Quince dish

Today, a traditional Romanian peasant recipe, simple and easy to prepare - quince dish. Ingredients:
2 kg quinces
200 g sugar
100 ml oil
100 ml white wine
50 g flour

Do not peel the quinces, just wash them well and wipe with a kitchen towel. Cut into quarters, cut the hard part in the center, and then slice the quarters like a orange. Cover the slices with flour and fry them in oil well heated, then remove them in another pot.

Put the rest of the flour and the sugar into the remaining oil and stir over heat until sugar begins to caramelize. Pour the wine mixed with 300 ml of water and still give some boil, stirring so as not to make lumps. Pour the sauce over the roasted quinces and seethed together a few minutes longer.

Serve hot or cold.

Images from here.

Mititei

Mititei or mici (Romanian for little or small ones) is a traditional Romanian dish, grilled minced-meat rolls made from beef (usually mixed with mutton and pork), which contain garlic, black pepper, thyme, coriander, anise, savory and sometimes a touch of paprika. Sodium bicarbonate (and sometimes broth or water) is also added to the mixture. It is best served accompanied by mustard and beer. Ideally the mustard should not contain too much vinegar, because the sour taste does not fit with the mititei. The mititei are very popular in Romania. Legend has it that mititei were invented one evening at an inn called La Iordachi (At Iordachi) in Bucharest, well-known for its sausages, when the kitchen ran out of casings, although similar dishes exist across the whole of Eastern Europe, such as the ćevapčići in the Balkans. Nowadays, it is very popular sold as fast-food or in restaurants close to traffic. They are also sold as processed food in supermarkets.


Here is a recipe for mici:

Ingredients:
One third each ground pork, lamb and beef for a total of 2-2.5 lbs meat
1 tablespoon baking soda
2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon pepper
1/2 tablespoon coriander
1/2 tablespoon cumin
1/2 tablespoon dried thyme
10 cloves garlic
1/4 cup water or vegetable/beef stock


Preparation:
Mix well all the ingredients together
Beat either water or vegetable/beef stock into the mixture
Leave mixture in fridge to set for a couple of hours or ideally overnight - this is an important step that aids the meat in coming out tender
Form into little 3-4 inch sausage shapes
NOTE: Keep a bowl of water handy to wet hands (this prevents the meat from sticking to fingers).
Grill on very hot grill, turn once
Serve with bread rolls and light mustard

Add a cold beer and a lazy summer evening and you are in heaven!

Cabbage rolls

Sarmale (cabbage rolls) is a traditional Romanian food, served at nearly every wedding and holiday (and there are MANY)... The recipe is somewhat different in the Romanian regions, but here is a traditional one:

Ingredients
500gr ground beef
500gr ground pork ( do not use the lean kind - it will enhance the flavor if you use the regular one)
1 spoon tomato paste
salt and pepper
2 spoons rice uncooked
1 large or 2 small cabbage heads
1 large onion
250g smoked bacon cut in small pieces
500 gr (1 can) wine sauerkraut
1 spoon whole peppers
salt and pepper
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 laurel leaf
1 small smoked pork hock - just for taste
water

Directions
1. Filling: Mix the ground beef, ground pork, tomato paste, salt and pepper (after taste - if you use the cabbage pickled in brine, remember that it can be quite salty!) and rice. Set it on the side at room temperature while you prepare the leaves of the cabbage.
2. If you use the pickled cabbage, taste it and if it is too salty wash it gently without breaking the leaves. If you use fresh cabbage, you have to add it whole in salted boiling water for 5 -10 minutes (depending how thick the leaves are - as a general rule try to choose the thinnest leaves possible). Once boiled take each leaf carefully and wrap about 1 - 2spoons of meat. The size of the rolls are really personal preference, in Southern Romania they are usually really small and going North towards Moldavia they get really big in size.
3. Separately, in a pan fry the bacon together with the onion until translucent (about 2-3min) and add the sauerkraut, salt (again taste the sauerkraut and see how salty it is), pepper, whole pepper and the tomato paste- cook another 3 minutes. Set it aside.
4. In a deep crock/pan spread evenly at the bottom about 1/3 from the sauerkraut mix. On top of it add one layer of rolls. Add another layer of sauerkraut and another layer of rolls. Finish with a layer of sauerkraut. On top add the small pork hock and the laurel and add water in order to barely cover the rolls.
5. Boil on stove top at med- slow heat approx. 2 hours - 2 1/2 hours. Take out one roll after 2 hours and try to see if it is cooked thoroughly. Once cooked, take out the laurel and the pork hock and discard.
6. Bake at 375F for another 30 minutes until you see a nice crust formed on top of it.
7. You can actually freeze it. In the freezer keeps very well for at least 1 month.
8. Serve it with polenta and top each plate with 2 generous spoons of sour cream. Enjoy!


Amount Per Serving - Calories: 828, Total Fat: 18.9g, Cholesterol: 64mg