Buckwheat – Not Roasted

  • I love buckwheat but have always used the roasted variety.
  • This I think has a nutty taste.
  • I have just been introduced to the non roasted variety which you can buy in the local Polish shop.
  • My friend called what she cooked a soup but I think it is more like a kasza – as most of the liquid was used up
  • The buckwheat is cooked in a beef or chicken stock with an assortment of vegetables.
  • Here we used broccoli, leeks, brussel sprouts, potatoes and carrots.
  • It is much milder than the roasted buckwheat.

Ingredients

  • 1 packet of buckwheat
  • 2 litres of beef or chicken stock (homemade is best)
  • 2 leeks – chopped fine
  • Some broccoli – chopped
  • 2 large potatoes – cubed
  • A few brussel sprouts – sliced.
  • 2 carrots – sliced or cubed
  • 2-3 allspice grains
  • 2 bay leaves
  • Sprig of Rosemary and Thyme
  • Salt & Pepper to taste

Method

  • In a large pan bring the stock to a simmer.
  • Add the buckwheat and the other vegetables.
  • Add the bay leaves, herbs and allspice grains.
  • Cook until the buckwheat is soft and so are the other vegetables.
  • If you want a soup you may have to add more stock.
  • If you want kasza – heat until most of the liquid is reduced.
  • Remove the sprigs of herbs.
  • Season to taste.

Serve on its own or with roasted meats or gulasz.

Royal Stafford – Blossom Time – Soup Plate

Radish Salad – A Different Way

I usually cut radishes into small circles to use in salads.

See my recipes in Summer Salads.

One of my Polish friends came round and used them in a different way.

INGREDIENTS

1 bunch of radishes

2 – 3 tablespoonfulls of Greek yoghurt

Salt and pepper to taste.

METHOD

Use a fine grater to grate all the radishes.

Mix the grated radishes with the yoghurt.

Season to taste.

Super on their own or with other salad items such as lettuce.

Marcypan Budyń – chilled

  • I came across a recipe for budyń which had marcypan – marzipan melted into it.
  • I used bought golden marzipan from Marks & Spencer’s to test it out.
  • There is enough to make this three times.
  • It was delicious.
  • I used it in two diferent ways.
  • This is the first one in which the budyń is chilled.
  • The original recipe used apples with the budyń, but although I have lots of apples left in the garden; I think it is better with dark red fruits such as sour cherries.

Ingredients

  • 250ml milk
  • 1½ tablespoons of potato flour
  • 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar
  • 150g of made marzipan
  • 2 egg yolks

Method

  • Mix a little of  the milk with the potato flour and the sugar.
  • Heat the rest of the milk in a saucepan.
  • Add the rest of the milk mixture to this and heat till it is thick.
  • Chop the mazipan into little pieces.
  • Add the mazipan to the milk mixture and stir till it is melted and you have a thick sauce.
  • Leave till slightly cool.
  • Add the egg yolks and mix till it is thick.
  • Leave till cool.
  • *
  • Use this over thickened fruit dark fruits such as soured cherries.
  • Leave to chill.

 

Apple, Sultana & Budyń Dessert

  • This is made as a cold dessert.
  •  
  • Apple & sultana filling is the base in a Pyrex  dish.
  • Cold budyń (Polish custard) made with 500ml of milk  is poured and leveled out on top.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM5- 190°C.
  • Kruszonka made with 125g of plain flour is crumbled on top.
  • Bake for around 50 – 60 minutes.
  • Leave to cool.
  • This dessert is best served chilled.

Kruszonka – Crumble Mix

  • Kruszonka – comes from the Polish verb kruszic – to crush.
  • Crumble – comes from the English verb to crumble –  make into small pieces.
  • Similar verbs but not from the same origin.
  • Stresusel – come from the German verb – to sprinkle.
  • These ingredients are used on top of many cakes in Poland and Germany and on the top of a sweet fruit pudding in England.
  • *
  • Until recently I always used half the amount of butter as flour to make the kruszonka – crumbs.
  • However recently I found a different proportion with a higher fat ratio and the results are wonderful – much more crunchy.
  • You have to be careful and have the oven hot to start with and cook this at GM 5 or GM 6 or the butter will all melt.

Ingredients 

  • 125g plain flour
  • 100g butter
  • 80g – 100g granulated sugar 
  • *
  • This is the ratio I have used in my recent recipes and it is super.
  • I have many older recipes with a kruszonka topping.
  • When I make these again I will try out these ‘new’ proportions.
  • I made a simple apple crumple using these proportions with 4-5 large cooking apples.
  • My mama would have called this szarlotka.

Method

  • Peel and core and part cook the apples first.
  • Leave them to cool – best if cold – you could do this much earlier.
  • Put the apples into an oven proof dish.
  • Pre-heat the oven at GM5.
  • Add the topping.
  • Bake for around 50 minutes to 1 hour.

Basrszcz Ukraiński

  • My mama only made barszcz the clear beetroot soup, which was served at Wigilia – Christmas Eve
  • This is a much more hefty, filling beetroot soup.
  • I got this recipe from one of my Polish friends.
  • With all the different vegetables I would say make this with 2 litres of stock.
  • A fatty chicken stock is good – home made is best.
  • But if you are using stock cubes add some butter to the mix.
  • Use a large stock pot or saucepan.

INGREDIENTS

  • 3-4 Beetroots – coarse grated – include the stems and leaves if you have them
  • ½ a sweetheart cabbage – finely shredded and chopped.
  • 3-4 medium starchy potatoes – peeled and chopped into small cubes
  • 2 parsnips – coarse grated or chopped into small cubes
  • 2 carrots – coarse grated or choped into small cubes
  • ¼ of a celeriac – cut into small cubes
  • 1 leeks – chopped into small circles
  • 2 litres of chicken stock
  • 4-5 grains of allspice
  • 5-6 peppercorns
  • 2-3 dried juniper berries
  • 1-2 bay leaves
  • *
  • 1 tin of white beans – cannellini or haricot beans – drained
  • ½ bottle of beetroot concentrate
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • *
  • Hard boiled eggs for serving – 1 per person – chopped or cut into quarters

METHOD

  • Bring the chicken stock to the boil and then turn down to simmer.
  • Add all the chopped vegetables and the allspice, peppercorns, juniper berries and the bay leaves.
  • Gently simmer till the vegetables are nearly soft.
  • Add the beans and simmer till they are soft.
  • Season to taste.
  • *
  • Add the beetroot concentrate and stir.
  • *
  • Serve in deep bowls and add the eggs on top to serve.

 

Royal Stafford Blossom Time – Soup plates.

Option – not tested – some people add a few tablespoons of soured cream before serving.

Plum & Budyń Tort

  • It is my 700th post and the first for 2026.
  • So a Happy New Year to everyone.
  • This is a richer take on the last post of a simple apple cake.
  • Technically to be as a tort – it should have several layers but I am not an expert at cutting the sponges into halves.
  • Here 2 sponges – from 4 eggs, butter, sugar and flour – are sandwiched together with a plum- jam mixture and budyń made with 500ml of milk.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 circles(20/21cm in diameter) of sponge cake made from 4 eggs and the equivalent weight of butter, sugar and flour and a few drops of vanilla essence.
  • Around 370g of a sharp plum or plum and apple jam.
  • Juice of 1 lemon.
  • * 
  •  Budyń made with 500ml of milk – 3 egg yolks – 3 tablespoons of potato flour, 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 tablespoon of butter. 
  • *
  • All the ingredients need to be cool – even cold, so they do not run when put together.
  • *
  • Icing sugar to dust

METHOD

  • Put the jam and the juice of 1 lemon into a small saucepan and heat gently, mixing together to get a thick paste.
  • Leave to cool completly before using.
  • *
  • Spread the jam mixture  over the first round of the cake.
  • *
  • Spread the cold budyń over the jam mixture – do not take it quite to the edges.
  • *
  • Place the second round of cake over this, gently press it down.
  • Dust this with icing sugar before serving.
  • Take care when cutting into the cake.

Simple Apple Sponge

  • I know that this is coming up to Wigilia & Christmas but this a a simple cake to balance all the rich ones you might be making.
  • It is a basic sponge make with 4 eggs and their equivalent weights of butter, sugar and flour and some baking powder.
  • Some drops of vanilla essence were added.
  • The two cakes were sandwiched together with a layer of apple jam & lemon juice.

METHOD

  • Make two rounds of sponge cake (the type with butter) in 20/21 cm  diameter tins.
  • Add a few drops of vanilla essence to the cake mixture.
  • *
  • Take a jar of homemade apple jam and put it into a small saucepan.
  • This will be around 370g of jam.
  • Add the juice of 1 or 2 lemons depending on size,
  • Slowly heat this up together until you have a thick mixture.
  • Leave this to go cold before using.
  • *
  • Sandwich the cake round together.
  • *
  • Dust the top with icing sugar.
  • *
  • You will have a refreshing cake to serve.

 

Apple & Sultana Tart – 2

  • In England this would be described as a pie.
  • There is no Polish word for pie.
  • This is a tart – tarta  with a lid.
  • It could be a placek if made in a rectangular tin.
  • This is made in a fluted tart tin using shortcrust pastry.
  • The filling was the Apple & Sultana mix that was in a previous post.
  • It was described as ‘gorgeous’ by one of my testers.

INGREDIENTS

  • Shortcrust pastry
  • Apple & Sultana filling
  • Egg white & sugar for the top of the pie.

METHOD

  • Butter the base and sides of a loose bottom tart tin.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM6 – 200°C.
  • Line the base and sides of the tart tin.
  • Fill the tart with the Apple & Sultana filling.
  • Place a circle of pastry on top and seal the top with the sides.
  • Cut several slashes in the top of the pastry.
  • Brush the top with beaten egg white.
  • Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar.
  • Bake for 30 -40  minutes until the top is golden brown.

Stuffed Peppers – 2

  • Everyone liked my stuffed peppers so much I decided to try out a variation.
  • This time I used rice as one of the fillings instead of buckwheat.
  • I went to Leeds market and found that the red pepper season seemed to be over.
  • There were lots of orange peppers but they were more a medium size.
  • If you can get peppers with a flat bottom rather than a pointed one.
  • Of course, you might not have any choice – you might have to use a knife in the baking try to hold the peppers up.
  • The method is as before – but written up again for ease.

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 orange or red large peppers
  • 250-300g of minced or finely chopped chicken breast
  • 1 large onion – finely chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic – finely chopped
  • 150 – 200g of mushrooms
  • 200g of cooked rice
  • Butter for frying mushrooms and onions
  • 1 teaspoon of dried thyme
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 300ml of vegetable stock – I used marigold powder
  • 1 -2 tablespoons of tomato purée or ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon of dried paprika.
  • *
  • 1 tablespoon of soured cream or yoghurt – optional

METHOD

  • Fry the onions in butter until they are golden.
  • Chop the mushrooms into small pieces and add them to the onions.
  • Fry them both together.
  • Add the garlic and fry the mixture together.
  • Pre- heat the oven to GM3 – 150°C.
  • Cut the tops of the peppers and keep to one side.
  • Scoop out the seeds from the peppers.
  • Put the peppers into a roasting tray.
  • Add some of the vegetable stock to the base.
  • Cook for around 15 minutes to soften the peppers.
  • Leave to cool slightly.
  • Turn up the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Mix together the cooked rice with the minced chicken and the mushroom mix, add the marjoram.
  • Season to taste.
  • Fill each pepper with the filling and put on the tops.
  •  
  • *
  • Add the rest of the vegetable stock to the baking tin and the paprika and tomato purée or ketchup and stir.
  • Put the peppers to stand in the stock mixture.
  • You might need a knife laid down to help keep the peppers vertical.
  • Put back into the oven and cook for around 1 hour.
  • You might need longer so the peppers are softish.
  • Keep looking at the progress and pour some of the stock mixture over the peppers to keep them from drying out.
  • *
  • Add the soured cream to the stock mixture to make a sauce.

NOTE – 1

If you think you will have any left – before adding the soured cream put them into an ovenproof pyrex dish with a lid with some tomato stock liquid – you can reheat them the next day in a microwave and them add some soured cream.

NOTE – 2

You can use cooked pearl barley instead of rice – NOT tested.