egg free

Bryndzove (or Feta) Cauliflower

Bryndza, a soft sheep cheese, is a traditional food in Slovakia. It tastes something like feta but is soft. Bryndzove halusky is the classic Slovak dish, little potato gnocchi smothered in byndza and bacon. This version simulates the taste for those who don’t have access to bryndza or don’t have the time to make potato gnocchi. 

Bryndzove (or Feta) Cauliflower

Ask any Slovak about traditional Slovak foods, and you’ll most likely hear about bryndzove halusky (halushky).

Halusky is usually translated as potato dumplings, but I’ve seen dumpling cover everything from bread-like blobs to Chinese wontons to Slovak potato drops, all exceedingly different.

Bryndza is a soft sheep cheese, tasting something akin to feta, salty and sharp. It’s used to make spreads for bread, fill perogies, or even make soup. It’s most common application is as a sauce over halusky.

Many brands mix sheep and cow milk to make bryndza, but some brands use only sheep milk, and a few even have raw sheep bryndza. To fit in with my probiotic and fermenting theme, bryndza is full of probiotics. There is a study examining which bacteria bryndza contains and their antimicrobial activity.

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Fermented Red Onion

 

Fermented Red Onions

 

As a ‘real foodie’, I have this idea that I should therefore like all real foods. I have a confession to make; I don’t like raw onions. Cooked onions are wonderful. In the winter, I go through kilos of onions in soups and stir fries. Caramelized onions, yummm. But raw? Nope. Only if they’ve been marinated for a very long time.

My oldest daughter, on the other hand, loves raw onions. She will voluntarily ask for raw onions on buttered (sourdough) bread, a very Slovak thing to eat. I gladly prepare it for her, because onions are healthy and all that. “Yumm, Mom, this is SO good! Have a bite.” Er…no thanks dear, I’ll let you enjoy it.

But then I came across the idea of Lactofermented Red Onions over at Delicious Obsessions and thought I’d try it.

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Baek (White) Kimchi

Kimchi, a Korean fermented pickle, is well known for it’s red colour and spicey flavour. This version of kimchi, baek means white, is actually probably older than the better known version, but just as delicious.

kimchi text

In my hometown in Canada, there has been a Korean restaurant or two at all times in the last 15 years or so. Buses full of Koreans come on tours through the Rocky Mountains, and they stop at the Korean restaurants, keeping the business running in a small town. These restaurants were my first introduction to metal chopsticks (harder than wood), lettuce rice wraps (so good), and sweet potato noodles (love. miss.).

My parents knew the owner of one of the restaurants, and my father called  her  up when we went there once as a family on one of my visits home. For us, she cooked real Korean food as opposed to the versions made for an American palate. What. A. Feast. Little dishes of various condiments, marinated beef still on the hot plate, dandelion kimchi, and those amazing noodles. The table was covered with various dishes that we shared. I rarely go to restaurants and am even more rarely impressed, but I still have visions about that meal.

Kimchi is a staple in Korea and I think it’s the cat’s meow that a fermented veggie is a national staple. According to a video I watched, 94% of Koreans have it every day, and 96% make it themselves instead of buying it in a store.

(What if 96% of North Americans and Europeans made their own yogurt? Or sauerkraut? Dreaming…but I digress.)

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Quick and Nourishing Japanese Soup

Quick Japanese Soup, gluten free

 

One of the disadvantages of being an ex-pat is that one’s comfort foods aren’t readily available. Ten years ago when I first came to Slovakia (has it been that long??) there wasn’t much in the way of Asian groceries. Now there are a number of Asian (mostly Korean) food stores in Bratislava.

I rarely get down to Bratislava, but we keep supplied with soy sauce, nori, and a few other tidbits.

Even just some soy sauce or tamari is enough to make this delicious soup. It’s even got bone goodness in it, without simmering bones forever. And the best part of the soup, besides the taste? It’s ready to eat by the time the water boils.

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(Cauliflower) Temaki: Fast and Easy Sushi Hand Rolls

 

Sushi, while delicious, can take a long time to make – not so great for a crowd or hungry family. Temaki, sushi hand rolls, is an easy and fast way to serve sushi. Temaki is especially suited to cauliflower sushi because they don’t need to hold themselves together, just roll up and eat!

Temaki: Easy Sushi for a Crowd

Slovak food is delicious but tends toward the heavy side: sausages, potatoes, various breads. It’s comfort food at it’s most cozy. (I recently started a Pinterest board of Slovak Food which is perfect as the weather cools, go join it now, or even better, just follow me on Pinterest!)

When I was pregnant with my first, I remember craving the Japanese comfort foods of my childhood, like miso soup, soba noodles, and sushi. I distinctly remember a night in January when all I wanted was watermelon and soba, but neither were to be found.

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Basil Lemon Walnut Cookies

These delicious raw cookies use basil, normally a savoury herb, to increase the complexity of these easy cookies. Lemon adds a touch of sunshine to a walnut and honey base.

Basil Lemon Walnut Cookies

I recently attempted to do GAPS. Attempted is the key word.

For those who don’t know what GAPS is, it’s a protocol to heal the gut. This does not affect only digestive issues (bloating, constipation, diarrhea), but helps improve other health issues as well. The acronym stands for Gut And Psychology Syndrome, as Dr. Campbell-McBride developed the program to help her autistic son.

The idea is that an impoverished digestive system can lead to a myriad of health problems because the food you eat actually becomes toxic to your body. The diet starves toxic pathogens in the gut by not eating disaccharides (like sugar, grains, potatoes, etc), heals the lining of the digestive tract with lots of bone broth (gelatin and lots of nutrients), and replaces the bad pathogens with good probiotics. As the gut heals, you slowly re-introduce foods back in, but it can take anywhere from six months to two years.

It’s pretty intensive, but I wanted to try for a number of reasons for our family, including dairy intolerance, bloating, ADHD, and a few other behavioural issues. (GAPS can also help heal allergies and food intolerances.)

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Beef Tongue Spread (2 Recipes)

Last week I posted Simple Beef Tongue and promised a recipe for those wanting a less visual version of tongue. Here it is: beef tongue spread. Meat spreads, similar to liverwurst, are very popular in Slovakia. This can be used like tuna or salmon spread, and can go in sandwiches, on vegetables, or even be used as a dip.

Beef Tongue Spread (2 Recipes)

This weekend we went to a gypsy festival, where a local charity organized drama and music presentations of this ethnic minority. I’ll tell you more about later this week.

I came there to enjoy the music and take pictures for you all to see. I took some photos, but not nearly as many as I hoped. I choked.

I’m not good at taking photographs at events anyway. “Wait while I obscure your view, person behind me, of this very special moment so I can take a picture.” My preferred lens at events is a super telephoto, so that I can get a picture without anybody seeing me. But there was another reason.

See, there were a number of other people there with fancy schmancy cameras with mega lenses and I was embarrassed to take out my dinosaur camera and it’s itty bitty lens.  Click to continue reading

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Simple Beef Tongue

Eating beef tongue sounds gross, but once you get over the squeamishness, you’ll discover a cheap, tasty cut of meat that is ridiculously easy to prepare. I’ll let you know the secret to the best way of eating tongue too! 

Simple Beef Tongue

 

Cold sliced beef tongue with sandwich stuff.

Things were quiet here last week as I was gone on holiday. I thought I would be able to get a post up, but decided to relax and enjoy my family instead. We went to beautiful Gaming, Austria (I’ve written about it before) with some friends. Random photos will be forthcoming on my facebook page and instagram (user name: almostbananas).

Driving home, we watched an awe inspiring lightning storm. The whole sky lit up, bolts of pure energy piercing the night sky, and as we got closer to home we could see the silhouette of the hills with each flash.

As long as I am safely at home, I love thunder storms. It never ceases to amaze me that such a display of power can result from electrons jumping around (basically). I love the flashes of light, the thunder, the pounding rain. Here in Slovakia, it’s a welcome cooling to a hot, humid day.  Click to continue reading

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Apricot Shortbread Crisp

Apricot Shortbread Crisp

What do you call baked fruit with an oat/flour/butter topping? Crisp? Crumble? Cobbler? I usually say crisp, though the usual oat and butter topping is more crumbly than crispy. A cobbler is more cakey, no?

Well, whatever you call it, I’ve got a new take that has become one of my favourites.

It’s easy. It’s fast. It’s delicious. It’s healthy. Can you ask for anything more in a recipe? It only has three, yes, three ingredients.  Click to continue reading

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Apricot Juice Syrup

Any fruit can be used to make this juice concentrate. Keep in the fridge and pull out to make an instant glass of cold apricot nectar  to drink on hot summer days.

Apricot Juice Syrup

It’s apricot season right now, trees are laden with orange spheres of tart flesh.  It’s rather decorative, orange set against green. When tree fruits are in season, however, they come in a deluge but are soon over, gone for another year.

When we had the first basket of apricots, my husband buried his face in them and inhaled. “Ah,” he sighed, “the smell of summer.” When he was a child, his family would pick boxes of apricots and take them to sell in a spa town.  Click to continue reading

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