Clumber Park: As English As High Tea

Clumber Park, situated in the Northern part of Nottinghamshire, England, offers its visitors 3,800 acres of serenity and spectacular scenery. Cycling, hiking, fishing and bird-watching are just some of the leisure activities this magnificent National Trust site offers.

The Church of St. Mary the Virgin at Clumber Park is an Anglican Church dating from the 19th century, commissioned by Henry Pelham-Clinton, 7th Duke of Newcastle.

The building is listed by the British Department of Culture, Media and Sport as a building of outstanding architectural and historic interest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apart from its stunning natural beauty, Clumber Park boasts the first National Trust fine-dining restaurant. Barkers, once the head-gardener’s home, has quickly established itself as one of the region’s best restaurants and tea rooms.

The recently renovated interior of this Victorian villa has been tastefully redecorated in a seamless blend of the classic and modern. Its carefully selected wallpapers, draperies and fabrics, well-appointed antiques and other art works exude quiet luxury and welcoming comfort. It comes as no surprise that Barkers is already a popular venue for weddings and other private events.

Last month my parents-in-law took us there for high tea and what a treat it was!

We had several delicious teas, a good bottle of bubbly, and the traditional high tea triumvirate of finger sandwiches, tea cakes and, of course, scones with jam and clotted cream. Everything was delicious and the service, very attentive!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Happy Wine Day: Pop the Cork and Grab Your Fork!

Now, you know how we just survived Valentine’s Day? Right! What you don’t know is that Bulgarians also survived Wine Day (Trifon Zarezan Day), also conveniently located on 14 February each year, and certainly venerated long before the advent of plush toys and badly written cards. The origins of this viticultural tradition are hidden in legend and myth, and there is no shortage of folk tales about how this tradition was born.

Some folk tales involve Trifon, a wine grower, cutting off his nose. Others, retell Greek legends related to God Dionysus. My favourite folk tale is the one my parents used to tell me when I was young. According to it, Trifon was employed to tend the vineyards of a wealthy vineyard owner, who was a stingy man and habitually paid Trifon’s wages late or not at all. One day, (presumably on 14 February), Trifon finally had had enough. He got up early in the morning and went to his employer’s vineyard with a pair of big shears and did some serious pruning of vines as a revenge. Believing the vineyard to be destroyed, Trifon left the village. As irony would have it, the following year the vines grew healthier and yielded the best grapes ever.

Through the years, shears and scissors have become a symbol of fertility in Bulgaria. Even today, on 14 February every year, Bulgarian wine growers wake up early in the morning, take along wine and food, and a band of musicians, and set off to prune their vineyards with a pair of big shears. Their wives make round loaves of bread decorated with grapes and vines made of dough (also a symbol of fertility), and hand them generously to their neighbours.

Although it’s well known that pruning vines improves the quality of grape yield, at its roots, Trifon Zarezan is a pagan celebration of the new agricultural season, a festival of fertility, life and rebirth. And, of course, an excuse to gather round the table with your friends and celebrate with delicious food and drink, a cause we support ardently!

On a related note, we have continued to degustate on your behalf a variety of (mostly) choice wines from all over the world. I’d say a fine start to 2012! We hope you’ve had a good start to the year too! Here are 12 wine reviews and a delicious recipe to help you celebrate!

2007 Netherberg Pinotage (South Africa). Pinotage, a South African grape variety, is a mix of Pinot Noir and Cinsaut (also known as Hermitage). Dark purplish red, with some transparency. Relatively low alcoholic content at 13.5%. Oak and smoke on the nose. Oak and dark red fruit, relatively smooth on the palate, though can be a bit one-note and too acidic at first. Dry and medium-bodied. Develops layers and sophistication later on. Very nice at 7 out of 10.

The next two wines were saved for special occasions by my mother-in-law. We greeted the New Year with them and they were both delightful!

2003 Familia Martinez Bujanda Crianza (Rioja, Spain). Dark cherry colour. Rich, smooth and velvety. Bright cherry flavours, some oak, spice and vanilla flavours. Delightful old-world Rioja and exactly what one expects from a 8-year old wine. An outstanding 9 out of 10.

2007 Cosecha Rioja Bodegas Martinez Corta (Spain) Vendimia Seleccionada. Bright red colour with a tinge of purple. Intensely flavoured fruit on the nose. Blueberry and blackcurrant, liquorice, chocolate, roasted cocoa and cinnamon on the palate. Powerful and elegantly layered. Sweet tannis and good acidity. Long and smooth. An excellent 8.5 out of 10.

2004 Criadores de Rioja Altivo Reserva (Spain). Fruity flavours, plum, black current and blackberry. Somewhat harsh initially, after breathing for a while it opens up a bit. Very little oak, which was okay with me. Not as complex as can be expected from a 7-year-old Rioja. Decently long finish. Altogether a respectable 5 out of 10.

2007 Vina Tarapaca Sauvignon Blanc (Chile). Oops! We had another white wine sneak into our line-up over New Year’s, but it didn’t do too shabbily. Very pale clean hue. Fresh citrus nose. Grapefruit, lemon, melon and a little fig on the palate. Dry and light-bodied with sharp acidity and a clean, lasting finish. A pleasant 4.5 out of 10.

2006 Wolf Gap Mariage Reserva (Virginia, USA). I would have never expected such dark, intense, full-bodied representative of the reds from Shenandoah Valley. Cognac,  tobacco and wood on the nose. Strong flavours of blackcurrant, black cherry, a little oak, liquorice and port, with a little bitterness on the palate. Sophisticated structure, elegant layering, long, lingering finish, strong tannins. A wonderful 8.5 out of 10.

2007 Wolf Gap Cabernet Frank (Virginia, USA). Another pleasant surprise from the Shenandoah Valley. Spice, pepper, black cherry, blackcurrant, red berries. Decent tannins, but less structured, not much acidity. Still, a solid 6.5 out of 10.

2009 Maipe Bonard Mendoza (Argentina) Very dark red colour and good acidity. Raspberry on the nose, blackberry and cherry on the palate. Still quite young, but a good aging potential. A respectable 4 out of 10.

2007 Bourgogne Pinot Noir Jadot (France). The garnet colour typical of older Burgundy wines, but too one-note and bland. A little berry on the palate, but overpowered by alcohol, voluminous but thin. Quite a short finish. Quite watery, it lacks structure and has a strange chemical aftertaste. Disappointing in this price range. A bare 2.5 out of 10.

2009 Obikwa Pinotage (South Africa). Medium-bodied with intense dark colour. Earthy on the nose. Soft, round and sweet on the palate. Cherries, red fruit and a little spice with a pleasant structure. Long finish, well-balanced by a decent amount of tannins. A very nice 7 out of 10.

2009 Les Fleurs de Sud Cabernet Sauvignon, Vin de Pays d’Oc (France). Deep red colour. Good tannins. Ripe red berries and spices on the nose. Dark berries, elderflower, violets, spices and hints of pepper on the palate. Full-bodied, round, smooth, long finish, decent structure. An excellent 7.5 out of 10.

2009 Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Zinfandel (California, USA). Peppery and spicy with dried cranberries, plums, raspberries and a hint of vanilla on the nose and on the palate. Smooth, medium-bodied with supple tannins and medium finish. Not an overly complex structure, but very pleasant and easy to drink. It got a very nice 8 out of 10. We paired it with a Pan-Roasted Steak with Butter Beans and Leaks. I’ll take credit for the cooking and the photography, but the fabulous recipe is from Cook with Jamie. Thank you, Jamie!

• In a splash of olive oil and a knob of butter, sauté 4 leeks, finely sliced, together with a small bunch of fresh thyme leaves and 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped, over low heat for about 20 mins;
• Turn up the heat and add a wine glass of white wine;
• After the wine comes to a boil, add 500g/1lb. good-quality tinned or jarred butter beans, drained and rinsed;
• Add a little bit of water so that the beans are almost covered;
• Simmer for 5-10 mins. until the beans are creamy;
• Add a small handful of parsley, finely chopped and 1 soup spoonful of crème fraîche (I substituted with yoghurt for a healthier version);
• Add a glug of good-quality extra virgin olive oil to the dish;
• Add sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, mix well and remove from heat;
• In a pre-heated pan, grill 4 (200gr./7oz.) marbled fillet steaks, preferably free-range or organic, (2.5–4cm/1–1½ inches) thick for 2-3 min. on each side for medium rare; add a 1-2 mins on each side for medium;
• Remove the steaks from the grill and let them rest for 5 mins;
• Before serving, drizzle steaks with olive oil, lemon juice and the resting juices;
• Cut the steak in pieces as shown above, and serve over the butter beans and leeks.

Tips for a perfectly pan-roasted steak. Choose good quality beef fillet steaks with a bit of fat on them. Pre-heat a flat pan or a griddle pan until it’s really hot: the pan will probably start smoking. Make sure your steaks are room temperature before you cook them: about 2o mins. out of the fridge should do the trick. Do not oil the pan, oil the steaks. Choose sunflower or corn oil, not olive oil as it has a low smoking point. Season steaks generously with salt and pepper on both sides before pan-roasting. Roast about 2 mins. on each side for medium rare. Leave the steaks to rest for at least 5 minutes before serving. Bon appetit!

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Treat Your (Sweet)Heart This Valentine’s Day

It’s Valentine’s Day, which spells trouble for the heart. It’s not the plush toys and badly written cards you have to fear, it’s the refined sugar and all those saturated fats. I was, therefore, delighted when LadyRaven at Add To Taste proposed a heart-healthy idea for Meeta’s February Monthly Mingle. So, I rolled up my sleeves and made a biscuit-and-yoghurt cake, after my Mom’s recipe. It’s healthy, delicious and simple! And it doesn’t require any cooking, to boot! Clearly, another win for yoghurt!

So delicious!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to make it, here is how:

• Dip oatmeal biscuits in semi-skim milk in a bowl – 2 seconds on each side
• Arrange two layers of the softened biscuits on the bottom of a cake pan so that no gaps are left, break cookies to fill the gaps
• For the filling and decoration, strain 4 (500 gr./1 lb.) tubs of 98% fat-free fruit yoghurt (with real fruit bits) in a muslin bag overnight (I chose 4 different yoghurt flavours for fun)
• Over the first 2 layers of biscuits, spread a thick layer of strained yoghurt
• Add a thick layer of thinly sliced fruit (I used pineapple and strawberries)
• Cover with another 2 layers of milk-soaked biscuits
• Add a thick layer of another type of strained yoghurt
• Repeat for as many layers of biscuits and yoghurt as you need to fill your cake pan
• Grate dark chocolate (70%) on top of the cake
• Use chopped nuts and fresh fruit for decoration
• Pipe decoration with strained yoghurt
• Leave the cake to harden in the freezer overnight
• Move the cake from the freezer to the fridge a couple of hours before serving

You have the right to ask, ‘What makes this cake so fabulous?’ Let me count the ways:

1. Voortman Oatmeal Biscuits – zero trans fats, flax seed, Vitamin A and C, Omega-3s, Riboflavins, Folic Acid and 70% dark chocolate chunks or dried cranberries (depending on preferred flavour – I used both).

• Flaxseed helps reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes;
• Vitamin A is a powerful antioxidant; it assists the immune system and helps for a healthy skin;
• Vitamin C assists with tissue and bone growth and repair; also a powerful antioxidant;
• Omega-3 fatty acids are important for brain memory and performance; reduce inflammation and help lower the risk of heart disease, cancer and arthritis;
• Folic acid assists with the production of haemoglobin and the nucleic acids DNA and RNA in your body;  folic acid is especially good for women who are pregnant or expect to become pregnant;
• Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) is important for body growth and red blood cell production and helps in releasing energy from carbohydrates;
• Oatmeal is good for…oh, pretty much everything: contains powerful antioxidants for heart protection, lowers bad cholesterol, stabilises blood sugar levels, lowers risk of diabetes and strengthens the immune system;
• Dark chocolate (70% cocoa content and up) helps lower cholesterol and stress levels;
• Dried cranberries are high in fibre and low in carbohydrates and calories (if no extra sugar is added);

2.  98% fat-free yoghurt is low in fat, a good source of calcium and easier to digest than milk; it is also an excellent source of protein and helps reduce intestinal and yeast infections; helps children with food absorption problems; boosts immunity and lowers cholesterol - basically, it’s a superstar!

3. Fresh fruit contain virtually no fat or sodium and no cholesterol.  They are a good source of magnesium, fibre and folic acid. Magnesium is essential for cellular metabolism, protein digestion, and the healthy function of the nervous system. Fibre helps your digestion system and keeps you “regular”.

4. Nuts contain mostly unsaturated fats, which help decrease the level of “bad” LDL cholesterol and help maintain the recommended levels of “good” HDL cholesterol in your body. Raw nuts are also a good source of protein.

On a different note, if you have any leftover raspberries and yoghurt, you could prepare some healthy “bonbons”. Just pipe your remaining yoghurt into the raspberries and grate some dark chocolate on top. Like so:

 

Despite all my good intentions, however, we are not quite devoid of chocolates this Valentine’s Day. A good college friend took me to a truffle-making class (Yay!), where I produced these little beauties:

Oh, dear! The road to hell is paved with chocolates, eh? In my defence, all truffles were made with high-cocoa content dark chocolate and lots of nuts. Yum.

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What Do Harry Potter and I Have In Common?

I’d been thinking for a week about the little rock cakes we used to buy from our corner sweet shop (sladkarnitza) in my childhood in Sofia. It was so conveniently located, I only had to cross the street to enjoy its glorious buttercream pastries, steaming hot bureks, thick and luxurious boza and of course, chocolatey, nutty and very sticky rock cakes (skalichki). 

My friends and I were mad about those rock cakes and were giving our school dentist a run for her money. Not that we were paying, mind you. Medical and dental care were “free”, that is, they were directly deducted from everyone’s pay. That’s why every semester, some class would get randomly cancelled and all students would be marched straight into the school’s dentist office for our semi-annual check-up. (Random cancellation was essential, of course; otherwise, half of us would run away).

Many got away scot-free after the check-up. Not me. Never me. I was always told to sit down and wait while everyone else’s teeth were poked. And then, the drilling commenced. Such sissy things as painkillers were not even mentioned, let alone applied. Needless to say, I hated the dentist as passionately as she hated me, but that did not stop me from frequenting our sweet shop. After all, I was mostly on my first set of teeth at the time.

Then, one day I crossed the street, rock cakes on my mind, only to discover the sweet shop had been closed down and was undergoing renovations to become the new neighbourhood Communist Party Club. We protested and signed petitions to no avail; we lost our sweet shop. There was something fishy about the fact that the Party chose our neighbourhood sweet shop for their club. My friends and I strongly suspected the instead of discussing the next 5-year-plan, the party members were busy stuffing their faces with rock cakes during their weekly meetings. For what it’s worth, I didn’t have to undergo quite as much drilling at the dentist as before, so I guess there is a silver lining in this whole story.

You are probably blinking at the screen right now thinking, ‘All of this is truly fascinating stuff, but exactly what is the connection with Harry Potter?’ Well, Harry and I both love rock cakes. I know it’s a tenuous connection, but it’s a start. My husband and I have been re-reading the Potter books and re-watching the Potter movies recently, and although some argue they are too flawed to enter into the world heritage of children’s literature, like many others, we like them because there are imaginative and fun! Especially when it comes to food, Harry Potter and his friends are always well fed at Hogwarts, a cause we ardently support.

Just as I had been reminiscing about my childhood rock cakes, I saw them at the Halloween Feast in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. It was clearly faith: I knew I had to make them. After consultations with my mother and some cookbooks, I conjured up a batch of 20. That was a few days ago. I’d been waiting for some decent natural light to come along so I could photograph them, but it’s been raining cats and dogs for the past few days. By the time I managed to photograph them, there were only 9 left.

I was on my way back from my photo shoot when a little girl held the door open for me and gave my rock cakes such a wistful look, that I had to give her one. As the rock cakes had been out of the fridge for a couple of minutes, they were starting to melt. I expect she was wearing chocolate all over her face and her clothes by the time her mother found her. But at least she was happy. So that left us with 8. <Sob>.

First, the prep stages:

It was a mess…

And then the rock stars cakes themselves:

Mmm, even if I do say so myself. Contact me for the recipe!

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Who Says Chicken Rice Is Boring?

When I ask my Singaporean friends what Singapore’s national dish is, they nearly always say, ‘Chicken rice, it’s boring.’ It doesn’t have to be. In honour of my Singaporean friends, I made a Bulgarian variation on Chicken Rice. The secret is to recruit all leftover vegetables in your fridge and any spices nearing their expiration date in your cabinet, and march them directly to a non-stick pan. The result is delicious, nutritious and colourful:

• Heat about 30 gr. (1 oz.) of butter and 1 soup spoon of vegetable oil in a non-stick pan
• Add 500 gr. (1 lb.) of chicken breast, pre-washed and pre-cut into small pieces
• Sauté the chicken lightly
• Add the aromatics: 1 onion, 1 carrot, 2 sticks of celery, roughly chopped
• Sauté until the vegetables soften up
• Add a pinch of any leftover dry spices you need to use up (I used rosemary and sage)
• Add paprika and 4 cups of chicken/vegetable stock
• Bring to the boil
• Add 1 cup (200 gr./7 oz.) of white rice
• When the rice is almost done, add ½ can of chopped tomatoes or 1 large tomato, roughly chopped
• Add other fresh vegetables such as spinach, broccoli and peppers you may want to use
• Add any fresh herbs you may want to use up (I used parsley)
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• If, at the end, the dish is too dry, add ½ to 1 cup of stock and mix well
• Allow the rice to absorb any extra liquid and remove from the heat

Tip: In any recipes calling for chopped tomatoes, add these only when the rest of the ingredients are almost cooked. If you add the tomatoes too early, the acids in the tomatoes will “seize” the rest of the ingredients and it’ll take you ages to cook them.

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Cure the Winter Blues with Chicken Mushroom Fricassee

Some do it with voodoo dolls, some do it with magic pills, some do it with hot yoga. All valid choices. I myself have been mulling over the hot yoga option. But, in my humble experience, nothing does the trick like a twist on the old Chicken Mushroom Fricassee in just under 40 mins. (including prep). Time-effective, you must admit. Oh, and the recipe below can be vegetarian-friendly. Just skip the chicken!

Chicken Mushroom Fricassee

• Cut 250 gr. (½ lb.) of mushrooms into slices (I used portobellini)
• Boil mushrooms in 3 cups of salted water until they soften up
• Take mushrooms out, save the mushroom broth
• Lightly sauté 1 onion and 5-6 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped, in 1 soup spoonful of vegetable oil
• In a separate non-stick pan, melt 50 gr. (about 2 oz.) of butter
• In it, sauté 3 heaped spoonfuls of regular flour
• Once the flour is golden brown, add 3-4 soup spoonfuls of semi-skimmed milk
• Add the mushroom broth, and the mushrooms, mix well
• Add the sauteed onion and garlic
• If you have any left-over roasted/boiled chicken, add it to the pan, in small pieces
• (If you do not have left-over roasted chicken, pre-boil 250 gr. (½ lb.) of chicken breast in salt water and add it to the fricassee, when indicated above)
• Add black pepper, allow everything to blend well while mixing
• Allow for any extra liquid to evaporate until you get a white creamy sauce
• 5 mins. before you remove it from the heat, add 125gr. (1/4 lb.) of baby spinach and stir
• Remove from the heat and sprinkle with fresh parsley or coriander
• I’d say, another success of Bulgarian culinary fusion

Tip for fresh herbs at all times. I know most of you love to use fresh herbs, but they get spoiled quite easily in the fridge. That’s why, when I buy a big bunch of fresh herbs, I wash, finely chop and freeze most of them in a jar, including stems, for later consumption. An old mustard jar or a tomato puree jar, for example, would do quite well. You don’t even have to defrost the herbs: just drop them into the dish you are making, and voila!

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Diet? What Diet?

As promised, below is our New Year’s Menu. I trust you will understand why weight-related resolutions are untenable in my mother’s kitchen.

1. Barbequed Koftas (Kyufteta na skara)

• Mix 1kg. (2 lbs.) of minced meat (we prefer turkey, but you can use 50%/50% pork and beef, if you wish) with 1 onion, finely chopped, in a large bowl
• Add six slices of old white bread, which have been soaked in water for a while (but squeeze most of the water out before adding to the mix)
• Add salt, pepper, cumin and parsley (fresh or dry) to taste
• Mix well and cover with clear wrap
• Leave in the fridge for 24 hrs.
• Before cooking, add ½ cup of water and mix well
• Form koftas in your preferred size and shape
• Barbeque koftas on pre-oiled aluminium foil
• If you prefer to bake them in the oven, pre-heat the over to 175Cº (350F) and bake for 20 mins. on one side and 20 mins. on the other side, or until golden brown.

2. Stuffed cabbage rolls (Zelevi Sarmi)

• Open a 1-kg.(2-lbs.) jar of marinated cabbage leaves
• Spread the cabbage leaves and stack them on a plate
• Over medium heat, sauté 1 onion and 1 carrot, finely chopped, in ½ cups of corn oil
• Add 1½ cups of rice to the mix and saute for another 5 mins while stirring
• Add 1 soup spoonful of paprika and mix well
• Add dry parsley to taste (or dill, if preferred)
• Add 4 cups of water or chicken or vegetable stock
• When the rice has absorbed all the stock or water, add finely chopped fresh parsley
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Add 1 kg (2 lbs.) of turkey mince (optional)
• Mix well and remove from the heat
• Depending  on the size of the cabbage leaves, place 1 to 2 soup spoonfuls of mix at the bottom of each cabbage leaf and roll the leaf up to make a roll
• Place rolls in a non-stick pot, cover with a plate to weigh them down
• Boil for 1 hr on medium heat without the lid on

3. Pork Chops with Sauerkraut (Svinski Parzholi sus Zele)

• Mix 1 kg. (2 lbs.) of sauerkraut (pre-cut in ribbons, that’s how it’s usually sold in stores) with 2 cups of rice
• Add 2 even tea spoonfuls of paprika
• Do not add salt, as the sauerkraut is usually quite salty
• Add 3 cups of water
• Mix well
• Place 7-8 large pork chops (with or without the bone) on top of the sauerkraut mix
• Season pork chops generously with salt and pepper
• Cover with aluminum foil
• (If you choose to bake the dish without a cover, add 4 cups of water to the sauerkraut)
• Bake for 10-15 mins. in a pre-heated 260Cº (500F) oven
• Reduce the oven temperature to 150Cº (300F) and bake for another 2 hrs.
• Uncover the baking pan and leave to bake for another 10 mins. for a nice golden-brown finish and to get rid of any extra liquid
• Taste to make sure that the meat, rice and sauerkraut are done before taking out of the oven

4. Baklava

• Mix 1 kg. of chopped walnuts with 1 packet of crumbled tea biscuits
• Add 2 heaped tea spoonfuls of cinnamon to the mix
• Use four phyllo sheets for each baklava roll
• Place 3 soup spoonfuls of the mixture at the bottom of each four sheets
• Roll up to make a tight roll
• Pack rolls closely in a pre-oiled baking pan
• Cut each roll into four 2-in. (5-cm.) pieces as shown above
• Melt 2 packs of unsalted butter (about 226 gr./8 oz.) in a pan
• Pour the melted butter all over the phyllo rolls especially in the cracks between the rolls
• Bake the baklava rolls for 5 mins. in a pre-heated 175Cº(350F oven)
• Lower the temperature to 150Cº(300F) and bake for another 25 mins. or until golden brown
• Leave baklava to cool
• For the syrup, mix 3 cups of sugar into 3 cups of water
• Bring the mixture to a boil, leave to boil for 15 mins. on low heat
• Add 5-6 drops of vanilla essence
• After the baked baklava has cooled, pour the warm syrup all over it
• Leave the baklava to soak up the syrup overnight at room temperature (If you put it in the fridge, the syrup will coagulate and your baklava will not be able to soak it up and will remain dry)

5. My favourite, Feta Cheese Pie with Lucky Charms (Banitza s Kusmeti)

• Crumble 600 gr. (1.3 lbs.) of feta cheese in a bowl
• Add 5-6 scrambled eggs
• Add 5-6 soup spoonfuls of yoghurt
• If the cheese is not salty enough, add salt to taste
• Melt 226 gr. (8 oz.) of unsalted butter
• Use two sheets of phyllo dough for each roll and butter the top sheet of every 2 sheets
• Place 3 soup spoonfuls of the mixture in the middle of every 2 pastry sheets
• (If you are making a lucky charms banitza, insert the lucky charm into each roll before rolling it up)
• Roll up the 2 sheets to form a tight roll
• Form each roll into a tight snail and place into a pre-buttered baking pan
• Sprinkle with water and butter the top of the snails before placing them into the oven
• Bake for 5 mins. in a pre-heated 175Cº (350F) oven
• Lower to 150Cº (300F) and bake for another 35 mins. or until golden yellow

Below are the lucky charms I made. Traditionally, these are made out of dogwood (with different bud combinations for the different charms).  This time, we did not have dogwood, so I had to make do with colour paper and aluminum foil. On each piece of paper I wrote good wishes for the new year and wrapped each in aluminium foil. Make sure you have enough lucky charms for each banitza roll, so no one is left disappointed. You can also make humorous charms by cutting out funny headlines from the newspapers. This is what our lucky charms looked like before I put them into the banitza:

Here are some of the lucky charms my family unwrapped this year. Personally, I got: Good fortune, Prosperity and Good health. Who could wish for anything more?

7. Pumpkin Pie (Tikvenik) (yes, again)

For this delicious pie, see my Happy Pumpkin Day: Plenty to be Thankful For.

7. Fruit Cake (Plodova Torta)

You how everyone always eats the moist, sugary, fruity top of the Christmas Panettone and the lower part is always dry and boring, and therefore, left behind? Now you can use it to make a delicious fruit cake! Here’s how:

• Cut the Panettone in half crosswise horizontally (eat the yummy top half, use the boring bottom half)
• In a large bowl, mix 500 gr. (1 lb.) of ricotta and 1/3 cup of confectioner’s sugar
• Add the zest of 1 large orange
• Mix to combine thoroughly
• Fold in ½ cup heavy whipped cream
• Leave to chill
• Cut the lower part of the Panettone crosswise in two
• Place the bottom half of the Panettone on a serving platter
• Distribute about 1/3 of the ricotta mixture on top of the first Panettone slice
• Place 1/4 pint of fresh strawberries, 1/4 of fresh raspberries and 1/4 fresh blueberries on top of the ricotta mix (you can also use other berries, if you wish)
• Place the second slice of Panettone on top of the fruit
• Distribute the second 1/3 of the ricotta mixture and the remaining fruit on top of the second slice
• Use the remaining 1/3 of the ricotta mixture to cover the sides of the cake
• Place the remaining quarter pints of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries (or any other berries) on top of the cake
• Sprinkle the top with fine confectioner’s sugar

Well, if our New Year’s Menu is anything to go by, I think we will be eating very well this year! I hope you’ll enjoy making and eating these dishes as much as we did!

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