Easter cake with cranberries and almond paste

First, prepare the starter. Mix 75 ml of room temperature milk with yeast and 10 grams of sugar, then add 100 grams of flour and knead the dough until smooth.

Place the dough in a warm place for 2 hours, covered with a damp cloth or plastic wrap.

Soak the dried fruits in boiling water for 5-10 minutes. Then strain and soak in rum for about 1 hour.

Beat the egg with the yolks. Mix 155 grams of flour and 25 grams of sugar. Combine the eggs with the flour and knead into a uniform ball of dough.

Mix the starter with the prepared dough until smooth. Then add 25 grams of sugar and a pinch of salt, continuing to knead the dough.

Add citrus zest and continue kneading.

Cut the cold butter into 3 mm thick slices and gradually add it to the dough while continuously kneading. Once one slice is incorporated, add the next one. In the end, when stretching the dough by hand, it should not tear but rather stretch into a thin film.

Add dried fruits to the dough. Add chocolate, cranberry, and raisins.

Mix the filling into the dough and let it rest under plastic wrap in a warm place for about 1.5–2 hours. It should rise at least twice.

The risen dough can be shaped by gently rolling it into a ball (do not pull tightly).

Place the dough in a paper mold and send it to an oven preheated to 30 degrees. The dough should rise and be slightly below the height of the mold.

Prepare almond paste. Mix 40 grams of sugar, 20 grams of almond flour, starch, 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil, and the white of 1 egg. Whisk and carefully pour over the cake, spreading it on the surface.

You can top it with almond flakes, whole almonds, pearl sugar, and definitely dust it with a large amount of powdered sugar.

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees and bake the kulich for about 35–45 minutes.

The finished kulich should be immediately pierced from the bottom with wooden skewers and turned over to prevent bubbles from settling. Leave it in this position until completely cool.