like ears of wheat.
How to welcome newlyweds with a wedding loaf
According to Russian tradition, the loaf of bread at a wedding should be on the threshold of the groom's house. Mother and father meet the bride with bread and salt with words of farewell to family life. Now this tradition has changed somewhat; weddings are celebrated very rarely in homes. Mostly couples celebrate their celebration in cafes and restaurants. There, the groom's relatives (father and mother) meet the newlyweds with a loaf of bread.
The newly-made mother-in-law holds a loaf of bread in her hands, and the father-in-law blesses the newlyweds with an icon. Salt or a miniature salt shaker must be placed in the middle of the loaf. At many weddings, the toastmaster takes the initiative into his own hands and asks the newlyweds to tear off a piece of bread and salt them at their discretion. At the same time, ordering the husband and wife to salt the bread as much as possible. When a couple salts their pieces, the toastmaster usually wishes for the new family that this be their first and last salt in their marriage.
When meeting the newlyweds with a loaf, the parents ask the newlyweds to tear off a piece of the loaf without their hands. Whoever breaks off a large piece will be the master of the house. Previously, according to tradition, wives tried to tear off a smaller piece. This is due to the fact that the husband brought his wife to the parental home, where he was also the breadwinner. Therefore, it was inappropriate for the wife to bite off a large piece.
Swan birds
Doves are a favorite character for decorating ritual pies. But on the Easter cake this bird symbolizes the Holy Spirit, and on the wedding cake it symbolizes peace and love. Therefore there should be two pigeons. These birds are easy to make. Roll out strips of dough three centimeters long and 0.5 cm wide. Tie knots at the edges. On one of them we cut out the beak with the tip of a knife, and on the second - the tail. Let's flatten the main piece of dough. We draw the wings with a needle, and ruffle the feathers with nail scissors. How to decorate a loaf with two swans? They will be as easy to make as pigeons. Using your fingers, roll the dough into two sausages six centimeters long. Let's stretch each of them so that a large oval (the swan's body) is formed at one end, and a small ball (its head) is formed at the other end. We attach both birds to the loaf. We form a beak and eyes on the ball, and bend the flagellum (neck) beautifully. We make a tail on the oval, draw wings and feathers.
DIY wedding loaf step by step with photos
According to Slavic traditions, the wedding loaf for the newlyweds was supposed to be prepared within the walls of the house. Now loaves are ordered from bakeries, bakeries, shops, and hypermarket bakeries. This is no longer taken as seriously as before, but in vain. Often purchased loaves spoiled the celebration and the guests remained dissatisfied. The loaf with your own hands turns out to be prayed for and soulful. Take your time and prepare it yourself.
wedding loaf master class
The loaf is prepared in several stages. This is the yeast dough for which the dough is prepared, and the dough for the approach. Remember that the mass of ingredients can be increased, you can add some additives according to your taste preferences. There should be enough loaf for all guests. Don't forget about a good mood, this is wedding bread that will have a soul. He will enter into a new family with this, so if you are not feeling well, then leave these troubles for a later time.
Before cooking, read a prayer, this will bless the bread into a new family. Then collect the list of ingredients:
- Wheat flour only of the highest grade - 8-9 glasses. More may be needed depending on the moisture content of the ingredients;
- Live yeast - 20 g. It is advisable that it be fresh. The splendor of the loaf depends on this ingredient;
- Vegetable oil or margarine (butter) - 5 tbsp;
- Cow's milk or government milk with a fat content of 3.2% - 0.5 cups;
- Chicken eggs - 10 pcs.;
- Salt, sugar - to taste. For moderate sweetness, add 8 tbsp. sugar and 2 teaspoons salt. If you need a sweeter mass, the amount of sugar can be increased.
According to your taste, the loaf can be filled with spices such as cinnamon, vanilla or lemon essence, or raspberry perfume. Sprinkles and internal fillers such as nuts, seeds, sesame, and raisins are allowed.
Prepare the dough. Boil the milk, set it aside and dissolve the yeast in it. Knead them like plasticine and stir them in boiled liquid. Pour a spoonful of sugar into them, and add a sifted glass of flour there. Knead the dough in a plastic or glass bowl; it should have the consistency of thick sour cream or like pancake dough. Dust it with a handful of flour on top and cover with a cotton napkin for 1-1.5 hours. When volume appears, remove the napkin.
Now prepare the rest of the dough. Separate the egg whites into one plate and the yolks into another bowl. Separate one yolk for brushing in advance. Use all other eggs to prepare the wedding loaf. Beat the remaining yolks with sugar. Add the yolk-sugar mixture to the dough and stir. Mix the whites. Melt the butter/margarine, pour the remaining flour into an empty pan, form a funnel in it and pour in the butter, mixed whites, dough with yolks, add salt.
Knead the dough until it comes off easily from your hands. Leave it to rise in a deep container and cover with a waffle towel. Once it has reached its maximum volume, lower it by pressing it with your hand. When the dough rises a second time, take it out for baking. Separate the part for forming the loaf and the part for sculpting decorations. Place the water and yolk next to it, which was set aside for greasing.
Prepare a baking sheet, grease it with oil. Form a loaf shape on it, the shape should be round, not high and not low, as in a folk song. Moisten the future loaf with water so that it does not dry out, and in the meantime, start decorating. Make the dough for decorations more elastic by adding flour to it. Form decorations: flower petals, viburnum branches, ears of wheat, falcons, pigeons. You can add the names of the newlyweds.
Grease the loaf circle with water again, so the decoration will stick to the dough. Brush the top of the future bread with yolk, preheat the oven to 200 degrees and place the loaf for baking. Wedding bread needs to be baked for at least an hour. During this time, you cannot open the oven, this will lower the dough. After time has passed, check the readiness of the loaf with a wooden stick.
wedding loaf decoration, detail
It is customary to decorate the loaf with the same dough as the bread itself. A little more flour is added to this part to make the decorations easier to sculpt and shape. Among the decor, braids, ringlets and curls are used. They are the easiest to make. If everything is clear with rings and squiggles, they are made from just one strip, then the braids are woven, like real ones, from three lines. They are not pressed down too much, creating an imaginary naturalness.
A wide variety of flowers are made from dough, from roses to daisies, lilies, and cornflowers. Who, as they say, does it better. We suggest making roses. For each rose you will need 5 balls of dough. 1 ball with a diameter of 1 cm. Roll it out to a flat circle. Wrap the first petal around the match, then the second and third on top of it, and so on in increasing order, as in the photo below. Fold the petals like a real flower. For a loaf you need at least 7 colors, because... The number 7 is a symbol of family.
The petals on the wedding loaf are a complement to the flowers. There are no restrictions here, roll out the thick dough and cut out the leaves using scissors, a metal nail file or a carving knife.
Remember the ears of wheat. Each grain seems to be superimposed on each other. So here you will have to work hard on the wheat sprouts. There are two manufacturing options: mold the grains by hand or squeeze them out using tools, a small knife or the same metal file.
Using the same principle, you can cut doves from dough. You can find a sketch on the Internet or draw it on paper, cut out your doves using this image and transfer them to a loaf.
Housewives can come to the aid of molds that are sold in culinary stores. They are sold individually or in sets. One pressure on a piece of dough will make a ready-made masterpiece for a wedding loaf. It is better to choose metal forms; the edges of the figures will be accurate and smoother.
There are several secrets for decorating a loaf to differ in color saturation from the main edge. If you want to get a fried base and a white design, then brush the loaf circle with an egg and the decoration with plain water. During baking, the base of the loaf will brown, and the sculpted figures will only be slightly covered with gold.
video wedding loaves
Butter dough decorations
So that the decorative details do not blur, but remain in relief, they should not be attached to the surface of the pie immediately, but fifteen to twenty minutes before the loaf is ready. An exception may be dough braids. Since this is a fairly large decoration, it needs more time to bake. In addition, the braid, like a hoop around a barrel, holds the surface of the wedding cake together, preventing the dough from spreading. This decorative detail is very easy to make. Cut three equal strips of dough. Their length should be two and a half times the diameter of the loaf. We fasten one end of the three strips together. And then we braid the braid. We lay it around the perimeter of the top of the product. We hide the tip of the braid underneath. After all, this braid should symbolize the infinity of marital happiness. You can weave another small and thin braid, decorating the place for the salt shaker with it.
What do you do with a wedding loaf?
It is customary to greet the newlyweds with a wedding loaf within the walls of the house or on the threshold of a cafe immediately after the registry office. As soon as the bride and groom have gone through the loaf rituals, tasted it and participated in the toastmaster competition, the loaf must be distributed to all guests. This is a symbol that the guests attended the wedding and supported the newly formed family.
If the loaf is left, you can take it home and eat it the next day. Some people wrap it in a handbrake and keep it until the first anniversary, as a family talisman. In the old days, husbands left a piece of loaf, or rather a cracker, and took it with them as a talisman on campaigns and battles. Until now, all couples behave differently, some do not share the loaf with guests, but leave it at home and share it only with their family, and some even take it to church as a donation. Everyone has their own opinion about the loaf, so decide the fate of the wedding bread yourself. Let everything work out for you, and the loaf will be a pleasant addition to the celebration!
The symbolic meaning of decorative details
Let’s not forget that this bread is ritual. Therefore, you need to approach its decor differently than decorating a cake. What is important here is not fantasy, but knowledge of the symbolic meaning of certain elements. First of all, don't forget to leave room for the salt shaker. It should be placed strictly in the center of the loaf. Floral ornaments should be placed around the salt shaker. As a rule, this is a pigtail (a symbol of a long-term relationship), ears of wheat (fertility, which in a wedding loaf is identified with having many children), flowers and leaves (well-being and prosperity), doves and horses, stars (happiness, fidelity). In Ukraine, bunches of viburnum are an invariable attribute on such ritual bread. This is not only a national symbol, but also a sign of love and marital fidelity. Of course, you can take a more modern look at decorating the loaf and decorate its surface with wedding rings, swans, and figurines of the bride and groom. You can stay true to pagan traditions and display stylized phallic symbols on the loaf. But it’s better to stick to the “golden mean”.
How to “stick” jewelry on a product
If we use the same yeast dough for decoration as for the wedding cake, we should not attach it to the base before baking. In the oven, all the details will blur and become barely noticeable. How to decorate a loaf with pieces made later? Fifteen to twenty minutes before the loaf is ready, take it out of the oven. You need to work very quickly. After all, overcooling an unbaked product can cause the dough to fall off. Brush the top with sugar syrup or beaten egg white. We attach decorations to this culinary “glue”. Place in the oven and bake until fully cooked.
Summary
There is no clear formula for everyone on how to properly decorate a wedding loaf. Approach its decoration with meaning. First of all, it symbolizes a happy family life, prosperity, and love. If you are not a supporter of traditions, you can combine two decoration options - traditional and modern. For example, by using classic decorative elements made of mastic or in color.
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