How beautiful is the morning light during spring time, it’s warm and pinkish casting a magical colouring into the woods. It makes it quite easy to photograph, I wish you could hear the sounds of the nature, that I am hearing at the moment. Bella is walking closely behind me eating sticks along the way and I’ve lost my gaze into the sunlight pushing through the trees. The lighting is low and soft, it is that early spring glow.
Pasha is a sweet delicacy from my childhood that is popular in Finland during Easter time. It’s creamy and rich with a hint of almost cream cheese or buttercream that simply melts in your mouth. Those of you who don’t know what Pasha is, it comes from Pascha, an Eastern Orthodox celebration of Easter that originates from Russia. During this time, a sweet custard-like dessert is served that is made from quark, butter, eggs, spices and dried fruit that tastes heavenly. Along with many Baltic countries, Finland happens to serve this custard during Easter as well. It is my favourite Easter dessert by far! You can purchase ready-made pasha servings (like yogurt) from stores, which is what I used for this cake. But if you wish to master pasha from scratch, it is not an impossible task. My mom makes pasha herself and it is totally mouth-watering and worth it.
The velvety pasha filling is the heart of the cake that merges quite seamlessly with the chocolate crust. The garnish is naturally a selection of chocolate filled eggs along with a few twigs of thyme. If you do not have pasha in your country and cannot be bothered to make it from scratch, you could for example substitute the pasha with white chocolate or custard pudding.
Oreo Base for Cake
- 1 packet oreo cookies (24 cookies)
- 70g melted butter
To make the crust, blitz the cookies in a mixer into a sand-like texture. Mix in the melted butter to create a wet consistency. Press the mixture into a buttered tart tin and place into the fridge for 15-30 minutes.
Easter Pasha Filling
- 3 jars (70g each) pasha with raisins inside
- 200g heavy cream (whipped)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla sugar
- 3 gelatin leaves
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Place the gelatin leaves in a bowl with cold water to soften. keep in there for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile in a large bowl, add the cream and sugar and whip into thick peaks with an electric mixer. Add the vanilla extract, vanilla sugar and whisk for a bit longer. Fold the pasha into the whipped cream.
Place the lemon juice in a saucepan to heat. Remove the excess water from the gelatine by squeezing them and place into the lemon juice. Stir until the dissolve and add this to the pasha mixture.
Remove the base from the fridge and pour the pasha mixture on top. Place into the fridge to set for at least 3 hours or even overnight.
Garnish with chocolate eggs and delicate thyme sprigs.
