|
|
||||||||
|
FRUITS AND VEGETABLESi Vaisiai ir darþovës The most popular vegetables have always been cabbages, beets, carrots,
cucumbers, onions, rutabagas, turnips, radishes, parsnips and horseradish.
Cabbage is eaten fresh and fermented, seasoned with caraway seed, cranberries,
apples and salt. Beets are used fresh, fermented and are available all
year round. In summer, cucumbers are eaten fresh and in autumn and winter,
fermented and pickled. Onion is the traditional, primary, aromatic vegetable.
Other popular aromatic plants are dill, caraway, marjoram, garlic and horseradish.
PICKLED CUCUMBERS
10 k (20 lbs) pickling size cucumbers
Use a crock or wide mouth glass jar, rinsed with boiling water. Place
a layer of seasonings in bottom of container, add a layer of cucumbers,
continue layering until container is full, end with layer of seasonings.
Prepare brine solution, if pickles are for immediate use, 2 or 3 days of
fermentation, place 1 1/4 cup salt in 40 cups of water. When pickling for
winter use, add 4 cups of salt in same amount of water.
PICKLED RED BEETS
Choose small, even sized, raw beets. Peel, wash and place in glass,
wooden or enameled container, cover with brine solution, made with 1 teaspoon
salt in 4 cups water.ZAdd several black bread crusts. Place saucer at top
of container and weigh down to keep beets covered with brine.ZBeets are
ready in 1-2 weeks. Such beets are fermented in cool spot and keep well
for the whole year. They are used to make soups, in salads and in many
other dishes. Fermented beet juice is used as a natural acidifier in soup,
meat, fish, vegetable dishes and in drinkZpreparations. Raw beets make
true fermented beet juice.
PICKLED COOKED BEETS
Peel cooked beets, cover with cold brine solution made with 1 teaspoon
salt in 4 cups water. Add one black bread crust, weigh down, place container
with beets in a warm spot.
BEETS WITH HORSERADISH
4 beets, cooked, finely grated
Mix grated beets with grated horseradish, vegetable oil, lemon juice
and salt.
BEETS WITH FAVA BEANS
2 cooked, pickled beets, cubed
Peel cooked favas, cut into halves. Fry onion slices in hot oil with
pepper, salt, and bay leaves. Mix beets, favas and onions, sprinkle with
caraway seed.
BEET SALAD
2 cooked pickled beets, cubed
Fry onion slices in hot oil. Cool and mix with cubed beets, adjust
seasonings and mix well.
BEETS WITH HERRING
2 cooked beets, peeled and coarsely grated
Cover grated beets with sauerkraut juice, sugar and onions. Cut smoked
herring into small pieces and mix with beats. Blend well.
FAVA BEANS WITH HAM
1 l (4 cups) cooked fava beans
Cut cooked favas into halves, pour into bowl, add cubed ham, horseradish,
cover with sour cream and mix well. Just before serving, cover with scallion
greens.
NAVY BEANS WITH BACON
1 cup cooked navy beans
Fry cubed bacon, add onion and sour cream mixed with flour. Blend
well and heat, stirring for about 3-5 minutes. Pour bacon-onion-sour cream
sauce over beans, mix well.
FAVA BEANS OR PEAS SERVED WITH BEER
1 l (4 cups) favas or peas
Soak favas or peas for 12 hours, then cook in well salted water.
Water should cover legumes. When legumes are soft, drain, add caraway seed,
shake well so that caraway covers all the legumes. Pour favas or peas into
a bowl and serve along with beer.
GARLIC WITH FAVAS
12 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Mix garlic, favas and carrots, add sour cream, pinch of salt and
blend all ingredients.
SAUERKRAUT
10 k (20 lbs) cabbage; 1/2 k (1 lb) carrots, peeled and coarsely
grated
Use wood, glass or enameled container, rinsed with boiling water.
Place several cabbage leaves at the bottom of container. Chop cabbage and
mix with carrots, cranberries, caraway seed, salt and sugar. Add in layers
of 20-25 cm/10 inches and tamp down each layer so that no air pockets remain.
Fill container to about 10 cm/4 inches from top, cover with linen cloth,
place cover and weigh it down. There has to be about 2-3 cm/1 inch of liquid
above cover. Let ferment at 65F/16-20C. After 3 days, take off cover and
with a wooden stick poke holes in the cabbage to let escape gas formed
during fermentation. Five days later, clean cover, weigh down again and
move container to a cold place.
SAUERKRAUT AND FAVA BEAN SALAD
1/2 l (2 cups) sauerkraut
Sprinkle sugar on sauerkraut, add favas, mix. Fry onion in hot oil
and pour into sauerkraut-fava mixture. Add caraway seed, pepper and salt
to taste. Blend all ingredients.
SAUERKRAUT SALAD WITH HORSERADISH
1/2 l (2 cups) sauerkraut
Combine all ingredients, mix well.
SAUERKRAUT SALAD WITH ONIONS
1 l (4 cups) sauerkraut; 3 onions, finely chopped
Place sauerkraut into bowl. Fry onion in hot oil, add pepper, bay
leaves. Add onions to sauerkraut, mix and let sit for a couple of hours
so that oil soaks into sauerkraut.
HORSERADISH SAUCE
1/2 cup freshly grated horseradish root
Mix sour cream with horseradish, sugar and salt. Mix well.
HOT HORSERADISH SAUCE
3 tablespoons freshly grated horseradish root
Brown flour in melted butter for about 3 minutes, add vegetable broth,
horseradish, lemon juice and salt. Blend well and bring to a boil on low
heat. Add sour cream, heat gently, but do not boil, until sauce thickens.
ONIONS STUFFED WITH BEETS
4 onions; 1 cooked, pickled beet
Scoop out onion centers, leaving solid walls. Chop scooped out onion
centers. Dice beets, add salt, pepper, chopped onions and sugar. Mix all
ingredients and fill onions with beet mixture. Place filled onions on a
serving platter, cover with fermented beet juice.
ONION SALAD WITH BEETS
4 onions, sliced
Place sliced onions in a bowl, cover with beets, pour fermented beet
juice over beets and onions, sprinkle with sugar, salt and pepper and marinade
for 3 hours.
TURNIP SALAD
1 medium turnip
Peel turnip and grate coarsely, cover and shake well. Add sour cream,
scallions, dill and salt. Mix well.
BLACK RADISH SALAD
2 medium black radishes, peeled
Cut black radishes into thin shavings, sprinkle with salt, cover
and shake to soften the shavings. Add sour cream, salt and blend well.
Sprinkle with dill.
SILK GRUEL
1 cup dried peas, soaked; 3 raw potatoes,
Cook well soaked peas until soft. Add grated potatoes to peas, salt
and continue cooking until potatoes are cooked.
PEA GRUEL
1/2 l (2 cups) dried peas, soaked
Cook well soaked peas. When peas are soft add flour and salt, cook
for 5 more minutes, stirring constantly. Pour gruel into a bowl and cover
with fried bacon pieces.
FAVA BEAN GRUEL
1/2 l (2 cups) fava beans, soaked
Cook well soaked favas until soft. Mash beans, add milk, salt and
grated potatoes. Stirring with wooden spoon, cook until potatoes are done.
Pour gruel into a bowl, cover with fried bacon and onion mixture.
BRIASED SAUERKRAUT
1/2 l (2 cups) sauerkraut; 200 g (6 oz) bacon, chopped; 1 onion, finely chopped Fry bacon with onion, add to sauerkraut and simmer on low heat until
sauerkraut has softened, about 30 minutes.
STUFFED CABBAGE HEAD
1 k (2 lb) cabbage, fresh or pickled
To make stuffing mix meat with bread, fried onions in butter, garlic,
eggs, salt and pepper. Mix all ingredients well.
PEA DUMPLING
1 l (1 qt) dried peas, soaked
Cook soaked peas in salted water until soft. Drain and mash peas
to a fine texture. Add salt, pepper, fried onions and mix well. Form oblong
dumplings using spoonfuls of pea dough. Place dumplings into casserole
dish, cover with sauce made with fried bacon or melted butter with sour
cream. Cover casserole, bake in preheated oven at 350F/180C, for about
30 minutes, until flavors are blended.
VEGETABLE NUTS
1 cup cooked peas; 1 cup cooked navy beans
Take peas, beans and mushrooms and process in food processor or use
meat grinder to make a fine puree. Add eggs, bread crumbs, onion fried
in butter, parsley, salt and pepper, blend well by hand or use food processor.
Form walnut sized dumplings, roll in flour and fry in hot oil until nicely
browned, about 10-15 minutes.
CARROT PANCAKES
1 l (8 cups) raw carrots, peeled and grated
Beat egg yolks with salt and potato flour, add to grated carrots.
Mix well. Beat egg whites and fold gently into carrot mixture. Place spoonfuls
of carrot mixture into hot oil, brown both sides.
BAKED APPLE SAUCE
8 sour apples, peeled and thinly quartered
Melt butter in a heavy bottomed skillet, add apples, bake on low
heat until apples are soft. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon, bake for
10-15 minutes.
APPLE CHEESE
5 k (10 lbs) apples, peeled and thinly sliced
Mix apples with sugar and let rest 48 hours, until juice is formed.
Pour off juice into a preserving pot, cook on low heat until half juice
has evaporated in cooking, and remaining juice darkens and thickens. Add
3/4 of apple slices and cook stirring constantly until apple mass is quite
thick and no juice remains, about 1 hour. Add remaining apple slices, cinnamon
and cook until last addition of apples is soft and light color, giving
the cheese a marbled effect. Pour apple mass into a damp cheese bag, tie
and place between two boards and weigh down for 2 days. Hang cheese in
airy spot to dry. Store in a cool but dry place.
|
||||||||
| PREVIOUS |
|
|||||||