Sweet delights for your Easter table

LITHUANIAN DOUGHNUTS
Spurgos
½ cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 packages active dry yeast
½ cup warm water
3 egg yolks, beaten
3¾ cups all purpose flour, sifted
Jam of any type (raspberry, cherry, prune, etc.)
In a large bowl dissolve yeast in warm water; let stand for 5 minutes. Add milk, butter and beaten egg yolks to yeast mix- ture. Combine flour, sugar and salt, and stir well. Gradually stir flour mixture into yeast mixture. Dough will be soft. Turn dough into a well-greased bowl; cover bowl and set in a warm place; let rise until doubled. Punch down dough. Turn out onto lightly floured board; knead dough until smooth. With a rolling pin, roll half the dough about ¼ inch thick. Cut out 3-inch rounds with large cook- ie cutter or rim of a glass. Place 1 tea- spoon of jam in the center of each round. Brush the edge with lightly beaten egg white and then top with another round. Press edges to seal. Repeat with the rest of the dough. Cover with towel and let rise until doubled. Meanwhile, heat 2 inches of oil in a deep fryer to 350 ° F. Gently drop the doughnuts, top side down into hot oil. Fry, turning gently, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Lift out, place on paper towels to drain. Makes about 14.

ALMOND “BOBA”
“Boba” su migdolais
12 eggs, divided
1 cup sugar
1¼ cup almonds, ground
1 cup flour
Butter for greasing the pan
Bread crumbs for sprinkling
Preheat oven to 375 ° F. Cream egg yolks with sugar until they turn creamy white. Add ground almonds and mix well. Sift in the flour and gently fold in beaten egg whites. Butter baking pan and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Bake for about 1 hour. Let the “Boba” cool in the baking pan before removing. Makes 7 to 8 servings.

SCALDED “BOBA”
Plikyta “Boba”

6 cups flour
2 cups milk
2 oz. yeast
10 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1 cup melted butter
1 cup small raisins
1 level tsp. salt
Scald the milk and pour over 2 cups of flour. Beat well. When cooled, add diluted yeast, beat well and let stand to rise. Then add egg yolks, creamed with the sugar until white, three cups of flour, melted butter, and beat very well. If the dough is too thin, add more flour. Beat well, and let stand to rise a second time. Then beat once again. Add washed dried raisins, mix lightly and pour into baking pans. Pour in only 1 / 3 of the content of the baking pan, and put in a warm place to rise again. When the dough rises to ¾ of the pan, put into the oven for one hour. When done, remove from oven, let cool in the baking pan and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

BIRCH LOG
Beržo šaka

9 egg yolks
10 egg whites
1½ cup sugar
1¾ cup flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbsps. fresh lemon juice
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Cream yolks and sugar. Add lemon juice and rind. Beat egg whites until stiff, add to first mixture alternately with sift- ed flour and baking powder. Pour into jelly-roll or cookie tin lined with greased wax paper. Bake 15-20 minutes at 350 ° F. Mark off and reserve one-third of the cake; place the rest on pastry cloth or dish towel, spread with filling (recipe fol- lows) and roll up like a jelly-roll. Roll the reserved portion of cake into 3 or 4 smaller rolls (“branches”) of unequal thickness. Cut one end of each roll diagonally, attach to the large roll (“log”) with icing, at different angles to imitate stubs of branches. Frost the entire surface with white frosting. Make birch-bark markings with chocolate icing.
Filling
1 lb. dried prunes
½ lb. butter
1 cup sugar
2 Tbsps. cocoa or 1 square cooking chocolate
2 egg yolks
1 tsp. vanilla
Boil the prunes till soft. Strain, remove pits. Force pulp through sieve or food mill. Cream sugar and butter, add yolks, beat well. Add prune pulp, vanilla, and cocoa or melted chocolate. Beat well.

LITTLE EARS
Ausiukės / krustai / žagarėliai

1 egg
3 Tbsps. sugar
2 Tbsps. sour cream
Grated rind of ½ lemon
Flour
Powdered sugar
Oil for deep frying, heated to 350 ° F. Cream egg and sugar. Add sour cream and lemon rind. Add enough sifted flour to make stiff dough. Roll thin on floured board. Cut into strips 6 inches long, 1 inch wide. Slit center of each strip, twist one end through the slit. Fry in deep hot oil for a few seconds until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar.