It isn't every day I get an invitation to the Polish Embassy for a book launch, so when my invitation arrived, I RSVP'd quicker than you could stuff a cabbage leaf.
In the spotlight was this book - From a Polish Country House Kitchen by Anne Applebaum and Danielle Crittenden.
In the spotlight was this book - From a Polish Country House Kitchen by Anne Applebaum and Danielle Crittenden.
published by Chronicle Books, 2012, £25
Polish food isn't exactly a widely known cuisine, but with books like this one showing us how appealing it can be, it should be popping up more frequently on our culinary radar.
The book begins with an introduction by this unlikely American duo for writing the cookbook - Anne Applebaum,a Pulitzer Prize-winning author about the Gulags and Danielle Crittenden, International Blog Editor for the Huffington Post Media Group. They're both authors who are usually found writing about meatier issues such as Eastern European politics or women's issues. But Anne's Polish manor that has been refurbished and replanted with a fantastic garden inspired the two friends to bring the comfort of Polish cooking to a wider audience.
The authors readily admit they aren't aiming to be an authority on Polish cooking. Their desire is simply to share the tastes of the Polish countryside which still has a bit of the rustic; something many of us in the West have lost in the slick packaging of our supermarkets.
The book launch featured food made from the recipes in the book. It was a delicious opportunity to sample traditional Polish food like pierogis, eggplant caviar, cabbage rolls, and gingerbread cake. And on a cold London night, it was an enormous hit with my stomach. That's the thing about Polish food, it's comforting and depending on how you make it, doesn't have to be a stodge.
Here are some of the recipes that will bring a taste of the Polish countryside to your table:
The authors readily admit they aren't aiming to be an authority on Polish cooking. Their desire is simply to share the tastes of the Polish countryside which still has a bit of the rustic; something many of us in the West have lost in the slick packaging of our supermarkets.
The book launch featured food made from the recipes in the book. It was a delicious opportunity to sample traditional Polish food like pierogis, eggplant caviar, cabbage rolls, and gingerbread cake. And on a cold London night, it was an enormous hit with my stomach. That's the thing about Polish food, it's comforting and depending on how you make it, doesn't have to be a stodge.
Here are some of the recipes that will bring a taste of the Polish countryside to your table:
- Herring with Sour Cream and Apples
- Summer Beet Soup
- Cabbage Rolls with Meat Stuffing and Wild Mushroom Sauce
- Pork Loin Stuffed with Prune
- Kasha
- Braised Cabbage with Wine and Nutmeg
- Plum Cake
- Poppy-Seed Torte
Can't wait to see this one too! Since my first visit to Poland last year, I've been interested in learning more about Polish cuisine (beyond borscht)
ReplyDeleteThere is certainly a lot more to Polish food than borscht, that's for sure. I find the pierogis irresistible.
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