A Culinary Tour Around the World - Poland

Nalesniki (polish Crepes)

Before I head out on my journey to find the best pierogies and Golabki in Krakow I need to meet up with Joan of Foodalogue. I had promised to meet her in Portugal...but plans change and I met the handsome and debonair Casimir on the train in Norway. So, here I am continuing on my virtual tour in Poland to meet up with the group. Joan is helping to promote hunger awareness through her event A Culinary Tour Around the World. Joan will be travelling virtually wherever her imagination takes us for the next little while through food, sights, and cultural diversity. Why not join Joan and reach outside your comfort zone? How about meeting her in any one of her itinerary stops and presenting your interpretation of the cuisine from that destination to your readers? Who wouldn't enjoy taking a journey around the world even if it is from the comfort of your favourite armchair??

This week join Joan in Poland!!!!!

Of course I dumped Casimir in Krakow (he was too fond of his bottle of Polish vodka) and decided to spend a week with Malgorzata Rose ("Sarna" to her friends) the founder of Poland Culinary Vacations. Poland Culinary Vacations grew out of her love and passion for travel and everything Polish, including fine Polish cuisine, eventually blossoming into a first-class culinary travel company. She shares her philosophy,

"Travel helps us to better understand and appreciate other people, ultimately leading to a more peaceful world. Nothing is more intimate, or more effective at breaking down cultural barriers, than cooking and sharing meals together."

For these 7 days I will be cooking traditional recipes in Polish homes with local women with hands on cooking lessons as well as demonstration type cooking classes, visiting neighborhood markets and Polish food festivals . This way I will have the opportunity to sample rare delicacies from local artisan producers and family farms such as breads, cheeses, preserves, sausages, wild game dishes, beer, honey wines, and world-renowned vodkas. Of course I will also be able to visit many of Poland's famous cultural sites and learn all I can about the history, traditions and identity of the Polish people. During my virtual vacation I will be staying in elegant and comfortable accommodations in the beautiful 16th-century Zamek na Skale castle in the Polish countryside and at Tumski hotel in the city of Wroclaw in Poland's Lower Silesia region. We will see if my itinerary permits me to have an extended stay in Wroclaw to further explore this lovely city, dubbed "the Venice of Poland".

With Poland Culinary Vacations, I'll travel in the company of a small group of English-speaking, food-loving people from all over the world. And, thanks to their slow-vacation approach, I'll have time to truly get to know my companions and feed my soul as well as my stomach. As always I think immersing yourself in a culture and making immediate friends on a cooking vacation is the best way to go if you have no family or friend connections in a specific country. The people of Poland enjoy a relaxed lifestyle, focused on the pleasures of family, friends, and fantastic meals, especially in small towns and villages. They take time to socialize with newcomers and are especially welcoming to travelers who truly want to learn about the land and people they are visiting.

A word of warning!!!! If you want to try traditional Polish cuisine, stop counting your calories!!!! Typical meals are very hearty and often contain a lot of meat. Just sampling them is enough to discover that they are really delicious and worth putting on a few ounces. The most recommended dishes I have tried on my virtual journey are bigos, kotlet schabowy, pierogies, halushki and golabki.

One dish that I tried on my virtual journey was Nalesniki or Polish crepes. These are a favourite during Lent. They are a thin pancake rolled or folded around a sweet or savory filling which can be lightly browned or baked. As with most dishes there are probably as many variations of this dish as there are cooks in Poland. This recipe comes from About.com. They have provided both a sweet and a savoury version.

Joan has linked her virtual journey with our Social Network BloggerAid-Changing the Face of Famineto help promote world hunger and raise awareness for the World Food Programme .

I hope you have enjoyed my virtual tour with Joan to Poland. In honour of the trip I served my savoury version of this dish with some fruit on the side.

I will be hanging out in Poland for a little while with my new found friends. Joan...meet up with you in Portugal in February. I hope you enjoy your stays in Germany and France!!!!!

**Nalesniki (Polish Crepes)**

Savoury Nalesniki Crepes:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup lukewarm water
2 large eggs
2 T butter, melted
1/2 tsp salt

Sweet Nalesniki Crepes:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup lukewarm water`
2 large eggs
2 Y butter, melted
1 1/2 T sugar`
Pinch salt

In a blender or food processor, combine all ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a pitcher, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes so the liquid can be absorbed by the flour.

Using a 2-ounce ladle, portion out batter into a nonstick pan that has been coated with butter. Rotate pan and swirl batter until it covers the entire bottom of pan. Cook until lightly brown or spotted brown on the underside.

Remove to waxed paper or parchment paper and repeat with remaining batter and butter separating nalesniki with waxed paper or parchment. (Can be frozen up to 1 month).

Savory White Cheese Filling:

1 lb. (about two cups) dry cottage cheese (Farmer's cheese) or ricotta cheese
1 egg yolk (optional)
1 egg (lightly beaten)
½ cup chives or finely minced new onions
salt – to taste
white pepper – to taste.

Sweet White Cheese Filling:

Same as for Savory White Cheese Filling except omit chives, salt and pepper and substitute:

5 T sugar
1 tsp melted butter or margarine and
1 T vanilla
one extra egg yolk for added richness.

Break-up cheese in a hand grinder, large-pore sieve, or food processor. Do not puree! In a medium bowl combine sieved cheese, eggs with chives, salt and white pepper; or sugar, melted butter or margarine and vanilla.

***A small amount of cleaned and fresh fruit like berries, tropical fruit, or apples can be added to the cheese mixture and sugar adjusted to taste. One variation is to make a small amount of sauce from the fruit and spoon it over the browned or baked cheese-filled Nalesniki.

**Method**

Filling and Folding Nalesniki

Place Nalesniki seam down in frying or baking pan as you fill and fold them.

Here are the four traditional ways of filling and folding Nalesniki:

Long Roll: Evenly spread about 1 tablespoon of filling over one-half of pancake leaving bare about one–half inch from the edge; roll from the filled side until you have a long tube.

Short Roll: Evenly spread about 1 tablespoon of filling, leaving the outer one inch bare, over the entire pancake. Fold over two unspread edges from opposite sides of the pancake; roll one of the remaining two unspread edges toward the center; then roll up tightly from the unfolded end until you have a small fat tube.

Handkerchief Fold: Evenly spread about 1 tablespoon of filling over one-half of pancake, leaving bare about one-half inch from the edge; fold empty half over filled half; then fold once again bringing the two points together. Not particularly well suited for jams or runny fillings.

Envelope or Book Fold (Ksiazeczka): Evenly spread about 1 tablespoon of filling over the center of pancake leaving bare about one–half inch from the edge; fold about one-third of pancake over filling; then fold over the opposite one-third; fold ends in, forming a small packet.

**Cooking Nalesniki**

Method 1

Melt a small amount of unsalted butter or margarine in a frying pan. Sauté Nalesniki, seam-side down, over medium heat about 3 minutes on each side. Place on a warm plate or serving platter. Garnish with fresh diced and sweetened fruit, or a warm cooked fruit sauce. Serve with sour cream.

Method 2

Preheat oven 350° to 375°. Place Nalesniki, seam side down, in well buttered baking dish, in layers if necessary; drench with melted unsalted butter or dot with cold unsalted butter. Bake for about 30 minutes or until heated through with top layer attractively browned. Serve with sweetened diced berries or fruit or warm fruit sauce; sour cream on the side.

Makes about 12

(Happy Travels and Bon Appetit!!!)

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