Saturday, December 19, 2020

Preserving Our Christmas Heritage

 Wesołych Świąt 

  
This year Christmas celebrations will be vastly different from previous years.  Covid 19 restrictions are curtailing large family get-togethers so our Wigilia menu will be simpler than in years past.  Yet, it is important that we do not forget the traditions and celebrations of  previous generations.  Its up to all of us to preserve our heritage and bring back all the great foods and holiday traditions just as soon as it is safe.  

Christmas in Poland was simpler back in the day.  Carols were not sung for weeks ahead. There was no Black Friday or Cyber Monday, and the holiday in general was not as commercial as here, today.  Oh sure, the stores in big cities like Warsaw were crowded and decorated for the holiday.  Vendors on the town squares sold shiny baubles and other decorations.  Folks everywhere rushed to finish their last minute shopping.  All over there was excitement in the air – the anticipation of sacred Christmas traditions and the biggest celebration of the year.  

As the late afternoon turned to dusk, the shoppers headed for home and the busy streets grew empty and quiet.  The feast received its final touches, everyone was dressed up in their finest.   The kids were scanning the sky looking for the first star, which meant that Wigilia was about to begin.

As Peter was growing up, his family always made a significant effort to preserve as much of the heritage as possible.  Nothing began until he saw the first star.  They started by sharing the blessed wafer.  As the family gathered round the table, everyone shared a piece of blessed wafer with everyone else.  The wafer is a symbol of love, friendship and forgiveness, allowing everyone to extend their best wishes for the coming year.

There always was an extra place setting at the table for the lost traveler who might come to the door, and there are small boughs of greens or hay, representing the Mary and Joseph’s stable lodgings for the night.  The supper was meatless and in the olden days consisted of twelve courses, one for each of the apostles.  Poppy seeds were always included as a symbol of peaceful sleep and honey for sweetness and contentment.  


Menus have always varied a bit, according to each family’s customs, but the menu that Peter’s  family followed when he was a boy, included:  

Herring in Sour Cream
Clear red Barszcz,

Crepes with a wild mushroom and sauerkraut filling
White fish in a light butter sauce, served with hard boiled eggs and
        boiled potatoes
Dried fruit compote
Poppy seed rolls, nut rolls, honey cake and honey cookies.


After the feasting has ended, and the belt buckles loosened a notch or two,  the family adjourned to the Christmas tree to sing Christmas carols, and open gifts.  The evening was topped off by a visit to the local church for Midnight Mass.

Today, we’ve dropped the herring, swapped the white fish for salmon, and lately given up on the dried fruit compote because it takes a while to prepare.  But those are concessions made to changing food preferences and the practicalities of our modern lives.  The core traditions remain in place. 


When Laura prepares Christmas Eve supper (Wigilia), following these traditions that Peter grew up with, these stuffed crepes are everybody’s favorite part of the meal.  They go really well with a cup of Classic Barszcz, which is a classic way to serve them.  The blend of savory sauerkraut mixed with earthy mushrooms is an amazing combination.  This dish is an ideal starter, whether for Christmas Eve or any other festive meal.  



Yields 8 to 10 crepes

Crepes
1 cup milk
2 eggs
1 cup flour
½  cup water
½  teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil

Mix the milk with the eggs, flour, water and salt in a blender or hand mixer at low speed.  Heat a small non-stick skillet which measures 6 to 7 inches across the base (crepe pans are great) and brush or lightly spray the bottom with cooking oil.  Pour a small amount of batter into the medium hot skillet. (For a 6 inch pan use a just under 1/3 cup of batter per crepe.)  Immediately start swirling the pan around so the batter will evenly cover the bottom and put back on the burner.  When the crepe becomes firm on top, maybe 50 to 60 seconds, and just starts to lightly brown on the bottom, flip it over and cook the other side for another 15 seconds or so.   Remove the crepe from the pan and stack on a plate with a sheet of wax paper between crepes to prevent sticking.  Continue this process until all the batter is used – you should get 8 to10 crepes from one batch.

Filling
½  pound sauerkraut
2 tablespoons butter or rendered bacon fat  
1 onion, chopped 
4 ounces mushrooms, sliced
salt and pepper
1 hard boiled egg, chopped
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 egg beaten
½  cup bread crumbs
3 tablespoons butter

Rinse the sauerkraut thoroughly in a colander.  Squeeze the sauerkraut to remove the excess water.  Place the sauerkraut in a small amount of boiling water.  Cook for 20 minutes and drain.  Heat the butter or bacon fat in a skillet, add the onions and fry until golden.  Add the mushrooms and fry an additional 3 minutes.  Add the sauerkraut and fry until golden.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Remove from the heat and add the egg and sour cream.  Mix well.


Spoon a small amount of the filling into the center of a crepe.  Fold the crepe in envelope fashion to completely encase the filling.  Roll the stuffed crepe in egg and then in bread crumbs.  Gently sauté the crepes in butter until golden on both sides.  Serve either warm.
Smacznego!


Saturday, December 5, 2020

Bigos (Hunter's Stew) The King of Polish Comfort Food

 Witamy !

Winter is upon most of us and to celebrate the cold weather, while staying indoors, there's no better way than to cook up a big pot of Hunter's Stew - or better known in Polish circles as Bigos - the national comfort food of Poland.  As Peter is working on this post, Chef Laura has a big pot of Bigos simmering on the stoveWe are sharing this recipe again from previous posts, because it is so popular the world over. 

 

This is classic and traditional comfort food at its very best. The base is sauerkraut to which we add kielbasa, bacon, pieces of pork and or beef roast, dried mushroom for distinct flavor, some onion and tomato for background, and basically stew the heck out of it for several hours. It’s even better if prepared the day before, giving all the flavors time to marry and hang out with each other for a while.  

The recipe below is based on a classic Warsaw version handed down from Peter’s Grandmother.  But truth be told there are a “gazillion” varieties of this hearty dish since every town and every village in Poland, and probably every cook has their own version.  As we travel to various Polish heritage festivals around the U.S. with our books and programs, we’ve noticed that the cooks at every church use some Babcia’s recipe.  Each is a bit different and each is always popular so that Bigos is often the first dish on the menu to sell out.  The beauty of Bigos is that the proportions don’t matter that much and the flavors will all come together, no matter how you change things up to make it your own.  

We really like to serve it with some boiled potatoes and black bread on the side.  Peter is a bit more adventurous and will "do" a couple of shots of ice cold Polish vodka. It's the authentic Polish way. 

Peter likes Luksusowa potato vodka because it is very smooth and a great value for the price.  Sometimes he'll pair his meal with a cold beer, but Laura prefers hers with a hearty red wine.


Serves 5-6
1/4 cup dried mushrooms
1/2 cup water
2 pounds sauerkraut
1 apple, peeled, cored and sliced (optional) 
1 small onion, chopped finely
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
5 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1 cup fully cooked Polish sausage, sliced and quartered
1 cup leftover meat (pork, beef, veal) chopped in 1 inch
         pieces
1 cup coarsely chopped bacon, pre-cooked to render fat

Soak the dried mushrooms in hot water until soft.  Transfer the mushrooms and their water to a small pot and simmer for about 30 minutes.  Drain the mushrooms but be sure to save their the liquid.  Chop the mushrooms into rough pieces. 

Wash the sauerkraut twice, thoroughly squeezing out the water each time.  In a large pot, combine sauerkraut, mushrooms and their reserved liquid.  Add the apple, tomatoes, peppercorns and bay leaf.  Add a little water or broth if needed, and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Be sure the liquid doesn’t all boil off. 

Pre-cook the bacon at least half way to render most of the bacon fat and rough-chop.  Add all the meat and bacon.  Cover and simmer 1 hour longer, stirring occasionally.

This dish tastes much better when reheated the next day.  

Serve with potatoes, and crusty dark bread. It pairs well with either icy vodka, hearty red wine like a cabarnet sauvignon, or beer. 

Smacznego!


PS:  This is a great crockpot dish – cook on high for 2 hours then low for about 6 hours.  Reheat the next day until hot throughout.