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Polish Housewife

Polish recipes served up with tidbits of folklore, customs, and history

Holidays

Polish Almond Crescent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce)

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Polish Almond Crescent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce), Mexican Wedding Cookies, Russian Tea Cakes, they’re all delicate, rich nutty bites of shortbread. I found this recipe on the Polish food blog Raspberries and Cream.

The blogger, Ewen, says this recipes makes only two dozen, so go ahead and just plan on making a double batch. I have to agree; they’re rather addictive. They’ll keep in a sealed container for a week or so, but they may not last that long.

Polish Almond Crescent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce) coolies on a an enraved silver platter

Polish Almond Crescent Cookies for Christmas

This is a typical kind of Christmas cookie. On an another blog, I saw a similar recipe dubbed Advent crescents. I love to bake ahead of time for Christmas, freezing cookies, so I can put together trays with a nice assortment of holiday goodies for colleagues, hostess gifts, and for our family on Christmas morning.

For sturdy cookies like peanut butter blossoms, chocolate chip cookies, etc., I just put them in gallon size freezer bags and pop them into the chest freezer in the garage, but with something as fragile as Polish Almond Crescent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce), I’ll pack them carefully in layers into plastic containers before freezing.

Polish Almond Crescent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce) Delicate, Rich, Nutty Shortbread #polishhousewife #Poland #Polish #christmas #cookie #almond

What to do when your cookies aren’t perfect

My delicious cookies turned out differently than expected. They ran and spread more than they should have. While we will still eat them and enjoy them, here are things I’ll do the next time to try to improve the outcome. Let me share them in case someday you need these tips too.

  • I will bake one test cookies rather than putting a whole tray with two dozen cookies in the oven.
  • I only chilled my dough for 15 minutes. I will give it more time in the fridge (I’ve increased to 30 min in the recipe below, maybe it needs to be an hour
  • If chilling doesn’t fix it, I’ll work a little more flour into the dough, increasing the ratio of flour to butter and sugar because butter and sugar are the parts of the mix that make a cookie spread

I’m pretty confident the outcome will improve, but I hope you have perfect results the first time.

Smacznego!

Lois

I participate in an Amazon affiliate program which means that if you shop via the links below, Amazon sends me a few cents.
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Polish Almond Cresent Cookies (Migdałowe Półksiężyce)`

  • Author: polishhousewife
  • Prep Time: 20 min
  • Cook Time: 20 min
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 24 cookies
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A crisp almond shortbread cookie perfect with a cup of tea or a for a Christmas cookie tray

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter, soft
  • 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar, plus more for finishing the cookies
  • pinch salt
  • 3/4 cups flour
  • 1 cup ground almonds
  • 1/4 cups toasted, chopped almonds

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325 F
  2. Combine butter with almond extract and 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  3. Add salt, flour, ground almonds, and toasted chopped almonds
  4. Wrap dough in plastic wrap or foil, chill 30 minutes
  5. Shape rounded teaspoons of dough into crescent shapes
  6. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, they should still be light, but just beginning to brown
  7. Cool two minutes before carefully removig from cookie sheet, dust or roll in powdered sugar

Keywords: Polish almond cookie christmas

Hot Cross Buns Recipe

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I am branching out today from Polish baked goods to an English baked good that I made for the first time while I lived in Poland. I’d sampled the store bought versions of this pastry, and I couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. It was the same experience I had with Paczki! Purchased = blah; homemade = YUM! Sitting around our little blue kitchen in Poznan, with no Hot Cross Buns to be found at Piotr i Pawel (our local supermarket), I thought I’d bake some. They were fantastic, a soft yeast bread with a bit of spice, dried fruit, and a cross glazed on top. Homemade is always better and fresher than store bought, and that’s why I want to share this Hot Cross Buns Recipe with you!

If you remember back to the days when you or your children were learning a musical instrument, I’ll bet that one of the first songs played was Hot Cross Buns. It’s an English nursery rhyme set to music, and it involves only three notes, so it’s perfect for beginners.

Hot cross buns, hot cross buns, one a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns

If you have no daughters, give them to your sons, one a penny, two a penny, hot cross buns

That crazy pricing strategy set aside, they’re a wonderful pastry that was traditionally eaten on Good Friday, and of course there are a lot of superstitions and guesses about the history of Hot Crossed Buns. A bun baked and served on Good Friday is rumored not to spoil all year and to have healing medicinal properties. A bun hung on the wall of a kitchen is supposed to protect from fires and ensure all breads turn our perfectly in the coming year.

During Elizabethan times, such spiced breads were only permitted to be sold for burials, on Good Friday, and at Christmas. Violators were forced to give all of their inventory of spiced bread to the poor, but official Hot Cross Buns didn’t appear until the 1700s in London. They can appear in your kitchen today!

I’ve adapted this Hot Cross Buns recipe from Taste of Home and King Arthur Flour.

Smacznego!

Lois

PS — if you think this recipe sounds delicious, please leave a comment and rate it 5 stars, it helps my website get noticed on the Interweb. 😉 Thanks!

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Hot Cross Buns Recipe

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 2 hours
  • Cook Time: 45 min
  • Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
  • Yield: 16 buns
  • Category: Bread
  • Cuisine: English
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Description

A soft spiced bread roll with dried fruit and a glazed cross on top for Good Friday

Ingredients

for buns:

  • 1/2 cup mixed candied peel
  • 1/2 dried cranberries
  • 1/4 cup rum, brandy, or apple juice
  • 1 package dried yeast
  • 1 cup warm milk, 110 degrees F
  • 1 egg
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon allspice
  • dash nutmeg
  • dash ginger
  • 3 – 31/2 cup flour
  • 1 egg yolk and 1 tablespoon oil for egg wash

for glaze:

  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 – 3 tablespoons milk
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

  1. Add candied peel, cranberries, and rum (or other liquid) to a covered bowl or small covered pan and heat until warm in microwave or on stove top, set aside to cool
  2. Dissolve yeast in warm milk for 3 – 5 min, mix in egg, butter, sugar, spices (feel free to make changes  to the spices I’ve used according to your tastes, a scant teaspoon in total), 1 1/2 cups flour
  3. Add the peel/cranberries and any liquid that wasn’t absorbed, and enough of the remaining flour to have a sticky dough, knead, continuing to add flour as needed for about 5 minutes
  4. Place in a greased bowl, turning to grease the top of the dough, cover with a clean dish towel until doubled in size, about 90 minutes
  5. Punch down the dough, divide into 16 equal portions, roll the dough balls until smooth, place on a parchment lined baking sheet, 2 inches apart. Cover with dish towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes, preheat oven to 375 F
  6. Using a sharp knife or razor blade, gently cut a cross into the top of the dough, brush with egg wash, bake about 45 minutes, cool
  7. Combine glaze ingredients using enough liquid to have a thick glaze that runs just a little, spoon glaze into the cross you cut on the top of the buns

Notes

Some recipes filled the cut cross with shortcrust pastry of a milk of flour and milk before baking, but you know the American palate, let’s go with something sweet, so I’ve used a glaze

.

Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka)

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Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka) is a wonderful accompaniment to tea or a bright lemony treat to serve for Easter. I’ve been wanting to make one ever since our friend, Symon, said Cytrynowa Babka (pronunciation) was his favorite.

Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka)

Many babkas  are a yeast bread sort of cake. This one reminds me of a pound cake. The leavening comes from beaten eggs and baking powder, and it’s made with equal weights of butter, sugar, and flour.

Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka)

I’ve tried a traditionally Polish method for preparing the bundt pan — buttering the pan and then coating with bread crumbs (unseasoned, of course). It adds a wee bit of texture to the crust, but I’ve never had a bundt cake release so well, the finish is perfect.

The links below are Amazon affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase they send me a few cents which helps to support this site, thanks!

 

This wonderful moist cake comes from Ciasto.net, a Polish website for homebaked goods.

Smacznego!

Lois

Zesty lemon taste in light cake with a crispy buttery crust! #polishhousewife #lemon #babka #cake #teacake #polishrecipe #polishcake #polishdessert

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Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka)

Cytrynowa Babka (Lemon Babka)

  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 15 min
  • Cook Time: 50 min
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
  • Yield: 10 - 12 serving
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A lemony cake for tea or Easter dinner

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs, seperated and at room temp
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar (250 g)
  • 1 cup plus 1 tablepoon butter (240 g), room temp
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 cups flour (260 g)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • butter and breadcrumbs (or flour) for preparing pan
  • 3/4 cup powdered sugar (100 g)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice, approximately, enough to make a thick, but still runny glaze

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F
  2. Beat egg yolks with sugar and butter until fluffy, mix in lemon zest
  3. Beat egg whites and dash of salt until stiff peaks form, fold into butter mixture
  4. Fold in flour and baking powder
  5. Prepare an 8 cup bundt pan by brushing with butter and dusting with breadcrumbs
  6. Spoon the stiff batter into pan, bake for 50 minutes
  7. Cool 10-15 minutes, then flip pan onto serving plate to remove cake
  8. Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice, beat until smooth, and smooth over cooled cake

Notes

The butter and breadcrumbs worked better than anything else I’ve tried for gettig a bundt pan to release the cake unscathed.

 

Mazurek Królewski (Royal Mazurek)

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One thing I learned visiting Polish friends after Easter is that everyone makes Mazurek, and their Eastertide guests get to sample! Mazureks are highly decorated, short crust tarts. It’s also a dance, a type of music, and even a surname, but my favorite Mazurek is the pastry. Last year, I made two for our Easter celebration, one topped with a chocolate hazelnut spread, the other with caramel. This year, I’m trying out Mazurek Królewski (Royal Mazurek). This recipe is based on one I found on MniamMniam.pl. according to Grzegorz, the Polish food blogger, this sweet is for more than just the holidays.

Mazurek Królewski (Royal Mazurek)

Grzegorz suggests drizzling the finished tart with a glaze. I was lazy and just dusted it with powdered sugar, but the next time I make it, I will leave it plain. For me the royal aspect of this tart is all about the colorful jams. I don’t want to do anything to mute the jewel-like colors. Next time, they will shine!

In my mind, I was going to create a geometric masterpiece, a lattice of wonderful straight lines without a patch in sight. That was before I met the crust. It’s a little temperamental, with a mind of its own. Even though I used a ruler, I had to accept to a more homespun look for my lattice.

Speaking of amazing lattice tops (in my dreams), have you checked out lokokitchen on instagram? Her pies are works of art!

I hope this jewel top Mazurek will be part of your Easter celebration.

Smacznego!

Lois

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Mazurek Królewski (Royal Mazurek)

  • Author: Polish Hhousewife
  • Prep Time: 20 min
  • Cook Time: 30 min
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 12 x 8 inch tart
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A lattice topped, short crust tart finished with jewel toned jams

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup almonds
  • 10 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 cups flour
  • 2 hard boiled egg yolks, pushed through a sieve
  • 1 raw egg yolk
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 egg for egg wash
  • raspberry and apricot jams
  • sliced or slivered almonds for optional garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 F, and spray a nonstick 12×8 inch tart pan (with removable bottom)
  2. In the food processor with steel blade, grind almonds, set aside
  3. Add butter to the processor bowl and pulse until light, add the sugar, pulse
  4. Add the flour, sieve egg yolks, the raw egg yolk, the groud almonds, and the salt
  5. Process until well combined, but don’t over mix
  6. Roll out 2/3 of the dough to line pan, it should be about 1/3 inch thick, you may need to piece and patch
  7. Roll out remaining 1/3, cut into strips, about 1/2 inch wide, and criss-cross over crust to make a lattice
  8. Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash, bruch over pastry
  9. Bake about 30 minutes, until golden brown, cool
  10. Fill in between the lattice with warm jam, add almond slivers or slices (optional)

Candlemas Day in Poland and the Thunder Candle

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For Americans, February 2nd is Groundhog Day offering a weather prediction; in Poland, where national holidays are mainly based on the liturgical calendar, it’s Candlemas, 40 days after the birth of Jesus. It commemorates the purification of Mary (in Biblical times, women were seen as impure after giving birth) and the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple (once the mother’s purification is complete, the grateful parents take the child to the temple to give thanks and offer sacrifices), and it marks the end of the Christmas season in Poland. Seriously, this is the day to put away Christmas decorations. Not to worry, after Candlemas, we can begin to think about paczki! Candlemas is traditionally celebrated by the priest blessing the beeswax candles that will be used in the church for coming year, and also blessing candles that the parish will use in their homes.

Candlemas Day in Poland and the Thunder Candle

This has special significance in Poland because of the ancient Slavic protective ritual of the Thunder Candle. It is so significant that the holiday in Polish is Święto Matki Bożej Gromnicznej 🔈, referring to the Holy Mother of God and the Thunder Candles. The ancient Thunder Candles were lit during a storm to offer protection from lightening, and also from wolves.

Thunder candles are long and thick, may be decorated with religious inscriptions or images, fir branches and flowers, tied with a light blue ribbon to represent Mary. Today they are used for special celebrations, and blessed annually on this day to be recharged so to speak. The candle may be a gift at birth and used at First Communion, Confirmation, Anointing, or during a vigil before someone’s death, even being buried with the owner.

And that, my dear friends, is all I know about Candlemas Day in Poland and the Thunder Candle.

Pozdrowiam,

Lois

PS — Yes, I’m taking down our Christmas tree. I just love having it up, so I’ve gladly adopted this Polish tradition!

Classic Champagne Cocktail

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It may be Boxing Day, but it’s not too early to begin planning for New Year’s Eve. This Classic Champagne Cocktail is Great for NYE, Valentine’s Day, or Easter. I’ll bet your life has many special occasions that call for a festive beverage; you can’t go wrong with such a classic!

Classic Champagne Cocktail

My first taste of a champagne cocktail was at Bar Eduardo near the bullring in Madrid back in the day. Ed was stationed in Spain at the time, and we thought it was kind of cute to visit a place with his name.

Once we stepped inside, we knew there was much more that was special about Eduardo’s. The bartenders were consummate professionals. This was long before the movie Cocktail or bartenders being known for flair. The staff at Eduardo’s were ahead of their time.

The classic champagne cocktail seemed to be their signature drink and they prepared it deftly. It was fascinating to watch. The cocktail was always served with a few gummy raspberries and blackberries alongside. It was our first encounter with the colorful candies, and they’ve been a favorite ever since. We had to keep that detail as we tried to recreate their process.

We must have mentioned our outings to Bar Eduardo to my parents because at one point, my mother sent us an article from the New York Times magazine. The subject had to do with the lesson American workers could take from the bartenders at Bar Eduardo near the bullring in Spain’s capital city. The author spoke of the great pride they took in their work, the dedication to getting it right, no corners were ever cut.

If our Bar Eduardo still exists near Las Ventas, they have no Internet presence. So I’ll toast their lasting memory.

Cheers!

Lois

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Classic Champagne Cocktail

  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 2 mins
  • Total Time: 2 mins
  • Yield: 1 cocktail
  • Category: Beverage
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Description

Elegance in a glass

Ingredients

  • 1 sugar cube
  • 2 dashes Angostura bitters
  • 1/3 ounce brandy (2 teaspoons or 2/3 tablespoon)
  • 3 – 4 ounces champagne
  • orange peel
  • maraschino cherry

Instructions

  1. Splash the bitters onto the sugar cube, drop in champage glass
  2. Add brandy
  3. Top with champagne
  4. Garnish with orange and cherry

Quilling a paper art that dates back centuries

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quilling Collage

If you’re looking for something different to do with family or friends over the holidays, you might want to give quilling a try. Quilling is a centuries old practice of creating designs from rolled strips of paper. Originally done by French and Italian nuns in the 16th and 17th century, then taken up by genteel ladies. It can be as simple or elaborate as you want to make it. It consists of thin strips of paper that are coiled, shaped and glued. You can cut your own paper strips or buy bags of thin strips of pre-cut colorful paper at some craft stores or on Amazon. I’ve used a toothpick to coil my paper, but more serious quillers might use a special slotted tool. The great things about quilling is that it doesn’t take a great deal of concentration, at least at my level of expertise it doesn’t. You putter along coiling paper and holding it in place with little dabs of glue; it’s a peaceful setting in which to chat and reminisce or get to know new friends.

I introduced friends to quilling on a girls night last year. It made all of us more aware and begin to notice quilling when we came across it in other places. Did you see this cool stamp? That’s quilling.

My first quilling experience was in Poland. Sometimes, you just feel pulled to certain things. That’s the way I felt when I saw an open invitation on facebook to come and learn the art of quilling that night. Our leader was a young Turkish woman who was in Poznan as part of a volunteer exchange program. Her focus was on creating art by recycling, so the paper we used was recycled. One of the young Polish women in the group was our quilling expert and brought completed samples to show us, including a blown egg that her grandmother had covered in little colorful paisley patterns.

I must admit, the designs my co-crafters and I created were much simpler than the ones you’ll find on google, but who knows how elaborate my future projects will be, now that I’m experienced.  I collected those colorful, glossy paper advertisements that Polish businesses are so fond of passing out of the streets, as in Las Vegas, but in PL they’re for more reputable establishments. These Polish ads will form the basis of my next project. I’ll keep you posted.

Want to give quilling a try? You’ll find all kind of inspiration online, including some basic quilling shapes on YouTube.

Pozdrowiam,

Lois

PS — the original version of this post went live on Tłusty Czwartek or Fat Thursday, the day that marks the beginning of the end of the Carnival season, all over Poland people will feel compelled to eat pączki (PONCH-kee), a very bready, scantily filled jelly doughnut. Yes, I realize my American taste in pastry is showing in my choice of words. 😉 While you can find a variety of fillings, the most traditional is a rose petal jam. Now that I’ve made my own pączki, I like them much more. Homemade is always better! 😉

Pierniczki Polish Gingerbread Cookies

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Toruń, Poland, home of Nicholas Copernicus, is one of many European cities that claims to have invented gingerbread. One story goes that woman had consumed a little too much mead and made the happy mistake of adding honey and spices to bread she was making.

The city, which is one of the few in Poland not damaged during World War II, even hosts a Gingerbread Museum. When we spent the night in Toruń on a Thanksgiving road trip, the hotel left individually wrapped gingerbread cookies on our pillows.

After seeing the beautiful gingerbread figures available at most festivals in the Stary Rynek (Old Market Square) in Poznan, I wanted to buy some wooden gingerbread molds to bring home with me. They’re not easy to find. I found my first at a gingerbread shop in Gdansk (they only had two and my friend bought the other for her daughter), subsequent wooden molds were purchased at a wonderful souvenir shop in Toruń (I wish I had the address), and finally,

I bought a large reversible mold (man on one side, woman on the other) in an antique store in Amsterdam, so I guess technically this one would be a speculaas mold. I think the large size be striking to use in holiday decorating.

gingerbread houses

I’ve made gingerbread in the past. I used to make three gingerbread houses every Christmas for our daughters to decorate. My American recipe uses molasses. The Polish recipe I used for inspiration, from Moje Wypieki, uses honey and is a little softer than what I’ve worked with in the past.

The finished texture is light and lovely. One change that I will make next time is to reduce the baking soda. I hope with less leavening, the details from the mold will be more distinct after baking.

This is the first time I’ve used the gingerbread molds, which I have seasoned previously with mineral oil. It was fun to try them out. After rolling the dough, I patted and pressed it into the molds, which I lightly dusted with powdered sugar to be sure the gingerbread would release. It worked like a charm.

 

Pierniczki Polish Gingerbread - easy to prepare without a mixer! #gingerbread #christmas #cookies #polish #poland

I trimmed the pattern before baking, using a combination of a pizza cutter, a little pasta cutter, and the corner of my metal spatula. My royal icing piping isn’t precise enough to accent the lines in the molds, so Ed had the good idea of speading icing on the relief and then wiping it off, almost as if I were antiquing furniture. It highlights the pattern better. I may also leave them plain in the future.

Pierniczki Polish Gingerbread Cookies Pierniczki Polish Gingerbread Cookies

In addition to my wooden molds, I tried out two large Christmas cookie cutters and made a bunch of little hearts. I piped a little royal icing on the larger cookies and the molded gingerbread, but I left my little hearts plain, but you could certainly sprinkle them with coarse sugar or sprinkles before baking, or coat with a thin glaze after baking.  Traditional pierniczki should look rustic, not too perect. It would be a great baking project for kids.

Smacznego!

Lois

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Pierniczki Polish Gingerbread Cookies

★★★ 3 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 30 mins
  • Total Time: 45 mins
  • Yield: 50 little cookies
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A light, crisp, spice cookie

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup honey (spray the measuring cup with oil and the honey will pour out easily)
  • 1/3 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 1/4 cups flour (you might like to try rye flour)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon cocoa
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350
  2. In a saucepan, heat the honey, butter, and brown sugar over medium heat until the butter melts and sugar dissolves
  3. Remove from heat
  4. Stir in egg
  5. Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cocoa, and salt
  6. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface, about 1/4 inch thick
  7. Cut into sharpes or press into prepared molds
  8. Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet, about 8 minutes

 

Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings

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Known by many names, meaning ribbons or dried twigs, Chruściki, Chrusty, Faworki, Angel Wings, whatever name they go by, these little powdered sugar treats appear en masse the last week of karnawał, just before Lent.

Trays piled high with Faworki and Pączki fill the supermarkets and little shops for Tłusty czwartek or Fat Thursday. Faworki are also popular at all kinds of family meal celebrations, Easter, Christmas, and weddings. 

Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings

They are so popular that in areas of the US with large populations from Central Europe; bakeries insist that customers place their Christmas and Easter orders for Faworki in advance.

Like many Polish recipes, the pastry is traditionally fried in lard. You can, of course, use other oils for frying; there will be a slight difference in flavor.

Even though they’re rolled in powdered sugar, the plain, rich dough, is only lightly sweet. While it might not be traiditonal, I think it benefits from the additon of lemon and/or orange zest; it just adds a bit of brightness.

For Christmas or Easter, Polish Angel Wings, Faworki, Chruściki, Chrusty, many names and delicious! #polish #cookies #easter #christmas #polishhousewife

Some cooks will knead or roll and re-roll the dough until it blisters. Being a lazy sort, I didn’t, but it still blistered upon frying. By all standards, this probaly makes a small batch, only 48 Faworki. You can easily double or triple if you’re feeding a crowd.

Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings

What do you call them, Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings?

Smacznego?

Lois

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Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings

Chruściki, Chrusty Faworki, Angel Wings

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Polish HOusewife
  • Prep Time: 10 mins
  • Cook Time: 25 mins
  • Total Time: 35 mins
  • Yield: 4 dozen
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

Crisp and lightly sweet

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 eggs yolks
  • 3-5 tablespoons heavy cream (or sour cream)
  • 1 tablespoon spirits (I used Soplica, but any whiskey or rum will do)
  • 1/2 teaspon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon citrus zest (optional)
  • lard, for frying
  • powdered sugar, for dusting

Instructions

  1. Combine flour, sugar, and salt
  2. In a seperate bowl, combine the egg yolks, 3 tablespoons cream, spirits, vanilla, and zest if you’re using it
  3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until the dough comes together, use a little more cream if necessary
  4. Roll out as thin as possible
  5. Cut into 1 x4 inch strips, cutting a slit in the middle of each strip
  6. Pul one end through the slit, to create a twisted appearance
  7. Heat lard to 350 F
  8. Fry in batches, turning to cook both sides, until golden brown
  9. Drain on paper towels
  10. Roll in powdered sugar

Notes

You can freeze the leftover egg whites to save them for a recipe that only uses egg whites.

 

 

Thanksgiving in Poland — Expat Holidays

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Thanksgiving is one American holiday that hasn’t crept into Polish culture. The fourth Thursday in November is just another work and school day. It’s a strange feeling to know that your loved ones are gathering on the other side of the world without you. That your extended family’s day will be one of familiar and special traditions while all around you, everyone else is carrying on with their normal day-to-day life. We had several Thankgsgivings in Poland, and celebrated in a lot of different ways. I can’t say that a Thanksgiving abroad is better than one at home surrounded by loved ones; it is different but can be just as memorable.

I didn’t plan anything for Thanksgiving our last year in Poland, but at the last minute, we received two invitations for early Thanksgiving meals on Saturday. They were at different times, so we threw caution and calories to the wind and decided to do both.

Our first meal was with the Poznan International Church, a potluck meal with a very international flavor. There was, of course, turkey. Brooke, my friend from Arizona made sweet potatoes; we brought stuffing, And now it gets interesting; it was an international crowd as the name of the congregation suggests. We had two Indian dishes, some kind of spicy potato dumpling, and and spicy rice. Ed told Prethi, our hostess, it was the best rice he’d ever eaten. I hope she doesn’t think he was exaggerating; he was quite serious. Lots of pies and cakes, and an enourmous tiramisu for dessert. Then we hopped on the tram to make our way to Turkey dinner #2.

 

It’s customary to remove your shoes when entering a home – the collection as we were leaving turkey dinner #1

 

Thanksgiving in Poland Sweet Surrender

Dinner #2 at Sweet Surrender

Our second meal was with the staff and church family at Sweet Surrender, a ministry coffee shop where I used to volunteer in the kitchen. Our friends Monika (our Polish teacher) and James cooked all day, and again it was an international potluck, with favorites from the USA and as far east as Russia and Kazakstan. I would guess that James is in his mid-twenties. Armed with a degree in Christian Education, he’d come to Poland for a year of coffee shop ministry at Sweet Surrender. Shortly after his arrival, he found himself in charge of the coffee shop and the church.  So he was part coffee shop manager, part pastor. He’s a very sharp young man and was up to the tasks.

I was so moved by the simple words he shared before we broke bread. It’s not the food on the plate that matters but the people around the table. He wanted everyone to know that he loved us and that Sweet Surrender loves us. Then he read Bible verses about always giving thanks. 1Thessalonians 5:16-18, maybe? Rejoice always, pray continually,  give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Amen!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Lois

PS – other Thanksgiving posts

An evening meal (after work for our husbands and school for her sons) with my friend Caroline & her family

One year, all of the American’s from Ed’s office took the week off for a road trip