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Polish Housewife

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

Winter

Gorąca Czekolada Polish Hot Chocolate

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Have you ever had the wonderful European style hot chocolate? It’s a cross between hot pudding and chocolate ganache. We had a restaurant in Poznan, Cacao Republika, that served Gorąca Czekolada Polish Hot Chocolate.

It was their specialty. They served it many ways; my favorite being with a shot of Bailey’s Irish Cream Liqueur. It was a favorite spot to take visiting family.

two glass mugs of thick hot chocolate with whipped cream and red and white spinkles on a silver tray

We  stopped at Cacao Republika after dinner when my mother, brother, and sister were visiting. When I mentioned to my sister that I was making Gorąca Czekolada Polish Hot Chocolate like we’d had at Cacao Reupblika for a blog post, she looked at me and said, “why didn’t we go there every day?” Um, calories, carbs, whatever you’re counting, come to mind.

Gorąca Czekolada Polish Hot Chocolate, super thick and perfect for a cold day!

If you’re ordering this thick hot chocolate in a restaurant, you’ll know it’s the real thing by the hot chocolate machine, usually sitting on the bar, a glass cylinder with a couple of wands spinning though the molten chocolate mixture, keeping it warm and keeping it moving. A spout at the bottom, drains off the hot chocolate a cup at a time.

It’s a comforting, dense sip of chocolate.

Smacznego!

Lois

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Gorąca Czekolada Polish Hot Chocolate

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 10 mins
  • Total Time: 15 mins
  • Yield: 3-4 servings
  • Category: Beverage
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A super thich hot chocolate, a cross between hot pudding and chocolate ganache

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups milk, divided
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 5 ounces dark chocolate chips
  • 3 ounces milk chocolate chips
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
  • your favorite liqueur (optional)
  • whipped cream to garnish

Instructions

  1. Add 1 1/4 cups milk, cream, and chocolate chips to a saucepan
  2. Warm over medium heat, stirring from the bottom of the pan until chocolate melts
  3. Stir the corn starch into the remaining 1/4 cup of milk until smooth, add to the saucepan
  4. Stir constantly until mixture thickens
  5. Add vanilla or your favorite liqueur, I recommend Bailey’s Irish Cream (optional)
  6. Serve in small cups (it’s rich) and top with whipped cream

 

Zupa z Kopru Włoskiego – Fennel Soup

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Zupa z Kopru Wloskiego – Fennel Soup was headlining on our menu when we hosted friends from the church where I work for a meal recently. We had Sue (who shared her relish recipe with us), Bill (one of our beloved volunteer receptionists), and Mila and her husband Jan. Mila is a Russian-Swedish artist, whose Icons in Transformation exhibit is at the church for the next few months. Jan is originally from Bydgoszcz, Poland, He grew up in Sweden, but he was raised by a Polish mother, so I suspected that soup would be a most welcome first course.

Zupa z Kopru Wloskiego - Fennel Soup

We were serving salmon, and fennel was one of the many complimentary flavor listed in The Flavor Bible (affiliate link). Fennel soup it was! Given its appearance and the fact that Fennel or Koper Wloski is from the Mediterranean, it makes sense the Polish name translates as Italian Dill.

Fennel isn’t something that I ate growing up. I first tasted it a few years ago when we visited Ireland. I had a quiche with fennel in a wonderful wine bar, that was owned by a Polish woman. I’ve found a few ways to use it since that first experience. The Zupa z Kopru Wloskiego – Fennel Soup is definitely a do over. It was perfect to proceed the salmon. The flavor was harmonious without being overpowering. I’d love to hear about the ways you use fennel.

Smacznego!

Lois

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Zupa z Kopru Włoskiego – Fennel Soup

  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 50 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hour 5 mins
  • Yield: 8
  • Category: Soup
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

Layers of flavor in a delicious cream soup

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
  • 2 whole star anise
  • 2 cardamom pods, crushed
  • 1 whole clove
  • 1/4 cup canola oil
  • 4 large bulbs fennel, trimmed and roughly chopped (I used the stalks too)
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 6 cups chicken stock
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • chives for garnish

Instructions

  1. Add the coriander sees, star anise, cardamom pods, clove, and oil to a Dutch oven
  2. Saute over medium high heat for a few minutes until the seeds begin to pop
  3. Transfer the spices to a piece of cheese cloth and bundle and tie into a tight package (or put the spices in a tea infuser that encases the tea on all sides)
  4. Add the fennel and onion to the pan and cook until golden, about 25 minutes
  5. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half
  6. Add the spice package and stock, bring to a boil
  7. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer, stirring occasionally
  8. When the vegetable are tender, discard the spice package, and puree the soup with an immersion blender or working in batches in a blender
  9. Return the soup to the pan, add cream and season
  10. Gently simmer for a few minutes
  11. Serve sprinkled with chopped chives

Notes

You might include a peeled and cored, sliced apple to the vegetables as they’re cooking.
Candied nuts would also make a nice garnish.

 

Polish Cabbage Salad Sałatka z Kapusty

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With my reference point being the Sonoran desert, I’ll say that so much of Poland is farmland. Any drive outside of the city will have you passing cultivated earth. Beautiful yellow fields of flowering rape weed, beets, carrots, and the largest cabbage I have ever seen, seriously, cabbage the size of basketballs. Cabbage is the number one vegetable crop in Poland. It’s so popular; it plays a role in most traditional Polish dishes, and even in some that aren’t so traditional. Think of gołąbki (stuffed cabbage leaves), bigos (a hearty hunter’s stew), cabbage based pierogi fillings, kapusta kwaszona (sauerkraut), cabbage on a hot dog, cabbage on a kabab, even a simple Polish cabbage salad like this one. It’s the sort of thing you’ll find in any buffet line, or served along side your main dish. It reminds me of coleslaw, but it’s lighter, more salubrious.

Polish Cabbage Salad

In this case, the shredded cabbage is lightly cooked (chemically) in lemon juice and salt, just enough to wilt it a bit. The addition of shredded apple and a smidge of powdered sugar, along with the lemon juice, add to the sweet and sour combination that I associate with coleslaw. I made this according to the recipe, but if I’d had a carrot, I would have shredded that too to add a bit of color. The recipe comes from Treasured Polish Recipes for Americans, published by Polanie Club In Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was first published in 1948. The used copy I have is from the 15th printing in 1973. I saw something online about a 25th printing, so it’s been a very popular cookbook for decades!

This Polish Cabbage Salad is just what I remember from our time in Poznan. I’ve tried to recreate it on my own, but it was never quite right, the texture, the subtle favors that complement the cabbage. I’m thrilled to be adding this recipe to my collection.

As for the actual preparation, I used the slicing blade on my food processor, but it left the cabbage in bigger pieces that I wanted, so I popped it back in the processor with the steel blade and blitzed it for just a second or two to get finer pieces. I had planned to use a Granny Smith apple, but forgot to buy one. 🙁 The Gala apple I had on hand, worked very well. I didn’t have any dill seed in the spice rack, but I did have an envelope full of dill flowers that had gone to seed in a cupboard waiting to be planted. So I picked out the fine little stems and managed to get the required 1/2 teaspoon.

Give this a try, I think you’ll find a lot of menus that would benefit from a serving of this light and crisp Polish Cabbage Salad.

Smacznego!

Lois

(The Amazon links below are affiliate links, meaning Amazon sends me a few cents if you make a purchase)

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Polish Cabbage Salad

Polish Cabbage Salad Sałatka z Kapusty

  • Category: Salad
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A light and crisp salad of shredded cabbage and apple, dressed in lemon juice and oil

Ingredients

  • 1 small head cabbage, finely shredded
  • juice of one lemon
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 apple, grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon dill seed
  • Dash of garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar (granulated will work too)
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 small carrot, grated (optional)

Instructions

  1. Mix the cabbage with the lemon juice and salt.
  2. Let stand for 4 hours or refrigerate overnight
  3. Add the apple, dill seed, garlic powder, sugar, oil, and carrot (optional)
  4. Toss lightly

Polish cabbage salad


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Smalec Recipe

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Smalec is something that Americans eye warily at first. Polish friends and my husband said “it’s pork fat; you spread it on bread like butter.” I didn’t find them very convincing!

Of course, I eventually came around. The theme for my time in Poland was to try everything, experience new things, especially when it came to food.

Smalec - known in Poland as the poor man's butter

It is a common thing in Polish restaurants to be served a basket of bread with a bowl of smalec for the table as soon as you sit down, much like chips and salsa in a Mexican restaurant.

It doesn’t take long to discover that some smalec is better than others. Some of it just seems like lard, with very little of the flavorings. Some smalec is a chunky spread, full of crispy brown bits, chock full of delicious things that were until recently a mystery to me. This recipe is the latter!

Smalec, a traditional Polish spread

There was a little pub in Poznań that sold 100+ different beers, mainly Polish, I think. It was always packed with a very young crowd. Their limited food menu included smalec and bread, the perfect nibble to accompany 100+ kinds of beer. We started making a point of going there with our friends Angelika and Keith because we wanted to have the smalec.

I firmly believe that our food preferences are tied to the memories associated with the foods. For me, smalec is a rustic dish, shared in intimate settings with people you love.

Here are somethings I learned in making smalec that I’ll share with you. It can be difficult to buy a kilo of pork fat in the United States. I called several places and found two options for me in Tucson.

One of the local supermarkets was willing to save pork fat for me as the trimmed their cuts of meat. It took several days for them to have enough. But they did eventually call and had a package of pork fat waiting for me at $1.57 a pound.

I called two speciality butcher stores, and one of them had 3 pound packaged blocks of frozen pork fat. They were willing to cut it to size.

Now that we’ve secured the main ingredient, the surprising thing for me was that almost all smalec recipes include tart, green apples. I had no idea!

I’ve also read (with the aid of google translate) that some recipes includes diced dried fruit. My guess would be diced prunes; they’re very popular in Polish cooking. I went the classic route with just apples.

This recipes makes a lot. I filled 7 cute little Polish pottery ramekins. It keeps in the fridge for two weeks, so obviously I need people with whom to share. I’ve put one ramekin in the freezer as a test, and I’m happy to report that defrosted smalec is every bit as good as freshly made.

I love that I can pull a ramekin out of the freezer when I know someone is coming over. This is a dish meant for sharing.

I’d love to hear what you think of smalec!

Smacznego!

Lois

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Smalec - known in Poland as the poor man's butter

Smalec Recipe

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 20 mins
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 1 hour 20 mins
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A rich, rustic spread for bread, aka the poor man’s butter

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 pounds pork fat, coarsely ground or finely diced
  • 1/2 pounds bacon, coarsely ground or finely diced
  • 3 medium onions (about 3 1/2 cups), finely diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon marjoram
  • 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cores, and grated or finely diced

Instructions

  1. In a large frying pan, cook the ground pork fat for 10 minutes over medium heat, it will begin to render fat
  2. Add the ground bacon, onions, garlic, salt and pepper
  3. Stir, scrapping the bottom frequently
  4. Reduce heat to low if necessary
  5. I kept cooking and stirring for another 50 minutes, until the rendered fat level began to be high tee than the chopped bits in the pan
  6. Add the marjoram and grated apple
  7. Cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally for a uniform consistency
  8. Store in the fridge
  9. Serve with a dark bread and small dill pickles

Notes

Best consumed with beer or vodka!

 

Polish Smalec - poor man's butter, but fit for a king!

Sernik (Polish Cheesecake)

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Polish Cheesecake, sernik, is a classic. You’ll find it in every restaurant, cafe, and coffee shop in Poland. So just like szarlotka, it surprised me when I realized that I’ve never made a Polish cheesecake! Until now! 🙂 I looked at several recipes in English and in Polish, on the internet and in my collection of Polish cookbooks, and this cake is a compilation of those recipes, and a little bit of winging it.

Sernik - a delicious Polish Cheesecake!

In my study of sernik, I can say that twaróg, the Polish farmer’s cheese is the only constant, and most recipes call for two pounds or 1 kilogram of twaróg. I found that this cheese is super easy to make, and that I love the taste and will be making it again. If you’re using my recipe for twaróg, you’ll need a triple batch to make this cheesecake.

One of the first choices you’ll have to make is what kind of crust to use. I made the short-crust pastry found in this recipe on About Food. I’m sure that it is very traditional and it was tasty, but I don’t know that I’ll use it again. I’m an experienced maker of pie crust and I found it difficult to work with, especially in the size I needed to line a 9 x 13 pan. I ended up making slabs for the bottom and sides and piecing it together. If I want a pastry crust in the future, I’ll probably try something else.

But in all honesty, I suspect that the next time I make this I’ll do a cookie crumb crust,  maybe a digestive crumb crust, with just a wee bit of sugar. It’s a more modern spin on the traditional recipe, but it would be so much quicker and easier. I realize the  dichotomy in making my own cheese and  looking for a quick and easy crust; it’s all about the effort in relationship to the benefit. I’m willing to go the extra mile, but only if the difference is noticeable.

Sernik - a delicious Polish Cheesecake!

As for the body of the cheesecake, it can be plain. It can be flavored with citrus zest and extract or candied citrus peel; it can have raisins and might even include mashed potatoes. The key differences that I see between sernik and a typical American version of cheesecake is that it has much less sugar. You’ll really taste the cheese, and it uses less other dairy, like milk and sour cream, making a stiffer mixture.

Sernik might be topped with a lovely chocolate ganche or a layer of berries in gelatin, or it may be served au naturel. I opted for a sauce made with a 12 ounce bag of frozen berries, a couple tablespoons of sugar, and a teaspoon of lemon juice and 1/4 cup of water. I simmered until the berries were breaking down and thickened with two teaspoons of corn starch dissolved in a 1/4 cup of water.

Sernik - a delicious Polish Cheese

Marianna’s Piglet loves sernik!

I’d love to hear how you personalize your sernik.

Smacznego!

Lois

Amazon send me a few cents if you make a purc hase via my affiliate links above

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Sernik - a delicious Polish Cheesecake!

Sernik (Polish Cheesecake)

★★★★★ 4.5 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 45 mins
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 1 hour 45 mins
  • Yield: 12-20
  • Category: Dessert
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A traditional Polish cheesecake, you’ll notice the cheese in this cheesecake.

Ingredients

Crust:

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 5 ounces cold butter
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 3 tablespoons sour cream

Filling:

  • 5 ounces butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 6 large eggs, separated
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 tablespoon Kirsch (optional)
  • 3/4 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 2 pounds twaróg, passed through a sieve or processed in a blender or food processor until smooth

Instructions

Crust

  1. Combine the 2 cups flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and baking powder
  2. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender (or use a food processor) until crumbly
  3. Mix together two egg yolks and 3 tablespoon sour cream, add to dry ingredients, only until combined, (if too stiff add a little water or an egg)
  4. Grease a 9 x 13 pan
  5. Roll pastry until large enough to line the pan, bottom and sides
  6. After fitting the dough to the pan, trim neatly crimp the edge
  7. You can use left over dough to create a lattice pattern on top of the cheesecake if desired

Filling

  1. Bring all ingredients for filling to room temp
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  3. Cream together 5 ounces butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy
  4. Add 6 egg yolks, vanilla, and kirsch (if using), combining until well blended
  5. Process the cranberries and flour in a food processor or combine and chop with a knife
  6. Add the chopped cranberries and twaróg
  7. In a separate bowl, beat the 6 egg whites until stiff
  8. Stir one cup of egg whites into the cheese mixture to lighten
  9. Gently fold in remaining egg whites
  10. Pour filling into crust
  11. Add lattice decoration (optional)
  12. Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until center is only slightly jiggly
  13. Cool completely before serving

Notes

This is a dense cheesecake. I like to serve whipped cream along side to lighten it a bit.

Sernik - a delicious Polish Cheesecake!

Easy Turkey Chili

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A webpage listing a bunch of anti-inflammatory recipes is where I came across this little gem. They touted the many health benefits of peppers, tomatoes, beans, and turkey. This page was a gold mine for a foodie with arthritis, so if NSAIDs like Advil and Alleve are part of your daily routine, you know what I mean. If you have young healthy joints, count your blessings and enjoy this delicious turkey chili for the taste and convenience alone!

I’ve made only small changes from the original source, Two Peas in a Pod. I don’t use a slow cooker for this recipe because I’m just not good at planning that far in advance. If you like to use one, know that this can be made in a 6 quart crockpot.

Convenient & Delicious

We’ve gotten to the point where we make a batch of this tasty and easy turkey chili at least every other week. It’s quick and easy to put together, makes a large quantity, and freezes well.

I work four 10-hour days, so I love the convenience of having a full meal ready to eat at the end of a long day, and my husband, Ed, loves the warm, earthy spices.

Turkey chili

Every time I serve this, he comments about how the combination of spices is perfect. We’ve made a lot of chili over the years, even competed in a 4th of July chili cook off at our air base in Spain back in the day. He seemed let down when I said that all I did was follow the recipe. I shouldn’t have burst his bubble, better that he think of me chopping, grinding, and tempering a variety of spices. I’ll let you in on the secret, chili powder and cumin, 2:1.

I hope this doesn’t hurt my chili cook-off friends’ feelings, but this is so much better than the chili we offered up on that 4th of July, but nothing could compare to the fun we had that day.  The length of our shorts identifies this as the early 1980s!

Chili cook off

I hope my easy turkey chili recipe will be as popular at your home as it is at ours.

Smacznego!

Lois

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An easy turkey chili recipe that's quick and delicious!!!

Easy Turkey Chili

  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 1 hour
  • Total Time: 1 hour 15 mins
  • Yield: 10-15 servings
  • Cuisine: Tex Mex
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Description

Quick and easy, a delicious pot of chili

Ingredients

  • Olive oil
  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 yellow pepper, diced
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans diced tomatoes
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 2 (4 ounce) cans diced green chilies
  • 1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
  • 2 tablespoons chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • Chicken stock
  • 2 tablespoons Wondra flour

Instructions

  1. Add 1-2 tablespoons olive oil to a frying pan and brown the ground turkey, breaking it into small pieces as you turn and stir
  2. Season with salt and pepper. (Go easy on the salt. The canned ingredients will be salty and you can always add more. That being said, I like to add a little salt to each layer of flavor as I’m preparing a dish)
  3. Move the turkey to a Dutch oven.
  4. Add 1-2 tablespoons olive oil the same frying pan and sautéed the onions and peppers, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper
  5. Add the onion and peppers to the ditch oven
  6. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, beans, green chilies, corn, chili powder, and cumin
  7. Stir, add enough chicken stock to almost cover the ingredients and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes
  8. Sprinkle with Wondra flour and stir it in to thicken the broth

Notes

Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, or sliced green onions

Venison Stew (Gulasz z Sarniny)

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This venison stew is the perfect way to eat game meat. The venison becomes super tender and melds perfectly with the unlikely combination of flavors, red wine, Madeira, dates, fennel, juniper berries, allspice (which in Polish is referred to as “English herb”). This may be only the second time I’ve ever cooked with fennel. I’ll have to search out more recipes; if you have a favorite I’d love to hear about it.

venison stew

I grew up in a family of hunters. As a children, we ate venison, elk, quail, pheasant. I much preferred beef and chicken. I must say that the first time I truly enjoy game was when I had a Korean style elk prepared by Chef Rob Connoley at the Curious Kumquat in Silver City, NM. Apparently, I only like fancy game meat, 😉 and this venison stew qualifies as fancy!

I’ve been thinking about this recipe that’s in From a Polish Country House Kitchen, by Anne Applebaum and Danielle Crittenden ever since my brother was succesful deer hunting last year. I’ve promised to share the recipe with him, but it’s taken me a while to unpack the box with my cookbooks from Poland. Jeff lives 1500 miles away, so we had to visit a posh butcher shop rather than his freezer. Here’s to hoping he still has a shoulder roast in the freezer or to good luck in the field this winter.

venison stews

I’ve served this with mashed potatoes and also with a combination of mashed potato and celery root. You could keep the Polish feel and serve it over buckwheat groats. Buckwheat is so common in Poland, but it’s a speciality item here in the states. I’ve used up what I brought home with me, so it’s time for an Amazon order. Like quinoa, I like to cook buckwheat in some sort of stock or broth to add flavor. You could go international and serve the venison stew over polenta too.

venison stew marinade

The original recipe doesn’t use any flour, but I like a stew to have a thick broth, so I’ve added some instant flour at the end. Wondra is a precooked flour. You can sprinkle it over a liquid and whisk it in without it getting lumpy. Because it’s precooked, you don’t have to worry about a raw flour taste if you add it at the end of cooking.

No matter what side dish or thickness you choose, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. We all need fancy food now and then.

Smacznego!

Lois

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Venison Stew (Gulasz z Sarniny)

★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
  • Category: Stew/Soup
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

A delicious, sophisticed stew. One that’s sure to please everyone!

Ingredients

  • 6 cups dry red wine (1.4 litres)
  • 1/2 cup red wine vinegar (120 ml)
  • 1 cup sweet port or Madeira (240 ml)
  • 6 juniper berries, lightly crushed
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 3 allspice berries, lightly crushed
  • l large head, garlic, cloves peeled and crushed
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 3 pounds vnison shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut in to 1 inch cubes (1.4 kg/2.5 cm cubes)
  • 2 tablespoon olive oil
  • 3 strips of bacon, chopped into 1 inch pieces (or a small package of lardon)
  • 2 large fennel bulbs, trimmed and thickly sliced
  • 1 cup chopped dates (150 g)
  • 2 large onions, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 3 tablespoons Wondra flour

Instructions

  1. Add the red wine, vinegar, port or Madeira, juniper berries, cloves, allspice, garlic, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper to a large bowl
  2. Add the meat and marinade over night or for up to three days
  3. Remove the meat from the marinade (save the marinade, you’ll cook the meat in it)
  4. Pat the meat dry (it will be very purple now)
  5. Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat
  6. Fry the bacon until just crisp
  7. Remove the bacon, drain on paper towels
  8. In the bacon grease, brown the meat over high heat in small batches (5-6) to avoid overcrowding the pan
  9. Pour the marinade to the pan, deglazing by scrappin up the browned bits stuck the the bottom of the pan
  10. Add the bacon and venison to the pan, making sure the meat is covered by the marinade
  11. Cover and simmer over low heat for two hours
  12. Add fennel, dates, onions, and sugar, add more salt and pepper if needed, simmer one hour
  13. Sprinkle Wondra flour over the top of the stew and whisk in to thicken the broth, simmer for just a few more minutes

 

Crab Corn Chowder

by 5 Comments

Hot soups don’t normally come to mind during the summer months in Tucson, I’m more likely to make gazpacho or chłodink, but the beautiful selection of fresh corn on sale in all of the supermarkets got me thinking about chowders. I looked through several recipes online and ended up making this crab corn chowder by Rachael Ray.

Crab corn chowder

It’s always interesting to see the reaction you get when you mention Rachael Ray to people, as I did when I took this chowder to work for lunch. She obviously has legions of followers and is the much loved host of a multiple TV programs. I was surprised to hear some of my colleagues are among those who are put off by her persona of over the top enthusiastic, wholesome goodness. My brother, who lives, in New York City, shared some local society/gossip that sheds a different light on her life, but for myself, I’ve always felt that ever since Oprah discovered her, she was overexposed — something I guess she can worry about all the way to the bank.

Enough gossipy chit- chat, back to the cooking. The crab corn chowder comes together quickly and is easy to make. You don’t have to have fresh corn, but I do recommend fresh crab rather than canned. You can find it sold in plastic cups in your better grocery stores, in Arizona that means AJ’s Fine Foods.

Crab corn chowder would be great topped with oyster crackers, croutons, or maybe a sprinkle of chives or green onions for a pop of color.  If you make it, I’d love to hear what you think!

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Crab Corn Chowder

  • Prep Time: 20 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 40 mins
  • Yield: 4 servings
  • Category: Soup
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Description

An easy to prepare, hearty seafood chowder, chocked full of yummy vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 2 ribs celery, chopped
  • 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 small red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Salt & pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning blend
  • Dash cayenne (optional)
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
  • 1 quart whole milk
  • 3 cups corn kernels, cut from the cob or, frozen
  • 8 ounces cooked lump crab meat

Instructions

  1. In a Dutch oven, heat oil and butter over medium heat
  2. Add diced potatoes, cook for a few minutes before adding the chopped celery, stirring occasionally, a flat bottomed wooden spoon is perfect for this
  3. Continue adding vegetables, cooking and stirring for a few minutes between additions
  4. Add bay leaf and season with salt, black pepper, Old Bay, and cayenne if you’re using it
  5. Saute veggies 5 minutes, then sprinkle in flour
  6. Cook for two minutes, stirring constantly
  7. Slowly add broth and milk, stirring to combine
  8. Heat soup until just beginning to boil, add the corn and crab
  9. Reduce heat and simmer for five minutes
  10. Bring soup up to a bubble. Add corn and crab meat and simmer soup 5 minutes
  11. Remove the bay leaf, and you’re ready to serve; smacznego!

If you love the convenience of having a pot of soup, ready to go in the fridge, be sure to check out my Pinterest board, Year Round Soup Ideas. You’ll find a variety of hot and cold options from me and other soup loving pinners.

Zupa z Brokułami i Marchewką Broccoli and Carrot Soup

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Broccoli soup with carrot red bell pepper soup
broccoli carrot soup
Inspired by a soup at Corleone, my favorite restaurant in Krakow, I’ve prepared two soups and served them up in one bowl. Together the soup colors and flavors complement each other making the combination so much better that either soup on its own. It’s easy to do and makes for a very striking presentation for Broccoli and Carrot Soup
My starting point for any soup is the prepackaged bundle of vegetables that every Polish housewife uses. I’m going to miss this when I return to the states.
the bundle of soup veg available in any Polish market

Smacznego!

Lois

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two-tone broccoli carrot soup

Broccoli and Carrot Soup

  • Author: Polish Housewife
  • Category: Soup
  • Cuisine: Polish
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Description

Two delicious soups in one bowl, what could be prettier?

Ingredients

  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 leek (the white and light green part), sliced
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 2 small parsnips, sliced
  • 1 small celery root, peeled and diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 8 carrots, sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 small head broccoli, chopped
  • Stock, chicken or vegetable (for vegan)
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • a dash of cayenne (optional)

Instructions

  1. Divide the oil between two saucepans
  2. Divide the leek and onion between the two pans, season a pinch of salt and pepper, and cook over medium high heat until soft
  3. Divide the parsnip, celery root, and garlic between the two pans
  4. Add 7 carrots and the red bell pepper to one pan
  5. Add 1 carrot and the broccoli the other
  6. Continue to cook the vegetables, stirring often, for 3 – 5
  7. Add stock to both pans, just enough to cover the veg
  8. Simmer until everything is tender
  9. Blend until smooth (I use an immersion blender)
  10. Check for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if necessary, and cayenne if you’re using it
  11. Pour both soups into a bowl at the same time (easy to do with liquid measuring cups), adding whatever finishing touch your veggie-loving heart desires, suggestions below 🙂

 

Carrot – red bell pepper soup
Broccoli soup
Pour both soups into the bowl at the same time
Garnish with dots from a spoon handle
Or run a knife back and forth through the soup for a zig-zag pattern

Sweet Potatoes with Leek and Bacon

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sweet potato with leek and bacon

Sweet Potatoes are hard to find in Poland. I pick up a few when we find them; they’re yummy roasted with a little butter and salt. Always thinking, my husband suggested we prepare them with leek and bacon. So that’s why he’s calling this colorful side dish Ed’s Surprise rather than Sweet Potatoes with Leek and Bacon.

It’s a visually interesting mix of flavors and textures, one that I’m sure we’ll make again. For my tastes, this savory sweet potato dish is so much better than the sweet version served with marshmallows so often at Thanksgiving.

I’m only cooking for two, but you could easily make a bigger batch.

Ingredients

1 sweet potato
2 tablespoons olive oil*
1 leek, white and light green part quartered & sliced
3 – 4 slices dry cured ham (or bacon), diced*
1 sprig of fresh thyme
1 sprig of fresh parsley, chopped
1 fresh sage leaf, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

  • Pierce the potato skin a few times with a fork and roast in the microwave (5-10 minutes) or oven (400 degrees for 45-60 minutes) until tender
  • Add the oil to a frying pan and saute the leek over medium high heat*
  • As the leeks become tender, add the ham, cooking until it begins to crisp
  • Add the leaves from the thyme (by running your fingers down the stem from top to bottom, if the tender top of a shoot comes off with the leaves, it’s not a problem) with the chopped parsley and sage. You could substitute a pinch of dried herbs)
  • Peel and dice the cooked sweet potato and add to the pan and season with salt and pepper
  • Ready to serve, for this photo, the mixture was packed into a metal ring and the plate dotted with a balsamic reduction using a toothpick

*It was our desire to use bacon lardons, but our neighborhood market was out and a German dry cured ham, similar to Prosciutto or Seranno, was the closest thing. If you have “real” bacon, I would cook the bacon first and saute the leeks in the bacon grease, omitting the olive oil.

Serves: 2