Sarma, Stuffed Cabagge Rolls

Sarma is the king when we are talking about Serbian food. Probably the most authentic dish in Serbian cuisine. Sure, you will find stuffed cabbage rolls in other Eastern European countries, but Serbian recipe calls for pickled cabbage leaves, not fresh ones, and, believe me, that makes a huge difference.

Serbs are so crazy about Sarma that they make it for any important event: weddings, slava (holiday dedicated to family's patron saint), Christmas, New Year's Eve, name it.

Serbian Christmas Feast: SMashed Potato, Sarma and Prebranac (Baked beans).

Fall and Winter are the seasons for making Sarma. This dish is too heavy for the Summer, plus it is hard to find pickled cabbage that time of the year. In Serbia, people pickle cabbage at home, starting in the early Fall, by putting whole cabbage heads in big barrels, adding only water and salt. Although I've never made it myself, I know it is not easy to make good pickled cabbage. One of the tricks is to keep cabbage heads tightly pressed by putting heavy weight on top of the barrel. Although we preserve cabbage mostly for use in Sarma, we also shred it to make healthy low-calorie winter salad, adding sweet paprika on top of it. It is very similar to sauerkraut and the taste is the same. Also, people drink the juice from barrel to cure hangover.

Around Spring time, as the weather warms up, if supplies have not been completely depleted, you will start to notice rather unpleasant smell from barrels with preserved cabbage. Pray that your neighbors, who keep cabbage barrel on their balcony, remove it soon, otherwise you are in trouble.

For good Sarma you need well preserved cabbage leaves, not too firm or soft, not damaged either. If you do not live in Serbia, you can buy it in some specialized ethnic stores with imported food. They are sold in big jars or plastic bags.

Pickled Cabbage Leaves in the Jar.

The most complicated part of this recipe is folding cabbage leaves into Sarma rolls. Pay attention to the steps on the pictures below. Also, although Sarma takes long to be cooked, do not overcook it. Rice in the filling should stay firm enough.

Serve the dish with mashed potatoes, and pair it with Merlot. 

You need:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

5-6 slices of smoked bacon

1 large onion, chopped

1 garlic, finely chopped

500g (1 1/10 lb) ground beef

500g (1 1/10 lb) ground pork

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 ground black pepper

1 cup rice

2 large jars / packages pickled cabbage leaves

Water to cover

Smoked pork ribs, optional

Finishing sauce:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon flour

1/2 tablespoon paprika

Preparation:

In a saucepan, cook oil and onion on medium heat for few minutes. Add beef, pork, salt and black pepper, mix everything together and keep stirring until meat is cooked medium well. Remove from the heat and add garlic and uncooked rice. Mix rice with the meat uniformly.

Now you are ready to fold rolls.

Lay cabbage leaf flat on the cutting board.

Trim down the central rib, so the leaf remains uniformly thick and soft. Make sure you don't puncture it.

Put about 2 tablespoons of meat-rice mixture on the leaf, side closer to you.

 

Roll the leaf outward. When completely rolled, use your index finger to push leaf sides in the middle of the roll. 

Finished roll should have shape of a cylinder.

Gently put roll in a big saucepan which bottom had been previously covered with few leaves (this is to protect rolls from being burnt at the bottom).

Repeat the process until you run out of ingredients and saucepan is filled with rolls.

Tuck in slices of bacon among rolls, this will give Sarma nice, smoky flavor. Gourmet option would be to add smoked pork ribs.

Cover rolls completely with water and if there are any leaves left, use them to cover the dish on the top. Simmer Sarma covered for about 90 minutes on low-medium heat.

When Sarma is done, pour over it the sauce that you made by lightly browning flour on oil on medium heat for a minute or so, adding paprika at the very end. The sauce will give thickness, color and extra flavor to the water in which the dish was cooked, so the liquid can be used when serving Sarma, as a gravy on top of rolls or mashed potatoes.

Urban Gardening in Baltimore, part 4 - Swiss Chard (Swiss Chard Frittata)

So far Swiss chard is the best value plant in my garden. I have been using it in my kitchen for the last 4-5 months. Absolutely amazing plant! There are so many soups, pastas, side dishes that I made with it that is hard to remember all of them. Swiss Chard Frittata is my favorite since eggs, bacon, cheese and this veggie are the combination you can't beat.

You need:

A large bunch of Swiss chard

4 slices of smoked bacon, chopped

1 Tbs. unsalted butter or olive oil

1 shallot, chopped

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

8 eggs

3/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese

Salt and black pepper

Steps:

Boil Swiss chard, leaves and stems in hot water for few minutes. Wash it with cold water and drain it well. Chop it.

Preheat the oven to 400F(205C).

Beat the eggs. Add grated Pecorino Romano, salt and black pepper, then fold in chopped Swiss Chard.

Heat the butter in large pan and cook chopped bacon until becomes crispy. Add shallot and garlic. After 2 minutes pour egg mixture over bacon and onion. Cook it for 5 minutes until the sides become firm.

Transfer it to the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

When it's done, leave it in the pan for few minutes. Then place serving plate over the pan and turn it upside down to drop whole frittata onto plate. Alternatively, serve directly from the pan.

Eat with tomatoes, from your garden if possible.

Check out my other garden-to-table posts:
Urban Gardening in Baltimore, Part 1 ( Arugula)
Urban Gardening in Baltimore, Part 2 (What Can You Make with Kale)
Urban Gardening in Baltimore, Part 3 (Cucumber) 

Gypsy Shrimp Kebab

Not sure if you are going to find any recipe with this name because I made it up.  However, there is a reason for that. In Serbian cuisine you will find kebabs or skewers with meat and veggies called Gypsy Kebab (Ciganski ćevap). That is less expensive version of all-meat kebabs and that is why it became Gypsy. I thought it would be fun to add a twist using shrimp which is very far away from original recipe. So, that is how I came up with this idea.

You need for four servings (12 skewers):

1 lb medium size shrimp (about 36 pieces)

Salt and black pepper

A piece of ginger (2 inch long), finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

A handful of chopped fresh parsley

1/3 cup olive oil

1 yellow bell pepper

1 green bell pepper

1 red bell pepper

2 zucchini

12 cocktail tomatoes (bigger than cherry tomatoes with a great flavor)

1 red onion

1 white onion

Steps:

First clean the shrimp, remove shell and deveine. Make marinade with garlic, ginger, parsley, salt, black pepper and olive oil. Place shrimp in marinade and let stand for one hour in the refrigerator.

Cut the onions and bell peppers in rectangular pieces, zucchini into thick semi circles, tomatoes leave whole.

Place shrimp and vegetables on the wooden skewers as you like. I used this order, from bottom to top: a piece of zucchini, white onion, shrimp, green pepper, tomato, shrimp, green pepper, zucchini, shrimp, and red pepper. You can add more meat if you prefer. Cover the kebabs with the rest of the marinade, season with salt and pepper. Let stand for a while.

Grill kebabs over medium heat, about 5 minutes each side. Shrimp takes little time to be cooked, after few minutes they get pink and that means they are done.

This recipe is featured in free online magazine Mezze (page 69).

Roasted Lamb with Five Herbs (Parsley, Mint, Thyme, Garlic and Rosemary)

If you plan to make a lamb leg for the following Easter and kind of hesitate because it usually takes  several hours to be done, you should buy a piece of butterflied leg of lamb that can be done in 40-45 minutes. You can marinade the lamb with these herbs and leave it overnight in the refrigerator, or you can follow my method of preparation.

You need:

2 lb. butterflied leg of lamb
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1 teaspoon dried or fresh rosemary
Half of bunch fresh parsley
Half of bunch fresh mint
2 cloves garlic
2 scallions
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and black pepper


Steps:

Remove the meat one hour before preparation. Chop herbs, scallions and garlic, mix with olive oil, add lemon juice, salt and black pepper.

Rub the meat with salt and black pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Put it in the oven, on the middle rack, and broil it for 10 minutes each side. Remove the lamb from the oven and put the herb mix on it. Cover the pan with aluminum foil. Bake it at 325F (170C) for 20-25 minutes to obtain medium rare meat. Few minutes before the lamb is done remove the aluminum foil.

Serve it with Tzatziki sauce and flat bread.

This recipe is featured in online magazine Mezze

Hungarian Veal Goulash with Dumplings

In a few days I am traveling to Europe and I can’t wait. No matter how happy I am to live in the U.S., I miss many things from my home continent. One of them is food… there are days when I crave so much stuff that can be tried only in Europe. I mean, I can make them here too, but it is not the same. For example, what Americans call veal meat, in my home country it is considered beef… which means the meat was from an animal too old to be called veal. I know it sounds terrible talking about meat that way, but I really enjoy my status of non-vegetarian. Real veal is very soft and tender, one of the best meat that you can possibly have. Too bad I can’t find it here… Anyway, my stews are good even with let’s say “young beef”, I only have to cook it a little bit longer.

Goulash is a Hungarian stew that is popular all over Eastern and Central Europe. It is always made with ground paprika and a lot of onions and of course meat. What it is really cool about this dish is having it with dumplings. Of course, you can have this stew with potato or noodles, but dumplings are the perfect choice.

Another traditional Hungarian dish, very similar to goulash, is paprikash. The only difference is using flour to thicken the latter. The paprikash recipe can be found here.

You need:

1 lb. veal for stew cut in 1- inch squares

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 lb. (2 large) onion, sliced

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 cups water

2 teaspoons sweet paprika

3 bay leaves

3 thyme sprigs

½ teaspoon caraway seeds

1 celery stalk

Salt and black pepper

1/2 can (4 oz.)  crushed tomato

For dumplings:

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

5 tablespoons flour

Salt

Steps:

1. Slice the onions. Heat the oil in a medium pot and add onions. Sauté it until it turns brown. Add garlic.
2. Pour in 2 cups of water. Simmer onions for 15 minutes.
3. Add veal, paprika, celery, thyme, caraway seeds, bay leaves, salt and black pepper. Bring the stew to boil and lower the heat. Simmer it for at least 2 hours. The more you cook, the better the goulash will be. Before the meal is done add crushed tomatoes.
4. While the stew is cooking, make the dumplings. Beat an egg, add a tablespoon of water, salt and flour. Mix everything together and leave it to rest for 30 minutes.
5. When the goulash is done, drop the dumplings by teaspoon, one by one. When they start to pop up, after few minutes, they are cooked. My suggestion is to double the number of dumplings since the first day we ate them all.

Boeuf Bourguignon and Visit to Julia Child’s Kitchen at the Smithsonian Museum

Two weeks ago I finally visited Julia Child’s Kitchen at the Smithsonian Museum. Unfortunately, it was overcrowded, I hardly could see anything and took only a few pictures. For sure, that was not the place to contemplate about one of the most famous culinary personalities in American history. So, I missed the moment.

I saw her kitchen through the window... I thought it was rather small... poor Julia, never had kitchen of the appropriate size, with her height it must have been a pain to work there. Also, I noticed her picture from the French period... she was standing next to her stove that was a little above the height of her knees. Kudos to her effort to overcome that setback and become such a great cook.

I like her in the movie “Julie & Julia”, but I like her even more since I read her book “My Life in France”. She was lucky enough to live in that part of Europe in the most exciting time... yes, that was just after the Second World War, that was tough time, but everything was so authentic, no mass tourism, no mass food, etc. I like how she remembered some of her meals, every detail, and that was more than fifty years ago. But, what impressed me the most is her enthusiasm, her dedication and her discipline when it is about food. She was able to make some dishes so many times, varying measures and ingredients, until she got the right flavor, right texture, right shape... almost like a scientist. And when she found the best recipe she put it in her cookbook. She liked to be very precise about measuring... I have to admit sometimes I am too lazy to measure stuff when I cook, but then I think “What would Julia say about it?” and I decide to obey her rules. Funny but true.

If I try to choose her most distinctive and famous recipe, I would always pick Boeuf Bourguignon. Even Julia described this dish in her cookbook as "certainly one of the most delicious beef dishes concocted by man." Indeed, if you want to make something really peculiar, something that doesn’t remind you of anything you tried ever you should have this dish. I halved her measurements because it was too much for the two of us, baby is not included, and we were eating the dish for tree days. Original recipe asks for braised pearl white onions... for some reason, my closest grocery store didn’t have them, but I put its recipe below so you can make it. Even without those onions the meal tastes perfect.

I took the recipe from Julia Child’s book “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”, but I changed the measurements, halved them, and adjusted the directions to the modern cooking, no bacon rind...

You need:

• 9- to 10-inch, fireproof casserole dish, 3 inches deep
• 3 ounces bacon
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil or cooking oil
• 1 1/2 pound lean stewing beef, cut into 2-inch cubes
• 1 sliced carrot
• 1 sliced onion
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 Tbsp. flour
• 1 1/2 cup dry red wine
• 2 to 3 cups brown beef stock or canned beef bouillon
• 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 cloves mashed garlic
• 1/2 tsp. thyme
• Crumbled bay leaf
• 18 to 24 small white onions, brown-braised in stock
• 1/2 pound quartered fresh mushrooms, sautéed in butter
• Parsley sprigs

  

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 450F degrees.
2. Sauté the bacon in the oil over moderate heat for 2 to 3 minutes to brown lightly. Remove to a side dish with a slotted spoon. Set casserole aside. Reheat until fat is almost smoking before you sauté the beef.
3. Dry the stewing beef in paper towels; it will not brown if it is damp. Sauté it, a few pieces at a time, in the hot oil and bacon fat until nicely browned on all sides. Add it to the bacon.
4. In the same fat, brown the sliced vegetables. Pour out the sautéing fat.
5. Return the beef and bacon to the casserole and toss with the salt and pepper. Then sprinkle on the flour and toss again to coat the beef lightly with the flour. Set casserole uncovered in middle position of preheated oven for 4 minutes. Toss the meat and return to oven for 4 minutes more. (This browns the flour and covers the meat with a light crust.) Remove casserole, and turn oven down to 325F degrees.
6. Stir in the wine, and enough stock or bouillon so that the meat is barely covered. Add the tomato paste, garlic, herbs, and bacon rind. Bring to simmer on top of the stove. Then cover the casserole and set in lower third of preheated oven. Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.
7. While the beef is cooking, prepare the onions* and mushrooms**. Set them aside until needed.
8. When the melt is tender, pour the contents of the casserole into a sieve set over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the beef and bacon to it. Distribute the cooked onions and mushrooms over the meat.
9. Skim fat off the sauce. Simmer sauce for a minute or two, skimming off additional fat as it rises. You should have about 2 1/2 cups of sauce thick enough to coat a spoon lightly. If too thin, boil it down rapidly. If too thick, mix in a few tablespoons of stock or canned bouillon. Taste carefully for seasoning. Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables. Recipe may be completed in advance to this point.

* Brown-braised small white onions

Heat 1 ½ tablespoon of butter and when it starts to bubble add 18-24 peeled small onions. Cook it for 10 minutes. Roll the onions over the pan to get even brown color. When browned, add ½ cup of beef bouillon and herbs (1 thyme spring, 2 parsley springs and a bay leaf tied together in twine). Cover it and simmer slowly for 45-50 minutes. 

**Sautéed mushrooms

Heat two tablespoons of butter in the pan. Add quartered mushrooms and fry them on high heat. Season it. After 5 minutes of cooking, before mushrooms start to release water, remove it from the stove.

You can serve Boeuf Bourguignon with pasta or with boiled potatoes which is honestly the best.

p.s. I am still waiting for my husband to buy me Julia Child’s two volume set “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”. I think I was pretty clear that I wanted it as a present.

Paprikash - Hungarian Chicken Stew (Pileći paprikaš)

This dish of Hungarian origin is very popular in Eastern Europe. There are many versions of it, I think every family has one, but this recipe is my favorite. Paprikash made of various vegetables and meat is an ideal comfort food. Paprika spice, sweet or hot, is an essential part of the meal. This seasoning is made from ground dry red pepper and used to add color and flavor the stew. Nowadays, you can buy it everywhere. I prefer this Hungarian brand. (see picture below) 

People usually serve this dish with pasta or noodles, but I like it best with molded polenta. (see pictures)

 

You need:

• 1 lb skinless chicken breast, cut up
• 8 oz (250g) mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped (canned tomatoes is ok as well)
• 1 Tbs. vegetable oil
• 1 Tbs. sweet paprika
• Salt and black pepper
• ½ cup water
• 1 Tbs. all-purpose flour
• ½ cup sour cream (optional)

Steps:

1. Chop and slice all vegetables and meat too.
2. In a large saucepan heat vegetable oil and add chopped onions and sauté it until soft.
3. Add chicken cut in small pieces. Stir fry until they are brown.
4. Stir in 1 tablespoon of paprika.
5. Add mushrooms, green pepper, tomatoes, garlic, salt and fresh black pepper.
6. Cook stew over medium low heat for 20 min. Cover the saucepan. Stir occasionally.
7. Mix water, flour and sour cream and stir in the stew. In 5 min, paprikash is done.

If you want to serve it with polenta, make it before the stew, put it in some small bowl and move to the freezer. After about 45 min, you will get firm polenta in the shape of the bowl. 

 

Sauerkraut with Kielbasa

To be honest sauerkraut is not the most sophisticated food in the world, but in the winter time everybody craves it. Add some meat such as pork, sausage and bacon and you’ll get perfect harmony of ingredients. Sauerkraut is very popular in Middle and Eastern Europe, it is almost like a staple.

This time I chose Kielbasa, a sausage that has origin from Eastern Europe, to marry sauerkraut. And, I added pasta too. It goes very well with sauerkraut, especially if it is made of whole wheat. 

My favorite combo is sauerkraut with smoked pork intestines. It sound wild, but that’s really good food. I used to eat it when I was a child visiting my grand-parents on country side. Grandpa had a smokehouse where he made interesting stuff. (See picture on the bottom).

Recipe is super easy.

You need:

• 1 medium jar (1 lb) sauerkraut
• 1 big (14 oz) Kielbasa (I like pork, beef and turkey mix), sliced into ½ inch tick pieces
• 2 oz diced smoked bacon
• ½ package (about ½ lb) of whole wheat penne pasta
• 1 medium onion
• 2 tbs. vegetable oil
• 2 bay leaves
• Salt (maybe you wont need it) and black pepper

Steps:

1. Drain sauerkraut.
2. Heat the oil in the large pan. Add bacon, and after 5 min add sliced Kielbasa and chopped onion. Cook it together for additional 7 min on medium heat.
3. Then, add drained sauerkraut, bay leaves and black pepper. Cook it covered on low medium heat for 45 min. More you cook it’s better. Stir it occasionally.
4. Make pasta. Follow directions from the package. Keep in mind whole wheat pasta needs more time to be done.
5. In meantime preheat the oven to 350F (175C). Remove everything to casserole pan, add pasta, mix it, try to see if you need salt. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and put in the oven. Bake it for 45 min. I like crispy top so I uncover it 15 min before the end.

This dish goes best with beer.



My grandpa's smokehouse

Gorgeous Risotto with Wild Mushrooms

Last fall I became addicted to risotto...  to any kind. Finally, I found a good recipe how to make a great basic risotto. And, I started to make different combos... with saffron, different veggies, cheeses and spices, etc....and, I ended up with Ina Garten's wild mushrooms' risotto. I have to admit I didn't follow all details from her recipe, I did many things on my own, because I knew it could be even more better than hers. That was such a feast for all my senses! I don't have words to describe it... earthy, creamy... an incredible flavor. I have never tried anything so good as this risotto.

You need:

• 1 pound fresh crimini mushrooms
• 1 oz of each: dried porcini and crimini mushrooms (all can be found in Whole Foods)
• 1 1/2 cup Arborio rice (why Arborio, it's simply the best for risotto)
• 1 big finely chopped onion
• 5 chopped scallions ( I always add scallions whenever recipe asks for onion, because they have such a great flavor)
• 1 chopped shallot
• 1 oz diced pancetta
• 3 tbs. butter
• 3 tbs. olive oil
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and black pepper

Steps:

1. Soak dried mushrooms in 2 cups of hot water for 30 min. Drain them and cut, and add the rest of water,  where mushrooms have been soaked, to chicken broth.
2. Slice fresh mushrooms, chop onions and dice bacon.
3. Bring chicken broth and mushroom liquid to a simmer.
4. In a large pan heat olive oil and butter. Add onion and bacon, and after 5 min all mushrooms. Saute them altogether for 5 min over medium heat.
5. Add rice and stir to coat the grains with butter. Cook for 2 min on medium-low heat.
6. Pour white wine and two full ladles of chicken broth and cook for 7 min. Add a cup of broth every time when rice absorbs liquid with constant stirring.
7. Rice will be done in about 25-30 min total. Time sometimes varies as the amount of liquid. It should be al dente done.
8. Add grated Parmesan cheese, salt and fresh black pepper and last ladle of chicken brought. Stir it until you get dense and creamy texture.
9. Serve it immediately.

Notes: I served this risotto with broccoli rabe sauteed with garlic and flavors came up perfectly together.
If you want to eat risotto later, just reheat it and add some chicken broth.