May 2014
HUNGARIAN POPPY SEED AND WALNUT ROLLS (Bejgli – special Hungarian Christmas cake) Ingredients For six rolls 1000 g flour 200 g butter 50 g lard 600 g sugar 10 g yeast eggs 200ml milk 5 g salt 400 g ground poppy seed (It’s important – you can use your coffee grinder to grind it.) 400 g ground walnut 2 tea spoons ground cinnamon 1 lemon 40 g breadcrumbs 100 g raisin 1 vanilla sugar Procedure Crumble the flour, butter, lard and 80 grams of icing sugar with your fingers in a big bowl. Put the yeast into not too warm milk with a teaspoon of sugar. Wait for 3-5 minutes until it runs out. Add it to the paste. Add to the paste one egg, the salt too and knead it well.
Then rest it in a cold place or in the fridge for some hours. Then share the paste into 6 equal pieces. Make loaves from the paste. Roll them into a 20-30 centimeters rectangle shape on a well floured working surface one by one. Fill 3 with poppy seed filling and 3 with walnut filling in the following way. Spread the filling until the edges of the paste. Fold back 1 centimeter of the paste at the edges in order that the filling cannot come out during baking. Roll the paste up. Put the rolls into 2 well greased trays far from each other. Spread the rolls with the egg and keep them in a warm place for half an hour. Spread them with the egg again and keep them in a cold place for an hour. Put the tray into the oven for 35-40 minutes at 180 degrees.
You can prepare it two or three weeks before Christmas. But keep it in a plastic bag or box.
Poppy filling: From 260 grams of sugar and 250 ml water boil syrup. Pour it on the ground poppy seed. Add half of a lemon juice and grated lemon ring, 50 grams raisin and 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon into it. Walnut filling: From 220 grams of sugar and 200 milliliter water boil syrup. Pour it onto the ground walnut. Put into it grated lemon ring, 1 vanilla sugar, 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 50 gr. of raisin and 40 grams of bread crumbs.
Warning! Put only cold filling on the rolled out paste. In other case the side of the rolls will break out during the baking.
STUFFED CABBAGES (Hungarian special Christmas meal) Ingredients 1 big head of cabbage 800 g pork (think flank) 2 medium onions 2 cloves of garlic 1 tablespoon red pepper (Hungarian spice) 1 big table spoon pepper 2 tablespoons salt 200 g rice some oil 2 tins of tomato concentrate or 1 bottle (about 1000ml) tomato juice (not sweetened)
Procedure First boil water in a big pot. Cut out the stalk of the cabbage with a sharp knife. Put the cabbage into the boiling water. After 2 or 3 minutes turn the cabbage upside down. After 2 or 3 minutes take off 2 or 3 leaves when they are soft. Continue this procedure until all the leaves come off and get soft. You get about 35-40 leaves. (The smallest ones are not good for stuffing.) Mince the 2 onions into a frying pan. Pour some oil onto it. Simmer it for 3 minutes. Put the well washed rice into it. Simmer in together, stir it continuously for 3 or 5 minutes. Mince the green pepper and the pork.
Put the minced meat, green pepper into a big bowl. Add to it the salt, red pepper, pepper, mashed garlic and the hot mixture of rice and minced onion. Mix it very well with your fingers. Cut the bigger cabbage leaves into two halves. Cut out its thick middle vein. Put a big tablespoon stuffing into each cabbage leaf. Roll up the cabbage leaves and stuff them on both ends. Put the stuffed cabbages into a very big pot. Pour water onto it until the water cover the cabbages. Put tomato concentrate or tomato juice onto it. Cover the pot with a lid. Cook it slowly on a not too high fire for 80-90 minutes (Be careful! If it boils the stuffing can come out of the leaves) It is ready, when the rice is soft. Eat it with a tablespoon sour cream or without it and with a slice of bread.
GINGERBREAD IN HUNGARY Ingredients 1000 g flour 4 eggs 350 g dark „flower” honey 100 g margarine 350 g icing sugar 1 and a half teaspoon baking soda 1 big teaspoon ground cinnamon grated lemon rings (1 lemon) Procedure Heat the honey (but not boil). Put into it the margarine until it melts. Beat the four eggs with the icing sugar. Put them into the honey, margarine mixture. Mix them well. Then put the spices, the flour, the baking soda, too. Work it out well. ( If it is sticky, don’t worry, your ginger bread will be soft.) Put the paste into kitchen foil. Keep it in a cold place or in the fridge for 1 day but at least 1 night. Roll out small pieces of the paste on a well floured working surface to 2-3 millimeters thick. Cut out star, bell, heart, house, angel, pine tree shapes from the rolled out paste. Decorate them with whole nut walnut, almond or hazelnut or what you like or nothing before baking. OR! With icing made of 1 egg white and 150 grams of icing sugar. BUT AFTER BAKING!!! INSTRUCTIONS how to make and decorate with icing you
can read at the end of the recipe. Put baking paper into 2 trays (about 9 trays of cakes will be from this portion). Put the cut out shapes into the tray far from each other. Put the tray into the oven at 200 degrees and bake them for some minutes (8-10 minutes) until they are red not brown.
Decorating with icing: First beat the egg white until it is white and fluffy. Then add the icing sugar to it gradually. When the icing is ready put it into a new, clean plastic bag. Cut a very small hole in the corner of it. Decorate the pine trees, houses, bells in the way like snow covers them. Put the cakes into a metal or plastic box with well separated apple rings (from apple rings will be your gingerbread very soft). It is worth to prepare your gingerbread 2-3 weeks before Christmas. Gingerbread cakes can be kept fresh for a lot of weeks.
LOUKOUMADES Ingredients For the pastry 1kg village flour 1 cup of grinding flour 1 spoon of sugar 1 small bag of barm For the syrup 4 cups of sugar 4 cups of water cinnamon Procedure Mix the flour, the sugar, the water and the barm until they become mash. Cover them with a towel for about 30 minutes until the mash inflate. With a small spoon make small balls and fry in a very hot oil. When the balls fried put them in the syrup for just a second. Syrup Boil all the ingredients together until the sugar melted and mixed with the water and take a light yellow colour.
MELOMAKARONA Ingredients 1 cup (250 mL) vegetable oil 1/2 cup (125 mL) unsalted butter, softened 2/3 cup (150 mL) granulated sugar 2/3 cup (150 mL) orange juice 1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla 4-3/4 cups (1.175 L) all-purpose flour 3/4 tsp (4 mL) baking powder 3/4 tsp (4 mL) baking soda 1/4 tsp (1 mL) salt 45 walnut halves, halved 1 cup (250 mL) finely chopped walnuts
Syrup 4 cups (1 L) water 2 cups (500 mL) granulated sugar 1/2 cup (125 mL) orange blossom honey or wildflower honey or clover honey 1/2 lemon
Procedure In saucepan, boil water, sugar, honey and lemon half until reduced to 3 cups (750 mL), about 35 minutes. Discard lemon. (Syrup) Meanwhile, in large bowl, whisk oil with butter; whisk in sugar until combined. Whisk in orange juice and vanilla. In separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir into oil mixture. Knead to form smooth dough. Roll by 1 tbsp (15 mL) into balls. Press walnut quarter into each. Form into oval, enclosing walnut. Place, 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, on parchment paper–lined baking sheets. Bake in 350°F (180°C) oven until golden, 16 to 18 minutes. Let cool on pans for 2 minutes; slide paper and cookies onto racks. Return syrup to boil. Remove from heat. Dip warm cookies into hot syrup for 5 seconds, turning to coat; transfer to racks. Immediately sprinkle chopped walnuts over top, pressing slightly. Let cool completely.
VASILOPITA
New year’s pie Ingredients 1 glass sugar 1 glass oil 4-5 eggs 1 glass orange juice grated orange peel Vanilla 3 cups pastry flour 3 teaspoons Baking Powder 24-30 blanched peeled almonds 1 coin
Procedure Mix together the oil and the sugar in the mixer. Add the eggs and beat well. Slowly pour in the orange juice, the vanilla, the grated orange peel and the flour. Stop the mixer, put the coin in and mix for a while. Put the pastry in the pan, and write the number of the New Year (2013) on the top with almonds. In about 50 minutes it’s ready!
QUESADA PASIEGA Ingredients 1.200 gr. fresh cheese 100 gr. butter 4 eggs 125 gr flour Grated Lemon Ring 8 gr. Ground cinnamon Procedure Mix the ingredients (Butter, eggs, flour, grated lemon rind and cinnamon) into a paste. Cut the cheese and grind with a fork, add to the mixture and to mix again. Put the mixture in a ovenproof dish with butter. -
OVEN 180º.
-
TIME 30 OR 45 MINUTES.
TURRÓN DE ALICANTE
It´s a TURRÓN DE ALICANTE
Christmas dessert. Ingredients 250 g. Honey. 200g. Sugar. 4 egg whites. 300g. toasted almonds. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. 1 tablespoons corn syrup. 3 tablespoons water. 10 Waffles discs (optional). Procedure Beat egg whites until they`re white and fluffy. Boil the honey over medium-high heat until it becomes a thick caramelconsistency. Mix the honey and the egg whites. Continue to beat the mixture with a wooden spoon. Add the vanilla extract and cook with the double boiler method. Note: If you don´t have a double boiler available, place a medium-sized pot inside a slightly bigger and deeper pot, fill the bigger pot with water so that the smaller one is halfway submerged. Continue stirring until you achieve a caramel consistency. In a separate pot over high heat cook the sugar, corn syrup and water until you obtain a caramel. Once you have the caramel add the mixture and the almonds. You have 2 options for assembly:
a. OPTION 1 i. Grease a working surface. ii. Place the mixture and roll out with a rolling pin, shape to your liking. iii. (it`s usually sold in a rectangle shape). iv. Let it cool. b. OPTION 2 i. if you find the oblea cover a rectangular baking sheet with the oblea. ii. Roll out the mixture and let it cool. Break into pieces. When cooled the candy should be really hard.
ROSCON DE REYES "Roscon de Reyes" is a traditional dessert, served the night before or morning of “Reyes” or Epiphany, January 6th. It’s the day when children in Spain receive gifts from "The Three Wise Men", the 3 kings who brought baby Jesus gifts. Instead of gifts from Santa Claus, they receive them from "The Three Kings” It is traditional to put several surprises inside the "roscon." A porcelain figure of a baby wrapped in foil and a dry bean are hidden in the dough. Whoever finds the baby will have good luck and be the king of the party, but if you find the bean - pay for the cake!
PREP TIME: 3 hours COOK TIME: 30 minutes TOTAL TIME: 3 hours, 30 minutes Ingredients 4 cups unbleached flour 1/2 tsp salt 1 Tbsp yeast 2/3 cup mixed lukewarm milk and water (of equal parts) 6 Tbsp butter 6 Tbsp sugar
grated rind of 1 lemon grated rind of 1 orange 2 eggs 1 Tbsp brandy 1 Tbsp water 1 egg white, lightly beaten candied fruit pieces, cherries, oranges, etc.
Procedure Serves 8-10. Sift flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Make a hole in the center of the flour. In a small mixing bowl, stir and dissolve the dry yeast in the lukewarm milkwater mixture. Once dissolved, pour the yeast into the center of the flour. Stir in just enough flour from around the bowl to make a thick batter. With your hand, grab about a teaspoon of the flour from the side of bowl and sprinkle it over the top of batter. Cover bowl with a kitchen towel and leave in a warm place, away from any draft. Allow batter to turn spongy, about 15 minutes. In a medium-size mixing bowl, use a hand mixer or whisk to beat together the butter and sugar. The mixture should be smooth and creamy. Set aside.
Put grated orange and lemon rinds, eggs, brandy and water to the bowl with flour mixture. Mix all. The dough will be sticky. Beat flour mixture until it is elastic and smooth. Beat in butter-sugar mixture and mix until the dough is smooth. Dough should be formed into a ball, then covered with oiled plastic wrap. Cover bowl with a kitchen towel and leave it again in a warm place and allow to rise until doubled in size. This will take approximately 1.5 hours. While you are waiting for the dough to rise, grease a large baking sheet with vegetable shortening and set aside for use later. If you will use a baking stone, no need to grease it Once dough has doubled, remove plastic wrap and punch dough down. Lightly flour a clean counter or cutting board and place dough on it. Knead for 2-3 minutes. Then, using a rolling pin, roll dough into a long rectangle 5-6 inches wide Roll the dough on the long side into a sausage shape. Carefully place the dough onto the large baking sheet or stone and connect the ends together, forming a ring. If you will hide a bean or a small foil-wrapped, ceramic figurine in the cake, now is the time to tuck it under the dough. Cover with oiled plastic wrap again. Leave in a warm place and allow to double in size. This will take about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Heat oven to 350F degrees. Lightly beat white eggs in a bowl. Uncover the dough and brush the top of the cake. Decorate the ring with the candied fruit pieces. Push them into the dough slightly so that they do not fall off. Place in oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool on a rack before serving.
In the last half of the 20th century, filling the roscon with whipped cream or
a
thick
custard
became
popular.
Today
about
a
third
of
the roscones sold in Spain are filled. If you want to fill yours, use a bread knife to slice the bread in half horizontally and carefully remove the top. Next, squeeze in the whipped cream or filling you've chosen and carefully replace the top. Keep refrigerated until serving if filled with cream or custard.
GOULASH SOUP Gulyรกs leves (for 4 persons) Procedure: Finely chop a large onion and lightly fry in 2 tablespoons of fat. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of red paprika Toss in 400 g beef cut into cubes Add salt, a green pepper and a tomato and steam under lid until almost tender. Add 200 g of mixed sliced carrot and parsley root (white carrot) 300 g diced potatoes, caraway seeds if liked, and 1.2 liter of water. Cover and simmer until tender. When serving a few rings of hot green peppers can be added to garnish.
The famous Hungarian gulash was originally a soup, but plenty of meats, potatoes and little noodles, it can be eaten as a main course.
Little noodles (pinched noodles) Procedure:
Kneed a stiff dough from approx. 100g plain flour, 1 egg and salt Plunge the stiff dough piece into flour and pinche off some little flat pieces (5x5x2 mm) from it and drop them onto a plate. Continue this until all the dough is gone. During this procedure the plate can be shaken gently so the small noodles do not stick each other Cook the noodles in the readymade soup until tender.
PAPRIKA CHICKEN Paprikรกs csirke
(for 4 persons) Procedure Finely chop a large onion and fry in 2 tablespoons of fat until transparent. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of mild to hot paprika Toss in a 1.2 kg chicken that has been joined and fry for a few minutes over a strong heat to brown. Add a green pepper and a tomato, both sliced, salt and simmer in its own stew under a lid until tender with occasional stir. If water is not enough, replenish Blend 1-2 teaspoons of flour in 40-50 cl sour cream and add the meat Boil well and add salt if needed. Serve with gnocchi tossed in butter or noodles.
Chicken paprika with pinched noodles and a fine rich paprika gravy is not exactly suitable for a weight-reducing diet, but it is very delicious.
DOBOS GATEAU Dobostorta (for 16 slices) Procedure Beat 6 eggs yolks with 120 g castor sugar Gradually add 200 g flour and the stiffly beaten whites of 6 eggs and 30 g melted butter. Spread on an upturned, greased and floured sponge tin and bake 6-10 rounds from mixture. Caramelize 150 g sugar with 1-2 drops of vinegar and pour over the most attractive slice. Before the toffee hardens, use a knife to cut lines on the surface to mark the slices. To make the cream filling, mix 4 spoons of milk, 150 g castor sugar and 100 g grated chocolate in a bowl over boiling water, beating until thick. Allow to cool then whisk with 20 g castor sugar flavoured with vanilla and 200 g butter. Spread this cream on the sponge rings and on the side of the cake, carefully place the ring with the toffee on the top and decorate with whipped cream. Recommended wine
EASTER BAGELS from Karpasia area Ingredients 3 kg of flour 2 glasses of sugar I glass of butter ½ kg of soft unsalted cheese (mizithra) 1 teaspoon of mastic and mehlepi mixture 1 teaspoon of cinnamon 3 yeast sachets 1 teaspoon salt 2 glasses of sesame that you have wet in water for some hours Milk (as much as the recipe needs)
Method Put the flour in a large bowl. Tip the yeast and ½ cup of sugar in the middle of the flour and pour over some water on top of the yeast. Leave it for 15 minutes until the dough in the middle of the flour feels soft and elastic. Then put all the rest of the ingredients (except milk) and stir with your hands. Then add the milk, a little at a time, and knead ingredients together until mixture is soft but not sticky. Roll into bagels and then roll bagels in dried sesame. Bake in medium oven.
FLAOUNES
Flaounes are the traditional Easter cheese breads we make in Cyprus. Traditionally they are made on Holy Thursday and it’s not an easy job.
The preparations usually start from the previous day and on Thursday the majority of the female members of the family get up at the crack of dawn to start preparing them.
These cheese breads are made with a very flavourfull bread dough and filled with a cheese called «Pafitiko» made during the Easter period for flaounes. However, this can be substituted by a mixture of other Cypriot cheeses . Let’s make flaounes
Ingredients Yeast dough 1 ½ lbs (750gr) strong plain flour 1 sachet easy bake yeast 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons sugar 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil, water to mix. Cheese filling 20oz flaouna cheese 4oz (100gr) halloumi, 1 tablespoon flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1 tablespoon crushed dried Mint,
4 eggs, lightly beaten. To finish 1 egg, beaten, sesame seeds.
Method Sift flour into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast, salt and sugar. Add the oil and enough water to make a firm dough. Knead for at least 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Put the dough in a plastic bag and leave in a warm place for an hour to rise. For the filling, coarsely grate the cheeses, add the flour and baking powder then gradually stir in the beaten egg and seasonings until you have a stiffish paste ( keep some of the beaten egg back if the mixture becomes too runny). Divide the dough into egg sized pieces and roll these into 4'' (10cm) discs. Place a generous tablespoon of filling in the centre of each pastry disc, spreading it slightly. Pull dough up at 3 points to make a triangle, or 4 points to make a square. You should still be able to see the filling in the middle. Press corners together to seal and leave to rise. Just before baking, brush with beaten egg and sprinkle some sesame seeds over the finished flaounes. Bake in a hot oven gas 8, 450'C, 230'C for 12-15 minutes until cheese filling is puffed and flaounes are golden. Serve warm or cold.
PATTIES WITH ANARI CHEESE
Ingredients Half a kilo of flour (rustic) 1.5 cups of water 1/5 of the cup oil (peanut oil) 1 teaspoon of salt 1Kg unsalted fresh Anari cinnamon 2-3 tbsp sugar (depending on how sweet you want them) little rosewater Icing sugar for dusting
Method First, sift the flour. Throw the oil and water, add one teaspoon of salt and knead. When kneaded well, make them in ball shape and put in nylon to prevent becoming dry. Let it rest about 2 hours. In a large bowl put Anari unsalted. Add cinnamon, sugar, rosewater (just a little bit because when you put too much it gets bitter) After adding all the ingredients, melt the Anari with a fork. Showdown with the rolling pin. Before opening the flour dough, throw little flour on the table so it will not stick.
With tablespoon get 1/2 spoon of Anari and put it on the open flour dough. Make it a ball and repeat with as many balls as fit in your row. Leave space between the balls (about 10cm. Turn the dough over them until they are completely covered. Get a glass and start cutting the balls. Then put the oil to boil and cook until the dough is cooked. Invert with a spoon to cook everywhere. When cooked remove from the oil and put in a colander to get rid of the oil or put a tissue on the plate to absorb the oil. Finally throw with a small colander a little caster sugar over it and‌ ready!!!
SOBAOS PASIEGOS
Ingredients Ingredients for 8 people: 250g of butter 250g of flour 250g of sugar 1 packet of powdered yeast 1 spoonfuls of rum 3 eggs salt.
Procedure Mix the softened butter with the beaten eggs, the rum, the sugar and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Meanwhile, put the flour and the powdered yeast in a separate receptacle; Add the mixture to the other ingredients. When everything is in, stir until it forms an even mixture, without lumps. Pour the mixture into paper cases or on to a baking tray greased with butter until it is about half the size it will reach when it rises with baking. Put in the oven at about 180ยบC for about 15 minutes.
MILK TOAST
Ingredients 750 gr. bread 1 liter milk 100 gr. sugar cinnamon egg and oil for frying sugar and cinnamon to complete.
Procedure Cut the bread slices over a centimeter. Heat the milk with the cinnamon and sugar. Wet the bread slices with the milk. Put the bread in the egg and fry in hot oil. Put sugar and cinnamon on top.
SPANISH TAPAS Spanish Omelette (Tortilla EspaĂąola) A delicious potato omelette which can be served as a tapas, warm, cold with salad... Ingredients Ingredients, for 4 people: 4 eggs 1/2 kilo potatoes Olive oil (one glass, or Âź litre) Salt
Procedure: Wash and cut the potatoes into thin slices. Heat the oil in the pan, and add the potatoes and salt. Fry, stirring occasionally. Tip: If you prefer the potatoes to be soft, use a spatula to mash them as they are frying. As soon as they are a golden colour,remove from the pan and put the potato mixture either in a sieve or on kitchen paper, so that as much oil as possible drains away or is absorbed. Beat the eggs well with a pinch of salt, and add to the potatoes. Mix well. Put two small spoonfuls of olive oil in the frying pan, so that the bottom of
the pan is covered with at thin layer of oil. Once the oil is hot, add the potato and egg mixture. Tip: shake the pan gently as you move the mixture, so that none sticks to the bottom. Once the omelette seems to be cooked, use the lid of the frying pan (or a large plate) to tip the omelette out of the pan, add a little more oil and slide the omelette in again, this time putting the less cooked side first into the pan. If you need to repeat this step, so that the omelette is perfectly cooked and golden on both sides, you may do so. This omelette is delicious hot or cold.
HEN SOUP Hen Soupin Ede ĂšjhĂĄzyStyle Ingredients 2 kg hen 250 gr. cleaned carrot 100 gr. cleaned parsleyroot 60 gr. cleaned celeryroot 60 gr. cleaned kohlrabi (Hungarianturnip) 100 gr. cleaned champignon 60 gr. cleaned onion 200 gr. cleaned cauli flower 100 gr. fresh Green peas Cloves of garlic a sweetbell-pepper a sweet tomato 1 bunch of parsley salt, whole black pepper and a piece of ginger
Procedure Cut the cleaned and washed hen into 8 pieces (use the liver and the gizzard too), then put into cold water and bring to a boil. When boiling, using a skimmer, skim the foam from the soup and season with salt to your taste.
Make a small bag with spices, put some whole black pepper, a piece of ginger, cloves of garlic and an onion. Put it in the pot. Continues immering the soup, when the hen is half cooked, break the cauliflower up into small florets and add to the pot, put the cleaned vegetables, the mushrooms, green peas, ball-pepper, tomato and the bunch of parsley into the pot. Cover and simmer very gently. After the soup has cooked for the appropriate time and the hen is soft, take it out of the soup, let cool for a short time, remove bones and discard, and then cut the meat julienne (3-4 cm long, 1x1 cm prism). Pull the soup aside, and let it rest for about 10 minutes, then pass the soup through a fine sieve (you can use a filter-paper too). Take the carrots, parsley roots and mushroom out of the soup, and cut them into strips. When serving, put some meat strips, and some mixed vegetables into soup bowls, some florets of cooked cauliflower, green peas, mushroom, and some vermicelli, strawberry-leaf or shell-shaped noodles separately cooked in small amount of soup. Ladle the hot soup on them, and then sprinkle with fresh, finely chopped parsley. You can serve this soup in a soup-tureen too, but in this case you don't need to bone out the meat, only cut into smaller chunks. After eating the soup, you can offer some tomato-sauce or pickled grated horse radish for the meat.
BEEF STEW WITH PAPRIKA Ingredients 800 g beef (shankor chuck) 20 mm cubes, 3-4 spoon ful soil 1 onion chopped, 6-8 teaspoon of paprika powder, 2 teaspoon salt and half teaspoon black pepper (taste), 1 tomato chopped, 1 green pepper sliced, 1 dl. Red wine, 1-2 dl. water, Procedure Cut the onion into small pieces and Brown it in oil. Brown the meat and sprinkle paprika powder and deglaze the pan with red wine and add little water. Add all ingredients and add enough beef stock or wรกter to cover meat. Simmer with cover 1-2 hours or until the meat is tender. Sometimes you must check it, and if needed add more water. Serve it with noodles, over dumplings, and eat it with vinegary hot Apple pepper. The best way of this dish when make it out door, in three legged hanging stew-pot, over fire. You can try now your own chili pepper souce (hot or sweet).
GERBEAUD SQUARES (Zserbo Szelet)
An old Hungarian recipe‌
Preparation: 2 hours + cooling + one night in the fridge Ingredients (for a 20 x 20 cm baking dish, at least 4 cm high):
Ingredients 320g flour 180g butter 40g sugar + 1 teaspoon pinch of salt 1 egg 1 1/2 teaspoon dry yeast 3 table spoons warm water (not hot!) Filling: 1 jar of apricot jam 150 g ground walnuts (fresh lyground and moist taste better) Topping: 70-100g bitter chocolate 40 g butter
Preparation Combine the yeast, the warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar. In the meantime mix the flour with the butter until fine crumbs are created (or do this with your hands). Add they east mixture, the egg, a pinch of salt, 40g sugar and mix or knead until you obtain a smooth dough. Divide it into three or four equal parts. Form them into balls, place in a big bowl and cover. Leave them for 15 minutes. Line the baking dish with baking paper, leaving it hanging a bit on at least two sides (it will be easier to remove the baked cake). Sprinkle a rolling pin and the rolling surface with flour. Roll out the first ball into the baking dish’s dimensions. (Here my friend A. gave me a very simple trick consisting of placing the baking dish next to the rolled out pastry, first in height and after wards in width. Then you simply cut out the square with a knife). Transfer the rolled out and measured layer delicately and put on the bottom of the dish. Spread it with some apricot jam and sprinkle with walnuts. Repeat the operations, finishing with a layer of pastry. (If you have four pastry layers, there should be three filling layers). Cover the cake and put aside for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C Bake the gerbeaud for 30-40 minutes until golden. Remove it from the oven and let it cool down completely.
Melt the chocolate and the butter. Turn the cake up side down (the bottom is neater so the top surface will be neater too, I found this idea on the Hungarian desszert.euwebsite) and put back into the baking dish with the baking paper. Spread the chocolate – butter mixture on the cake and put it into the fridge. Serve cut into rectangles.
RESI This is a traditional dish served at customary wedding feasts. Two or three days before the wedding, the couple’s friends gather at the house of the bride. They wash and grind coarse wheat grain using hand mills while leaving time for music and dancing. The day before the wedding, they cook resi. They serve it to the guests at the wedding feast.
Ingredients 1 kg lamb with fat on A piece of fat from the tail (vakla) 4 cups of cracked wheat berries 1 red onion, finely chopped 2 litres lamb broth Additional hot water Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1/2 tsp cumin 1/4 cup lemonjuice
Procedure Wash the lamb and put it in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, add salt, lower heat and simmer until it is well cooked and falls from the bones. Remove from the heat and strain, reserving the broth. Set aside and when it can be handled, carefully remove all the bones, cutting the meat and fat into smaller piece. Put back into the pot with the lamb broth. Add the onion, season with salt, pepper, cumin and bring to a boil again. Meantime wash the wheat berries and add to the meat. Lower heat and cook for about 45 minutes to an hour, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add more water, if necessary, until the berries are soft. Turn off the heat and leave it absorb all the water for at least 4-5 hours. Serve warm with lemon juice on top.
OFTON KLEFTIKO What inspired the name? It is said that the dish is named afterkleftes, the 19thcentury guerillas who fought the Ottomans. In an effort to keep their hideouts secret, they developed a method of cooking that produced no smoke, literally burrowing fire-pits into the ground in which they could bake, not grill, their meat, thereby protecting them from Ottoman detection. Ingredients 1 Kg goat or lamb 5 potatoes salt pepper
Procedure First find the meat. It should then be butchered into large pieces, still on the bone, and seasoned sparingly. Peel the potatoes and cut them in halves. Place the meat and potatoes in terracotta pots. Season them with salt and pepper.
Pour in some water and seal well, in preparation for high-
temperature baking. This method will produce excellent, buttery kleftiko, with the meat falling away from the bone into a stew of its own rendered fat and skin. In some areas of Cyprus they wrap the meat in carob leaves instead of placing in terracotta pots. This method gives the food a smoky flavor. Cook in the classic Cypriot clay fournosor oven, forabout 4 hours. This oven resembles a wood-burning pizza oven, with incredibly thick walls in a semicircular, domed shape, but with a smaller opening.
DAKTYLA KYRION Daktyla kyrion (meaning ladies fingers) is one of the most known Cypriot pastry desserts.
Dough ingredients 3 cups of flour 1 cup of water (preferably blossom water) 1 tbsp of salt 1/2 a cup of corn oil Syrup ingredients 1 cup of sugar 2 cups of water 1/2 a cup of honey 1 tbsp of lemon juice 1 small cinnamon stick 2-3 cloves Filling ingredients 1 cup of crushed almonds 1/4 a cup of crushed walnuts 1/2 a tsp of cinnamon powder 2 tbsp of sugar For garnishment 1/2 a cup of crushed roasted almonds
Procedure Place in a bowl the flour and salt and mix. Add the oil and again mix well. Add the water and knead until the dough becomes thick. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it sit for about an hour. Place all the filling ingredients in another bowl and mix well until the mix is nice and thick. As the dough is getting ready for use you can prepare the syrup. Place all the ingredients in a sauce pan and in low heat, prepare the syrup until it thickens slightly. By this time your dough is ready for use. Knead again for a few minutes and divide it in several pieces according to the space you have to roll it out. Roll out the dough in thin sheets and cut in rectangular pieces about 4Ă—3 inches. In each piece place in the center 1 tsp of the already prepared filling. Fold over length wise and with a fork press the ends for the dough to join. After you have used all the mix you prepared, fry Daktyla in plenty of oil until they get golden brown and place on paper towel to drain the oil. Before Daktyla get cold, dip them in the ready mixed syrup and strain again the excess. Place them in a platter and sprinkle them with the crushed roasted almonds. If any dough is left, fry it, dip it in the remaining syrup and enjoy.
SPANISH ROAST LAMB Roast Lamb is a very typical dish in Spain, especially in weddings. It is not difficult to prepare it, it only needs time. This roast lamb recipe serves 4 people with one half of a suckling lamb, weighing 2 kilos and a half. : Main ingredients (Half of a suckling lamb) Lard or butter. A clove of garlic. Juice of one lemon. A glass of water.
Ingredients for the side dish 4-5 small potatoes. 1-2 onions.
Procedure Preheat the oven to 160ยบC. Apply the butter or the lard on a large, open, clay dish and spread also a little bit on the lamb.
Peel and cut the potatoes into slices and place them on the bottom of the dish. Slice the onions and mix them with the potatoes. Season the lamb with salt and place it on the dish. Add two glasses of water. Put the dish in the preheated oven and place under it a bowl full of water with a smashed clove of garlic inside. Roast it for 40 minutes. Then, turn it and add a little bit of water. Continue roasting for 40 minutes more. After that, add some lemon juice (not on the meat). Raise the temperature of the oven to 180ยบ. Roast it until lamb is golden, for about 5 minutes. Then, turn the lamb so that the other side gets golden, too. Place meat and vegetables on a platter and enjoy your meal.
HAKE STUFFED WITH SEAFOOD RECIPE Ingredients for the stock The head of the hake. The head of the langostines 1 leek 800 ml of water 25 ml of olive oil Salt
Ingredients for the stuffing 250 gr of langostines 150 gr of peeled prawns 100 gr of fresh mushrooms 2 cloves of garlic 1 leek A stream of cognac Olive oil Sal
Ingredients for the sauce The stock of the hake Olive oil
1 spoon of flour 5 spoons of fried tomato Salt
Optional Ingredients Some clams to decorate the dish
Procedure for the stock First, heat the olive oil and cook the onion. Fry lightly the head of the hake, the langostines’ heads and the chopped leek. Then, add the water and the salt. Let it boil for about 15 minutes.
Procedure for the stuffing While the stock is being cook, heat some olive oil in a big pan. Fry lightly the chopped garlic and the leek. Once the leek is transparent, add the sliced mushrooms and mix it. Add the minced langostines, the prawns and some salt. When everything is just right, sprinkle with the cognac. Turn up the heat so that the alcohol evaporates. Transfer the mixture into a bowl and save it.
Procedure for the sauce Add some olive oil in a pot. Before it becomes very hot, add the flour and stir it. Add the fried tomato and mix it. Strain the stock we did before and pour it into the pot. Stir it and turn up the heat, bringing it to the boil. Add some salt and let it boil for about 5 minutes.
Procedure for the hake Preheat the oven to 200ยบC. Place the hake on a large, open, baking dish. Fill it with the stuffing we saved before. Close the hake and secure the openings with wooden picks. Pour the sauce over the hake. If you want, decorate the dish with some clams. Put the dish in the preheated oven and bake it for about 30 minutes. Fish is done when flesh can easily be broken up with a fork.
ALMOND PASTRY CAKE The pastry made in Torrelavega is very well known all over Spain. Actually, the Pastry and Lamb Journey that takes place every year in the town has gained an important reputation. The recipe below belongs to the most typical cake in Cantabria.
Ingredients for the pastry 1Kg of flour 900gr of butter 100gr of lard 25gr of salt 500cl of water
Ingredients for the butter cream 1kg of butter 1kg of sugar 15 eggs 300gr of almonds
Ingredients for the topping 300gr of almonds 100gr of icing sugar
Procedure for the pastry Preheat the oven to the highest power. Knead the flour, the lard and the salt using cold water until the ingredients are well combined. Wrap the dough with the butter. Laminate the resultant paste and fold it into sixths. Let the paste settle in the fridge for about 20 minutes. Place the dough in the pie plate and pinch the paste in order to control the volume of the pastry. Put the dish in the preheated oven and, after a while, lower the temperature to 200ยบC. Bake it until it is ready.
Procedure for the butter cream Cool down the eggs. Add the sugar and beat the mixture for 20 minutes. Melt the butter and add it slowly.
How to assemble the cake Place on a dish one layer of pastry. Place on top of it a layer of butter cream. Repeat those two steps with the 6 layers of pastry. Then, chop the almonds. Cover the cake with the almonds and the icing sugar.
Decorate the surface and the edges of the cake with butter cream, smoothing it using a spatula. Finally, sprinkle fine chips of pastry.