CHRISTMAS EVE CLEAR BEETROOT SOUP
1 kg beetroot
3 bay leaves
6 grains allspice
pinch salt
vinegar or citrc acid
Slice beetroot into strips or grate coarsely. Add bay leaves, allspice, salt and a little vinegar or pinch of citric acid. Drench with lukewarm, pre-boiled water to cover and let stand over night. Next morning, strain through sieve, season to taste and bring to the boil.
PASTIES TO ACCOMPANY BEETROOT SOUP
1 kg flour
200 g margarine
3 teaspoon baking powder
20 g yeast
4 egg yolks
sour cream
pinch salt
Pour flour on bread-board, add remaining ingredients and work them together with knife. Work into a dough and roll out into thin rectangles. Prepare filling with sauerkraut and mushrooms as well as fried onions. Spread filling over dough rectangles, roll up and cut at an angel into pasties. Transfer to baking sheet, brush with beaten egg and bake in oven. For non-meatless pasties, a filling of minced cooked meat of poultry pâté may be used.
CHRISTMAS EVE MUSHROOM SOUP
100 g dried wild mushrooms
300 g button mushrooms
2 carrots
1 parsley root
1 onion
slice of celeriac and leek
2/3 cup sour cream
1-2 teaspoons potato starch
salt, pepper
Soak dried mushrooms and slice into narrow strips. Wash button mushrooms and slice into sticks. Bring 2 l water to the boil, add mushrooms, whole vegetables and seasoning. Cook until mushrooms are tender. Remove vegetables and cream soup with sour cream fork-blended with potato starch, mix well and bring tzo the boil. Swerve with white noodles or puff-pastry pellets.
CHRISTMAS EVE SAUERKRAUT
300 g dried mushrooms
150 g prunes
100 g raisins
2 kg sauerkraut
200 sliced onions
1 large carrot
2-3 teaspoons chopped dill
salt, pepper
Soak mushrooms and prunes and slice. Rinse raisins. Combine all ingredients in pot, drench with hot water and cook on low until sauerkraut is tender. Add dill after cooking is completed.
BEETROOT & MUSHROOM SALAD
1 kg beetroot
1 onion
1/5 cup oil
4 buds garlic
250 g pickled wild mushrooms
2 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons vinegar
salt, pepper
Cook beetroot and grate coarsely. Dice onion and fry in oil until transparent. Slice mushrooms. Combine all ingredients, season to taste, cover and let stand 4 hours.
MUSHROOM CUTLETS
1 kg button mushrooms
1 small bread roll
½ litre milk
3 eggs
1 onion
200 bread crumbs
salt, pepper
Cook mushrooms in water 30 minutes, drain and chop or grate on grater. Add milk-soaked roll, fried onion, 2 egg yolks, 100 g bread crumbs and 2 beaten egg whites. Mix and season to taste with salt and pepper. Beat remaining egg. Form patties with mushroom mixture, dip in egg and bread crumbs and fry in oil.
CABBAGE-FILLED PIEROGI
Dough:
½ kg flour
3 eggs
1 cup milk
pinch salt
Filling:
½ head cabbage
1 onion
several dfried mushrooms
3 tablespoons oil
½ glass water wody
seasoning
To prepare filling: chop cabbage fine, slice onion and chop fine, soak mushrooms and slice thin. Combine cabbage, onion and mushrooms, add remaining ingredients and cook on low heat about 30 minutes.
Combine dough ingredients, knead, cut into small pieces and roll out into circles. Place a portion of filling on each and pinch ends together to seal. Cook in lightly salted boiling water. When they float up, cook several minutes longer. Serve not or cold.
SAUERKRAUT & MUSHROOM PIEROGI
Dough:
½ kg flour
1 egg
pinch salt
water
Filling:
1 kg sauerkraut
100 g dried mushrooms
onion
oil, for frying
To prepare filling: Cook cabbage, soak and cook mushrooms. Drain and squeeze moisture from cabbage and mushrooms and chop fine together. Transfer onion, cabbage and mushrooms to frying pan in which oil has been heated, mix and fry several minutes.
Combine dough ingredients, adding just enough water to get a soft dough. Roll out thin and cut with drinking glass into circles. Place a portion of filling on each and pinch ends of dough together to seal. Transfer pierogi to lightly salted boiling water and cook 20 minutes.
POTATO-FILLED PIEROGI, PODLASIE STYLE
Dough:
1 kg flour
hot water
Filling:
3 kg potatoes
onion
pork fatback, for frying
salt, pepper
To prepare filling: Peel potatoes and grate on fine side of grater. Season with salt and pepper and fry in rendered drippings with finely chopped onion.
Work flour and water into a dough, roll put thin and cut into circles with drinking glass. Place a portion of filling on each, pinch ends together to seal and cook in lightly salted water. when they float up, cook several minutes longer. Garnish with fatback nuggets fried with chopped onion. These pierogi are best the next day, sliced and fried in fat.
POPPYSEED-FILLED PIEROGI
Dough:
1 kg flour
½ cup olive oil
50 g yeast
pinch salt
Filling:
2 cups poppyseeds mixed with sugar
Work ingredients into a yeast dough whilst adding warm water. Roll out dough to ½
cm thickness and cut into circles with drinking glass. Place a portion of poppyseed mixture on each. Seals ends together to form pierogi and fry in oil. When cool, dust with icing sugar.
FRIED CARP
1 carp
salt, pepper
Clean carp, removing gills and guts. Rinse under running water and cut into steaks. Salt, intersperse wtih onion and lemonm slices, cover and refriegrate 2-3 hours or overnight. Risne, pat dry, sprinkle with pepper, dredge in flour and fry on both sides in oil to a nice golden-brown. For a crispy skin bake in preheated 160°C oven one hour. Serve hot with prepared horseradish or horseradish sauce.
Horseradish sauce: combine equal parts prepared horseradish, sour cream and mayonnaise, season with lemon juice.
FISH IN MARINADE
1 kg freshwater fish fillets
oil, for frying
2 onions
Marinade:
1 cup vinegar
3 cups water
2 teaspoons sugar
5 peppercorns, 3 grains allspice, 1-2 bay leaves
1-2 days before serving, cut fillets into slices 5-6 cm wide, salt, pepper and set aside for 60-90 minutes. Dredge in flour, fry on both sides in hot oil and set aside to cool. Slice onion, scald with boiling water and set aside to cool.
To prepare marinade: Combine all ingredients, bring to the boil under cover and set aside to cool. In glass pan or bowl alternate layers of fish and onion, drench with marinade and cover. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
HERRING UNDER BLANKET
1 kg herring fillets
3 beetroots
1 kg potatoes
1 kg carrots
3 hard-boiled eggs
mayonnaise
Rinse fillets, and soak in water about 90 minutes, changing water once. Cook beetroots, potatoes and carrots, peel and cut into thin sticks. Chop eggs. Cut soaked, drained fillets into strips about 0.5 cm wide. In a (preferably glass) serving dish layer ingredients:
1. potaotes
2. herring
3. mayonnaise
4. beetroot
5. herring
6. mayonnaise
7. carrots
8. herring
9. mayonnaise
10. chopped egg.
HERRING IN OIL
½ kg herring fillets
2 onions
olive oil
Marinade:
2 cups cold pre-boiled water
2 cups vinegar
½ teaspoons sugar
2 grains allspice, 1 bay leaf
Soak fillets in water about 3 hours, changing it several times. Dice onions, scald with boiling water and drain. Cut fillets into small pieces and smother with onions. Prepare marinade, drench herring and onions and set aside for 12 hours. Drain off marinade and drench herring with olive oil.
CREAMED HERRING
½ kg herring fillets
Marinade:
3 cups cold, pre-boiled water
1 cup vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
2 grains allspice, 1 bay leaf
sour cream
Soak fillets in water about 3 hours, changing it several times. Dice onions, scald with boiling water and drain. Slice fillets into small pieces and smother with onions. Prepare marinade and with it drench herring and onions. Let stand for 12 hours. Remove herring from marinade and drench with sour cream.
BATTERED HERRING
½ kg herring fillets
1 sliced onion
Dough:
2 cups flour
1.2 g yeast
½ cup milk
⅓ cup water
3 eggs
Soak herring in water 3 hours, changing it several times. Cut fillets into pieces and smother with onions and let stand covered 1-2 hours. Prepare batter: dissolve yeast in milk, combine all ingredients and mix well. Dip fillets in batter and fry in oil. Serve hot or cold.
