I had a request from the 93 year old mother of one of my friends to make her a cake that included beetroot in the ingredients – maybe a red velvet cake.
Now I had never seen one of these cakes and certainly never made one and I did have doubts about it.
I did some research and found lots of recipes for red velvet cakes but nearly all of them used just red food colouring.
I then found a recipe for a cake using beetroot and tested it out and surprisingly it came out very, very well. The recipe uses sunflower oil and is an easy to make batter cake.
This is not a traditional Polish recipe at all but it does contain a favourite Polish vegetable – namely – beetroot.
Ingredients
250g cooked beetroots (I used ready cooked vacuum packed beetroots – 1 pack is more than enough)
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
300g caster sugar
250ml sunflower oil
3 eggs
225g plain flour
1 teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
Method
Grease and line a 21 x 31 cm baking tin.
Preheat the oven to Gas mark 4 – 180ºC
Drain the beetroots from the water and place in a sieve for a while to ensure they are dry – you can dry them with some kitchen roll as well.
Purée the beetroots – using a food chopper or blender
In a large bowl combine the puréed beetroots, eggs, vanilla essence, oil and sugar.
In a separate bowl mix together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and cocoa.
Add the dry ingredients to the other bowl and beat well together.
Pour the batter mixture into the prepared tin.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
Test if done with a cake tester or wooden skewer.
Leave to cool in the tin.
The cake is delicious and moist – it has a slightly red tinge to the very dark nearly black colour.
Here I have just served it plain.
Served on Royal Doulton, Counterpoint, 1973 – 1987.
You can dust the top with icing sugar if desired.
The cake is delicious on its own but many versions have a topping of some description.
I made one using butter, cream cheese ( or yoghurt cheese), icing sugar and lemon.
Ingredients for Topping
50g butter
100g of full fat cream cheese, twaróg or yoghurt cheese
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
250 – 300g icing sugar
Method
The butter needs to be at room temperature.
Cream the butter, lemon rind, lemon juice and the cream cheese and 2 tablespoons of the icing sugar until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
Slowly add the icing sugar and mix well in until it is smooth and firm enough to use as a topping.
You can make the topping ahead of time and keep it in a container in the fridge – topping the cake later when needed.
Take care not to get too many brown cake crumbs in the icing when spreading it on the cake.
Served on Colclough, Enchantment, tea plates from the 1960s
This recipe is in an old Polish style – po staropolsku with its use of prunes and honey. I love the flavour of the meat with this sweetness added to it.
This is a dish could be served on special occasions such as Christmas Day.
This recipe needs a large piece of pork loin which will have some of the prunes placed in cuts on the top.
I usually use prunes with the stones still in however in January 2017 there were no prunes with stones on the market in Leeds. The lady on the stall said this was because of a very poor harvest – so I have used these stoned prunes to try out the recipe for the photographs & this post.
Ingredients
1.5kg – 2kg boneless pork loin in one piece – skinless if possible (I used a joint with skin on this time – I think skinless is defiantly better)
200g prunes
100ml of sherry or vermouth
350ml of chicken stock – can be made from stock cubes
bouquet garni made from flat leaf parsley, bay leaf and thyme
1 tablespoon of plain flour
2 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of olive oil
salt & ground black pepper
2 tablespoons of honey
Method
You will need a roasting tin with a lid.
Pour the stock into a pan and bring it to the boil and then add the prunes and cover these with a lid. Let them simmer gently for 20 minutes stirring occasionally.
Allow the prunes to cool so you can handle them and take out the stones.
Take 8-10 of the prunes and put them in a dish and pour the sherry over them and leave them for at least 30 minutes.
Pre heat the oven to Gas Mark 3 – 1600C.
Take the pork and in what will be the top make 8 to 10 deep cuts with a sharp knife. Into each pocket place one of the prunes that has been soaked in the wine.
(If your joint has the skin on it then cut under the skin and put the prunes between the skin and the meat).
Keep the sherry liquid as you will need it later.
Coat the joint with the flour, salt and pepper.
In a frying pan, melt the butter, add the oil and on a high heat, brown all the sides of the joint or if the joint is too large for the pan use the roasting pan on top of the stove to fry it in.
Put the meat and the frying juices into the roasting tin.
Add 6 tablespoons of the stock and cover the dish with the lid and put the dish in the oven for 40 – 50 minutes.
Take the dish out of the oven , add the rest of the prunes and the stock, put the lid back on and cook in the oven for another 40-50 minutes until the meat is tender.
Take out the meat and put it on a warm serving dish cover it with foil and a tea towel and leave it to rest in a warm place whilst you finish the sauce.
Take the bouquet garni out of the dish and add the sherry liquid and honey to the prunes and bring this to the boil. Then simmer it gently and use a balloon whisk to blend the sauce together and break up any large pieces of prunes.
Pour the sauce into a gravy boat or jug and serve with the meat.
Slice up the meat.
Served here on Carnation by Royal Doulton, 1982 – 1998
Prune Sauce
I had some of the prune sauce left over and I had decided to cook some duck breasts.
I thought why not heat up the prune sauce and serve it with the duck, which is what I did – it was delicious together.
So I thought “Why not try to create a prune sauce which can be cooked separately for serving with roast or pan fried meats such as pork, duck or game“.
So I did and here is the recipe.
Ingredients
150g prunes – pitted are easiest for this
250ml hot boiling water
250ml chicken stock – can be from cube or concentrate
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of flour
3 tablespoon of honey
50 ml sherry or vermouth
1 bay leaf
Ground black pepper
Method
Place the prunes in a small bowl and pour the hot water over them and leave them to soak for at least an hour.
If using prunes with stones remove these now.
In a saucepan melt the butter and add the flour and heat gently stirring with a wooden spoon to make a roux.
Slowly add the stock and bring this to the boil, stirring constantly so that you do not get any lumps.
Add the prunes and the liquid they were soaked in, the bay leaf and ground black pepper.
Simmer gently until the prunes are soft.
Add the sherry and the honey and simmer for another 3 to 4 minutes.
Remove the bay leaf.
Use a balloon whisk to blend the sauce together and break up any large pieces of prunes.
Pour the sauce into a gravy boat or jug and serve hot with your meat.
Note
If possible, depending on how you have cooked the meat , add any meat juices to the sauce, stirring well.
This recipe is in an old Polish style – po staropolsku with its use of prunes and caraway seeds.
I prefer to use prunes with the stones in and I usually buy then from a Nut & Dried Fruit stall in Leeds Kirkgate Market. However in January 2017 there were no prunes with stones on the market. The lady on the stall said this was because of a very poor harvest – so I used stoned prunes to try out this recipe for the photographs for this post.
This recipe uses a method of cooking which is called duszone – that translates from Polish as suffocated but also when used in cooking asbraised however I think suffocated is much more evocative.
You will need a roasting tin with a lid.
A joint of pork is first sealed by browning it on all sides and then it is placed in a roasting dish with a little liquid and then a lid is placed over the contents and the dish is cooked in an oven. Meat cooked this way is very succulent.
Ingredients
800g boneless pork loin joint
NoteYou can always scale up this recipe for a larger piece of pork.
100g prunes
2 onions – finely chopped
1 tablespoon of plain flour
2 tablespoons of butter
1 tablespoon of olive oil
salt & ground black pepper
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
Method
At least an hour before you want to cook the pork, put the prunes in a small bowl and pour boiling water over the prunes to cover them.
Leave them to plump up and then remove the stones from the prunes. (I left mine for 4 hours).
Retain the liquid from the soaking as this will be needed.
Pre heat the oven to Gas Mark 3 – 1600C
Coat the joint with the flour, salt and pepper.
In a frying pan, melt the butter, add the oil and on a high heat, brown all the sides of the joint.
Put the meat and the frying juices into the roasting tin.
Put the prunes and onions around the pork and add the liquid from the soaking of the prunes, put on the lid and place the dish into the oven.
About 1 ¼ hours should be enough for this weight.
Take out the pork and place it on a warm serving dish, cover with foil, and leave in a warm place whilst you finish the prunes.
Stir the caraway seeds into the onion and prune mixture and heat this up on the top of the stove to thicken for 2 to 3 minutes.
Caraway Seeds
Cut the pork into thick slices and place them on a platter or serving dish and put the prune & onion mixture around them.
Serve with boiled potatoes.
Here served on a bone china platter, Josephine Yellow
In many recipe books and often on menus in restaurants you can see dishes described as po staropolsku which means in an Old Polish Style.
What exactly does that mean?
I have found this a hard question to answer as there two sides to its meaning, one is about hospitality and the other is the ingredients.
Hospitality
When restaurants use po staropolsku they are trying to evoke connections to noblemen & democracy with the chivalry & hospitality that was found in the manor houses in Poland, particularly from the 16th to the 18th century. They are trying to make you think of the quality of the food and the surroundings.
The Poles are thought to be a very hospitable nation and a very famous saying in Poland is – “Gość w dom, Bóg w dom”which means when you have a guest in your house, you have God in your house, meaning treat your guests to the very best.
The chef & writer, the late Maciej Kuroń (1960 – 2008) in his book Kuchnia Polska (Polish Cookery)has a new saying –
“Lepiej gościa zabić, niż nie nakarmić “which means – it is better to kill a guest rather than not feed them well.
I noted this quote many months ago – today when I tried to find the reference in the book, which is a large tome of over 900 pages, I could not find it – when I do in the future I will come back and add it here.
Some of my reference cookery books.
Ingredients
Many old recipes can be classed as po staropolsku – especially if they contain:
Dishes included various soups & especially Sour Soups (I will write about these in the future), honey cakes, pierogi, gołąbki, bigos and dishes with meat & dried fruits.
Pork and Prunes
Some of my favourite dishes in the old Polish style combine pork with prunes, often with honey. I love the flavour of the meat with all this sweetness added to it.
I am going to write up 3 different recipes – the first in this post – the others to follow shortly.
The best pork to use is a boneless joint of pork loin which has also had the skin removed, but if you cannot get this then leg of pork is good as well.
When roasting pork allow 50 minutes per kilo, plus 25 minutes at Gas mark 5 – 1900C.
NoteYou can always scale up this recipe for a larger piece of pork.
I have found that the best prunes are lovely plump ones from Agen in France but the ones that are more dried are also good, you just have to soak them for longer before you can take out the stones.
You can of course use ready stoned prunes – I just prefer the ones with stones in – though they are increasingly harder to find – I can get them from a Nut & Dried Fruit stall in Leeds Kirkgate Market.
However in January 2017 there were no prunes with stones on the market. The lady on the stall said this was because of a very poor harvest – so I have had to use stoned prunes to try out the recipes for the photographs & this post.
Pork and Prunes 1
Ingredients
800g boneless pork loin joint
100g prunes
1 tablespoon of honey
Coarse salt
At least an hour before you want to roast the pork, put the prunes in a small bowl and pour boiling water over the prunes to cover them.
Leave them to plump up and then remove the stones from the prunes.
Retain the liquid from the soaking as this will be needed.
Pre heat the oven to Gas Mark 5 – 1900C.
Place the pork in a roasting tin and rub some coarse salt onto the fat on the top.
Put the prunes under and around the pork with the water from the soaking & extra to cover the bottom of the roasting tin and place in the oven.
Roast the pork – about 1 ¼ hours should be enough for this weight, baste the meat with the liquid from the prunes and juices a couple of times, adding extra water if needed.
When the meat is ready, take out of the oven, cover with foil and then a tea towel and leave it to rest.
Add the honey to the prunes and juices, stir these together over some heat in the roasting pan, you may need to add some more water.
Slice the pork and place on a serving dish and place the prune mixture around the pork to serve.
Here served on a Royal Doulton Plate – Carnation 1982-1998.
If served on top of a large, breakfast plate sized potato pancake this is known as a
węgierski placek – Hungarian pancake.
Tip
Make this a day ahead of when you need it, cook the dish for at least 3 hours and leave it to cool.
The next day cook it again for at least 1 hour, you might have to add a little water or stock but not too much, the sauce should be thick not watery.
Using a slow cooker
Nowadays I often make gulasz using a slow cooker instead of the oven.
I made a gulasz using pork shoulder and cooked it in the slow cooker for 8 hours.
Pork gulasz served in a dish by J & G Meakin Studio Pottery
Unknown Design Name
Luxury Style Gulasz
All houses in Poland have cellars and even people living in block of flats have a cellar area of their own; if you ever get the chance to look in these you will find that they are filled with: jams, preserves, bottled fruit and vegetables, sauerkraut and salted gherkins.
Bottled sweet red peppers in brine are often found amongst these jars. The addition of the peppers from one of these jars to the gulasz makes it even better.
Of course if like me you do not have the home-made variety you can buy these from most delicatessens or supermarkets now.
One Of My Two Cellars
You can use fresh red peppers and I use these when they are plentiful, either will make a delicious gulasz but I think I like ones with the bottled peppers best.
The recipe is a variation on the classic gulasz but you have to use less stock or you will end up with it being too watery due the water content of the peppers – especially the fresh ones.
Ingredients
500g stewing beef or shoulder or spare rib pork
2 onions
2 cloves of garlic
3 tablespoons of tomato purée
150ml chicken stock – can be made from stock cubes
2 teaspoons of (sweet) paprika (not smoked)
1 bay leaf
Jar of bottled red peppers or 3 to 4 fresh red peppers
2 -3 tablespoons of soured cream
2 tablespoons of plain flour
Salt & ground black pepper
Oil for frying
Paprika to dust on the top
Method
Pre heat the oven to Gas Mark 3 – 1600C
Roughly chop the onions and crush the garlic
Mix the tomato purée and the paprika in the stock
If using the bottled peppers cut them into long strips and then cut these into halves
If using the fresh peppers, cut them into long strips, de-seed them and cut these into halves
Cut the meat into cubes and coat the pieces in a mixture of flour, salt and ground pepper
In a frying pan heat the oil until it is hot and fry the meat until all the sides are sealed
Place the meat into a casserole dish
Fry the garlic and onions in the frying pan, adding some oil if necessary but trying not to use too much or the dish will be greasy
Add the onions to the meat then add the bay leaf and some more ground pepper
Add the peppers to the dish and mix the contents together
Pour the stock mixture into the casserole dish and put on the lid
Cook in the oven until the meat is tender, this could be about 3 ½ to 4 hours but often I find it needs longer.
When you are ready to serve the gulasz, mix in one to two tablespoons of soured cream and then put the other tablespoon of soured cream on top in the centre and dust some extra paprika on this.
Serve as for the classic style gulasz.
Here served in a dish by J & G Meakin – Topic from 1967
Biszkopt is a fat free sponge cake which means it does not have any butter, margarine or oil in it – just eggs, sugar & flour.
This recipe in my Polish cookery book is described as oszczędna which means economical and compared with many of the recipes which use 4 or more eggs it is.
I used this recipe to make a cake which is very popular in Poland – rolada which is a roulade or roll.
I was really pleased with this recipe & think I will continue to use this the most.
Ingredients
40g potato flour
3 tablespoons of plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder.
2 eggs separated
65g icing sugar plus 1 tablespoon of icing sugar & extra for dusting.
2 tablespoons of boiling water
Also you need a tin 23 x 32cms & 3 sheets of greaseproof paper
Fillings
Jam
Lemon Curd – This is very English but I am sure it would be loved in Poland –
Marks & Spencer’s Sicilian lemon curd is superb!
Butter Cream filling of your choice – I used coffee & rum here.
Method
Pre-heat oven to GM 4 – 180°C
There are lots of steps in this recipe & after several trials, I have given the steps in the order I found worked the best.
Grease and line a 23 x 32cms baking tin – you can also grease the paper on the upper side – I have found this does make it easier to remove the cake.
Mix together the potato flour, plain flour and the baking powder.
Whisk the egg whites until they are stiff then add in 1 tablespoon of icing sugar and whisk again.
Whisk the egg yolks until they are pale then add the 2 tablespoons of boiling water and whisk again, add the icing sugar and whisk till the mixture is pale and creamy.
Gently fold in the flour mixture.
Fold in the stiff whites.
Pour the mixture into the baking pan & bake for around 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and lightly dust with icing sugar then turn this out onto a sheet of greaseproof paper also dusted with icing sugar.
Place another piece of greaseproof on top of this and roll up the cake (starting with a short side) with the paper.
Leave this to cool.
Unroll the cake and spread with jam, lemon curd or a butter cream filling of your choice & then roll up the cake again.
Dust the cake with icing sugar.
Rolada with lemon curd
Blue edged plates 1930s Allertons Ltd
Sandwich plate H&K Tunstall
Rolada with jam
Coffee & Rum Butter Cream
Ingredients
2 egg yolks
100g icing sugar
120g of butter
2 tablespoons of strong coffee
2 tablespoons of rum
Method
Make some strong coffee using 20g of ground coffee and boiling water and then strain it and leave to cool.
(You can of course use instant coffee – my mother used Camp coffee years ago & it is still available)
Beat the egg yolks, butter & icing together
Add the coffee & rum and mix well in.
You can add a little more icing sugar if you think the mixture is too soft.
Biszkopt is a fat free sponge cake which means it does not have any butter, margarine or oil in it – just eggs, sugar & flour.
The word originates from the old Italian biscotto & Medieval Latin bis coctus – which means twice baked – though why I do not understand as this sponge is only baked once!
The English word biscuit also has this origin.
This sponge is used to make tort – layer cake 0r gateaux – however as these are usually such large cakes – I have used it for another popular cake in Poland – rolada – which is a roulade – often called a Swiss roll – though I have not been able to find the reason for this Swiss connection.
Rolada
Ingredients
4 eggs – separated
4 tablespoons of granulated sugar
4 tablespoons of plain flour
Icing sugar to dust
You will need 3 sheets of greaseproof paper
Fillings
Jam
Butter Cream Icing
Lemon Curd – this is very English – but would be loved in Poland – Marks & Spencer’s Sicilian lemon curd is superb!
Method
Pre-heat the oven to GM 4 – 180°C.
Grease and line a 23 x 32cms baking tin – you can also grease the paper on the upper side – I have found this does make it easier to remove the cake.
Whisk the egg whites until they are stiff.
Whisk together the egg yolks & sugar until they are pale and fluffy.
Fold in the flour.
Fold in the egg whites.
Pour the mixture into the baking pan & bake for around 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and lightly dust with icing sugar then turn this out onto a sheet of greaseproof paper also dusted with icing sugar.
Place another piece of greaseproof on top of this and roll up the cake (starting with a short side) with the paper.
Leave this to cool.
Unroll the cake and spread with jam, lemon curd or a butter cream filling of your choice & then roll up the cake again.
After apples (see It’s Only A Bird!) one of the most popular ways of serving roast duck in Poland is with sour cherries.
Sour cherries & sweet cherries are related but in Polish they have have completely different names
Prunus cerasus are wiśnie – sour cherries also known as morello cherries & Prunus avium are czereśnie – sweet cherries.
Prunus cerasus originated in the Iranian plateau & Eastern Europe.
Annual crop production figures for sour cherries in 2012 show:
1 – Turkey with over 187,000 tonnes
2 – Russia with over 183,000 tonnes &
3 – Poland with over 175,000 tonnes
So the figure for Poland is high when you think of the size of the top two countries, especially when figures for the whole of the United States of America are only around 38,000tonnes.
For this recipe fresh sour cherries would have to be cooked with some sugar but here in England rather than fresh sour cherries you have to use bottled ones.
Previously I used to be able to buy bottled sour cherries produced by Krakus or PEK but recently went out shopping for these I could not find any shops that stocked them.
In one of the Polish shops I found some from the company EDMAL and I also found some in Lidl.
Both are good though personally I preferred the taste of the EDMAL ones.
The Lidl ones are pitted whearas the EDMAL ones still have the stones in – you can remove the stones if you want or just warn people that the stones are still in.
Cherry Stoner
There is more liquid in the EDMAL jar as this is sold as a kompot.
Kompotis a non-alcoholic sweet beverage, that may be served hot or cold.
It is made by cooking fruit such as apples, rhubarb, gooseberries, or sour cherries in a large volume of water, together with sugar or raisins. Sometimes spices such cinnamon are added for additional flavour, especially in winter when kompot is usually served hot.
For this recipe you need to strain more liquid off from the kompot which you can save and drink later.
A jar is easily enough for 4 people and could serve 6.
The sour cherries are cooked separately from the duck in this recipe.
Rather than using whole duck, I use duck breasts, 1 per person, as this makes it easier for me especially when there are more than two people for dinner.
I am giving instructions for 2 different coatings for the duck here – the rest of the instructions are the same.
Ingredients
Duck breasts – 1 per person
Jar of sour cherries.
Italian herbs or ground allspice
Salt & pepper
Method
Rub the duck breasts with Italian herbs, ground black pepper and salt and leave for at least an hour.
or
Rub the duck breasts with allspice and salt and leave for at least an hour
Duck breast with Italian herbs, salt and pepper.
Duck breast with allspice and salt.
Allspice is very popular in Polish cooking. It is the dried berry of the plant Pimenta diocia
Allspice in Polish is ziele angielskie which translates asherb English because it came to Poland from English traders who brought it from the West Indies in the 16th century. I do not know why it is called herb (which indicates the green part of a plant) as the word more often used for spice in Polish is zioła (indicating dried berries or roots etc).
Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C
Put a baking tray in the oven for around 10 minutes to heat up.
Heat a heavy based frying pan (I use a cast iron pan) until it is very hot – you do not need any added oil or fat.
Place the duck breasts in the pan skin side down and turn the heat down to medium and cook for 2 minutes. Turn them over and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Put the duck onto the heated baking tray.
Bake in the oven for around 15 minutes.
You can serve the duck breast as whole pieces or slice them up.
Whilst the duck is in the oven, put the strained cherries with some of the juice into a pan and bring to the boil, then simmer gently for around 5 minutes – do not let them boil dry – add extra juice if necessary.
Serve the cooked duck with the cherries, adding some of the juices as well as the fruit.
Duck with sour cherries served on Carnation (1982 -1998) by Royal Doulton
To understand a Polish Christmas one has to know about its historical and cultural background as these have shaped what we have today.
Poles love festivals and traditions and there seem to me to be more celebrations in Poland than in England with every possible Saint’s day or other opportunity for a gathering, with eating and drinking, taken.
Polish Recipe Books For Christmas
History & Background
In the first centuries AD, around the river Warta, between the river Odra (Oder) and the river Wisła (Vistula) was the cradle of Poland. (The Wisła runs from the Carpathian Mountains to the Baltic Sea.) This region was immense forest land but many areas along the rivers had been cleared. In the east of Poland there are still the remains of the primeval forest at Białowierza (White Tower), this is a National Park were bison and wild boar roam.
By the 5th century the “Amber Road” was the trade route from the Baltic in the North to the Mediterranean in the South.
In the 6th & 7th centuries, many different Slav tribes arrived there, and as by now more of the land had been cleared, they settled.
The People of the Fields
By the mid 10th centurythe Polanie tribe became dominant – these were the people of the fields – pole means fields in Polish.
Agriculture in General
Compared to England the summers are warmer and the winters much colder, a drier cold than in England, often up to -300 C, with lots of snow.
The fertile plains of Poland have made it an agricultural country and the people are close to the land and understand about the seasons and food production. Even now in towns people have vegetable gardens & allotments.
Main crops are wheat, rye, buckwheat, potatoes and cabbage.
Dill is a favourite herb, also flat leaf parsley and caraway.
Pork is the most popular meat.
Poultry and eggs are used extensively
Butter, milk, soured milk, smetana (soured cream), twaróg (curd cheese) feature in many recipes.
In the south in the Tatra Mountains they make smoked cheeses from sheep’s milk.
In the 16th century southern Poland was 40C warmer than it is today and grapes for wine were grown.
Food from the Forest
Mushrooms, fruits and berries are even today collected from forests, eaten, preserved or even sold at the roadside.
Fish are caught in rivers and lakes, fish farms are becoming popular.
Dried mushrooms provide a lot of flavour in the winter diet.
Food Preservation for the Winter
Drying
Fermentation with Brine
Bottling
Smoking
Marinating
Jams – using sugar
Christianity in Poland
In 966 Duke Mieszko the First, Poland’s first recorded leader converted to Christianity.
By the 13th & 14th centuries Roman Catholicism was the main religion in Poland.
In the late 14th century the marriage of the Polish Queen Jadwiga to the Duke of Lithuania was on the promise of his and his people’s conversion to Christianity and the formation of a new enlarged Poland.
In the 16th century the Reformation did come to Poland and did have followers but it mostly died out following arguments between different factions & the Catholic counter reformation.
After the middle of the 17th century the main religion was again Roman Catholicism and is still so today.
Poland was more tolerant of different religions than many of its neighbours and by the early 20th century it had more Jewish people that any other country in Europe.
Advent
St Andrew’s Day – 30 November is celebrated in Poland, and the eve on 29November has many superstitions and traditions to do with foretelling the future especially with regards to future husbands.
The nearest Sunday to 30 November is the start of Advent, this can be from 27 November to 3 December so there are always 4 Sundays before Christmas day.
Advent is a time of reflection, prayer and preparation.
In the past Advent was like Lent; a time of doing without.
In Poland Christmas is celebrated from the evening of 24 December – Wigilia (the vigil) and parties and visiting relatives and family happens from then on.
It seems very strange to the Poles to have all the Christmas parties before Christmas when is still Advent.
The Christmas days are called Gody – days of Harmony and Goodwill
6 December – St Nicholas Day
Older pictures show Swięty Mikołaj (St Nicholas) in his bishop’s robes, newer ones tend to be more like the English Santa.
Presents were to be found on the doorstep or hidden in the house or under the pillow.
Pierniki – spiced honey cakes are given to children, often in the shape of the bishop.
He returns again on Christmas Eve after the evening meal.
It used to be that presents were given on just one of these days, usually 6 December and Christmas Eve was more about the meal and carols and Church.
Nowadays you are likely to get presents on both days.
Before the Second World War the presents were small tokens such as mandarin oranges (a luxury – as they were imported), chocolates, and an item of new clothes or a small toy.
Christmas Tree
The old Polish Tradition was to hang from the ceiling just the tip of a spruce/fir tree (tip side down) decorated with apples and nuts which were either wrapped in silver or gold paper or painted and ribbons. Old Polish Village houses are made of wood – so it was easy to attach the tree tip.
Doorways and walls were often decorated with separate boughs of the remainder of the tree.
This custom originated in pre-Christian times and texts dating back to the 15th & 16th centuries referred to this use of the tree as a pagan rite. Unable to halt the growing trend, the church then reinterpreted the tree to be the Tree of Knowledge – the tree of good and evil.
The tradition of using the whole tree came from Germany in the late 18th century and early 19th century first into the towns and then into richer villages and by the 1920s this had taken over.
In small flats and in towns, and with small funds, people often still just decorate a branch of a fir tree.
Decorations for the tree
Apples symbolise health & beauty, strength & vitality and paradise
Nuts wrapped in Silver or Gold guarantee prosperity & vitality.
When I was young we tied wrapped sweets & chocolates on the tree.
The Tree is put up on Christmas Eve (though nowadays maybe a day or 2 before) the whole family helps.
Decorated with glass baubles – in the past these were often blown eggs decorated with glitter. There are also many straw decorations – angels and stars.
Many of the old ornaments look like the apples and nuts of before.
Some of my mother’s old nut baubles with a few newer ones
Recent Magazine Feature
Nowadays Polish Glass Factories make 2,500 glass baubles a day, some of them very elaborate and expensive.
Paper chains guarantee love within the family.
Candles and baubles guard the house from malevolent deeds.
The star on the top of the tree helps guide back absent family and friend
Bells symbolise good news
Angels are the guardians of the house.
Clip on candles holders with real candles though nowadays artificial lights are more likely to be used.
Photograph’s of my mother’s clip in candle holders.
Pierniki – spiced honey cakes with white icing were used in some areas.
Polish Cribs – szopka
Cribs are varied in Poland, mostly wooden and carved, often with the shepherds dressed in traditional Polish highland costume.
Every year In Krakow in the Grand Square (Rynek Glówny) there is a competition held on the morning of the first Thursday of December, of Christmas cribs.
Model makers come carrying their cribs and they are judged. The winners are kept in the Museum of Ethnography – the rest are sold.
I saw an exhibition of past winners when they were on tour in England in 2011 at The Lowry in Salford.
This competition began in 1937. It was intended to bring back to life a tradition which had died shortly after the First World War, that of the Crib Theatre and these cribs are portable theatres for traditional puppet Nativity plays.
These ornate cribs are very colourful and richly decorated. They are covered in coloured foils, and are inspired by the architecture of Krakow eg Wawel Cathedral and the unequal spires of The Church of the Virgin Mary – Mariatski
They can be from 15 cm high up to 2 metres high and some have clockwork mechanisms or lights.
In the past the Christmas cribs were mostly the works of Krakow masons in their idle weeks of the Polish rainy late autumn.
Nowadays it is a pastime of many Krakow dwellers of all walks of life. And the city boasts several dynasties of Christmas crib makers where two or three generations construct brand-new cribs every year.
Christmas cards
In the past these were always postcards but now folded cards are coming in to vogue.
Copies of old cards from Zakopane from the 1930s – bought in the Folk Museum there.
From an Old Christmas Card from the 1930s
Cards are only sent to family and friends that will not been seen over Christmas.
In Communist times cards depicted, branches of fir trees and baubles, nowadays many religious cards are sent.
A Polish Christmas Card
Often when Poles send cards to family abroad they include a piece opłatek. This was originally bread but now a paper thin wafer with an impression of the Nativity scene is used and is a symbol of forgiveness, unity and love.
The opłatek usually has the corner nipped off to show that this is being shared. My aunty in America always does this.
This is a very Important Meal – Poles want to be with their family on this evening.
This Christmas Eve supper became a fixed tradition in Poland in the 18th century.
It is a completely unique experience with an ordinary evening meal transformed into a celebration of family love and solidarity and it is also so strange that in a country of meat lovers this meatless meal is so important and loved.
The days before the meal were a time to thoroughly clean the house.
The day used to be a day Fasting & Abstinence as the last day of Advent – no meat on that day (abstinence) and only 1 main/large meal (fasting)
There are usually 12 dishes for the 12 apostles though some areas have an odd number of dishes either 7, 9 or 11.
I only make dishes which would have been available through food preservation in the winter or are seasonal.
Presents
If there are presents they are placed under the tree and opened at the end of the meal.
In some areas of the West of Poland– presents today come from Gwiazdor – Starman
In the South West of Poland from an angel or baby Jesus.
In Communist times to try and remove the religious idea – many tried to favour Gwiazdor often portrayed in red robes with gold star or even to introduce the Russian Grandfather Frost on January 1st – unsuccessfully.
However Gwiazdor had links with St Nicholas (Swięty Mikołaj) as he often carries a star in front of St Nicholas.
Carols
The oldest hymn/carol in the Polish Language is Bogurodzica (Mother of God) and is known from the beginning of the 13th Century.
Carols are rich and varied with examples from many different centuries with ones originating from:
church music
to many with music from the Royal Court such as the Polonaise
to lively folk & dance music &
quiet lullabies.
Many carols feature shepherds as the Poles from the countryside felt an empathy with them.
Bóg się Rodzi – a Polonaise( Polonez )– words from the 18th Century.
Przebieżeli do Betlejem – music from the 16th Century.
Carols are sung from midnight mass till 2nd February in Church.
Carollers went from the second day of the Holiday – 26 December until 6 January – carrying:
a star,
a crib,
a stork – the New Year – new life
a baby goat – fertility
a bear – hostile forces of Nature
In some areas Carollers went from Christmas Eve – after their own meal.
They are welcome visitors however if your house is left out then this is seen as a sign of bad luck.
Food for Christmas Day
Many would say that this meal is just like a very special Sunday Dinner.
There are not as many must have dishes on Christmas Day
As with all Polish dinners there is soup to start and this would be most likely rosol – clear chicken consommé with small pasta pieces (the original chicken noodle soup)
There will be lots of MEAT with Pork Dishes mainly such as:
Tort – rich layer cake often made from hazel nuts.
Nowadays there will also there will be chocolates & these Polish dried plums with chocolate continue the tradition of dried fruits at Christmas time – I love them!
My China & Tableware – A New Tradition
Classic white china would be the norm for Christmas but over the last couple of years I have started to use china with poppies* and other red flowers at Christmas time as well as china with autumn and winter foliage from my collection of china.
*Although not a Christmas flower – these poppies are a remembrance to the Battle at Monte Cassino in May 1944 & the military song – Czerwone maki na Monte Cassino – Red poppies on Monte Cassino. As my father fought there, these are very special for me.
New Year’s Eve – Sylwestra
31 December is the feast of Saint Sylwester (Sylvester) and this is the name of the festival in Polish.
In the towns & cities the evening is often celebrated with a dance – no special traditional dishes – more of the Christmas Day type food.
Sleigh rides from house to house, with food at each, were popular in times gone by on the eve and on New Year’s Day.
The 3 Kings – 6 January – Epiphany
During the Christmas period the priest would visit all the homes of his parishioners and say prayers, bless the house and get an offering. He would also bless some chalk or blessed chalk would be obtained at the Mass on 6 January. This chalk is used on 6 January to write over the door frame in the house –
For example for next year – 2017
20+ K + M + B + 17
For the year and Kasper, Melchior and Baltazar – the traditional names of the kings.
To bless all who enter or leave in the coming year.
The end of the Christmas period
In the church – 2 February – Candlemas day – 40 days after Christmas – is the official end of Christmas and then karnawał starts – the festive time before Lent.
Journey From A Polish Kitchen 