Kalács

Kalach

Type	Sweet bread
Place of origin	Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Bulgaria
Main ingredients	Wheat flour

Kalach, kalács, kolach, or colac (Russian: кала́ч; Ukrainian: кaлач or колач; Hungarian: kalács; Romanian: colac; Serbian: колач/kolač, Bulgarian: колач), is a traditional Eastern European bread, commonly served during various ritual meals. The name originates from the Old Slavonic word kolo (коло) meaning "circle", "wheel".

The Hungarian kalács (pronounced [ˈkɒlaːtʃ]) is a sweet bread very similar to brioche, usually baked in a braided form, and traditionally considered an Easter food. Until the end of the 19th century, the preparation of kalács was similar to that of everyday bread; the difference was in the shape, and in the better/quality flour used for the kalács. Nowadays kalács is prepared from dough enriched with milk and eggs. It is baked in an oven or brick oven, sometimes directly on the stones of the brick oven, or on a baking sheet.

Kalács is part of the traditional Easter menu in Hungary, often consecrated together with ham in Catholic churches. In the Szeged region at All Saints unfilled kalács was baked called All Saints' Kalács (mindenszentek kalácsa, kolduskalács = Beggar's Kalács), which was given to beggars at the gate of the graveyard. Also kalács was given to beggars praying at the graveyard's gate in Csallóköz to prevent the dead from returning. Giving kalács to beggars is the Christian form of the pagan tradition of treating the dead.

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Wikipedia