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APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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Page 1: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep
Page 2: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

APPETIZER

INGREDIENTS:

HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES(POMFRIT)

• 2 pounds potatoes• 3-4 cups oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep bowl filled with water. Cut each potato into ¼ inch slices, and then cut each slice into a few ¼ inch sticks. Place the sticks back in water. Let rest for 20-30 minutes.

2. Take a large pot or a deep frying pan and fill it up with oil (about 1-2 inches depth). Place on a back burner to prevent accidental spills, and heat it up on high. Mean-while, take the fries out of water and dry with paper towels until completely dry. When oil is completely hot, lower temperature to medium high, and place the first batch of fries in. (A batch is just enough fries so that each fry has enough space in oil.)

3. Occasionally and carefully stir the fries to prevent sticking. Fry the first batch for about 12-14 minutes, or until golden brown. (You may have to adjust the tempera-ture up or down a little bit to speed up the process, or to slow it down.) Transfer fries to a paper towel so it soaks up extra oil.

4. Put in the second batch and fry for about 8-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Re-peat for the remaining batches.

5. Serve hot!

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Page 3: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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BEVERAGE

INGREDIENTS:

FERMENTED JUNIPER BERRY JUICE(SMREKA)

• ½ lemon• 1 cup dry juniper berries• 4 cups water

INSTRUCTIONS:1. Wash lemon well, and quarter it leaving the skin on. Combine with juniper berries

and place in a large glass 1-liter bottle (or jar). Fill with water all the way and close the lid loosely.

2. Leave bottle in a sunny and warm spot on the window seal (or the terrace), for 10-15 days. A lot of juniper berries will start sinking to the bottom, or travel up and down in the bottle, while water will become yellowish. This is your sign that the juice is ready.

3. Strain the juice, transfer to a different bottle, and keep in a cold place.4. When getting ready to consume the juice, taste and see if it’s to your liking. If it’s

too strong, dilute with a little bit of regular or mineral water. Add a teaspoon of sugar as well if you prefer.

5. Meanwhile, repeat the process to make more juice with the same berries. Transfer them back into the original bottle, add a new quartered lemon, fill them up with water, and leave in a sunny spot. You can reuse berries once or twice. When most of them stay on the bottom, and the juice is no longer flavorful, they’re ready to be discarded.

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NOTES1. The berries sometimes travel up and down the jar. If you’ve used a lot of berries, a

lot may not even fall to the bottom before the juice is ready. That’s fine. Tasting the juice, and discovering its tart, sour and refreshing flavor is a sign smreka is ready to be consumed.

Page 4: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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BREADS & PASTRIES

INGREDIENTS:

FRIED MINI BREADS(PEKSIMETI, UŠTPICI, LOKUMI, ILI MEKIKE)

• 1 teaspoon baker’s yeast• 1 teaspoon sugar• 1 pound white flour• ¼ teaspoon salt• Lukewarm water• Oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Mix yeast and sugar in a little bit of lukewarm water. Leave aside for 10 minutes until the mixture bubbles up.

2. Combine yeast, flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Add lukewarm water and start making the dough by working the mixture with your hand for a few minutes until it becomes elastic. The dough should be soft to touch. (I used ¾ cup of lukewarm water but it may be a little different for you.) Cover with a kitchen towel, and let rise for about an hour.

3. Dust a working space with flour and take the dough out. Work the dough a little longer with your hands, and then roll out with a rolling pin. Once it’s the thickness of your little finger, cut the dough into rhomboids as if you were making baklava.

4. Take a deep skillet and add a generous amount of oil (about two fingers thickness). Warm it up on high until completely hot, and then lower the heat to medium high. Start putting little rhomboids into the oil. They will expand, and after a minute or two blush, at which time flip them over and fry the other side for a couple of min-utes as well. Place onto a paper towel so it can soak up extra oil.

5. Eat warm to hot.

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Page 5: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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DESSERT

INGREDIENTS:

COCONUT RAFFAELLO BALLS(RAFAELO KUGLICE OD KOKOSA)

• 8 cups milk• 15 tablespoons granulated sugar• 2 bags vanilla pudding mix (about 2.5 ounces total)• ⅞ cup shredded coconut flour plus ½ cup• 1 cup butter• ½ cup almonds without skin (approximation)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Put 10 tbsp of milk in a bowl. Add the pudding mix and sugar. Mix well.2. Pour the remaining milk into a pot and bring to boil on medium low. As it starts to

boil, bring the temperature down to the lowest setting, and add in the pudding mix-ture from step one. Mix thoroughly until the pudding forms (in about 10 minutes). Turn off and let cool.

3. When the pudding is lukewarm, cut up the butter and add it in. Follow this up with ⅞ cups of shredded coconut flour. Mix everything well until you get one smooth, sticky mass. Transfer to fridge so it cools down completely (about 30 minutes).

4. Pour ½ cup of shredded coconut in a bowl. Take the Raffaello mass out of the fridge and form balls a little bit smaller than golf balls. Put one almond into each ball, and then dip in shredded coconut.

5. Keep in fridge for up to a week.

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Page 6: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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MAIN COURSE

INGREDIENTS:

OVEN LEMON CHICKEN (PEČENA PILETINA SA LIMUNOM)

• 2 pounds fingerling potatoes• 1 medium sized whole chicken (without giblets)• 2 lemons• 2-3 tablespoons seasoned salt• 2-3 tablespoons parsley• 2 tablespoons basil• 5 garlic cloves (minced)• Oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Wash and peel potatoes. Cut in half or quarters depending on their size. Place in a bowl with 1 tbsp seasoned salt, 1 tbsp parsley, 1 tablespoon basil, and 2 minced garlic cloves. Add a tablespoon or two of oil, mix well and set aside.

2. Wash the chicken really well. Pat dry and transfer to a cutting board. Cut in a few places along the breast and legs (see the photo). Take the remaining spices (seasoned salt, parsley and basil), and smear over it on all sides really well. Take the remaining cloves and place in the orifices you made earlier by cutting. Wash lemons really well leaving the skin on. Cut into eights. Place one cut lemon inside the chicken (as much as it will fit), and set the remaining one aside.

3. Heat oven to 480F. Generously oil a 9X13 baking pan, place the chicken inside, and spread the potatoes around it evenly. Oil the chicken and potatoes. Add one cup of water into the pan. Take the last lemon, and squeeze all the juice evenly over the chicken and tomatoes. Place the remainders into the pan.

4. Place the pan into the oven, and bring the temperature down to 395F. Bake for 55 minutes or so, turning the chicken around once or twice.

5. Bring the temperature up to 450F again, and bake for 10-15 more minutes.

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NOTES

1. You may need a different sized pan - base it how on large your chicken is.

Page 7: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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MAIN COURSE

INGREDIENTS:

EUROPEAN HAKE (COD) AND A POTATO SALAD(PRŽENI OSLIĆ I KROMPIR SALATA)

• Potato Salad:• 3-4 large potatoes• 3-4 eggs• ½ yellow onion• Vinaigrette• 3 ounces olive oil• 1 ounce lemon juice• 1 tablespoon parsley• 3-4 smaller hakes (or cod) halved into fillets

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Peel the potatoes and place in a large pot filled with water. Add eggs and bring to a boil. Eggs will take about 15 minutes after the boiling point to be very hard, so you can take them out at that time and place in a bowl with cool water. Time varies for the potatoes, so check them with a fork every few minutes. When they’re soft, but not overly soft, they’re ready to be taken out. Place in a bowl with eggs to cool.

2. Peel the eggs and cut into thin rounds the thickness of three pennies. Cut the potatoes up the same way. Chop up the onion. Combine all three, add spices, and let it rest for a minute.

3. Prepare the vinaigrette by combining all ingredients and stirring. Pour over eggs, po-tatoes and onion and mix well. Place the salad in the fridge.

4. If you bought the whole fish, clean it up by cutting in half perpendicularly, and taking the insides out. Wash the fish, and discard the insides together with the head and tale, but leave the skin on. You should be left with fish fillets. (If you had the fillets to start with you’re good to go.)

5. Heat oil on high in a deep skillet until it’s really hot. Pour flour on a plate evenly.6. Dip each fillet in the flour and place in the skillet. Lower temperature just a little bit.

Fry the first side for about 4-5 minutes. Flip and fry another 3-4 minutes. Place on a paper towel to soak up the extra oil.

7. Serve with potato salad. For best taste, squeeze more lemon juice over the fish.

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• Salt and pepper to taste• Fish• 4-5 tablespoons white flour• Oil• 1 lemon

Page 8: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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SALAD

INGREDIENTS:

TUNA AND EGG SALAD(SALATA OD JAJA I TUNJEVINE)

• SALAD• 5 eggs• 10 young potatoes (smaller)• 1 cup corn kennels• 7 ounces canned tuna• 1 yellow onion (medium)• 1 tomato (large)• 1 tablespoon parsley

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a smaller pot, bring eggs to boil on high, then lower heat and let boil for 15 min-utes. Meanwhile, peel potatoes and place in another pot. Bring potatoes to boil on high, lower the temperature and check to see whether they’re done. Potatoes are ready when you can stab them with a fork easily but they are not falling apart. Finally, bring corn kennels to a boil in another small pot and remove from heat.

2. Drain eggs, potatoes and corn. Peel and cut eggs into rounds the thickness of 2-3 pennies stacked together. Cut potatoes into rounds the same way as eggs. Mince on-ion.

3. Dice the tomato, mince parsley, combine and leave aside for the top of the salad.4. Make the dressing by combining all ingredients and whisking them well.5. Take a large bowl and start layering your salad. You should have a total of two to three

layers of everything. Start with potato rounds, add tuna, then eggs, corn, and onion. Then top it generously with the dressing. Repeat once or twice, depending on how many ingredients you have left. Top each layer with the dressing.

6. Once you are finished add the tomatoes and parsley on top.7. Keep in the fridge until you are ready to eat it, and eat it the same day.

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NOTES

1. If you opt for lettuce, start with it as the first layer. Make sure to chop it up so it doesn’t take over the bowl.

• Lettuce (optional)• DRESSING:• 3.5 tablespoons oil• 1 tablespoon vinegar• ½ lemon (juiced)• ½ tablespoon salt• ½ teaspoon sugar• 1 tablespoon mayo

Page 9: APPETIZER - balkanlunchbox.com · APPETIZER INGREDIENTS: HOMEMADE FRENCH FRIES (POMFRIT) • 2 pounds potatoes • 3-4 cups oil INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Peel potatoes and place in a deep

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SIDE DISH

INGREDIENTS:

CHEESY POTATO CASSEROLE(PEČENI KROMPIR SA SIROM)

• 2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes• 1 tablespoon seasoned salt• ¼ teaspoon ground pepper• 1 cream of mushroom dry soup mix (about 2.5

ounces)• 14 ounces heavy cream• 6 ounces milk• 3 ounces oil• 3 tablespoons parsley• 2 cups hard yellow cheese (such as gouda)

1. Peel potatoes, and dice into rounds the thickness of about 3-4 pennies stacked to-gether. Garnish with seasoned salt and pepper. Layer in a round pan (about 12-inch diameter).

2. Heat oven to 390F.3. In a larger bowl, combine cream of mushroom soup with heavy cream and stir until

it’s smooth and crumb-free. Add milk, oil and minced parsley. Mix well until you have a very smooth liquid. Pour evenly over the potatoes.

4. Bake for 35 minutes. Carefully take out of the oven, and sprinkle generously with grated cheese.* Return back to the oven for another 10 minutes.

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INSTRUCTIONS: