Traditions, Celebrations and their Food

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Cool idea, David - thanks
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David, hi, you never stop surprising me. As a matter of fact I am almost done cooking for Purim, small getharing of about 200. 2 24 quarts pots of borscht, about a 1200-1300 varenikies/pirogie. About 600 pirpzhkies. If I'm not going to drop dead by Friday I'll sleep all day Sunday. I can't even begin to tell you how tired I am. Tomorow is fun part begins boiling the varenikies. ;)
 
Wow! Go CharlieD!!

David, hi, you never stop surprising me. As a matter of fact I am almost done cooking for Purim, small getharing of about 200. 2 24 quarts pots of borscht, about a 1200-1300 varenikies/pirogie. About 600 pirpzhkies. If I'm not going to drop dead by Friday I'll sleep all day Sunday. I can't even begin to tell you how tired I am. Tomorow is fun part begins boiling the varenikies. ;)

I can not imagine making 1300 pirogies - about 60 I did for an Orthodox Siveta Vechera at Christmas but 1300?? How? And that much borsch one could swim in. Six hundred pirpzhkies??? :huh:

Folks, you have little idea what Charlie has done. Thanks for sharing Charlie!
The Chef's hat is for you. :chef:

P.S. - Charlie, I spend too much time on line looking for things for Books by Volunteers who serve Ukraine Orphans. Go there are you will find that your affiliation is well represented. That's what it's all about - everyone included.

Oh - Goodweed, thanks for the link. I took a quick look and will go back as soon as I hit the submit button right now.............
 
David, hi, you never stop surprising me. As a matter of fact I am almost done cooking for Purim, small getharing of about 200. 2 24 quarts pots of borscht, about a 1200-1300 varenikies/pirogie. About 600 pirpzhkies. If I'm not going to drop dead by Friday I'll sleep all day Sunday. I can't even begin to tell you how tired I am. Tomorow is fun part begins boiling the varenikies. ;)

What are pirpzhkies and varenikies?
 
Perogies, perohie, prohie

Here is a link to vareneky, with accent on the second syllable, (or perogies, pirogies, progies, etc. as we generally call them). It has how to photos and recipes.
http://www.allthingsukrainian.com/Recipe/Varenyky/index.html


Peroshies (accent on the o) is the probably incorrect transliteration but I don't know any other. I'm not sure of CharlieD's transliteration :ohmy:. Anyway, they are similar to vareneky but most often I think with yeast dough and either fried or baked.

But what do I know? I'm just a poboy once upon a time from the hills of North Carolina and can't spell in English much less Ukrainian. :ermm:

By the way Goodweed - fascinating link you provided. It links us as people in a strange way - our Christian members and readers will recall the story of the three wise men from the East bringing gifts. Well, they were most likely priests from these people when they lived in Persia, not Iran, before being forced out to India when Arabs conquered Persia and changed the religion. Worth opening and reading for sure. Thanks , kudos!!
 
OOps GotGarlic!! Sorry, I kept calling you goodweed, sorry goodweed. Anyway, GotGarlic asked what pirpzhkies and varenikies are. You have the link to varenikies. Here is a good one to Piroshky.
http://delectable-victuals.blogspot.com/2007/10/piroshky.html

Sorry again - GotGarlic doesn't sound like goodweed now does it? Oh well. Remember, forgiveness is devine! :) D
 
OOps GotGarlic!! Sorry, I kept calling you goodweed, sorry goodweed. Anyway, GotGarlic asked what pirpzhkies and varenikies are. You have the link to varenikies. Here is a good one to Piroshky.
http://delectable-victuals.blogspot.com/2007/10/piroshky.html

Sorry again - GotGarlic doesn't sound like goodweed now does it? Oh well. Remember, forgiveness is devine! :) D

GotGarlic is a good guy so I don't mind at all. I hope he doesn't mind either. But I was confused. I'm not sure that that can ever be helped though.:wacko::LOL:

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North
 
GotGarlic is a good guy so I don't mind at all. I hope he doesn't mind either. But I was confused. I'm not sure that that can ever be helped though.:wacko::LOL:

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

No, *she* doesn't mind one bit. :-p Thanks for the links :) I should try making pierogies sometime. DH's father is Polish and his mother is German, so he grew up with them.
 
No, *she* doesn't mind one bit. :-p Thanks for the links :) I should try making pierogies sometime. DH's father is Polish and his mother is German, so he grew up with them.

:LOL::LOL::blush: I shoulda known that. I've had the same gender mixup happen to me several times. I think that when we don't know the other gender, we tend to think everyone is like us. Sorry 'bout that. You're still really cool:cool:.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed fo the North
 
No problem. You're pretty cool, too, GW. Because you're from Michigan, where I grew up, although I gather you're in the Frozen North ;) DH and I both grew up in the SE part of the state. My dad had a friend who had a cabin in the UP where we spent time in the summers, though. I sure miss the summers - but not the winters!

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Tomorrow, March 23, is Easter here in the US. For many Orthodox Christians It will be April 27 per the old calendar. Here is a link to the Easter traditions in Ukraine with a recipes connection.

The recipe for the traditional bread, Paska, is included and it is most excellent. To make the tall cylinders I use a three pound coffee can, well baked out in the oven to remove paint, oils, etc. It is lined with parchment paper and to hold the parchment in place I grease the can very well first. During the last part of the bake you will probably want to keep covering the top of the bread with damp paper cut from a paper grocery bag - you will need a good supply of damp papers. This is to prevent burning.

Hint - don't let the bread cool in the can before removing - it should slide out readily. Have a large pillow ready, covered with a clean linen. Roll the bread back and forth on the pillow - yes, back and forth and back - for about fifteen minutes. This will allow the bread to cool and retain its shape, which is very important. No sagging or leaning Paska please! :)

Check it out - ancient traditions are envoked here.

http://www.brama.com/art/easter.html
 
Well, I survived. I ended up actually making 1500 pirogies/varenikies and 500 deep fried piroshkies. Pierogies/varenikies with meat and potato filings and piroshkies’ with meat, potato, cabbage, and egg + green onion mixture. I was so tired after this event I slept till 10:30 AM today, something I never do, and doubt if I ever slept this late in my life. I am always up very early, even though I am not morning person. It was a very ambitions undertaking. Thank G-d it’s done. I’ll never take something like this upon my self.
 
Charlie! That's 2000 pieces, 166 dozen. I know what it takes to produce that many. At the Ukainian Orthodox Church in Parma it takes two mornings from about 5:00am to noon. Prep on the first day, and finish on the second day with about 16 nice little ladies coming in to assemble. There is a steady murmer of gossip in Ukrainian for about three hours, then the crowd gets quiet. Shortly after that there is break for all the goodies people bring in. The "pastry" men keep the dough and filling coming to them and the cooking, counting, bagging men take the assembled pieces. I have been shown and participated in the whole process but always take a spot counting and bagging - trying to not lose count to 12. I know. I don't have a clue how you did it. Glad you're alive!
 
It took us, my mom and I 6 Sundays, about 5-6 hours per day, make and freeze everything and then it took almost the whole day to boil the varenikies. Also on the last day I made borscht. It was crazy undertaking. I'll never do it again.
 
We are in Passover

Pesach - Passover

Begins after nightfall April 19 and ends before nightfall April 27

Here is a link to a bit of info about the celebration:
http://www.holidays.net/passover/index.htm

A simple recipe that we all can do to honor the tradition:
salmon patties kosher style
http://kosher4passover.com/ruthsrecipes.htm

For the matzah meal – that is just Matzah, the unleavened bread, turned into crumbs. Maybe buy some or here is a recipe for matzah which is by necessity very simple and it has to be quick. From start of mix to the completion of baking no more than eighteen minutes may lapse so have the oven preheated as hot as you can get it, everything in its place, dock the dough well so it will bake fast, and work quickly.

You are remembering that you have a very few minutes to get up and moving in you flight and there was no time for bread to rise. In this time of remembering you avoid leavened bread.

Matzah
http://www.lightofmashiach.org/matzorecipe.html


Here is the recipe I shall make – it is Ukrainian and seems to fit Ashkenazi cooking traditions. I think the ingredients together are Kosher compatible, however please do not think I would intentionally mislead about the proper techniques that Kosher requires because with apologies I have no clue.

Roll-ups from Pike
Rybyachyy Zavyvanets (I think is the correct transliteration from Ukrainian)
Inspired by “The Best of Ukrainian Cuisine”, Chef Bohdan Zahny

Ingredients for roll-ups:

fillets of pike, perch, or similar fish – about two pounds
4 hard boiled eggs – chopped
bundle of fresh parsley – well washed and chopped
salt and pepper
5 cups water more or less
2 – 3 bay leaves
1 onion quartered
1/2 cup vinegar (not Kosher to use vinegar during Passover - do not use to properly honor Passover)

Preparing the fish:

Clean the fillets and cover with the eggs and parsley.
Sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste.
Roll up and tie with string.
Add bay leaves, onion, vinegar (remember, no vinegar to properly honor Passover) and pinch of pepper to water and bring to gentle boil.
Add roll-ups to gently boiling water – cook lightly, remove from heat and allow the roll-ups to cool somewhat in the liquid. Remember, fish can easily be overcooked.
Slice and serve with gravy.

Ingredients for gravy:

5 hard boiled egg yolks, mashed
1 ½ cups sunflower oil
2 Tbls vinegar (no vinegar during Passover per above)
1 tsp prepared mustard (contains vinegar - do not use during passover -use a pinch or two of ground mustard to taste)
sugar – pinch
salt – pinch

1 Tbls thin sliced pickles (eliminate for Passover - contains vinegar)
1 Tbls marinaded chopped mushrooms (eliminate if they contain vinegar - chopped mushrooms with no vinegar might be ok)
5 Tbls sour cream

Preparing the gravy – if everything has been prepped and in place as it should be then the gravy should take no longer than for the roll-ups to be ready.

Beat and mix together well the egg yolks, sunflower oil, vinegar (but no vinegar during Passover), mustard (use the pinch or two of ground mustard during Passover), pinch of sugar and pinch of salt.
Add sliced pickles (no pickles during Passover), marinated mushrooms (but not if they contain vinegar) and sour cream.

Enjoy!
 
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Learning about food

The vinegar though ok during the year, is not kosher for Passover.

Thanks Charlie, I tried to find out about what was not ok during Passover but didn't do too well. I was uncertain about mustard though. The intent is to honor and learn, not trample upon.

I would like to have the thread name changed from festivals to something more like Traditions, Celebrations and their Food in a more "ethnic" category whatever "ethnic" means anymore, not much. I think it might mean anything with which I am not familiar. :chef:
 
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