A week after my first lesson, I had my second lesson last Friday evening at the home of Yana, my hostess. I had found her class on the Air B&B site, and we had “talked” by e-mail as she wanted to customize the class for me. She had also asked about allergies and related, which was very much appreciated. It is done in her home, which is in one of the newer parts of Sofia, which also allowed me to see more of the city as I made my way there.
I don’t have a lot of photos as she took photos of me so I could see and remember what I did during the lesson. We are still in the process of sending such as we have gotten tied up on some other things. More on that in a minute.
Again, we did banitsa; but, this time we did the dough from scratch. It isn’t hard, but does take a bit of time to make your own filo dough. Worth it though! We started with the banitsa first as it would take the longest time to cook.
Our second bit of cooking revolves around a stew cooked in a special clay pot. There are a multitude of variations, and you can cheat a bit if you want to. We did a little bit of a “cheat” to keep the cooking time reasonable. We cooked the chicken, vegetables, and some of the spices on the stove top rather than doing the several hours at low temps normally done. Along the way, I was given a host of suggestions and advice, especially as I now have an individual sized pot that I can practice with here in the apartment.
We also cooked up some of the Bulgarian version of polenta. The stew I mentioned can be served straight out of the clay pot, or, it can also be served over the polenta. Now the polenta does cook quickly, and it is finished by melting butter and roasting some smoked paprika in it to release the oils and flavors. That really did make that dish!
Yana knows her cooking, and her food history. I learned about where and when certain foods show up in Bulgarian history, and how they have changed over the centuries. For example, the rice used in the rice and meat mixture for stuffing peppers and cabbage leaves is a fairly recent thing. It used to be that bulgar wheat and raisins were the prime ingredients in the stuffing as they were inexpensive and easy to find.
Salads are another recent introduction to Bulgarian cuisine, having become popular about a century ago. Today, there are about three “main” salads, with a host of variants, that are a key element of a traditional meal. The one you see above is an Easter variant, and a little closer to Pascha you would see several decorated eggs as a part of it. The pink items are home-pickled radishes that give a bit of color. The dressings are usually lite, mainly oil and vinegar.
Again, I can’t recommend Yana and her “class” highly enough. She knows her food, she’s been cooking at home all her life, and she knows the history of her food. She’s also a charming young lady who is happy to share the techniques and food she learned from her grandmothers and mother. More than that, she is kind enough to open her home to her guests and make them feel at home. Highly, highly recommended.
Now, non-cooking, it turns out both she and her boyfriend know a fair bit about, and are very interested in, space exploration and science. We ended up having some far ranging and long conversations, examining everything from personalities (Elon as one example) to types of research and the “why” behind doing some things. I’m afraid we stayed up very late (especially by my standards).
One conversation also turned into something a bit more that I will likely discuss more later. Short version for now, she mentioned that a relative on her mother’s side was a monk who had spent time on Mount Athos, and was now in charge of a monastery just outside Sofia. Would I be interested in visiting? Yes. The rest of the tale comes soon. 🙂
Again, I can’t recommend this cooking event highly enough. I can’t believe more don’t do this, and urge you to take it if you come to Sofia. You will not be sorry.
If you would like to help me with this trip, seminary courses, and more, feel free to hit the fundraiser at A New Life on GiveSendGo, use the options in the Tip Jar in the upper right, or drop me a line to discuss other methods. I’ve added Cash App ($CliffPow7) and Venmo (@Clifford-Powers-5). There is also the Amazon Wish List in the Bard’s Jar. Getting hit by lightning is not fun! It is thanks to your gifts and prayers that I am still going. Thank you.