Aki's Kitchen - Recipes

Vasilopeta -
St.Basil New Year's Eve Cake

Desserts

1

A vanilla and orange pound-like cake.

Note: Icing sugar is optional.

Ingredients:	Tools & Equipment:
1 cup butter, salted 2 cups sugar 6 eggs 1 tbsp vanilla zest of 1 orange 1 cup milk 6 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 3 cups cake flour 3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 cup slivered almonds, unroasted 2 - 3 tbsp shortening and flour, for greasing pan 1 coin, washed well 1/2 cup icing sugar	12 x 1 3/4-inch round pan parchment paper 2 large mixing bowls sieve mixer rubber scraper kitchen towel large cooling rack

Note:
The Vasilopeta can either be a cake or bread. In our household, we make the cake version. This is a passed down recipe and there's nothing spectacular about this cake. It's a simple cake with a pound cake like texture. In the Greek household, however, this cake is more about tradition mingled with religious symbolism than a dessert.

This cake is usually made on the last day of the year and served right after the stroke of midnight or during New Year's Day. The head of the household lightly passes a knife, three times, in a cross formation, without scoring or cutting the cake, while saying a prayer of thanks for all that has been received in the past year and all that will come in the New Year.

The Vasilopeta is then cut into servings. The first three pieces are offered to: St. Basil, Christ (also known as: "The Zityano" - The Beggar) and The Virgin Mary. The order may vary, depending on the background and origin of the family, but they always come first. The following servings are cut for "The House" (the family's household) and then the immediate family members living in it, beginning with the oldest member and ending with the youngest. Then come the spouses of the children. Some of us also cut a few crumbs for our pets; we really shouldn't, but we do.

As for the coin, it's said that the person who finds it will be the lucky one for the rest of the year. This is superstition; though, it does make for a great scavenger hunt, especially when no one has found the coin and someone pops up and says: "Did you forget to stick the coin into the peta?" Or, even better, the most anxious family member will lift up the peta off the platter and look underneath to see if they can spot the coin. Then of course, everyone turns to the remaining cake to search for it. In our family, as with most Greek families, the Vasilopeta isn't about the cake and coin. It's about stopping, appreciating, as well as being thankful, for what we have: our health and prosperity. Anything else is secondary. Happy New Year!

How:
Grease pan: cut out a circle of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan and a few strips for the side. Grease the pan with the shortening and then line with papers. Wash and rinse the coin and set it aside.

Using 2 large mixing bowls and a sieve, sift the cake flour twice and then measure 3 cups from it. In a large bowl, combine: 3 cups cake flour, 3 cups all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt: sift together twice and then set aside.

Position an oven rack on the second to lower level and preheat the oven to 350'F.

In another large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar on high speed, for 3 minutes; sugar will not dissolve. Add in all of the eggs and mix well on high speed, until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Add in the vanilla, orange zest and milk, and then mix well on high speed, for 1 - 2 minutes. Mix in the flour mixture, in half-cup increments; the batter should be very stiff when finished.

Transfer the batter into the prepared pan; run knife through batter. Rinse the coin under cold water to wet it and then dip the coin into some extra flour. Insert the flour-coated coin into the batter, spin the pan around a few times and then smooth out the top to conceal the coin. Using slivered almonds, write out the number of the New Year, in large numbers, over the top of the batter. Sprinkle some crushed slivers near the edge of the pan, making a border. Bake the cake for 50 - 55 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean; large cracks will develop around the cake.

Cool the baked cake in its pan for 10 - 15 minutes. Remove strips, place a dry, clean kitchen towel over the cake and then a cooling rack: invert the cake and remove paper. Then invert the cake back to an upright position and cool completely. If you don't have a large cooling rack, then use a large pizza pan with punched out holes in it, or improvise with something else. Wrap the cooled cake in plastic wrap until serving. Before serving, sift a bit of icing sugar around the edge of the cake.

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Looking Back at Everything You've Made!
There's nothing to making this cake. The fun part is later on, when serving it: who will find the coin?