Food for Easter is blessed so that people feel not only the spiritual, but also the physical joy of the holiday. And each product from this set has an ancient symbolic meaning.
The Easter holiday begins on Saturday. Believers gather in the church for the evening service, which develops into the earliest morning service of the year. During the festive service, baskets with Easter cakes, Easter eggs and other dishes are blessed. This is how the church blesses believers, after a long fast, to again eat modest, that is, non-lenten dishes.
Each product in the Easter basket has a special meaning, and its contents must be taken responsibly.
Kulich symbolizes the body of Christ and the fullness of life. If the owners of the house are preparing to go to the Easter service, it is necessary to calculate the preparation time in advance. By the time you leave the house with the Easter cakes, they should have cooled completely and the icing on them should have hardened. Easter cakes can be baked on Maundy Thursday and Saturday morning. Easter bread must certainly be sweet, made from soft dough, because the holiday is joyful. In addition, the dough must be yeast, because, according to the Gospel, during the Last Supper with his disciples, Christ blessed yeast bread, not unleavened bread.
Painted eggs are one of the main attributes of Easter, which means new life and rebirth, as well as the victory of life over death. The legend tells of an egg presented as a gift to the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Mary Magdalene with this gift told about the Resurrection of Jesus, and the miracle that happened before the eyes of Tiberius (the egg turned red) became evidence of the true power of the Christian faith. According to this legend, the red color of the egg is a symbol of the blood shed on the cross by Jesus. Easter bread must certainly be sweet, made from soft dough, because the holiday is joyful. In addition, the dough must be yeast, because, according to the Gospel, during the Last Supper with his disciples, Christ blessed yeast bread, not unleavened bread.
Homemade sausage (not blood sausage) and boiled pork. The meat dishes symbolize the sacrificial lamb that the father slaughtered after the prodigal son returned home. Meat dishes in the Easter basket refer to Old Testament times in memory of how the blood of a sacrificial lamb was smeared on the doorposts so that the angel of God's wrath would go around the dwellings of the chosen people. This is a symbol of spiritual joy that comes from a person fulfilling the will of God. A ring of homemade sausage, a piece of ham or lard, always from pork, should also be in the Easter basket. The pig is a symbol of fertility and fertility, and the boar is a symbol of masculine strength.
Cottage cheese, cheese and butter– these are not only attributes of prosperity, a well-fed life, and good luck in business. Cheese and butter symbolize the tenderness of God, which one must strive for, like a child for mother's milk.
Horseradish means strength and indestructibility of the spirit. In addition, it is a useful plant that improves digestion and is a natural antiseptic. At Easter, it is customary to eat horseradish, grated with beets, spread on boiled eggs. Horseradish symbolizes good health and long life and also refers to the Old Testament, when during Passover Jews had to flavor their dishes with bitter seasonings - in memory of the bitterness of slavery in Egypt.
Salt symbolizes the connection between God and the people, prosperity and the meaning of life. She was also considered a talisman. After all, they came to the house with bread and salt, greeted dear guests with bread and salt, took a pinch of salt with them on the road, sprinkled salt on the newborn, driving away evil.
A wax candle symbolizes a connection with God. During the blessing of the Easter basket, it was customary to light a candle, and then carry it home so that it does not go out.
If we talk about the inedible components of the basket, then we can also mention the myrtle plant. It is believed that having a green twig in it will bring good luck. Myrtle is often woven around a basket to give it spring beauty. Then it looks brighter and pleases the eye. Additionally, since the plant is evergreen, it is associated with eternal life.
Another indispensable attribute of the Easter basket is a towel. The towel symbolizes the wealth of threads woven with love and intelligence. The owner must embroider it herself in advance, since threads are a symbol of life. A woman who embroiders a towel herself interweaves and combines the destinies (threads) of all household members, while creating a happy and long life for her entire family.
Don't forget to prepare a donation. It may not be a large bill (no one limits you here), or a cake and a few eggs. To collect donations, a special church minister walks in front of the priest who performs the consecration ceremony.
To make your basket a work of art, take a few minutes to decorate it with ribbons and flowers. A linen napkin is always placed at the bottom, and the food is covered with an embroidered napkin on top, which is unrolled before consecration.
Wine
Although wine is the most important artifact of biblical symbolism and, as a rule, is present in the Easter basket, there is no prayer for it among the dishes blessed for consumption after Lent. This can be explained by the fact that on some holidays that fall during the period of fasting, wine is allowed, and prayer is said for the food that we completely refuse for forty days.
But you don’t need to put this in!
The main exception to the Easter basket is blood sausage: the Bible says that blood should not be eaten. In addition, you should not put hard liquor or beer in your cart. There is no need to bring water to the blessing - there are Jordanian holidays for this. It is a fiction and a prejudice that a knife should be placed in the Easter basket, which is then used to cut the holy food. Today, when both painted eggs and Easter eggs are eaten, it is unacceptable for the latter to contain images of saints. Finally, there is no need to carry large amounts of food to church. The Easter basket should have a little bit of everything, because the meaning of Easter Sunday is not at all about excesses and demonstrating the level of wealth.
With the tradition of cooking, Easter basket composition and the meaning of consecrating food is introduced to readers by the mitred archpriest Fr. Mikhailo Dimid, teacher of ecclesiology and church law at the Ukrainian Catholic University.
Easter: what should be the composition of the Easter basket
The selection of products in a basket for Easter is not accidental. Each product has a symbolic meaning. The Easter basket, or “sacred”, should consist of the following dishes: Easter babka, cheese and butter, egg-pysanka, ham-sausage, horseradish, bukshpan or myrtle, salt.
- the angelic bread that Jesus Christ became for us, a symbol of the resurrection. This is the bread of eternal life that came down from heaven, feeding people with spiritual food. Baking Easter is an important step in preparing for the holiday. Most housewives have their own recipe, which was passed on to them by their grandmothers. They are reluctant to change the recipe so as not to accidentally make a mistake. You need to prepare the dough for Easter in peace, only with good thoughts, since under other circumstances it may not work out.
- these are dairy dishes (milk is the first creation, raw material, does not come from the activity of human hands, but is a gift of nature). Just as a mother feeds her child with milk, so curd and butter are symbols of the sacrifice and tenderness of God. We must desire God's grace as a baby desires its mother's milk. These products are placed in small containers and a cross is drawn on top.
Egg- symbolizes a closed space from which independent and unique life emanates.
Ham/sausage- points to the fatted calf that the good father slaughtered after the prodigal son returned home. This is a symbol of spiritual joy that comes from a person fulfilling the will of God.
It makes a person stronger, just as a Christian who receives the sacrament of Confession during the Easter period becomes mentally healthier.
- one of the necessary products in a person’s life, which adds taste to food. Salt signifies the quality of relationship with the Lord as the union between God and humans is renewed through the cross and resurrection. The believer must keep his heart pure to imitate Christ, who said, “You are the salt of the earth” (Matthew 5:13).
Evergreen(bukshpan or myrtle) - a symbol of immortality and eternal life.
In addition to the products listed above, the Easter basket may also contain salo, poppy And millet. There should be nothing else in the cart.
The indispensable attributes of the Easter basket are a towel and a candle. A towel is a wealth of threads woven with love and intelligence. The thread symbolizes life. Weaving a thread is also a symbol of eternity, for it is a process that can be continued indefinitely. A candle is a light that is brought outside to people.
Through such simple, everyday things, our ancestors tried to convey to us the science of Christ. The contents of the Easter basket can be understood and accepted properly only when we care about its spiritual rather than material content.
Easter Easter eggs and painted eggs
A special place in preparation for Easter is occupied by the creation of Easter eggs. The birth of new life can best be represented by an egg. Signs that a person finds in nature are added to it. Such symbolism was known to humanity even before Christianity: these are signs of the arrival of spring and the rebirth of nature. Christians see in the egg the birth of eternal life and the resurrection from the dead. Easter Easter eggs are like a prayer, a symbol of hope for eternal life.
- a raw egg covered with colored geometric or floral patterns that symbolize life, prosperity, and perpetual motion.
- a boiled egg, often colored with onion peel, is eaten. The host or hostess, dividing the egg among those present at the table, wishes everyone all the best.
All these symbolic products and things are an important part of the holiday, with the help of which a person joins the highest and eternal.
I wish for everyone who will use the blessed Easter that it will be “for the salvation of the soul, for bodily health and protection against disease and all enemy deceit.”
The tradition of consecrating food in church during a festive service on the eve of Holy Resurrection is followed by believers not only in Ukraine. The list of products for the Easter basket has remained virtually unchanged for many centuries.
All of them have a certain meaning, the roots of which go back to the times of paganism, when it was customary to appease numerous deities with offerings. Many centuries have passed since then, but the ritual remained even after the adoption of Christianity, acquiring new meanings. So, what is customary to put in the Easter basket today and why?
In those distant times, before the feast of the Holy Resurrection of Christ, even poor people baked rich bread, painted eggs, prepared meat products and, along with milk and cheese, took them with them to the all-night service to consecrate their first meal after Lent. Today, the composition of such a basket depends on the welfare of each specific family. But certain rules still exist.
What can you put in an Easter basket?
It is customary to decorate the basket with beautifully embroidered towels or elegant fabric. Embroidery and the towel itself consist of threads - a symbol of long life. As for its contents, according to the rules in the church, products are sanctified, the use of which was prohibited during Lent.
Paska or Easter cake
It is a symbol of the fullness of Christ's life and body and is sometimes called angel's bread. It is prepared from sweet yeast dough with a lot of eggs and fat. Baking it is not just a culinary process, but a sacred act that should be accompanied by bright thoughts and intentions. During this time, you should not swear, argue or be too noisy. It was believed that only under these conditions would baking be successful.
Usually one large Easter cake is baked, which is blessed in the church, and many smaller ones for all family members. In addition, other baked goods are made from flour, which are treated to friends and acquaintances on the bright holiday of Easter. .These are various buns, poppy seed roll or cookies.
Curd Easter
This special dish of cottage cheese, which is prepared only once a year at Easter, is a symbol of the purity, tenderness of God, and his sacrifice. It personifies Jesus Christ, who came down from heaven to give people spiritual food.
The very shape of Easter in the form of a truncated pyramid symbolizes the Holy Sepulcher and Golgotha, which he ascended for the salvation of all living.
To prepare such Easter cottage cheese, they use a special collapsible form - a pasochnitsa, on the inner surfaces of which there are indentations in the form of the letters - “ХВ”, which means the festive greeting “Christ is Risen!” In this case, cottage cheese, butter, dried fruits, candied fruits, sugar, sour cream or cream are used. It is allowed to add cocoa and chocolate for those who do not like cottage cheese.
Cheesecakes and pies with cottage cheese, raisins and nuts are also baked for this holiday.
Eggs
In the Christian tradition, the Easter egg also symbolizes the Holy Sepulcher. After all, it only looks dead from the outside, but inside it contains new life that is preparing to come out.
It is noteworthy that the custom of giving eggs is a long-standing Orthodox tradition, which is associated with the story of the egg that Mary Magdalene gave to the Roman Emperor Tiberius. As Demetrius of Rostov wrote about this, Saint Mary Equal to the Apostles, because of her poverty, did not have the opportunity to give a more expensive gift, but she did not want to come to the emperor empty-handed to inform him of the miracle of the resurrection. When he did not believe the woman that a person could rise from the dead, to the amazement of those present, the white egg turned red.
Since then, the red color of the Easter egg - the color of the blood of the crucified Christ - has been considered traditional and symbolizes the victory of life over death, the rebirth of the Savior. The choice of the egg as an unusual gift, according to St. Demetrius, was intended to attract the attention of the emperor.
Although eggs are painted in different colors, red is the traditional one: it symbolizes the blood of the crucified Christ. In paganism, the egg is also a symbol of rebirth, eternal life and fertility.
Today, multi-colored boiled eggs, painted in onion peels or food colors, or decorated in other ways, are indispensable attributes of the holiday, which are placed in the Easter basket. Children and adults themselves enjoy coloring eggs and traditional egg fights.
Candle
A wax candle is not only a means of illuminating a home, but also a symbol of prayer, unquenchable faith and spiritual light. Wax is considered a symbol of repentance and obedience.
It was previously customary for believers to donate wax to the church for making candles. The money raised from their sale was used to maintain the temple. And today people who come to church to pray always buy a candle there. And on this day, such a candle is placed directly in the Easter basket, which burns throughout the entire service.
Meat products
The meat is a symbol of the sacrificial lamb slaughtered by the father in honor of the return of the prodigal son, as well as of Jesus, who sacrificed his life for the immortality of the human soul. It is also a symbol of the spiritual joy of a person following the will of the Lord. You can bless boiled pork, jellied meat, homemade sausage and other meat products, with the exception of blood sausage (blood sausage).
Wine
Wine can also be placed in a basket and blessed. Traditionally, red wine is used, such as Cahors. It is not recommended to take stronger drinks with you to church. A sip of this wine, drunk in honor of the holiday after the end of the service, will lift your spirits and give you strength.
Seasonings
Horseradish is considered a symbol of invincibility and strength of spirit of a person after Confession. In addition, according to legend, this seasoning is reminiscent of the bitter slavery experienced by Moses' companions in Egypt. And of course, healthy horseradish perfectly complements meat dishes and eggs from the Easter basket. It can also be blessed in a church.
Salt
This seasoning has long been considered a talisman, a symbol of abundance and was highly valued. Salt symbolizes prosperity, the connection of God with people and the meaning of life. This product, which improves the taste of our food, personifies the element of earth and pure thoughts.
Millet, myrtle, poppy
Myrtle is an evergreen plant that symbolizes immortality, eternal life. Previously, myrtle was used to decorate Easter baskets. Today it can be replaced with millet or poppy seeds.
This is the set of products you should strive for when going to church.
What is not customary to put in an Easter basket?
We remind you that it is not customary to bless the following products in church:
Strong alcoholic drinks (excessive drunkenness was never supported by the church, so it is better to leave vodka and cognac at home)
Money and other items of material wealth
Krovyanka (a type of sausage), which is considered unfit for consumption by Orthodox ministers
Products that were allowed for consumption during Lent
The clergy also advise you to remember that during this holiday it is not so important what you eat, the main thing is not to indulge in gluttony and other excesses, to maintain the purity of your thoughts and speech, and to pray sincerely. Then peace, joy and tranquility will settle in your home.
In conclusion, I would also like to remind you that at the end of the service it is customary to leave something from the contents of your basket in the church as an offering. The priest will treat those who do not have the means for the festive table with these gifts.
Blessed products are prohibited from being thrown away. Even shells are not considered garbage; they should not be thrown away, but buried somewhere near the house. According to a long-standing Orthodox tradition, it is also customary to share treats with relatives, friends, neighbors, and also to give gifts to those in need.
Today Orthodox Christians celebrate Good Friday, which is for all believers the day of greatest sorrow and the strictest fast.
On this day, Orthodox Christians remember the trial of Christ, his execution and death by crucifixion.
In two days, Bright Sunday of Christ will come, the biggest holiday for Orthodox Christians, which traditionally for believers begins with a festive church service.
Before going to church, you need to collect your Easter basket. The tradition of consecrating them is becoming more and more popular every year, but the contents of Easter baskets are sometimes the most unexpected. What can be put in a basket for Easter and what cannot be put in it, and what is simply necessary in it?
Traditionally, Easter cake and Easter cottage cheese are placed in the middle of the basket, with eggs next to them on different sides.
The rest of the food in the Easter basket is optional and everyone fills it themselves, based on financial capabilities or desires. It could be boiled pork, smoked meats or sausage, cheese, milk; You can put fruit and salt.
After this, the Easter basket is covered with an embroidered or simply beautiful towel with Christian symbols and the inscriptions “Christ is Risen” and “Truly Risen.” Don't forget to take a candle from home or buy it from church - it's a must!
For kids, you can fill small baskets with a small Easter cake and eggs.
What should you not put in your cart?
Firstly, you cannot bring a lot of food to church: moderation in everything is an unshakable rule for believers. There should be enough food in the Easter basket to provide one piece for each family member during Easter dinner.
Of the alcoholic beverages, only wine and nothing else is allowed for consecration. It’s even better not to bring any alcohol to church.
On Holy Saturday, believers go to temples and churches to bless the food in the Easter basket. Eating food for Easter allows you not only spiritually, but also physically to feel the closeness of the holiday.
When thinking about what to put in your Easter basket, you need to understand that during this holiday, food products have a certain meaning and symbolism. Of course, not all products. It should be remembered that it is best to bless Easter cakes and other foods not on Saturday afternoon, but after the evening service, at the very beginning of the Great Feast of Easter.
The traditions of what can be put in the Easter basket and are associated with Lent. Strict fasting lasts 48 days before Easter, when you cannot eat any animal products, including dairy products and eggs. Only two times - on Annunciation and Palm Sunday - during the period of fasting you can eat fish. An Easter basket for a believer is a blessing to again eat the humble meal. That is, not meatless dishes.
So, here is a list of products that you must put in your Easter basket. Each of these products has its own meaning, therefore, one must approach the collection of baskets for church responsibly. 
*. These are traditional Easter baked goods that symbolize the body of Christ and the fullness of life. By the time you leave the house with the cake, it should have cooled completely and the icing on it should be hard. The best time to prepare Easter cakes is Maundy Thursday or the morning of Holy Saturday. Kulich must be yeasty and sweet, because, according to legend, this is the bread Jesus Christ fed the disciples at their last meal together - the Last Supper.
* Painted eggs are the most famous and beloved symbol of Easter. They symbolize new life and rebirth. Eggs symbolize the victory of life over death. The red color of the eggs is a symbol of the blood that Jesus shed on the cross for human sins, in the name of saving people.
* Homemade sausage and . The meats in the Easter basket are symbolic of the sacrificial lamb that the father slaughtered when the prodigal son returned home. This sacrifice is a symbol of spiritual joy. You cannot put blood sausage in the basket. 
* Dairy products, including cheese and butter. These are attributes of prosperity and a well-fed life. They also predict success in business. Milk symbolizes the tenderness and sacrifice of God. And some sources say that dairy products are put in the basket because a person should want faith just like a child wants mother’s milk.
* Horseradish. Not everyone knows that this product must be in the basket, because it is a symbol of the invincibility of the spirit. It should be remembered that horseradish is also a useful plant that improves digestion. There is a legend that during his earthly life they wanted to poison Jesus Christ with horseradish roots, because then they were considered poisonous due to their specific taste.
Under no circumstances should you put alcohol in your Easter basket, even red wine. Despite the fact that the Orthodox Church considers red wine to be the blood of Christ, Cahors should not be carried to be blessed. Easter is a bright holiday, first of all, a holiday of the soul. Therefore, you should behave with dignity at the festive table.
