Creative Apple Desserts - Polish Style

 Witamy!

It’s apple time!  Local orchards are full and ready for picking.  Our farmer’s markets are overflowing with many varieties of fresh picked apples including those “not-so-pretty” local varieties. In fact Peter just read about one orchard featuring “heirloom apples”...yes, they were deformed and misshapen, but apparently just delicious. 

There’s an apple orchard just up the road and their apple cider barrels are brimming with fresh and tangy, amazing cider - if you can swat the bees away which are looking for a treat as well.  We’ve always preferred the fresh pressed, unpasteurized, straight-out-of-the-barrel kind because the taste is so much more intense. 

Apples are an important part of Polish cuisine and here are two favorite desserts that Peter’s Mom made for him every fall.

Apple and Rice Delight

Serves 6

    4  cups, semi-tart, peeled, cored and shredded apples  (use those ugly local ones, because they taste great, are often cheapest and most plentiful, and they support your local produce farms.) 

    1  tablespoon cinnamon

    1/2  cup brown sugar

4     cups cooked rice, not precooked or instant rice

1½ cups sour cream

4     tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 375 °F.  In a bowl, combine the cinnamon and sugar with the shredded apples and mix well.

Grease a 9-inch baking dish (or glass pie pan)  and spread out the rice and apples in the pan , in alternating layers  (rice/apples/rice/apples/rice) .

Cover and bake for 40 minutes.  In the mean time, whisk the sour cream and sugar into a sauce and set aside.

Let the dish cool down a bit.  Serve warm in small bowls, topped with the sweet sour cream sauce. 

Note:  the top layer of rice may get a little crunchy, but that gives it a great texture.

Stuffed Apples  (Serves 6)

·       3 tablespoons honey

·       3 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts

·       3 tablespoons graham cracker crumbs

·       2 tablespoons orange liqueur  *

·       6 medium apples  (sweet, not tart)

·       3 teaspoons butter

Preheat oven to 375 °F.  Mix the honey with the walnuts, cracker crumbs and liqueur  * or substitute with 2 tablespoons orange juice plus ½ teaspoon orange zest.    Cut the tops off the apples and core to remove the seeds.  Fill the holes with the stuffing.  Top with ½ teaspoon of butter and cover with the apple tops.    Place close to one another in a baking dish and bake for 1 hour.  Serve warm.  Maybe with a scoop of ice cream to be really awesome.
Smacznego!

Summer Salmon Salad - Polish Style

 Witamy!

Canned salmon!  Yes indeed, canned salmon has a place in every pantry. It has more flavor than canned tuna and offers a world of options for a light healthy meal when time is short or you’ve had a hard day and your energy tank is running on fumes. 

This was a favorite dish of Peter’s Mom’s and it really should be in your file of favorite recipes.  It's a perfect summer plate when you don’t feel like preparing a more complicated or involved meal.  

The fishing industry in Poland is growing rapidly as eating fish is 

becoming even more popular.  Baltic salmon is a unique Polish specialty item.  Unlike fatty farm-raised salmon, its firm flesh is only slightly pink (after cooking it is nearly white).  Whether cooked or smoked, wild salmon provides amazing taste sensations far superior to the farmed varieties.  It is available in cans and can be also eaten raw when salted.  Have you ever tried Polish canned salmon and what did you think of it?  We’ve not tried it in the U. S. but will look for some on the next visit to our favorite Polish Deli.  Laura likes the Kirkland brand canned salmon (packed in water) from Costco but any brand will work. 

Serves 8
16 ounces canned, wild salmon, drained and crumbled
2 cups young potatoes, boiled & sliced thinly
1 cup mayonnaise
2 medium tomatoes, sliced
2 hard boiled eggs, sliced
1 tablespoon scallions or green onions, chopped
1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped

This is not one of those recipes where you mix everything in a bowl and serve.  This is prettier.  The only prep is to arrange all the ingredients in layers, so how easy is that?  On the bottom of a serving platter, spread the potatoes in a flat layer.  Second, spread a healthy layer of the crumpled salmon over the potatoes. Third, spread a very light layer of the mayonnaise over the salmon.  Cover with alternating slices of tomato and the egg – show off your wild side and be creative!  

Sprinkle the chopped green onions, and lastly sprinkle generously with chopped dill. Dill is so important in Polish cuisine!  And now you can find it as fresh as can be  at many Farmers Markets. Chill for an hour and serve on lettuce leaves.  A glass of dry white wine or fresh iced tea would pair very nicely with this beautiful salad.   
Smacznego!

Summer Fruit Soups - Polish Style

 Witamy!

Polish cuisine is comprised of a very wide variety of dishes and flavors.  They come from the influences 14th century French and Italian royalty, from the worldly wives of 18th and 19th century Polish gentry, and from the flavors left behind by the invading armies of neighboring lands.

Among the most original Polish dishes are the soups, such as Sour Soup, Dried Mushroom Soup, Dill Soup, or Pickle Soup.  And among the best of Polish soups are the chilled fruit soups.  Served cold on a hot summer day, they are refreshing, full of flavor, and always enjoyed by entire families, regardless of age. 

Fruit soups are not too sweet and Poles eat them as a first course for supper or as the main, or for a heartier course with noodles.  Sometimes they are served after the main course, as a healthier replacement for dessert. 

Chilled Strawberry Soup
Serves 6
1 quart ripe strawberries, washed and hulled
1 quart buttermilk
½ cup sugar
2/3 cup sour cream

Using a blender, mix the strawberries and 1 cup of the buttermilk for a few seconds until smooth.  Add the sugar and remaining buttermilk and mix well.  Chill thoroughly.  Serve with home-made buttery croutons.  

Chilled Blueberry Soup

Serves 6
1 quart blueberries
1 slice white bread
4 cups water
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cloves
½ cup sugar
2/3 cup sour cream
Croutons

Add the blueberries and bread to one cup of boiling water. Bring back to boil and simmer for 5 minutes.  Mix in a blender for just a few seconds until smooth.  Add remaining 3 cups of boiling water, spices and sugar, blend well until smooth.  Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.  Just before serving, add sour cream to the soup tureen and mix.  Garnish each serving with croutons.

For two delicious varieties, substitute 1½ pounds of pitted Italian plums or 3 pints of pitted cherries, and increase the sour cream a bit to 2/3 cup. 
Smacznego!