By elina, on July 26th, 2011
Apparently I’m a liar. I promised a post last week and well, clearly that hasn’t happened. Embarrassing… and sort of mean to hold out on you like that! I’m sorry. Let’s be friends again. I come with fancy finger food with cheese. : )
I made these cheesy profiteroles for my dad’s birthday dinner last month. They were the perfect little starter…and incredibly fun to make! This recipe originally came from a Russian magazine my mom found about 20 years ago… and we’ve been infatuated with these little guys ever since. Fun fact: “korzinochki s sirom” translates as “little baskets with cheese” but these aren’t baskets, are they? Silly Russians 
Now that I know what profiteroles are, I realize this recipe is basically French (there is a lot of French influence in Russian cuisine actually)… except the… Continue reading
By elina, on May 22nd, 2011
This little intro is going to (a little prematurely) excite my parents (and probably grandmas once my parents decide to share this little nugget with everyone they encounter)… but hell, I might as well say it… I’ve been thinking about my future kids lately. A lot. At some point a few months ago, out of nowhere, the idea of being a mother stopped being uncool, completely hypothetical and something I probably “had to do” and became a lot more real and sort of exciting (could it be because I’m getting that much closer to the big 3-0?). Before you-know-who gets a little too excited, let’s be clear. I am not pregnant and I don’t plan on being pregnant for at least a year and a half (or longer, depending on where I am in my career, house plans, etc.). But like I said, I have started thinking about it… Continue reading
By elina, on January 31st, 2011
A few months ago I saw a post on Russian Seasons on vatrushki, which are tvorog filled pastries. Her sweet version is reminiscent of a Russian (actually, Ukranian) version of danishes. Vatrushki for me, though, should be savory. So inspired by Alina (btw, how weird is it that the only other Russian food blogger I know is named Alina… and I’m Elina. crazy!) I decided to try my own hand at vatrushki with a touch of salt and dill instead of sugar. That’s how you can eat pastries for dinner and call it good. You’re welcome! haha
Recipe modified from Please to the Table cookbook
Ingredients:
Dough
- 1 package instant yeast
- 3/4 warm water
- 2T canola oil
- 2.5 cups flour
- 1/2 salt
1. Dissolve yeast in water
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix
 … Continue reading
By elina, on January 24th, 2011
As I’m cooking through the Please to the Table cookbook, I’m realizing that this blog is a bit of a misnomer. It was always my intent to cook Soviet food rather than just Russian (I’m technically Moldovian after all) but cooking through the book I realize how diverse each country’s food in the region really is.
For example, this recipe is for the hazelnut tahini dip, which is an Azerbaijani dish. I am realizing that tahini is quite a common ingredient in Azerbaijani cuisine, which appears to be much closer to a blend between Mediterranean and Middle Eastern, rather than “Russian.” [I've never had tahini during my childhood... until I moved to Israel!] Since Sovian Bites doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as Russian Bites, I’ll keep the blog name as is. But I just wanted to let you know why this dish may not be… Continue reading
By elina, on December 23rd, 2010
I’m constantly inspired by the Please to the Table cookbook. It has amazing sounding recipes that feature many of the ingredients I fell in love with as a child. Like beets. I know that so many Americans hate beets with a passion but we had them quite often served in many different ways when I was a child so now they’re comfort food. The other day when I professed my love for beets and credited my childhood for it, my dad seemed surprised. “We didn’t have that many beets.” Maybe it wasn’t in everything that was served (like pickles… mmm, pickles) – maybe it was just enough that left me wanting more. Truly, though, I think this ingredients snuck into more dishes than my dad remembers… I can think of 4 off hand (and we had a pretty steady rotation of recipes so this is not 4 among… Continue reading
|
|
|
: