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Slovak Christmas Cookies

Posted by Margarete on Dec 12

It’s a little less than 2 weeks before Christmas and time to start planning for the Christmas baking. You might think it’s too early to start, but in my family of Slovak in-laws, since there are so many different kinds of cookies to make and they tend to have a long shelf life, a week before Christmas is just fine to begin. The most common cookies in our family are:

  • medovniky – honey cookies
  • vanilkové rožky – vanilla-roll cookies
  • linecké kolieska – Linzer cookies

Armed with my grandma-in-law’s recipes and having the experience of helping with these in the past, here’s how to bake them.

Conquering the Nut Roll Koláč

Posted by Margarete on Oct 11

Nut-roll koláč is probably the most commonly-known Slovak dessert. For me it had become a mountain to climb and conquer. Why? Making good koláč is not easy, at least it’s not easy for me. To get the dough just right you have to know what you are doing and that takes experience. Additionally, any time you are dealing with yeast things get exponentially more complicated. For me the risk that my entire attempt may be sabotaged by uncooperative yeast always looms.

Since my Slovak in-laws are visiting, I asked my aunt-in-law to show me how to make koláč, working in my kitchen, using American ingredients. This has probably been the best learning experience with Slovak baking thus far.

My Wish List from Slovakia

Posted by Margarete on Aug 07

Relatives are coming from Slovakia next month to visit us here in California and have asked us what would we like them to bring. Of course this is something I’ve had to think about for a while. Though I have something of a wish list, I haven’t decided what I’m going to request in the end. Here’s my list so far:

Award-Winning Vodka Made in Slovakia

Posted by Margarete on Jan 13

Well, this is certainly interesting… an award-winning “luxury” vodka made in Slovakia but as of its release this past September 2008, is sold only in the U.S. in limited distribution. It’s not even sold in Slovakia! It’s called Double Cross Vodka and is the only product of a company called Old Nassau Imports, distributed exclusively through Southern Wine & Spirits of New York and Allied Beverage Group in New Jersey.

What’s so special about it? Here’s a list of its highlights:

How Much Do Things Cost in Slovakia? (part 2)

Posted by Margarete on Jan 06

Now that the euro currency is in use in Slovakia, Slovaks now have the task of adjusting to prices and what typical items cost in euros versus crowns. SME newspaper created this small guide to help people recognize benchmark food items such as a bread roll, potatoes, or flour. This is just a portion. Click the image to enlarge.

Decorating a Slovak Christmas Tree

Posted by Margarete on Dec 19

This year, my husband and I are staying in California for Christmas. For my Slovak husband, this will be his first Christmas in the US.

We’ve decided that we would like to keep as many Slovak Christmas traditions as possible for the Christmas season and while I am going to be responsible for the traditional Christmas dinner of kapustnica – cabbage soup, kapor – carp (though we may go with trout instead), and zemiakový šalát – potato salad, my husband is going to be responsible for the Christmas tree and its decorations.

The Christmas Market in Bratislava

Posted by Margarete on Nov 24

It’s that time of year when the Christmas markets around Europe are starting. In the five years I lived in Slovakia, I’ve visited vianočné trhy – Christmas markets in Bratislava and Nitra but almost all the larger towns and cities will have one, usually from the weekend beginning with Advent until December 24th.

How Much Do Things Cost in Slovakia?

Posted by Margarete on Aug 11

Many people who navigate to this Website do so searching for information on what are the average costs for items in Slovakia today. The best way to find that information is to do a little shopping of course. Even though the cost of goods and services is fluid and prices change all the time, I wanted to provide this information for those who are planning to spend time in Slovakia and are curious about budgeting.

As Mighty as Corgon

Posted by Margarete on May 26

In the first Kde je…? I chose the statue of Corgoň. Who is he and why is he of significance?

First of all, the statue is located in the town where his legend was born: Nitra. Corgoň is carved into the corner of Kluch Palace (Kluchov palác), located in the upper town on castle hill. It was carved in 1820 by Slovak sculptor Vavrinec Dunajský.

Vianočka - Braided Sweet Bread

Posted by Margarete on Mar 12

Vianočka is a common yeast bread in Slovakia. It is a braided bread, slightly sweet, and eaten often at breakfast time. Vianočka is available in just about any grocery store in Slovakia. It is so common in fact, that I’ve never seen or heard of any Slovak baking it at home. Why would you bake a basic bread if you could just pick up a loaf at your local market?

Vianočka is also a good bread to bake for Easter. In Vienna I’ve seen this bread sold at bakeries with a few colored hard-boiled eggs set between the weave of the braids. It’s very festive.

Putting a "Trademark" on Regional Foods

Posted by Margarete on Feb 19

While writing the blog about Hubert, I remembered something else interesting about protected food names within the EU.

In the Hubert blog I mentioned that the word “champagne” is protected, and only sparkling wine that is produced in Champagne, France can be called champagne. EU law recognizes something called Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), which protects the names of regional foods.

For example, feta is a particular cheese that is produced in Greece. Another similar “feta” cheese was produced in Denmark, but the EU ruled against the name being called “feta”. Any other cheese that is similar to feta but not the original product from Greece must be labeled with something similar to “feta-like” cheese or “Greek-like feta” cheese.

Note: The US generally opposes the idea of PDO, and therefore, you can buy “feta” and “champagne” in the US that are clearly not the original.

Observing Local Customs with Hard Alcohol

Posted by Margarete on Feb 15

If you spend time with Slovaks, sooner or later you will gain first-hand experience with tvrdý alkohol – hard alcohol. Typically, it could be connected with a toast on a special occasion, or some type of home-made schnapps could be on hand as a drink of choice of people you are spending time with.

Alcohol can be an uncomfortable subject for some. Additionally, if you consider the fact that customs and traditions are tied to alcohol in Slovakia, some might feel a bit awkward or anxious about just what is expected when you are asked to participate in a toast with hard alcohol.

The French Roots of Slovak Champagne

Posted by Margarete on Feb 04

Like in many parts of the world, if you are in Slovakia and are going to be celebrating some momentous occasion, it’s likely that you would break open a bottle of bubbly. Though there are many kinds of champagne available in Slovakia, the most popular and locally made champagne is Hubert.

Almost everyone knows that the French have the best reputation for making quality wines and champagnes in Europe. What I didn’t know was that the generic word “champagne” is trademarked and only used to mean a champagne from the region in “Champagne” France. The more correct term for champagne is “sparkling wine” (also called “sekt” from the German).

In Search of the Perfect Medovník

Posted by Margarete on Jan 08

I have recently realized that I am obsessed with medovníky, and while in Slovakia, I have been constantly on the look out to find the most beautifully decorated medovník that I can possibly find. Taste is also important, if I can bring myself to actually eat it or encourage others to do so.

What are they? Medovníky are spice cookies made with honey, that are usually decorated, sometimes quite intricately, with a white-colored icing. In Slovakia they are traditionally Christmas cookies, but in fact, they are made and sold all year round.

Zemiakový Šalát

Posted by Margarete on Dec 23

There are many traditional Christmas foods that are prepared in Slovakia. Depending on the region, the traditional Christmas dinner varies slightly, but over all it consists of the following listed below. Interpretations also vary. The interpretations are those from my Slovak family in the Nitra region.

Segedínsky Guláš

Posted by Margarete on Dec 08

Guláš stews are common in the area of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. What exactly is guláš? (gulyás – Hungarian spelling; goulash – English spelling) Broadly defined, guláš is a hearty, paprika-based dish that originated in Hungary. In Slovakia, the most common types of guláš are segedínsky guláš and perkelt, which is also a meat stew, usually served along with a pasta or with dumplings.

Segedínsky guláš is made with milk and cream, and only a light-colored meat is used, such as pork or chicken. Looking over the shoulder of my grandmother-in-law while she prepared it one afternoon, I took note of the recipe:

Figaro Chocolate in Slovakia

Posted by Margarete on Dec 04

While I lived in Bratislava teaching English, one of the companies I taught at was Kraft Foods Slovakia, a.s. Kraft owns and operates a factory on Račianska Street in an industrial part of Bratislava, which produces one of Slovakia’s most famous food brands: Figaro chocolate.

Very quickly I realized that the brand Figaro was a force to be reckoned with on the Slovak chocolate market. Their main competitor? The Czech chocolate company Orion, owned and operated by another food giant: Nestlé. This was interesting to me; a “food fight”, so to speak, of Kraft versus Nestlé.

Slovak Cheeses

Posted by Margarete on Nov 09

Spending time in a grocery store is one of the first things you can do to become acquainted with your environment in a new country. It’s even a good idea to set time aside to do this so that you can go up and down isles at your leisure, familiarizing yourself with the typical selections of foods and products. Take your time; this should be something that is enjoyable. Becoming familiar with the assortments of different kinds of breads, meats, and dairy products, for example, takes time and experimentation is a large part of the experience.

Basic fruit-topped cake

Posted by Margarete on Nov 07

One kind of ovocný koláč – dessert fruit cake that I sampled several times in Slovakia was for a basic vanilla-flavored cake that could be topped with whatever kind of fruit you may have on hand. In the summer this recipe is popular because fruit and berries are readily available, particularly those that have ripened in people’s gardens.

Slovak Beer

Posted by Margarete on Sep 23

It took me a while to develop a taste for beer. As a young adult going out with my friends for occasional social drinking in California, I chose beer over other kinds of alcohol because beer isn’t as strong as wine or most mixed drinks. I got used to the taste of beer, and though I never particularly cared for it and hadn’t really developed a taste for it, I stuck with it. But those ambivalent feelings towards beer changed for the better when I moved to Slovakia.

Slovak Wine Harvest Events in September

Posted by Margarete on Sep 07

Since it is now the autumn season, I was recently thinking about harvesting time in Slovakia. Why was I thinking about the harvest in Slovakia when I have never even considered harvests in the US? Maybe it’s because land, agriculture, and the cycles of nature are so much a part of life in modern-day Slovakia.

One of the biggest celebrations of the harvest, specifically the harvesting of wine, is called vinobranie. The vinobranie is a festival that usually happens in the second or third week in September, and is celebrated by many towns and villages. The wine tradition in western Slovakia goes back as far as the 12th century when German vintners came, bringing their skills in wine growing and harvesting to the Small Carpathian Mountain region.

Palacinky Recipe

Posted by Margarete on Jul 19

One of the favorite things my Slovak husband likes to make and eat is palacinky (pronounced pa-la-tsing-kee). It’s hard to describe exactly what a palacinka is if you are not familiar with central-European cuisine (palacinka-singular, palacinky-plural).

In English, a palacinka is a pancake, but I find the French word crepe, a bit more precise. In Russian they are called blini (blintzes, the anglicized version of this word). In Austria they are called Palatschinke and in Germany Pfannkuchen, but it’s all the same thing: a very liquid-like batter made from flour, milk, and eggs that is pored into a hot pan or griddle and cooked. They are then filled and rolled up with fruit, or jam, or Nutella, or a combination, and then served with a dollop of whipped cream. This sounds more like a dessert, but my husband likes to have it as a main course.

Thank goodness for the recipe book of traditional Slovak meals that I bought on a spur of the moment. Here’s the recipe. We’ve tried it. It’s a winner: