Bosnian Pot

It was beginning  of October when we returned to my birth town. Weather was still warm, and my parents' garden full of vegetarian goodness. Much loved 'Bosnian Pot' was waiting for us at the table - my mom's creation. According to Wikipedia -" Bosnian Pot (Bosanski Lonac) is an authentic Bosnian culinary speciality, appreciated for its rich taste and flexibility. It is impossible to define the recipe for Bosanski lonac, as there are many variations, but the main ingredients are mostly the same: meat and various vegetables."

Traditionally, it's made in a clay pot, cooked slowly using any vegetable / meat available at the time. 

Some sources show that this kind of food was first created by Bosnian miners, who would dig a hole in ground before their shift, make fire, layer large earthenware pots with chunky cut vegetables and some meat and leave it for 8 hours while they're underground doing their job. The dish became very popular for it's flexibility, 'no attending time' and taste. 

I like Bosnian Pot with lots of potatoes, cabbage, lamb and beef and flavoured with parsley and garlic.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup oil

2 onions, chopped

3-4 garlic cloves, chopped 

1/2 kg lamb with bones

1/2 kg beef, chunks

carrots, parsnip, celery

tomatoes (4-6)

6-8 potatoes

2 capsicums

1 eggplant

1/2 small cabage

8-10 black pepper corns  (whole)

Paprika and bay leaves (optional)

salt  / vegetable stock powder

2 dl white whine or water

parsley leaves and crushed garlic for topping

Method: 

Heat oil in a large pot. Layer all chunky cut vegetables and meat according to your likings. Put all spices and wine on top, cover tightly and leave to cook slow for few hours. Garnish with parsley and garlic when served.

Bosanski Lonac

Bio je pocetak oktobra kad smo se vratili u moj rodni kraj. Vrijeme je jos uvijek bilo toplo, a basta mojih roditelja puna vegetarijanske dobrote. Veoma zeljen Bosanski Lonac nas je cekao na stolu - kreacija moje mame.

Prema 'Wikipediji': "Bosanski Lonac je autenticna Bosanska kulinarska specijalnost, cijenjena zbog bogatog ukusa i fleksibilnosti u spremanju. Nemoguce je dati tacan recept za Bosanski Lonac, posto postoje mnoge varijacije, ali glavni sastojci su uglavnom meso i razlicito povrce."

Tradicionalno. ovo je jelo pripremano u zemljanim posudama, krckajuci dugo na nizim temperaturama i koristeci bilo koje povrce i meso koje je dostupno.

Prema nekim izvorima, rudari su bili prvi koji su pripremali ovakvu vrstu hrane. Kopali bi rupe u zemlji prije odlaska u rudnik, lozili vatru, slozili slojeve krupno rezanog mesa i povrca u zemljanim posudama i ostavljali ih pokrivene 8 sati  da kckaju (za vrijeme radnog vremena).

Ovakav nacin kuhanja je postao popularan sirom Bosne iz vise razloga - fleksibilnost u namirnicama, nema potrebe za nadziranjem, kao i ukus.

Ja licno ga volim sa mnogo krompira, kupusa i mjesavinu jagnjetine i govedine, zacinjenu persinom i bijelim lukom.

Sastojci:

1/4 solje ulja

2 crvena luka, sjeckana

3-4 cena bijelog luka

1/2 kg jagnjetine s kostima

1/2 kg govedine, veci komadi

mrkva, persun, celer

paradajz (4-6)

6-8 krompira

2 parike

1 patlidzan

1/2 manjeg kupusa

8-10 zrna crnog bibera

mljevena crvena parika i lovor (po zelji)\

so / vegeta

2 dl bijelog vina ili vode 

lisce persuna i protisnuti bijeli luk za serviranje

Nacin:

Zagrijte ulje u vecoj posudi (sa poklopcem), dodajte slojeve krupno rezanog povrca i mesa. Ubacite zacine i zalijte vinom / vodom. Poklopite i krckajte nekoliko sati. Pri sluzenju pospite persunovim liscem i protisnutim bijelim lukom.

Robinson's Ushtiptci ('Uštipci')...back on the road through Bosnia

Modrac Lake  near Tuzla/ Jezero Modrac kod Tuzle

On our way back home to Brcko (from Montenegro) , we stopped on Modrac lake to meet my hubby's cousin and his family. They took us to a restaurant called Robinson. It looked very rustic, like real place of Robinson Cruso - all built with wood and palm leaves; there was even a ship placed on the side of lake, to  make the whole story believable.

For dinner we had great platter of local fish and some much-loved ushtiptci. I got more than I bargained for; a huge hornet flu into my glass, so I got another (small) bottle of wine for free.

Ushtiptci / Uštipci

Upper row SR flour, Lower row Yeasted dough 

Gornje su sa praskom za pecivo, donje sa kvascem

Ushtiptci are basically fried bread dough; kind-of  savoury version of doughnuts They're usually eaten for breakfast, as snack or  as entree served with sour cream and cheese.

Any plain (white bread) dough can be used - proven dough is cut, stretched and fried in hot oil.

For a quick method, self raising flour and yogurt is mixed with sparkling water, rolled, cut and fried.

I prefer more ones with yeasted dough .

Ingredients ( for quick ones with SR flour)

2 cups SR flour 

1/4 cup yogurt or buttermilk

1 tsp salt

sparkling water (cca 1/2 cup); or plain water with a tsp of vinegar

Oil for frying

Method:

Mix all ingredients; knead slightly. Dust working surface and roll out the dough to thickness of 1,5 cm. Cut into squares (or other shapes) and fry on medium high both sides, a couple at a time (oil must be deep enough - at least 3 cm). Repeat with the rest.

Sprinkle with salt (optional) and enjoy while warm.

Restaurant 'Robinson'

Na putu nazad u Brčko (iz Crne Gore), zaustavili smo se na Modračkom jezeru da se nadjemo sa dragim rodjacima. Odveli su nas u restoran 'Robinson'. Restoran je izgledao veoma rusticno, bas kao pravo Robinzonovo mjesto. Sagradjen je od drveta i palminog lisca, cak je i jedan jedrenjak bio postavljen na obali jezera, kako bi cijeli dozivljaj bio sto ubjedljiviji.

Za veceru smo imali ogromnu servu lokalne ribe, a za predjelo ustipke. Ja sam dobila vise nego sam narucila - u vino mi je uletio ogroman strsljen, tako da su mi donijeli jos jednu (malu) bocu vina.

U Bosni se ustipci prave na 2 osnovna nacina - Bilo koje tijesto za bijeli hljeb / kruh moze biti upotrijebljeno (odrezano /otkinuto i isprzeno), ili se umijesi brzo tijesto sa praskom za pecivo. Uvijek se serviraju sa kajmakom (i sirom) .

Evo recepta za ovu brzu verziju!

Potrebno:

2 solje brasna sa praskom za pecivo (samodizajuce)

1/4 solje jogurta ili tecnog kiselog mlijeka

1 k soli

oko 1/2 solje kisele vode (ili obicna voda sa 1 k sirceta)

ulje za przenje

Nacin:

Umijesite tijesto, razvaljajte ga na 1,5 cm i izrezite na zeljene oblike. Przite u srednje vrelom ulju (mora biti bar 3 cm duboko) obje strane. Pospite sa malo soli (po zelji) i servirajte toplo.

Hornet in my glass / Stršljen u mom vinu

'Parachuters' (Padobranci) - Macaroons of Balkan

This is one of favourite desserts in Balkans. Very similar to Macaroons...

Ingredients:

Macaroons-

4 egg whites

220 g icing sugar

200 g ground walnuts

2 tsp lemon juice or vinegar

1 tbs corn flour (or fine biscuit crumbs)

Cream-

100 g butter, soft

100 g icing sugar

2 yolks

50 g chocolate, melted

Method:

Beat egg whites until soft peak forms; add sugar, spoon by spoon. Beat until sugar dissolved and egg whites thick. Fold in lemon juice, corn flour, walnuts  and corn flour.

Preheat oven to 150*C; line biscuit tins with baking paper (or al - foil).

Pipe or spoon meringue into little circles, with some space between them. Bake / dry for 1 hour; switch oven off and let macaroons cool inside ajared oven.

For cream; beat butter, sugar and yolks until thick and fluffy. Add melted chocolate, mix well.

When macaroons are cooled, place some of cream on one and top with another-one. 

Keep in a cool, dry spot.

Padobranci

Potrebno:

Puslice-

4 bjelanca

220 gr secera u prahu

200 gr mljevenih oraha

2 k soka limuna ili sirce

1 K 'Gustina' ili mrvica  obicnog keksa

Krema-

100 gr maslaca, omeklsalog

100 gr secera u prahu

2 zumanca

50 gr cokolade, otopljene

Nacin:

Umutite bjelanca u cvrst snijeg, dodajte kasiku po kasiku secera i limunov sok. Umutite dobro, zatim dodajte ostale sastojke, rucno mijesajuci. 

Ukljucite renu na 150*C, pripremite plehove, oblozite ih papirom za pecenje ili al- folijom.

Kasicicom ili pomocu slasticarske vrecice nanesite male hrpice umucene smjese, pazeci da ostavite razmak izmedju njih.

Susite oko 1 sat, iskljucite rernu i ostavite odskrinutu da se padobranci ohlade u njoj.

Za kremu, umutite secer sa maslacem i zumancima u gustu smjesu. Dodajte cokoladu i dobro promijesajte. 

Sastavljajte po dva padobranca sa ovom smjesom.

Drzite na hladnom i suhom mjestu.

Montenegro and Njegus pizza

Through Montenegro 

Njegus Pizza

During my  travelling in September and October, I was most looking forward to visiting Podgorica, capital of Montenegro. I spent a few years of my childhood  there, starting primary school and carrying best memories from that city (it was called Titograd at that time).

On our way (from Korcula to Podgorica) scenery was unforgettable; especially around Boka Kotorska.

We stopped in a small city called Morinj for lunch. The restaurant ('Catovica Mlini') was set in an old mill with beautiful surroundings. The owner obviously had great eye for details and didn't mind spending a lot of money to fulfil his dream.

We arrived in Podgorica in the afternoon, had a quick shower and got out for an evening walk. I enjoyed seeing this beautiful city and sensing the smells from old conifer trees and Moracha river.

For dinner we had 'Njegus pizza' - with fresh local toppings like Njeguska prsuta, Montenegrin kajmak and olives. (Njegusi is a village where Petar Petrovic Njegos, great poet and philosopher of Montenegro  was born. I don't know if pizza got the name from that village and it's prosciutto, or from famous poet.)

Ingredients:

Pizza base

Passata (tomato sauce)

Oregano 

Prosciutto

'Kajmak' (very heavy cream-cheese-like salty spread)

Olives

Tomatoes

Method: 

Spread passata onto base, sprinkle with oregano; bake for 10-15 minutes. Place fresh ingredients on top, cut into wedges and enjoy!

Boka Kotorska

Restaurant  'Catovica Mlini' (Morinj) 

Podgorica

Crna Gora i Njeguševa Pizza

Za vrijeme moga putovanja u septembru i oktobru, najvise sam se radovala posjeti Podgorice. Tamo sam provela nekoliko sretnih godina moga djetinjstva, krenula u skolu i ponijela sa sobom divne uspomene. Tada se Podgorica zvala Titograd.

Prirodne ljepote (od Korcule do Podgorice) su bile nezaboravne, posebno oko Boke Kotorske. Zaustavili smo se u Morinju, nabasavsi na tablu na kojoj je pisalo Konoba 'Catovica mlini'. Bio je to restoran postavljen na divnom imanju nekadasnjeg mlinara. Sadasnji vlasnik ocito ima mnogo smisla za detalje i ne zali novac na izgradnju njegovih snova.

U Podgoricu smo stigli predvece, na brzinu se istusirali  i izasli u vecernju setnju. Uzivala sam gledajuci ovaj lijepi grad, i udisuci mirise starih cempresa i Morace.

Za veceru smo narucili "Njegusevu picu', sa lokalnim proizvodima: Njeguska prsuta, Pljevljanski kajmak i crne masline. (Njegusi su mjesto gdje je poznati Petar Petrovic Njegos bio rodjen. Nisam sigurna je li pica dobila ime po selu i prsuti ili po slavnom poeti i filozofu.)

Sastojci:

Pica podloga

Pasata / paradajz sos

Origano

Prsuta

Crnogorski kajmak (oko 60-70% masnoce, zasoljen)

Crne masline 

Paradajz

Nacin:

Premazite podlogu paradajz sosem, pospite origanom i ispecite. Postavite svjese ostale sastojke po povrsini, isjecite i uzivajte.

Spinach Filled Italian Bread

Recipe from Campania  (around Naples, south); traditionally served for Christmas Eve.

Ingredients:

Dough-

2 1/3 cups bread flour

1 tsp instant yeast (or 15g  fresh)

1 tsp sugar 

2 tsp salt 

3/4 cup warm water

Filling-

1,25 kg  (3-4 bunches) spinach (endive or escarole)

1/2 cup olive oil

1 garlic clove

1 cup black olives, sliced

8-10 anchovy fillets, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

2 tbs capers (optional)

1 tbs pine nuts

Method:

Make soft dough (using machine / mixer or by hand). Cover it and let it double in a warm spot.

Clean and wash spinach. Blanch it in hot water for a few minutes. Rinse and squeeze. Heat oil (reserve 1 tbs for later), and lightly fry halved garlic. Get rid of garlic then add chopped spinach, anchovies and olives. Cook for few minutes. Check taste and season if needed. Let it cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 200*C; prepare a pizza tin.

Divide dough in 2 - leave one piece larger than other. Roll out into  a 30 cm circle. Place it onto pizza pan (leave dough hanging over the sides). Place filling into it, then roll smaller dough into circle and cover the filling. Seal the edges by folding the edges of first sheet of dough over second one; press with fingers (or insert pine nuts). Brush with remaining oil and bake for 30 minutes.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Italijanski Špinatom filovani hljeb / kruh

Recept  Campania podrucja (oko Napolia, jug); tradicionalno se servira za Badnjak.

Potrebno:

Tijesto- 

2 1/3 solje (350 gr) brasna

15 gr kvasca (ili 1 k instant)

1 k secera 

2 k soli

3/4 solje (2 dl) mlake vode 

Punjenje-

1,25 kg (3-4 sveznja) spinata (ili drugog lisnatog povrca)

1/2 solje maslinovog ulja

1 ceno bijelog luka

1 solja crnih maslina, rezanih

8-10 fileta incuna, sjeckanih

so i biber prema ukusu

2 K kapara (po zelji)

1 K pinjola

Nacin:

Umijesite tijesto, ostavite pokriveno na toplome da se dize.

Ocistite spinat, blansirajte ga. Ocijedite i isjeckajte.

Zagrijte ulje (ostavite 1 K za kasnije), proprzite bijeli luk koji ste prepolovili. Odstranite luk, zatim ubacite spinat, masline i incune. Kuhajte par minuta. Provjerite okus i zacinite ako treba. Prohladite.

Ukljucite rernu na 200*C, pripremite pica podlogu.

Podijelite tijesto na 2 dijela, ostavljauci jedan dio veci. Razvucite taj dio u krug i postavite ga preko pripremljene podloge, ostavljajuci krajeve tijesta preko ivice. Ubacite fil, zatim postavite drugi dio tijesta koji ste takodje razvukli u krug. Vratite krajeve prvog tijesta preko drugog dijela i pritisnite prstima ili ubodite pinjole. Premazite sacuvanim uljem. Pecite  oko 30 minuta. Servirajte odmah ili na sobnoj temperaturi.

Nona's (Grandmother's) Pie

A little break from Balkan travelling... This is an old Italian recipe; grandmas used to bake it in metal plates (remember those?). Still very popular in Italy!

Ingredients:
Dough-
1/2 cup butter (125g)
2/3 cup sugar (125g)
2 eggs
1  2/3 cup flour (250g), sifted
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
Vanilla cream-
2 cups milk (1/2 L )
5 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar (150g)
1/3 cup flour (50g)
vanilla essence
For decoration-
icing sugar, sage flowers or slivered almonds

Method:
First make cream-

Mix egg yolks and sugar with flour (add a bit of milk if necessary). Bring the rest of milk to boil. Take away from heat and pour prepared mixture. Mix well, return to slow heat and cook until thick and creamy. Add vanilla, mix well and let it cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 180*C; prepare a plate / pie dish.

Dough-
Cream eggs and sugar, then beat in the eggs. Add flour and baking powder; mix well. Divide dough in 2 and roll 2 circles. Place one on greased plate (pie dish) and cover with vanilla cream, piling it slightly higher in the middle. Cover with other dough circle, press edges together and bake for 35-40 minutes. When cooked sprinkle with icing sugar and decorate to your liking.

Nonina pita (pita jedne Italijanske bake)

Mali predah od putovanja kroz Balkan...Ovo je jedan stari Italijanski recept; Bake su ga nekada pekle u onim metalnim / emajliranim tanjirima (sjecate se tih?). Jos uvijek veoma popularan desert u Italiji!

Potrebno:
Tijesto-
125 gr maslaca
125 gr secera
2 jaja
250 gr brasna
1 k praska za pecivo
malo soli
Vanila krem-
1/2 L mlijeka
5 zumanaca
150 gr secera
50 gr brasna
aroma / secer / esencija vanile
Za dekoraciju-
secer u prahu, cvjetovi kadulje / zalfije ili sjeckani oguljeni bademi

Nacin:
Najprije napravite kremu-
Izmiksajte zumanca sa secerom i brasnom; dodajte malo mlijeka ako je potrebno. Ostatak mlijeka stavite da provri. Smaknite sa vatre pa umijesajte pripremljenu mjesavinu. Lagano kuhajte, mijesajuci dok sa ne zgusne. Dodajte vanilu, promijesajte i ostavite hladiti.
Ukljucite rernu na 180*C, pripremite tanjir / kalup za pecenje.
Tijesto-
Miksajte maslac sa secerom, zatim dodajte jaja. Umijesajte brasno i prasak za pecivo. Podijelite tijesto na 2 dijela. Razvucite u krugove. Stavite jedan krug na namascen pleh. Prekrijte ga sa kremom, ostavljajuci na sredini nesto vecu hrpu, a krajeve slobodne. Postavite drugi krug tijesta i pritisnite krajeve prstima. 
Pecite oko 35-40 minuta. Kada je gotova, pitu pospite secerom u prahu i ukrasite cim zelite.