Influence on Polish cuisnie - part 2 - Knuckle of pork in Bavaria - Golonka po Bawarsku

Russia and Germany are neighbours of Poland that has a big influence on Polish history and cuisine. German influence on Poland is as long as long is Polish history. Even the old Polish legend tells about beautiful Polish princess Wanda and German prince who propose her but she didn't want political enemy for husband. Finally Wanda committed suicide in order not to get married. This prehistorical story was first telling about difficult relation between the two neighbours. But there were a few events a little more optimistic. First king of Poland hosted German emperor Otton III in Gniezno and this meeting included Poland to the group of modern European countries. First monks in Poland were German and they brought not only new religion, education but also new dishes. Strange history made us sometime enemy and it divided both nations but common cuisine is part of sour history which always join. Now it is difficult to say which meal have a German influence on Polish cuisine or the opposite. In both countries people like pork meat, beer, and cabbage and potatoes. Schabowy and golonka are of German origin but kasza and use a lot of spices are Polish influence on German cuisine.
Today's recipe is a dish that German and Polish men like very much especially with beer .

Knuckle of pork in Bavaria
for 2 portions

2 knuckles of pork (each about 1 kg)
30 g. lard
0,25 l warm water 
1 onion 
0,25 l stout beer
pepper, salt, 2 bay leaf, 2 cloves

Wash in warm water knuckles of pork and incise skin. After you use a lot of salt and pepper to sprinkle skin of knuckles. Heat up lard in large pan and fry knuckles of pork. Put meat in baking pan, add sliced onion, water  and rest spices .  Put meat into the oven at 200 Celsius degrees for around 60 minutes. Bake next 60 minutes and sometimes pour beer on top of knuckles of pork. If meat isn't ready after this time add a little water and bake as soon as meat is baking. I always check tempature inside meat - meat is ready above 75 Celsius degrees. My uncle sometimes
instead fry, boiled knuckles of pork and bake just 60 minuet but it isn't Bavarian style. 
Serve hot with salad with cabbage, potatoes and beer.

Enjoy! Guten appetit!



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Similar Posts:

Influence on Polish cuisine - part 1 - Japanese herring - śledź po japońsku

Influence on Polish cuisnie - part 3 - Beef Strogonow

Poland in mourning

“President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria were killed, along with a number of other senior Polish political, military and cultural figures, when their plane crashed as it prepared to land in western Russia on Saturday 10 April 2010. “ BBC news

This news went all over the world yesterday. For Polish people it is a big tragedy, for me too. I'm lost for words about what happened. Lech Walensa said yesterday: “ Poland second time lost our patriots in Katyn”.
Polish history is marked with the next tragic date related to Katyn.

April 1940 Katyn massacre

10 April 2010 the Polish Goverment plane crashed in Smolensk

Healthy macarons

For some reason ladies do love macarons. We are ready to fight to convince which of them are truly maccherone. Don't argue - the very first ones were made of ground almonds. It is said it was in the late 8th century in Italy. However the French are equally famous for this fine pastry. One is certain, they need to be crispy outside and soft inside. But have you heard about healthy macarons?!

Healthy macarons

Ingredients:

2 egg whites
60 g sugar
30 g rolled oats
2 tablespoons shredded coconut
1 teaspoon alfa-alfa seed
really tiny amount of salt

1. Roast the rolled oats on a dry frying pan. Add the shredded coconut at the end (do nut burn). Cool down.

2. Beat the egg whites with salt until stiff.

3. Add sugar gradually and continue beating until sugar dissolves.

4. Mix in the rolled oats, coconut and alfa-alfa seeds carefully.

5. Place teaspoons of the mixture on a parchment paper.

6. Bake for 20 minutes in 160 degrees. Cool in the oven with the open doors.
Keep in an airtight container. If you still have some. :-)

HAPPY EASTER

So we have the Holy week. It is important time for all. We wait on Spring, sun, Easter feast and meeting with family.
In Poland Easter have two aspects – religious and folks. The second aspect has many traditional plays, ceremony, songs and food. Food is very important in Easter celebrations. People think and speak about Easter food sometimes since Ash Wednesday. But Polish people start cooking since Palm Sunday, this is last time to begin thinking about food on Easter table.
Polish feast start on Easter Sunday breakfast and finish next day. There are many kinds of meals but in every home you find eggs, smoked , cook and baked meats, sausages, salads and pastries. The traditional polish Easter cakes are mazurki and baby wielkanocne (wielkanocne means Easter)



In Poland we have wide selection of “Baba wielkanocna”. Every region has its own recipe on “Baba wielkanocna” but old books and tradition says about yeast and saffron kind of this cake.
One of these books included description about baking “Baba”.

“Women were locking kitchen doors so men were not allowed to enter. Women prepared ingredients very carefully and made dough. Windows, doors were tightly closed when “baba” grew. Once “baba” were baked they were taken out carefully and when the cake cold down everybody whispered, and went carefully in the kitchen because the cakes were fluffy, dainty and so soft. The slightest shake could destroy soft structure of cakes. “

The origin of the word “baba” is diffcullt to explain, probably it means woman because baba is augmentative form for woman.

A few generations of polish women made a good recipes which are not so difficult to prepare.
Below is my recipe on baba.

150 g flour (must be very good quality)
100 g sugar
10 yolks
30 g yeast
150 ml milk
100 g malted butter
1 vanilla or 1 tsp vanila flavor
½ tsp saffron
20 ml spirit or vodka
2 tsp grated skin of lemon

The day before soak saffron in spirit. Dissolve yeast in warm milk and add a little sugar and flour and mix gently. Leave this mixture in warm place. Beat yolks, sugar and vanilla on white fluffy mixture over steam. When yeast grew add to beat yolks, add rest flour and spirit with saffron and skin of lemon and mix gently about 15 minutes. Leave dough in warm place, cover napkins. When the dough grows twice as much in the beginning add butter and mix as long as the dough absorbs all butter. Spread butter and sprinkle baking pan with flour and put there the dough (fill a baking pan only to ½ height of the baking pan). Leave dough to grow. When it grows put it into the oven at 180 Celsius degrees for around 60 minutes.

It is saffron kind of cake but when you can exchange saffron on other additive.



Enjoy and HAPPY EASTER!!!