European Cuisine Vol 19

Hello ladies and gents lets go and visit a new country in europe and this week its Slovakia a little country that i personally think is interesting lets see what their style of cooking is.

Slovak cuisine varies slightly from region to region across Slovakia. It was influenced by the traditional cuisine of its neighbours and it influenced them as well. The origins of traditional Slovak cuisine can be traced to times when the majority of the population lived self-sufficiently in villages, with very limited food imports and exports and with no modern means of food preservation or processing.

This gave rise to a cuisine heavily dependent on a number of staple foods that could stand the hot summers and cold winters. These included wheat, potatoes, milk and milk products, pork meat, sauerkraut and onion. To a lesser degree beef, poultry, lamb and goat, eggs, a few other local vegetables, fruit and wild mushrooms were traditionally eaten.

Trdelník

READY IN: 2hrs 40mins SERVES: 25

YIELD: 5 pastries, five servings each UNITS: US

INGREDIENTS 

DOUGH INGREDIENTS

2 lbs all-purpose flour

5 ounces unsalted butter

1⁄2 cup powdered sugar

5 egg yolks

1 ounce fresh yeast

1⁄2 cup milk (milk as needed, nonexistent exact measure)

FROSTING INGREDIENTS

1 cup walnuts (finely chopped)

1⁄2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

DIRECTIONS

1. First stuff into large mixing bowl flour and powdered sugar. Make a small hole in the middle and place into it crumbled fresh yeast. Pour lukewarm milk over the yeast. Let it rise for about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile melt the butter.
3. Add egg yolks into the bowl, pour in melted, but not hot butter, add pinch of salt.
4. Mix together to make fairly firm dough, well worked (use stand mixer, it's easy).
5. Let the dough rise for 20 minutes in warm place.
6. Divide into five equal parts, make loafs.
7. You can let it rise for another 20 minutes (it's better, but not necessary if fresh yeast used, a must with dry yeast).
8. Roll out each loaf into 2/3 inch diameter /caster?/ - you know what I mean, thin, cylindrical shape, like a small snake :-)).
9. lol.
10. Wrap the dough tighty around the BUTTERED "trdlo" wooden stick. Let it stand for ten more minutes (support the ends, so it will be in the air).
11. Glair with the last egg, cover all around with chopped walnuts and granulated sugar.
12. Bake as described above over hot coals on the grill. Results MAY be achieved with oven, but . . . .
13. The pastry need to be turned pretty often during baking, and baked until golden red color. Baking time is not determined, since baking over hot coals and on open air, but from my experience about 20 to 40 minutes, also depends on size you making.
14. When cooled down a little,
15. slide the baked pastry of the wooden stick, cut into individual servings, sprinkle with powdered sugar, enjoy.
16. Also you can cover it in various nuts, coconut and such.
17. Makes five, baked on two feet long, three inch diameter wooden stick.

Mmmmmm send me a few dozen these look delicious and as always have a chilled day from the Viking.