Friday 15 February 2013

Polish Spring brunch for 4, part II

fresh celery root salad / salatka z korzeni selerowych
celery vinegar I / ocet selerowy
bulls eye eggs / wole oczka z jajek
braised liver with bacon / watroba duszona z wedzonka
dumplings stuffed with cabbage / pierozki z kapusta
baby carrots in polish style / mloda marchewka po polsku
cracklings / chrusty



Here`s hearty fare for brisk , early spring. Invite several guests over for a warm visit and enough good food ta tackle the chilliest of March days !


FRESH CELERY ROOT SALAD
salatka z korzeni selerowych

4 celery roots, cleaned, pared and diced
3 apples, pared, cored and diced
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup celery vinegar

Combine all ingredients, lightly  toss, and chill for several hours. Serves 4.
Note : other vinegar may be substituted.



surówka z selera i jabłek
CELERY VINEGAR
ocet selerowy

Boil  a quart of white vinegar with 10 peppercorns , 1 teaspoon salt and 4 cups of finely chopped young celery roots for 3 minutes. Pour mixture into sterilized glass bottles, seal and let steep for about 4 weeks. Then strain, and pour into a decanter.



BULLS EYE EGGS
wole oczka z jajek

4 eggs
4 slices french bread
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
lettuce leaves
4 anchovy fillets

Remove centers from bread and saute crusts in butter. Pour half the cream in the bottom of a baking dish. Arrange the bread crusts. Break an egg into each crust . Pour the remaining cream  evenly over the eggs. Bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes. Serve in lettuce cups with an anchovy over each egg.


BRAISED LIVER WITH BACON
watroba duszona z wedzonka

4 slices bacon
4 tablespoons bacon fat
1  1/2 pounds calf`s liver, cut into 1/2-inch  slices
1 cup milk
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste

Fry  ( do not boil) the bacon until its crisp. Reserve the bacon fat and crumble the bacon into bits. Allow the liver to soak in a milk for 3 hours. Remove any membranches. (Snip out the veins with kitchen scissors.) Dredge the liver slices in the seasoned flour and brown quickly on both sides in the bacon fat. Liver should not be overcooked; 5 to 10 minutes is sufficient. Liver should be pink inside. Sprinkle bacon bits over the liver before serving . Serves 4.



DUMPLINGS STUFFED WITH CABBAGE
pierogi z kapusta

1 pound boiled cabbage
1/2 pound dry cottage cheese
1 minced onion
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste

DOUGH:

2 eggs
3   1/4 cups flour
dash salt
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons bread crumbs

Drain cabbage and chop coarsely. ( A blender works well here.) Combine with the cottage cheese. Lightly saute the onion in the butter. Combine with  cabbage - cheese mixture and season to taste.
To make dough, combine the eggs , flour and salt. If necessary, add a little of water to get desired consistency to knead a smooth, loose dough. Roll out very  thinly and cut into 3-inch squares. Place a teaspoon of the filling on each square. Fold over to form a triangle and pinch the edges together.
Cook a few at a time in large pot of boiling, salted water for 5 minutes or until htey rise to the top.
Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm until all are finished.
Drizzle the buttered bread crumbs over the dumplings just before serving.


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Carrots are often maligned through no falt of their own. Supermarket usually only supply carrots with the size and tenderness of bludgeons. If you can , find young carrots, harvested while still slim and only about 4 inches long for a mouthwatering treat, the basis of this next recipe.


BABY CARROTS IN POLISH STYLE
mloda marchewka po polsku

2 bunches of carrots
1 teaspoon sugar
dash salt

Scour the carrots with a vegetable brush. (Do not peel.) Place in 1  1/2 cups boiling water to which the sugar and salt has been added. Simmer , thightly covered, for 10 to 12 minutes. Drain, and garnish with buttered bread crumbs.

BUTTERED BREAD CRUMBS

use equal amounts of butter and dry bread crumbs. Melt the butter over low heat, then add the crumbs. Saute for 5 minutes or until lightly toasted, while stirring constantly to prevent burning.

****

Cracklings, also known as kindling, are a crispy cookie-like pastry that resembles sticks, or kindling wood; hence its name. Following are three versions of the same recipe.

CRACKLINGS
chrusty

1

1/4 cup butter
1 cup flour
3 egg yolks
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup light cream
salt to taste
honey

Combine the butter and the flour; add remaining ingredients to form a smooth paste. Roll out thin and cut into 4 x 1-inch strips.
Make a short , lenghtwise slit in the center of each strip, and pass the other end of the strip through the slit. Repeat until all the dough has been used.
Deep fry until golden brown. Drain and serve with honey.

2

2 cups flour, sifted
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vinegar
1/2 cup sour cream

Combine the flour, butter,sugar and eggs. Gradually stir in the vinegar and sour cream and knead until solid enough to roll. (Extra flour might be necessary.) Proceed as in 1.
Note: A piece of raw potato placed into the hot oil will eliminate much of the odor of frying. A piece of bread added to the hot fat will keep the oil from spitting, or splashing out.

3

8 egg yolks
8 tablespoons sugar
1  1/3 cups light cream
3 tablespoons rum
2  1/2 cups flour

Beat the eggs yolks with sugar. Add the cream and rum. Gradually mix the flour into the batter until it is solid enough to roll out. Proceed with the rest of the directions as in 1.


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