Let's Talk About Food: Тушеная Капуста и Ватрушки

Тушеная Капуста

Ватрушки

      One of the many activities I enjoy partaking in would be cooking and when I can put two loves together in one, it's magical! So I would like to share two of many loves I have: food and Russian. I found a website created by a Russian cook and her family. They put traditional Russian recipes with little twists up on their website but they also like to put twists on many other types of food. If you like to cook and try new recipes go to their website at: http://natashaskitchen.com/
     The two recipes that I will be trying out soon and have pictures of above are Тушеная Капуста (Russian braised cabbage) and Ватрушки (Sweet cherry filled buns). Everything about Тушеная Капуста is about the same as it was originally made in the past but Ватрушки is not originally made with cherries, they are typically filled with just farmer's cheese. Both dishes are very popular in Russia and Ukraine. Тушеная Капуста can be made for a main dish for dinner and it's major components are cabbage, pork, and shredded carrots. Ватрушки is clearly a dessert but it could also be eaten for breakfast, it's major components are dough, farmer's cheese, sugar and red cherries. If you want to try these recipes out soon like I am going to over holiday break here are the links to deliciousness!
Тушеная Капуста - http://natashaskitchen.com/2011/01/19/russian-stewed-cabbage-тушеная-капуста/
Ватрушки - http://natashaskitchen.com/2014/06/18/sweet-cherry-filled-buns-vatrushka-recipe/

Russian 101, Unit 2: Kulich

Russian Pasteries vary from pancakes to just regular cakes. However, there is one speacial cake that is offered every year on Easter Sunday known as Kulich. The Russians or families linage is from Russia sometimes say that this recipe was passed down by their great-grandmothers. The Kulich is a very tall, cylinder sweet cake that sometimes contain lots of almonds, raisins or fruits on the cake. The cake is usually sliced and is spread with a special sweet cheese known as paskha. The origins of the cake was to be said dated back when the Greek Orthodox Church forbid the comsumption of the 'forbidden ingredients' such as: eat meat, eggs, butter or other dairy products. Then, when Easter Sunday comes, the Church allows the people to eat the forbidden ingredients, making the cake famous for its large porportion of eggs and butter in the cakes ingredient.

Ingredients for Kulich

200 ml whole milk
25 g fresh yeast
450 - 500 g flour
200 ml sugar
4 egg yolks
3 - 4 egg whites
100 g almonds + some for garnishing
¼ tsp salt
150 g butter
(1 tsp vanilla sugar)
pinch of saffron threads
½ - 1 tbsp vodka

Russians Have Green Thumbs? Who Knew!

Over the course of the class I’ve been interested in comments on gardening in Russia. I’m actually fairly certain that my stomach growled a couple of times during discussions on all the fresh produce the Russian people treasure. I was the strange child who would happily choose an apple over a cookie or a handful of baby carrots over a piece of chocolate. So, I’ve now added experiencing fresh fruits and vegetables in Russia to my bucket list.

So, how has Russia cultivated this produce-rich environment? Potatoes, beets, cabbages, and other cold-tolerant greens are popular choices, along with vegetables like cucumber and dill that are often served as garnishes. Since many plants can’t grow during Russia’s harsh winter months, pickling vegetables – cabbage, cucumber, and rutabagas – in brine is used to preserve food for winter use. Pickled apples and other fruits are also favored. These provide vitamins and other nutrients during the time of year that fresh fruits and vegetables are not available.

Though many Americans are content to grab wimpy-looking produce from the nearest refrigerator during a dash to the supermarket, Russians are proud of what they grow and have a tendency to choose their food with much more care. In fact, according to a 2010 survey by a company called Romir, 39% of Russians equate high-quality produce with Russian produce and they often choose their fruits and vegetables at big open markets that sell locally grown products. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia (thankfully) lacked the funds to participate in the growing trend of genetically-modified food. The practices of Western bio-engineering were never applied to Russian agriculture, so it has retained its natural (and delicious) taste. According to the survey, 37% of Russians are willing to spend more to buy food free of genetic modifications and 41% are willing to spend a little more on “organic” products.

As you can probably guess, the United States uses more mineral fertilizers and pesticides than Russia, a result of Russia’s relative poverty. This misfortune could become an advantage in Russia as the organic food market continues to grow. More and more, Russian farmers are becoming major suppliers of organic produce and other foods. And as more of it is imported to the United States, I’ll definitely be buying.