The Abe Forum

spiritualcookie wrote: ↑Mon Apr 29, 2024 10:17 pm Yes! I was curious to taste many of these things too! a meat porridge! sweet eggplants! jelly for halwa (which I usually know as a dry crumbly slab made from ground sesame seeds)!

I felt uplifted researching these because it was so interesting and fired off so many new rockets of desire! It made it be feel-good

exactly, exactly!! All of this!!!
That happens to me all the time, too. My whole cooking has evolved since I play this game. And as you say, sooo many new desires!

I love it. Thanks again for inspiring me to it!

My bucket-list of what I want to see in Portugal, in the future!

Here we are- with P and Portugal!

DH and I have been a few years ago in Portugal, first and foremost because I gave it to him as my christmas-present- the Algarve with it's high cliff line is an ideal hang-glider- flying spot! We flew into- and -from Lisbon and enjoyed a short sight seeing tour in this beautiful old capital. Than we drove up to Sintra, the stunning fairytale- assembly of amazing castles. And then down, along the West-coast, to the Algarve, with the nice little towns of Lagos, Albufeira and Faro. And also, together with the group, a bit into the countryside, "the land of the storks". These birds are really a sight to behold, with their huge chaotic nests in all of the pylons!

I LOVED the happy group of pilots, i LOVED the weather, so warm and sunny, even in January!! I loved the wonderful orange- and lemon trees, and the bizarre, age old olive trees. I loved the artfully layed many-colored cobblestone-streets. The wild cliffs and the wind, the mediterranean herbs in their natural habitat, and the waves of the ocean. I liked what I saw of the locals, and of the daredevil surfers that had their fun in the ice cold waves, and their pirate-style. I had a bit a problem with all the dirt on the shores, and the dry steppe that is, as soon you turn away from the ocean, and the very basic architecture (besides the stunning castles in Sintra).

As we came into the more rural area far outside of the season, we also didn't have many opportunities to try out more fancy restaurants. The flying -instructor took us to clubhouses run by the locals, and into the few open places- and we basically got fried fish with bread and salad, each time. Which was good, don't get me wrong! But I was surprised how VERY simple and basic the cuisine (not only outside of the season) seams to be. How less variety there is, really. In the travelblog that I loved most about Portugal is written:
"The Moorish, the Muslim inhabitants of Northern Africa, would conquer and occupy Portugal for nearly 400 years. Bringing with them a diverse array of cuisine, and rice (arroz). Rice was grown in many of the wetland areas of Portugal and would make its way into many of the traditional dishes of Portuguese cuisine.

The Age of Discoveries would kick start Portuguese as a global cuisine: Taking in exotic spices, fruits, and vegetables from across its colonies and merging them into its cuisine. At the same time, the Portuguese would go on, to leave their mark on the countries it traded with." ...This sounds promising. But I found the recipes- in all places we had been, minimalist, and astoundingly similar. Now, this is ALSO a style to notice and to appreciate.



We enjoyed taking private time from the group on some days and explored the small mercado around the corner, and also the fish vendors and the large Centro de compras, and shopped for what we didn't know yet. Here we saw this fascinating deep-freezers, filled with all sorts of amazing seafood.



I sooo basked in the orchards full of of wonderful orange trees!



Dried and salted Bacalhau, =dried Cod (you can buy it seemingly in all malls and grocery-stores!). Bacalhau is the basic ingredient for what might be called the "national dish". There are more than 1000 recipes of what to do with it!



Bacalhau, watered and prepared with potatoes and boiled eggs



Fresh caught Bacalhau with Chips and salad



Pastéis de Bacalhau: dumplings from dried cod.





Fried sardines from street-vendors



Mussels, fried pork and vegetables



Sopa da Pedra, Stew with beans, potatoes and spicy, preserved meats and sausages like Alheira, Chouriça, and Morcela. This soups are more frequently eaten, the further you get away from the coasts.



Francesinha: Maybe Portugals most famous (and largest?) Sandwich with several sorts of meat and sausages, covered with fried egg, cheese and served with beer-tomato-sauce and potatowedges



Arroz de Tamboril: Creamy rice with vegetables and seafood



Arroz de Pato: Rice with duck-meat and chorico-sausage



Baked cheese



Bolas de Berlim, literally "Berlin-balls" filled with egg-custard, as "Berliner" are the pastry that made it's way around the world, called "Bismarcks". (Insert: In Berlin, by the way, this pastry get filled with jam and is called "Pfannkuchen", while what the rest of Germany calls Pfannkuchen, is there an "Eierkuchen". In the rest of Germany , they are called not only "Berliner" but even more often "Krapfen". End of confusing insert)



Pasteis de Nata, the hyped, super-famous pastry filled with egg-custard. They got invented in a monastry close to Lisbon, but you will find them EVERY WHERE. So, the quality can be nice, or really bad, and they are supposed to be a bit burnt... and to be true, I found all them (even the better qualities) quite a bit underwhelming. But they feel better served with a cup of good coffee or even a glass of Port wine.



Arroz Doce: Sweet rice-pudding, decorated with cinnamon, a VERY common dessert you'll find at "dessert of the house" in most restaurants.



Having shopped for vegetables, fruit, sausages and cheeses, as a few baked desserts... on our terrace in Albufeira

Yap... Portugal, *to me* was harsh and very simplistic, with an amazing nature. Maybe it simply doesn't go together smoothly with my bubbly, overflowing personality that just LOVES endless variety




above: DH at the Algarve, =South coast of Portugal, test-flying- and choosing his new glider. Below: ...Our January in Portugal!

There is no Q-country in Europe, and tomorrow is a feast-day... so I will feast and do nothing, and be back the day after tomorrow with Romania!

Until then, keep calm and love Europe!

what a fun map! cultural differences like these are so interesting!

R for Romania!

DH, my son Heiko and I dream since a very very long time of doing an offroad trip to- and through Romania. And there, especially to the Carpathian Mountains, the Romanian Alps. Also, I have the wonderful visions of traveling with the iconic Orient Express- train to the black Sea! Or with a river-cruise boat on the Danube... from my place in Germany, via Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, into Romania, finally reaching the Black Sea. When the Rhine- Main- Danube Canal was built right before our doorstep, 40 years ago- my grandfather already dreamed of doing this trip, and I am so with him, in that! Maybe one day I will do this- preferably with my family together, and know how he is with us in nonphysical, enjoying through our eyes.



Of course, I- as probably everyone else, had in my youth the creeps about the stories of vampires- especially Dracula, who was supposed to live in Transsilvania (today's Romania). While it is pretty certain that the role of Dracula in the book, and also all offspringing ideas have little to do with the historian nobleman (who wasn't acting noble at all...), Vlad III. Drăculea, who indeed resided in a castle in Transsilvania (Siebenbürgen), which was then a part of Hungary. So, lets close this insert and simply turn around to lighter and happier thoughts!

...Since the Romanian mate of my friend described his country with eyes, sparkling of joy and love, it sounds as a Paradise I need to see myself: He talked about the friendly people, having each their own gardens- or at least an own tomato-plant, on a window sill or a balcony. He spoke about the fully ripe, delightful vegetables that smell like pure sunshine and the AMAZING food. I am in awe to see the beautiful, forgotten-by-time, colorful little villages, and the stunning beauty of the Romanian cities myself! As the pristine solitude of the Carpathians wideness... and as I study the countries recipes, I am INSPIRED!! I WANT TO COOK THEM, NOW!




Romanian Cabbage Rolls: Sarmale. I found many different presentations (so I added at least 2 pictures) of this seemingly amazing dish, that also gets called the national dish. It gets prepared with sour- or fresh cabbage, filled with ground pork, bacon, rice, onions, garlic and herbs and cooked in delicious tomato juice. I LOVE our German Kohlrouladen, but honestly- this sounds even better!



I might need to introduce Mamaliga (Polenta) first, as it is the national side-dish that goes with most recipes. In former, more poor times it was the daily meal, cooked in a pot and poured onto the wooden table. After decades of scrubbing the table after the meal, most old family-tables show a deepening- like it would be carved in there, in their center. The Mamaliga got dished out to the family members from there, and when you were lucky, you got a bit of butter our sourcreme with it. Mamaliga is cooked from medium ground cornmeal with water (and when you have, butter, salt and black pepper). Corn and cornmeal are a staple in the Romenian kitchen.



Ciorba de Burta -Tripe Soup, made from the (very well cleaned!) paunch of cows, is the most favorite soup in the country. It gets boiled with mixed vegetables (celery, leek, carrots, parsnip, onion, garlic, parsley), cut into small pieces while the vegetables get purreed, then egg and sourcreme get added- and depending on taste, vinegar is well.



Tochitura, a sausage-stew with cubes of pork also, eggs, lots of cheese- served with Mamaliga/Polenta.



Ardei Umpluti, stuffed peppers. Here, there are stuffed wineleaves added in the middle... Again, a wildly popular and stunningly yummy dish (I already prepared it), where almost every family in Romania might have their own (and "best of all") recipe! The peppers get stuffed with the personally preferred unique mixed of ground pork and/or beef, herbs, cooked rice, onions, vegetables, eggs, and roasted in a pan or in my opinion, better: the oven, and served with delicious tomato-sauce, Mamaliga, potato or potato-mash, rice, or even with flat bread. Just use bell-pepper when you really cant get the often so called Banana-peppers, that are long, sometimes pointy (and often come in white or yellow, but red is fine, too.) In Italy, they get called "Cubanelle Italian pepper". When they get roasted, they taste much fuller than normal bell pepper.



Zacuscă a very popular dip, sauce, relish or even spread on bread, made from roasted eggplants, peppers and chilipeppers.



Salata de Vinete literally "eggplant-salad", but it is more a mild and very savory dip, and awesomely good. It is made from baked or grilled eggplant, onion, raw or baked (=sweeter than raw) garlic, chopped onion, bits of tomato, a bit of lemon juice or vinegar and oil. Olive-oil is not the taste of romanian cuisine! The roasted eggplants get diced VERY small or even shredded with the mixer with as much oil, so that it holds together or, if you want that, becomes mayonaise-like. You also can add walnut chunks or crumbled goat cheese. To die for!!



Savory Cheese Pie Placinta Cu Branza. It is a VERY easy to bake at home and very beloved recipe: just combine crumbled Feta cheese (or goat cheese), ricotta cheese, more grated cheese to your liking, egg as much that the whole filling becomes creamy and spreadable, salt, pepper and chopped dill. Wrap it into ready bought puff pastry, give it a wipe with egg, sprinkle with black and white sesame and bake golden brown.



Clătite are rolled up and filled with good things Rumanian Crepes. Fill them "with strawberries, bananas, nutella, ice cream and chocolate, or strawberries with kiwi and mascarpone – you can’t go wrong. In restaurants, the toppings are usually more limited to plum preserve, sour cherry, or chocolate", so the food-blogger says! (And I say: Maybe add jam, and ice cream, as well!)



The maybe most popular dessert is Papanași. It's dumplings made from curd, they come either deep fried or boiled in which case they get rolled in fried breadcrumbs and sugar, or garnished with sourcherry-preserve and clotted- or sourcreme. Ohhh, I MUST prepare them, soon!! And, wouldn't it be nice, to order them in a Café on a road trip with my family...?

I tried, but I will not finish the new rampage, today: I like to do it in full alignment, in full whole appreciation.
I SO LOVE TAKING MY TIME...
I so love noticing when I start to hurry.
I so love to go slow, and smell the flowers, in this day! I am proud of my self!

Take your time & do it only if it brings you joy & high-flying feelings

spiritualcookie wrote: ↑Thu May 02, 2024 5:00 pm Take your time & do it only if it brings you joy & high-flying feelings

I do! And your re-assurement feels so good, also

I realize lately how much resistance I still have that is SUCH A DELIGHT when I drop it!! I am so thankful that I now notice it...

Yah, it takes as long as it takes. In the meanwhile, we all can enjoy some new ideas...

S, for Slovenia!



Our summer 2021 in Slovenia was such an awesome adventure! Shaking off Corona, and conquering the world with a new awareness of deep appreciation and really, THANKFULNESS- for life itself, for shedding fear, for being able to run free again, embracing- literally- oh, that was a special time!

We had dreamed of Slovenia quite some time. DH wanted since years to paddle the famous, amazing, turquoise wild "white waters" of the Soča, (aka the Isonzo, as it is called within the country). So we found a camping place directly besides this little beautiful river, close to a provider who leased gear and guide, in the nice little town of Kobarid. Googling the area, we realized that there was Ana Ros, at that time the "best female chef of the world", having her restaurant: Hiša Franko. So we reserved a spot, for the 18-course tasting menue. Which was our very first time to spend THAT much money, and reserve months ahead, for a gourmet-meal!

We "took our time" and had a wonderful overnight stay in Salzburg, Austria, and stood free on the mountain top in the Austrian Alps, enjoying (indeed!!) a thunderstorm in the night and then waking up to an AMAZING view of seeing the valleys beyond filled with a white thick layer of fog, that cleared up in the sunshine, as we looked outside, stunned and in awe... into Slovenia, ahead of us.





We entered the country and had lunch at Lake Bled. Never before had I seen SUCH amazingly, surreal turquoise water. It looked as it would be artificially colored! We had the yummy Bled-special cream-cake, Kremšnita, as dessert, but our seafood- platter for 2 people before it was especially AMAZING. All that butter, and garlic, and ohhh... we were stunned!




We didn't stop being stunned on the further trip. We found SUCH a beautifully kept, lovely country! We fell in love with noticing, with how much care and labour the streets were built, hundreds of intricate, artfully set dry walls (all hand work), from field stones to make the smallest backroads safe, spick and span little villages. So NICE!!! And this NATURE!!! We crossed National park Triglav, with it's jaw dropping beautiful pass roads... the best of the best that alpine mountains can provide!



Later in our trip we "climbed" the unbelievably steep dirt road (perfectly kept as well) of mountain Stol and had a wonderfully satisfying picknick with local cheese, air cured ham, bread and grapes on it's peak. We so enjoyed our breakfasts with soo tasty local jams, self cooked dinners with local vegetables, sausages and meet-cuts, we bought little cakes and beautiful cookies. We drove further into the capital Ljubljana... loving each moment in this charming, art-filled city. Further on, to the impressive Caves of Postojna, which I could share, as my wheelchair got strapped onto a car of the small train, that transports people far into the cave. And inside, they- not even asked for- sent a sooo nice man, solely to help my husband push me up and down in the steep roads, through the awesomely beautiful landscape of flowstones...!

Then on our way back, we visited the stud farm of Lipice, where the famous white Lippizaner stallions for Viennas Spanish Riding School are bred. It was a childhoods dream for me, to see the wonderful horses roaming peacefully here, beneath hundreds of Linden-trees (for each new born filly, there gets one small linden planted!). In their original environment, back again, after they hat to flee in WW2! I guess I was with them, then- in that time... as it felt to me that I would know every corner, in this area. So good to see, things went good! Oh... and then, we enjoyed our travel back via Trieste, Italy. But, that is a different story.

I LOVED Slovenia. The people where AMAZING. Soooo friendly, helpful and nice! The nature is stunning. Now... let's dig into the FOOD!



Pogača, Flat bread. Once more, I copy a segment from a food-blog that I liked so very much:
"Similar in sound to foccacia, pogača from the Bela Krajina region (Belokranjska pogača) is one of Slovenia's very special foods and is protected by the EU as a Slovenian specialty food. It’s basically a yeasted flat bread a lot like Italian focaccia but that’s where the similarity ends. We learned that instead of olive oil and herbs, pogača is coated with an egg wash, coarse salt and caraway seeds (what Slovenians refer to as cumin).
The biggest difference however is that it is made to very exact specifications — diameter, thickness, and the size of the squares that are etched into it. It’s best served still warm and broken along those lines."



Štruklji -Strudel, baked with savory or sweet fillings, or, as here, cooked with a tarragon filling, served with roast and mushrooms, are no longer a festive side, but became a staple in the Slowenian cuisine.



Idrija Žlikrofi Pasta are (often with cheese) filled pieces of noodle-dough, fried or- here- served cooked, as a side of a meat-stew.



Seafood is a thing in Slovenia, as it has it's (very small, but beautiful) piece of coast into the Adriatic sea. Here is tuna, served with truffle, parmesan and vegetables.





Čevapčiči, small skinless "sausages" from very spicy ground meat (preferably lamb) are famous all over the Balkan. Each country and maybe each household has their own most beloved recipe of them, but always, there is LOTS of garlic involved! In Slowenia, they often get served within a bun along with raw onion.





Pršut from venison or wild boar, and Kraški pršut (Karst prosciutto) from pork is delicious ham, air cured, and a speciality of Slovenia. Served with wine, together with other cold cuts and pickles or fresh fruit, it is sheer heaven!



Buckwheat Žganci -a very traditional recipe, prepared from buckwheat- flour. It was once the 3 meals- a- day dish, day in and day out, for poor people in earlier times. Cooked with water as for a porridge, then broken into small pieces. These crumbles get served with grieves/cracknels and hot lard, IF you have them (especially in the past!). But they can also be topped with honey, sour milk, mushroom soup or cabbage.



Prekmurska gibanica, a famous layered cake with poppy seeds, apples, raisins, walnuts, and sweet curd filling. I tried it and must admit, I didn't like it: Much too much is going on within it, all at once- at least in my humble opinion



Skutini štruklji, the same "Strudel" that also gets served with meat and gravy, comes here with sugar, cinnamon and whipped cream.



...Our experiences from the Michelin-Star-Gourmet restaurant, to a quite simple street-restaurant in Ljubljana, in a kiosk for coffee and a bite to eat, to the Terrace on the banks of Lake Bled, "home cooked" at our Camping place with products from the market, or cold delicacies curiously picked from the grocery store and eaten while driving, put together into one picture... I am so THANKFUL to have been there and to have eaten it! THANK YOU, THANK YOU LIFE!