And Christmas. These painted fragrant goodies will decorate any table and cheer up every member of the family. Their advantage lies not only in their unique taste, but also in the manifestation of creativity, because you can depict anything on them. The article presents several recipes for cooking, as well as a photo of "Arkhangelsk goats". No less interesting will be the history of the origin of these delicacies.
"Arkhangelsk roes": the history of occurrence
The origin of these goodies has several versions, each of which is amazing in its own way. According to one of them, "Arkhangelsk kozuly" was previously a traditional pastry of Pomors (inhabitants of the White Sea coast), since the word "roe" in their language meant "snake" or "curl". Another version says that initially gingerbread was baked in the form of a goat, which in ancient times was considered a symbol of wealth and prosperity.
The history of gingerbread "Arkhangelsk roes" claims that their homeland is the well-known city of Arkhangelsk, from which such a name came. In different settlements tied to a certain area, their own baking techniques and decorating gingerbread have been preserved. It is worth noting that even in the same area they could radically differ from each other. The most famous gingerbread are:
- flat painted ones, which appeared in the northern part of Russia as early as the 18th century, when ordinary spices and sugar became available to ordinary people;
- Kargopol, which were created from a bread tow;
- voluminous Kholmogory, which were prepared from black dough, occasionally colored with white.
In any case, northern roes are not just a national delicacy prepared according to a unique recipe, but a traditional ritual dish. The creation of such gingerbread is considered a difficult ancient ritual, where the deepest philosophical meaning was originally laid.
Magic power
In ancient times, people believed that the "Arkhangelsk roes" had magical powers. According to some modern historians, in those days people first invented them not as food, but as ritual images of animals.
This version is also confirmed by the fact that the figurines had to be cut in a specific way: they all had to look to the left. If a person was depicted on the gingerbread, then it had to be done facing forward. At the very bottom of the roe, people always left an empty strip, which was a symbol of the earth.
Gingerbread in the old days
Previously, roes were baked only once a year. These were the days of Christmas time, as well as the Christmas holidays. The peoples of the north believed that these goodies would bring them wealth, prosperity and good luck to their homes. They were considered a charm and were often given to families.
On the eve of the holidays, all family members took part in such a rare event. Men always kneaded the dough, and women cut out various figures. The children also worked with them. They performed the final stage - decorating the dish.
On Christmas Day, all relatives, friends, neighbors and, of course, caroling children received roes as a gift. It often fell to pets, as the northern peoples were completely sure that cattle in this case would bring an excellent offspring.
Gingerbreads were hung in stables and barns as amulets. They protected houses from the penetration of evil spirits and were used as an indispensable attribute for divination by girls and boys on Epiphany evenings.
Roe deer never ate right away. It was customary to keep them for some time, and only then eat them. A figurine donated or made by yourself should never be thrown away, even if it was broken, as this was a direct path to failure.
The symbol of Pomorie in modern times
To date, "Arkhangelsk kozuly" are baked not only in their homeland, but also in other areas. Modern people have long departed from traditions, so they make them for any celebrations as a delicious and original dessert. They also actively decorate the Christmas tree, use them in carols and use them as children's toys.
Gingerbread at home
In the old days, Arkhangelsk Kozuli gingerbreads were baked by real gingerbread, which kept the secret of making dough, icing and decorative decorations. The unique recipe, in which the chefs put their zest, was passed down from generation to generation, but only through the female line.
In those days, figurines were made in a special way. The first step was to make dough from rye flour. There are suggestions that it was against such a background that the glaze pattern looked the most advantageous. The flour for this was taken the darkest. Salt was added to it, and then kneaded hard. After some time, the dough began to be made from wheat flour, so burnt sugar was used to darken it.
Hereditary Arkhangelsk gingerbread cooks note that it is necessary to bake goodies without haste and only in a good mood. At the same time, you need to think only about the good and protect yourself from strangers so that no one interferes.
Nowadays, gingerbread is prepared not only according to the classic recipe that has come down since those times. Chefs have long come up with slightly modified methods of baking. In any case, the cooking process will be exciting and long. It consists of only three stages:
- Test preparation.
- Bakery.
- Decoration.
A few of the best recipes that will work for all occasions are listed below.
honey deer
The traditional recipe for "Arkhangelsk roes" must be used before you start considering its modifications. The classic option is honey gingerbread.
For cooking you will need:
- 450 g of flour (it is best to take wheat, but you can mix 300 g of rye and 150 g of wheat);
- 60 ml of water;
- 150 g of honey;
- 150 g of sugar;
- 1 teaspoon of soda;
- 3 tablespoons of butter;
- ground spices.
The recipe for "Arkhangelsk goats" with a photo is presented below. If you strictly follow the instructions, in the end you can get a unique dish that can surprise every person.
Step by step cooking
In fact, the recipe for "Arkhangelsk goats" is simple. First you need to prepare the roast. First of all, sugar is melted, and then boiling water and honey are added to it. The result is a thick and rather sweet syrup. When it cools down a bit, you can add butter and stir until smooth. Next, spices and soda are added to the resulting mixture. Immediately after this, pre-sifted flour is poured there, and all this is thoroughly mixed so that no lumps remain. The final step in preparing the dough is to knead it on the board, adding flour in small portions. In the end, it should come out soft, elastic and plasticine-like in consistency.
The finished dough should be cooled, then divided into several parts and rolled out with a layer. Next, the figures are carefully cut out along the contour with a knife or molds. Then, almost ready-made gingerbread cookies should be greased with yolk (1 pc.) With water (0.5 cups) and spread out on a baking sheet pre-lined with parchment.
Bake the figurines for about 10 minutes at 200 degrees. They should brown a little. The most important thing is to prevent them from drying out, as they will simply break.
Descendants of classical goats
Scientists suggest that there are not only classic northern roes, but also their descendants - Ural gingerbread. They came to the Urals along with their creators - immigrants from the north. The traditional recipe was slightly changed, as the new area had a completely different culture and traditions.
The ingredients for the Ural roe are taken as follows:
- 500 g of honey;
- 500 g flour;
- 0.5 teaspoon of soda;
- spices to taste;
- a couple of eggs;
- 50 g butter;
- 1.5 cups of water.
Gingerbread "Arkhangelsk kozuly": recipe
First you need to boil water and honey in a separate container. When this mixture cools down a bit, you need to pour flour there, add eggs and other ingredients. All this is thoroughly mixed and kneaded by hand. Then, as in the previous recipe, pieces of dough are rolled into layers, from which figures are subsequently cut out (this can be done both with a knife and molds).
After laying out future gingerbread cookies on a baking sheet, they must be greased with yolk. They are baked at a temperature of 200 degrees until a blush is formed. After the gingerbread cookies are ready, they need to cool and only then decorate with icing. If desired, they can be poured with syrup or sprinkled with coconut.
Gingerbread decoration
Both northern and Ural roes should be traditionally painted. They need to be painted with colored glaze. The most actively used color is white, because it is a symbol of snow, as well as pink, reflecting the northern lights. The brown color on the gingerbread represents earth or wood.
The process of coloring goats cannot be called simple. Here you will have to show not only imagination and taste, but also the skill of the artist. After all, in any case, the most important point in decorating the goats will be neat painting with thin lines of sweet syrup.
The pattern on the delicacy can be absolutely anything. In the process of drawing, a culinary syringe or an ordinary bag in the shape of a cone with a small hole will definitely come in handy. A good image can also be obtained with watercolor brushes or pencils with ready-made glaze.
It is worth remembering that in ancient times people drew patterns with a wooden stick. This method is used to this day, but only by hereditary goats.
If you want to be more creative, you can first fill the gingerbread cookies with tinted liquid glaze of any color, and then, when the base hardens well, start depicting flowers, patterns and other elements on it. This method is quite good, but it requires a lot of time, since the glaze does not harden as quickly as we would like. But this makes it possible for modern chefs to create whole works of art on gingerbread.
Glaze
Having chosen the appropriate recipe for "Arkhangelsk goats", do not forget about the icing. There are many options for its preparation, but most often people use the classic. For him you will need to take:
- a couple of egg whites;
- 5 drops of lemon juice;
- 5 tablespoons of powdered sugar;
- dyes.
The first step is to beat the whites with powdered sugar until the mass thickens. Then it needs to be distributed among the cups (depending on the number of colors used). It is best to take, of course, natural dyes, but food ones are also suitable. Once the white mass has been mixed with dyes and takes on a new color, the glaze is ready for use.
Natural colors are obtained in the following ways:
- white - milk, sour cream, powdered sugar;
- yellow - spinach juice, lime or lemon zest;
- red / pink - juice of raspberries, strawberries, beets, lingonberries, cranberries;
- brown - coffee, cocoa;
- orange - freshly squeezed orange or tangerine juice.
Holiday gingerbread cookies always look like fabulous toys. They look interesting on the tree. Just a little patience - and a unique delicacy will be a great decoration for any table, as well as an unexpected present for relatives.
Gingerbread kozuly - traditional winter treat northern peoples. For many centuries, not a single New Year and Christmas can do without them on the shores of the White Sea. Beautiful fragrant figurines of deer, goats, angels, Christmas trees, houses made of gingerbread text - they are all called goats.
The recipe for these gingerbread is passed down from generation to generation. Previously, special molds were even transferred, today they can be easily purchased at the store.
Beautiful multi-colored gingerbread cookies will become any festive table.
Roe deer - an old recipe
The name "goat" comes from the word goat, in ancient times it was a symbol of well-being and prosperity in the house. Roe deer baked in the form of animals- deer, goats, cats, cows. Later figurines of angels, houses, Christmas trees, sleighs, roses and clouds were added.
Approached this process responsibly, it could take more than one day. It was believed that one should bake with good thoughts and in a good mood, wishing everyone well and smiling - otherwise the gingerbread will not turn out. The whole family decorated the roes to their taste - with various intricate patterns. Very often they were hung on the Christmas tree instead of toys. The peoples of Pomorie kept them for a whole year, then baked new ones, and fed the birds with the old ones.
Not a single recipe for goat dough is complete without sugar syrup, boiled down to the consistency of caramel.
In total, for the preparation of gingerbread, you will need a glass of honey, two glasses of water and sugar, 100 g of butter, a kilogram of rye or wheat flour (better than coarse grinding), 1 g of cinnamon and cloves.
How to bake goats
By ancient recipe honey, sugar and water are mixed and boiled over low heat until “brown”, until caramelized. Then let it cool down a bit and add butter, spices and flour. For 1 hour, place the dough in the refrigerator (previously taken out in the cold).
The dough should become plastic, any figures can be easily molded from it. They are baked quickly - only 10 minutes, at a temperature of just over 200 degrees. From rye flour, the dough rolls more difficult, but the roes turn out to be tastier.
Already cooled gingerbread can be decorated. Today it is not difficult to buy already ready-made food coloring, and in ancient times there were only a few colors. For white, they beat protein with sugar, for pink - jam was dripped into it, for yellow they took the yolk.
You can complicate the production of natural dyes. The yellow color is made from lemon peel and carrot juice fried in butter. Green "paint" is obtained from spinach juice, brown - from cocoa.
All dyes - both homemade and purchased - are added to pre-prepared glaze.
Icing for goats - recipe
To do this, two proteins are whipped into a thick foam with 5 tablespoons of sugar, and poured into cups, in which they then make different colors. Roe deer are painted with patterns fine brush to your taste.
Another icing recipe for gingerbread is as follows:
Beat with a whisk or in a blender 1 protein and 100 grams of powdered sugar. if the mixture turned out to be too liquid, then it will become an excellent background for painting pastries.
Arkhangelsk roes: recipe
They are also called northern ones, the inhabitants of Pomorie have been baking them for many centuries and call them the Christmas symbol of Arkhangelsk. The recipe for Christmas goats is slightly different.
You will need three cups of sugar, 100 grams of margarine or butter, 2 cups of water, 8 cups of flour, 2 tablespoons of soda, a pinch of ginger, cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon.
Initially a glass of sugar is heated in a frying pan or saucepan until it turns dark brown, after which two glasses of water are poured into it, and the remaining sugar is added. The syrup is brought to a boil, then mixed with butter and cooled. Then - as in the previous recipe - the remaining ingredients are added, and the dough is kneaded.
For the glaze, you will need a glass of sugar, one protein and a small pinch of citric acid. The protein is whipped thickly, after which syrup is poured into it in a thin stream - granulated sugar boiled in half a glass of water. Then the icing is whipped again with the addition of lemon. It is recommended to decorate gingerbread cookies with chilled icing.
Ready roes should be soft inside and ruddy on the outside. In a day they should slightly harden. You can bake such gingerbread with the whole family - it unites and uplifts the mood. Over time, this can become a good New Year's tradition.
Stencils for gingerbread
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Reader Recipes 17.12.2014
Dear readers, would you like to try, or rather, to begin with, learn how to cook real Arkhangelsk New Year's gingerbread - roes? Today on the blog I offer you such a master class from a true professional Valasina Asya. She grew up on the shores of the White Sea in the Arkhangelsk region, a native Pomorka. Her mother baked such Arkhangelsk gingerbread - roes. Asya took over the family baton and now bakes them herself. Now he lives and works in Moscow, but he preserves and does not change the northern traditions.
I think it will be interesting for everyone to learn such a recipe from a professional. Imagine how you can surprise your loved ones, please them with such masterpieces. I met Asya when I was accepting articles for our winter magazine Flavors of Happiness, which we are currently designing with the designer. Don't miss it. Subscribe to the magazine and please yourself and your loved ones with our mood. Subscription form here. And now we are meeting a master class on baking Arkhangelsk gingerbread. I pass the word to Asa.
Arkhangelsk New Year's gingerbread - roes
On the shores of the White Sea, New Year and Christmas have long been celebrated with the most beautiful fragrant gingerbread - goats. Roe deer are baked only in winter for Christmas and New Year from gingerbread dough, cut out with shapes or cardboard patterns and decorated with white and pink sugar icing. The traditional forms of goats are figurines of animals (deer, lion and others), birds, a Christmas star, a shepherd, an angel, a basket with gifts, a Christmas tree, a sleigh and deer, a house. Now there are other modern forms of roes. The skill of baking kozul is inherited from grandmothers and mothers. Family molds for gingerbread are also passed on.
There is one secret in the craftsmanship of making these gingerbread cookies - they cannot be made in a hurry or in a bad mood. You will not succeed - the gingerbread will crack when baking or will be hard as a brick. To make the gingerbread delicious and beautiful, you need to set yourself up in a good mood, wish all your loved ones all the best, thank life for everything you have and start with a smile. They make dough for goats when no one will disturb you, since this process requires a calm, peaceful state of the hostess - we always did it usually in the late evening.
Arkhangelsk goats. Master Class. Recipe. A photo
How to make Pomor, northern Arkhangelsk roe gingerbread?
First stage. We make gingerbread dough for goats.
You need:
- about 2 kg of flour (sift through a sieve),
- two eggs,
- 200-250 gr. (pack) butter or cream margarine,
- 1 tablespoon baking soda (quench with vinegar)
- spices (ground cinnamon, cloves, ginger, coriander or ready-made spice mixture for gingerbread) - to taste,
- a glass of drinking water (for example, chilled boiled water),
- 3-3.5 cups of granulated sugar.
How is goat dough made?
Step 1. We put 2-2.5 cups of granulated sugar in a saucepan and pour 1 cup of cold boiled water into it. Cook syrup over low heat.
While the syrup is cooking, cut the butter (or creamy margarine) into small pieces.
At the same time, we burn one glass of granulated sugar on the other burner. Pour granulated sugar into a small metal saucepan and put on a small fire. The sugar will start to melt. Stir constantly with the handle of a spoon or knife. We are waiting for the sugar to melt to a brown liquid, and then foam appears. Let it boil a little and pour the burnt sugar into the finished syrup in a very thin stream with constant stirring.
Add the oil cut into small pieces to the resulting mixture. And mix to get a homogeneous liquid. We give the resulting liquid to cool in the cold (for example, we take the pan to the balcony).
We soak the dishes in warm water, otherwise it will be difficult to wash it off the frozen sugar later.
Step 2. While the mixture is cooling, prepare the spices. Put 2 tablespoons of spices in a large saucepan: we usually use cinnamon and ground cloves. We buy whole cloves in the store and grind them ourselves. So the gingerbread is more fragrant. You can use other spices - ginger, coriander or a mixture of both.
Beat two eggs with a mixer or whisk and add to the same pan. And put in it one tablespoon of baking soda hydrated with vinegar.
When the mixture on the balcony cools down, pour it in. Mix everything until a homogeneous liquid.
Step 3 We note the time on the timer. We start kneading the dough. This process should take at least one hour. Even if after half an hour it seems to you that the dough is ready, continue kneading it. Otherwise, when baking, the gingerbread will crack and “give out” your hurry with these cracks.
Add flour in small portions and knead the dough first with a mixer, then with your hands. This work requires a lot of physical effort, so men have always been attracted to it in the north. But you can do it yourself.
How much flour will go away is very individual and depends on many factors. Approximately 1.5 - 1.8 kg.
When kneading, we think only about the good, we put only positive thoughts and good wishes into the dough for those people to whom we will give gingerbread cookies. You can listen to your favorite music or read a prayer to yourself. The main thing is to knead in a good mood, carefully, calmly, in a state of love for the world and for the work that you are doing now.
As a result, you will get a beautiful loaf that looks like wet clay with a silky surface, which is pleasant to stroke with your hand. The dough should not stick to your hands. We put the finished loaf in a plastic bag, tightly tie the bag, and put it in the refrigerator. The dough should rest in the refrigerator for one to two weeks. But if you did not have time to make the dough in advance, let it lie in the refrigerator for at least a day or two.
On the eve of the baking day, take the dough out of the refrigerator - let it lie down at room temperature.
Second phase. Cut out gingerbread - roes from dough and bake them
You will need: molds or cardboard templates for cutting out figures, a rolling pin.
Forms for goats.
You can download 65 ready-made templates for winter gingerbread for free on my website "Native Path" in the article Stencils for gingerbread. And also in this article you can visit the gingerbread ball in Arkhangelsk and learn how to make your own homemade forms for gingerbread.
First. Cut off pieces of dough and roll them with a rolling pin into layers 5 mm thick. We cut out figures from these layers so that the large forms are in the center, and the small ones are at the edges. We try to arrange the elements so as to use the entire layer of dough. Can be cut using metal gingerbread molds or cardboard templates.
Second. We heat the oven to a temperature of 180 degrees. Put the cookies in the oven for 5 minutes. If the gingerbread after 5 minutes has become a pleasant brown chocolate color - take it out. If after 5 minutes the gingerbread has the color of creamy toffee, then you need to leave it in the oven for another 2-3 minutes.
Ready-made gingerbread - roes should be ruddy, but soft inside. They will still dry in the air during the day and harden. If they are overexposed in the oven, then they will then become hard as a stone. If underexposed, then the surface of the roe in the future may wrinkle and look ugly.
Be sure to note and write down the time spent baking. In the future, you can adjust it to suit the characteristics of your oven.
The third stage is to decorate the goats with icing. painting goat
You will need: one protein, whisk or mixer, one glass of powdered sugar (sift through a sieve), 1 piece of raw beets, 1 lemon.
Please note - the powder should be without additives. If the store sells only icing powder with additives, then you can make icing sugar yourself from granulated sugar using a coffee grinder. The grinder starts several times for a few seconds.
First. We make white frosting. To do this, beat one protein with a mixer. Beat very carefully so that the protein increases in size several times.
We begin to gradually add powdered sugar to the protein and continue to beat. You will get a uniform white glaze. Add a few drops of lemon juice to make the frosting shine.
Second. We make pink frosting.
We separate one-fourth of the glaze into a separate bowl and drip the beet juice into it (rub the raw beets on a fine grater and squeeze the juice out of it). Mix until a uniform pink color.
Third. We decorate the gingerbread with icing.
Gingerbread cookies are decorated with icing using a stick, a brush, a toothpick, a confectionery bag, a home-made confectionery bag (we fill a small plastic bag with icing, tie it, make a small hole).
The background of the gingerbread is not filled with icing, but painted with patterns: straight and wavy lines, zigzags, curls, dots, crosses. If you need to correct the drawing, then this is done with a wet brush. Excess glaze from a stick or brush is removed with water and a linen napkin.
I wish you all creative inspiration and a pleasant pre-New Year mood.
The author of the article is Valasina Asya, the author of the site for parents and teachers Native path, candidate of pedagogical sciences. By profession, Asya is a teacher of preschool pedagogy and methods of speech development, a candidate of pedagogical sciences and a host of the Internet Workshop of educational games “Through the game - to success!”
I thank Asya for such a master class on cooking Arkhangelsk gingerbread. And although my blog is not a culinary one, I think that such aromas always give us a good mood, something so unusual for the soul, and this is always very important for the general atmosphere in our families. I, too, will try to find time and try to bake such gingerbread for the first time in my life. And from the article they go right through the monitor, well, such aromas ...
And for the soul, we will listen to you Giovanni Marradi Love. I don't think it needs any comments. It just needs to be heard and watched. Good mood to all.
I wish you all a wonderful mood, such pleasant moments when you can take the time to please your loved ones with culinary masterpieces, create an unusual atmosphere of comfort and something so unique at home.
see also
28 comments
- 5 st. sugar (1 tbsp for glaze and 4 tbsp for dough);
- 2.5 st. water (1.5 tbsp. - in the dough, 1 tbsp. - in the glaze);
- 3 eggs;
- 5 egg yolks (for dough);
- 2 egg whites (for frosting)
- 0.5 tsp salt;
- 2 tsp soda;
- 2-3 tbsp. l. spices for dough (cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, ground cloves in proportions to your taste);
- 2 drops of vinegar essence in glaze;
- 1.5-1.8 kg of flour.
Hope
18 Feb 2018 at 22:02
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Sergey
31 Mar 2017 at 23:38
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Roe deers are baked goods made from rye or wheat flour, which had a ritual purpose in ancient times. Kozuli are a kind of gingerbread, they traditionally baked for the Christmas holidays, usually a few days after Christmas. Baking goats has always been a sacrament. Each family had different recipes for goats, they were carefully kept and passed down from generation to generation.
The traditional ceremonial goats were baked figurines of goats, cows, sheep, deer and other livestock. Ducks, chickens and geese were also often depicted in such pastries. Baking figurines of animals and birds from dough, people asked the forces of nature to protect their livestock from diseases and pestilence.
Roe gingerbread often became amulets for stables and houses, they were given to relatives, as well as carolers who came to the house. Girls in the Christmas holidays presented guys with goats. It was believed that if you bake roes and treat them to a guy, then you will definitely get married within a year.
Dark rye flour in the old days was the main ingredient for cooking roes. But there are also recipes for roes with ordinary wheat flour.
You will need:
Arkhangelsk roes: a traditional recipe
1. Melt 2 cups of granulated sugar over low heat. For this it is best to use thick-bottomed dishes.
2. Without removing the melted sugar from the heat, carefully pour 1.5 cups of boiling water into it in very small portions. When pouring boiling water into sugar, do not lean too low over the dishes so as not to burn yourself with steam. Constantly stir the sugar mass with a wooden spoon until smooth.
3. Add 2 more cups of sugar, continuing to slowly stir the mass with a spoon.
4. Remove the sugar syrup from the heat and add 400 g of margarine to it, mix. The mass does not have to be homogeneous- the dissolved margarine will float above the syrup. Pour everything into a deep saucepan and set to cool.
5. Beat 5 yolks and 3 eggs.
6. Pour the egg mass into the cooled sugar syrup with margarine, add salt, soda and a mixture of spices for the dough.
7. Knead the dough, gently and gradually adding wheat flour to the mass. You should not be embarrassed by the fact that the dough is very sticky to your hands. After insisting, it will become more elastic, similar to plasticine. But you should not add extra flour at the kneading stage - the roes will turn out to be too hard.
8. Roe deer according to this recipe is not a quick business, sincethe finished dough must be infused in a cold place for at least 12 hours. You can endure it for days.
9. Roll out the dough into a layer 0.5-0.7 cm thick. Using ready-made or home-made cardboard templates, cut out figures from it.
10. Bake roes at a temperature of 180-200°C until done.
11. Prepare the roe icing. To do this, carefully beat 2 egg whites. Boil the syrup from 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water, remove from heat, cool slightly and pour in the egg whites. Beat the icing with a mixer for 10-15 minutes, then add 2 drops of vinegar essence.
12. Decorate the finished with icing sugar, adding food coloring to it if necessary.
Happy tea!
Variations of sculpting goats according to the recipe
Roe deer are usually made in the form of animals
Birds - the favorite plot of roes that were made in Pomorie
Roe deer can be done in different ways: traditional roll-out roes
Ritual volumetric goats. An obligatory attribute of such roes is branched horns
(they are associated with the idea of fertility and abundance)
According to an old tradition, on New Year's Eve, figured cut-out gingerbreads are baked in Arkhangelsk, decorated with colored sugar glaze. And from the moment the spicy smell of cinnamon and cloves reigns in the house, there comes a joyful expectation of the holiday with the traditional ceremony of decorating the Christmas tree and giving away sweet gifts to children and gifts to relatives and friends "for good luck" in the new year.
Little, horned,
Doesn't turn his head
Crunchy on the teeth...
Well, of course it's a goat! And what is it? Figures - deer, skates, bulls, cows, goats, birds, seals - made of rye dough - have a common meaning, the common name is "roes".
Have you ever tried northern gingerbread - roes? Delicious, crispy gingerbread with the aroma of herbs. Now the tradition of baking kozuli is being revived, and earlier during the Soviet era such delicious gingerbread was not available.
The first roe deer appeared on the Pomeranian land many centuries ago. is considered the most ancient type of baked figured dough, dating back to the cult figurines of the 12th century. There is chronicle evidence that back in the 12th century, our ancestors sculpted figurines of bulls and cows from dough. Gingerbread were strips of dough, woven into bizarre twists. For the twisted, serpentine shape, the ancient Pomeranian cookies got their name - kozuli, from the Pomeranian word "roe" - snake, curl.
The image of the roe-snake was associated with the autumn harvest, or rather with its completion - with the autumn New Year or New Year (September 14). Later, this tradition was transferred to the winter Christmas and the January New Year. And in the Kargopol region, roes were made in the form of serpentine curls folded into circles called "teterki" and baked in mid-March, which also refers to a very ancient rite dedicated to the spring equinox.
Pomors believed that such roe-snakes would bring wealth and prosperity to the house.
There are three types of roe: Kholmogory voluminous (resembling clay figurines), Kargopol roe-grouse and painted flat roe-gingerbread. Arkhangelsk painted roe gingerbread appeared in the Russian North when sugar and spices (cinnamon and cloves) became available to the population of the provincial center, that is, not earlier than the 18th century.
In the old days, gingerbread was also made in the form of animals - deer, skates, bulls, cows, goats, seals. The custom of baking animals originates from pagan beliefs. It is assumed that the creation of a herd of grain is a modified sacrifice. There was such a belief that the more people bake animal figurines, the more game there will be in the forests and cattle in the yards. On which the well-being of the people directly depended. The Slavs also believed that roes bring happiness to the house, so they were kept in the house for up to a year, and sometimes more. This tradition has been preserved to this day.
In ancient times, a deer, a horse were symbols of the Sun, a solar deity, associated with the image of the god Yarila. Often they were depicted on a stand - a symbol of the universe. Kholmogory roes (made from rye flour) are a figure on four legs, a head, a bush of branched horns, apples on the horns, birds on the apples, or rather bird wings made of white dough. An apple with wings resembles the image of a winged sun. And its size reached 245 cm. Often the roes were given names: Belyan, yes Belek, yes Chernukha ...
Brides and young girls were given horses with a mane braided into a triple pigtail - as a symbol of Faith, Hope, Love. Roe deer were also placed in front of the icon.
There were roes in the form of a star, an angel, a shepherd, a basket (with gifts), birds, etc. These figurines resemble Christian symbols, but the true meaning has been lost over time.
In the old days, the production and painting of roes was largely ritual in nature, our ancestors believed in the protective power of fragrant gingerbread. Roe deer are both a charm and a talisman.
Today, Arkhangelsk roes are a beautiful fragrant edible souvenir, a great gift for any holiday or anniversary.
Gingerbread shapes have become diverse. There are houses and hearts, and cartoon characters, etc.
Gingerbread cookies are stored for up to a year, therefore, gingerbread cookies painted by you will be a great gift for all time!
In the old days, roes were baked from rye flour to get a characteristic dark color, on which the glaze pattern looks the most advantageous. Later they began to be made from wheat flour, adding burnt sugar. The dough was prepared in advance, it could lie in the cold for weeks, and it only got better. Different figurines were cut out - goat girls had their own molds, which they cherished and passed on by inheritance. Already baked and cooled roes were covered with glaze of two colors: white and pink, obtained by adding lingonberry or cranberry juice.
Now, along with just gingerbread, they began to invent various gingerbread houses, or even make models of wooden churches.
Pomeranian roes - recipe
Roe deer are made from specially prepared dough. Pieces of dough are shaped into various animals - goats and goats, deer, lambs, cows and bulls, as well as cats, seals and birds. The made figurines are baked in an oven or oven on a greased sheet. Kozuli is also considered a regional variety of Russian gingerbread. According to the method of manufacture, modern roe deer can be attributed to carved gingerbread.
Dough recipes are quite diverse, and many families have their own recipes for making dough, which have been kept in families for decades. Roe deer are usually colorfully decorated with glaze, which is made from whipped proteins with the addition of various natural dyes.
Roe deer "Solombala"
600g granulated sugar, 500g margarine, 1/2 tsp. salt, 4 eggs, 1 tbsp. l. cinnamon, 1 tbsp. cloves, 2.4 tsp soda (quench with vinegar), 2 kg of flour.
200g. burn granulated sugar, pour 2 cups of boiling water into it gradually and add another 400 g of sand. Remove from heat, but stir in margarine and salt while still warm. Cool the resulting mass. Then add eggs, cinnamon and cloves, add soda, quenched with vinegar, lastly flour. Knead a stiff dough, cut it into pieces, roll out the pieces into cakes and you can cut out the figures.
Before baking, anoint products with yolk diluted with water (1/2 cup of water per yolk).
Ready-made roes are painted with colored glaze.
Glaze:
- boil the syrup from 1 cup of granulated sugar and 1 cup of water (check the readiness with a ring - bubbles should be blown out of it);
- pour 2 whipped egg whites into hot syrup and beat this mixture until it cools;
- add 2-3 drops of citric acid or vinegar essence and color with food coloring.
Then you can add ½ cup of honey (the test period increases to 2-3 weeks) or condensed milk (the dough should stand for 3-4 weeks).
Murmansk roes
Dough:
600 g of granulated sugar. 150 g butter or creamy margarine. 3 eggs. Cloves, cinnamon, baking soda - 1 teaspoon each. 1.2-1.3 kg of flour. Burn a glass of granulated sugar in an enameled dish. When all the sugar has melted, add 1 cup of hot boiled water (slowly). Mix. Then add 2 more cups of granulated sugar. When everything boils and the sugar melts, turn it off. Add 150 g butter or margarine. When everything cools down a little, add 2 yolks and 1 whole egg, also add spices with water. Add flour (not all). Then pour the flour on the table and knead the dough. Put the dough in a bag and put it in the cold: in the cold outside or in the freezer. Can be stored up to 1 month. Cut the dough from the refrigerator into small pieces and knead well - so that it begins to shine. Do not add flour to this.
Roll out the dough with a thickness of 5 mm, cut out any figures and bake them in the oven. Lubricate the baking sheet not greasy, but a little bit so that the gingerbread cookies do not burn.
Glaze:
To make the frosting, beat 2 egg whites, slowly adding the powdered sugar until the frosting is thick. Put the icing in a bag (paper rolled up into a tube) and paint the gingerbread.
Arkhangelsk roes
Burn 1 glass of granulated sugar, then dissolve it in a glass of hot water. Then add 2 cups of granulated sugar and stir until completely dissolved. Turn off the heat and add 150 g of butter or margarine, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, cloves and soda, cool slightly, add 1 egg and 2 yolks. After that, add about 0.5 kg of flour, knead the dough so that it does not stick to your hands. Keep the dough in a saucepan and cellophane in a cool place for a week. After that, add another 0.5 kg of granulated sugar to the dough and roll it out to a thickness of 0.5 cm. Cut the rolled out dough into shapes from tin or thick paper and put it on a baking sheet, once oiled.
Lubricate the gingerbread cookies with a beaten egg with water in a ratio of 1: 1 and put in the oven. Bake 5 - 7 minutes. Let the finished gingerbread cookies dry, then remove them from the baking sheet and decorate with icing.
In order to make the glaze colored, you can use natural dyes:
* white paint: powdered sugar, milk, sour cream;
* yellow: mix lemon zest with carrot juice and oil, fry for 3-5 minutes until softened and strain through cheesecloth;
* green: spinach juice;
* red and pink: juice of raspberries, strawberries, lingonberries, currants, cherries, pomegranates, boiled beets;
* orange: orange and tangerine juice;
* brown: cocoa powder.
