It’s Pi(e) Day on March 14, so I had to make a pie, right? Well, seeing I am still working on educating myself on all things Ukrainian, I decided to make Kapustyanyy pyrih — Ukrainian-Style Cabbage Pie. It’s sort of a cross between a souffle, a crust-less quiche and a savory pie like a potato-leek pie. It’s got a whole lot of cabbage of-course (not fermented cabbage / sauerkraut though, just raw cabbage that is baked), as well as herbs and onions and a light, super eggy crust. It’s not like anything that I have ever had before, but I do quite like it. I also could see making this in like a rectangular brownie pan and serving it as a side with a meat dish. Apparently, you can also make variations with other veggies included (i.e. carrot or potatoes) or add in some sauteed chicken or sausage or ham. Pleasantly pleased at the outcome.
It’s Wednesday, so that must mean a new sourdough experiment for the week! Sticking to my “learn about Ukrainian food” theme, this bread is a Whole Wheat Sunflower Seed Sourdough Artisan Bread. The Ukraine produces some of the largest crops of sunflower seeds globally (although with Russian and other Eastern European countries). And the sunflower is also a symbol of peace in the Ukraine. So, this bread is meaningful and economically appropriate. The Ukrainians, I have read, also eat a lot of rye, so that will be next Wednesday’s experiment. In the meantime, this bread is moist, rounded (literally and figuratively), hearty and has good flavor with the sunflower seeds, whole wheat and honey.
This is perhaps the epitome of comfort food for me : Kasespätzle! I guess you could consider it Southern German “Mac & Cheese”, except with homemade pasta, Swiss cheese instead of cheddar and onions. It’s the first and last thing that I eat when I go home to Germany, and while I don’t make it all that often at home (mainly because the carbs and cheese add up to lots of calories!), it is the thing that I crave when I need a foodie “hug”. It’s delicious, it’s comforting and it instantly puts a smile on my face.
Hasselback potatoes are definitely comfort food to me! Long time followers of this page will know that I am very proud of this style of potato: back in 2015, I even won a contest with this recipe put on by the Idaho Potato Commission and if it’s one thing that Idaho knows, it’s potatoes. 🙂 These take a bit of time (usually right around an hour, although if you have larger potatoes, they can take a little longer), and they take a little bit of precision to make, but I think that they are worth it. My trick for not cutting all the way through the potato is to put a chop stick on either side o the potato so I don’t slice all the way down to the cutting board. If you aren’t a fan of garlic, you can omit it, though I do think the fresh herbs are nice in the basting butter.