Kutia
Wheat berry pudding with poppy seed and honey- Yield
- Serves 8
- Active
- 20 minutes
- Total
- 2 hours
- Difficulty
- Easy
The story
Kutia, sweetened wheat berries mixed with poppy seeds, honey, and walnuts, is the first dish eaten at the Holy Supper (Sviata Vecheria) and is considered the spiritual center of the entire celebration. Its makeup is not random: wheat symbolizes life and fertility, honey prosperity, and poppy seeds and walnuts abundance. According to an old belief reaching back to the pre-Christian Slavic rites of the winter solstice, a portion of the kutia is left overnight on the windowsill, or the first spoonful is set aside for the ancestors, whose spirits are believed to visit the home that night. On the table, in the place of honor, stands the didukh, a decorated sheaf of grain whose name translates as “grandfather spirit,” a symbol of the ancestors who return to the family that night. Kutia is the first of the twelve Lenten dishes served that evening, each made without meat, dairy, or eggs. For Ukrainian families in America, preparing kutia with children is one of the most powerful moments of passing on heritage; the very name of the dish, “kutia,” spoken aloud, signals at once that the Holy Supper has begun.
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole wheat berries
- 1/3 cup poppy seeds
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup raisins
- Pinch of salt
Look in natural-food stores, supermarket bulk bins or online; hard or soft wheat both work. Farro or pearl barley is the closest substitute; barley is softer and cooks faster.
Method
- Soak the wheat berries overnight if possible, then simmer in fresh water for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until tender and chewy. Drain and cool.
- Pour boiling water over the poppy seeds, let stand 15 minutes, then drain and grind finely in a food processor or with a mortar and pestle until pasty.
- Combine the cooked wheat with the ground poppy seeds, honey, walnuts, raisins, and a pinch of salt.
- Mix well and let stand at least an hour so the flavors meld. Serve at room temperature as the first dish of the Holy Supper.