There are 3 things Czechs love: beer, their cottages, and traditions. One of the most favorite holidays in the Czech Republic is Easter with typical symbols and traditions. Originally, Christian custom celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. But with a decreasing number of religious people, it is nowadays perceived more as a celebration of the return of spring. The culmination of the whole Easter time comes after the first full moon after the spring equinox. That means it is a movable feast.

As much as they love these traditions, Czechs also enjoy a lot of yummy meals. For example, typical Easter lamb, which is a marble cake baked in a special form, reminiscent of a little lamb, or Easter stuffing, which is still a very popular old Bohemian meal with a lot of varieties around the Czech Republic. Stuffing is very simple to prepare and will not disappoint you. It is possible to eat it hot or cold.

 
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Ingredients

1 lb smoked pork butt or smoked ham
16 slices stale white bread or hot dog buns (at least 3 days old)
3 eggs
salt, ground black pepper, marjoram, and crushed garlic to taste
1 cup young nettles (gathered or purchased at a farmer’s market)
fat to grease the roasting pan

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Cook the smoked butt or smoked ham portion in the roasting pan until tender. Take it out, save the drippings for later, and cut the meat into small pieces. Wipe out the pan and use the grease to prepare the pan for the stuffing.

Cut the slices of white bread into small dices and place in a large mixing bowl. Pour approximately half a cup of the broth over the bread pieces. Separate out the egg yolks and add them to the bowl. Also add the salt, pepper, marjoram, and crushed garlic to taste. (Recommendation:  2 tsp of marjoram and 3 cloves of garlic.) Wash the fresh nettles and roughly chop them. The stuffing will be more colorful with them and have a typical spring taste. Mix all together.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Add the egg whites and cooked meat to the bread mixture. Pour the stuffing into the greased roasting pan and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown on the surface.

Cut the stuffing into slices and enjoy! Pickles are commonly served as a side dish.

There are a lot of varieties for this recipe. For example, adding chicken, meat slices, or spinach creates a completely different, but still great, taste. Enjoy your meal!

Please Note: There are several regional variants of this recipe. This is one of them.

This post was created by volunteers. You may help and support Czech-American TV by clicking here.