Bacillus Bulgaricus And What To Do With It

Step away from the medical dictionary and keep the medicine cabinet where I can see it. No, it’s not a strange disease. It’s a friendly bacteria. Yes, you can pet it on the head. There, there. You can also drop it in fresh milk and make yourself some yoghurt. Neat, eh? And it’s good for you! Of course, if you want decent yoghurt, Bulgaria is homeland to the BEST YOGHURT IN THE WORLD—any Bulgarian will tell you that. Bulgarians are so good in the yoghurt department, they’ve got a bacteria sub-species named after them.

At least that’s what my grandparents said when they tried to cajole me into eating my daily portion. I wasn’t buying any of it. As you can guess, natural yoghurt was not particularly attractive to the palate of a five-year old. Dairy-wise, I was mostly into ice-creams at the time. In the end, however, eating yoghurt turned out to be a lucrative undertaking for me—for every cupful of yoghurt I ate, I was rewarded with assorted treasures including handkerchiefs, small coins, used postage stamps, old high heels and buttons—dozens upon dozens of buttons in all shapes and colours, which I kept in a film-reel box. Now, I am not saying this sort of underhanded dealing is ever to be promoted. In fact, Mom, if you are reading this, I absolutely forbid you to bribe any future grandchildren of yours.

Be as it may, nowadays I love natural yoghurt and eat heaps of it. You bet my husband does too—when it’s well concealed within other foods. That’s why for Meeta’s November Monthly Mingle, hosted by Sally at My Custard Pie, I made moussaka. Not the traditional Bulgarian potato moussaka, nor the classic Greek eggplant moussaka, but a Leek-and-Rice Moussaka with Yoghurt Custard Crust.

Directions:

• Saute 1 pepper, 2 carrots and 1 large onion in vegetable oil;
• Add 750gr (1½lb) minced meat (50/50 beef and pork);
• Add 200gr (½lb) of rice and 1 cupful of vegetable stock;
• Season to taste with salt and pepper;
• In a separate pan soften 10-12 large leeks cut in 5-cm-long (2-inch-long) ribbons in vegetable oil and a soup spoonful of tomato paste mixed in a little warm water;
• Layer half of the leeks at the bottom of a pre-oiled baking pan;
• Layer the half-cooked meat and rice on top;
• Layer the remaining leeks on top of the meat;
• Bake about 30 mins in a pre-heated 200Cº(390F) oven;
• Scramble 4 eggs, mix in a cup of natural yoghurt, pour on  top and bake for 10 mins or until crust is golden yellow.

Mom’s tip on home-made yoghurt: Mix two soup spoonfuls of live yoghurt into a pot of 1 ltr (2 pints) of fresh lukewarm milk—fat free, 2% or full fat. Mom prefers 2% milk as full fat is too rich and fat free is not as tasty. Cover pot well with towels. Leave overnight in a warm room (around 30Cº/85F), but not in direct sunlight or over direct heat. The milk should clot overnight. Put in the fridge in the morning so it does not spoil! Thanks, Mom!

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