The Cross and the Cleaver: It’s Hot Outside

As the temperature rises, so does my level of grumpy. The hotter it gets, the less I feel like cooking. Alas, nobody should go through summer on sustenance of ice-cream, salads, and take-away pizza and Chinese food.

There is wisdom in cooking with seasonal ingredients. Fresh, spring and summer stuff requires less cooking time if any at all. Flavours abound, thus there is not much need for extra seasoning. There is a reason why heart stews of root vegetables are the fare of autumn and winter.

Seasons and produce affect us. Our mood changes, our appetite changes. It is as if we were in-tune with the earth, with rhythm of life, with the universe itself. John Lanchester beautifully alludes to such dynamics in his novel “The Debt to Pleasure.”

When I think of summers of my childhood, many dishes flash before my eyes. Simple, fresh, delicious. Low fried eggs with new potatoes garnished with cream and dill. Side veg would be boiled cauliflower dressed with breadcrumbs fried in butter, or tomato with pinch of finely chopped onion and a drizzle of vinegar.

So, when it gets too hot for BBQ, try one of these Polish unbeatable summer classics.

CHŁODNIK:

1 cup of diced cucumber.

1 cup of diced radishes.

2 cups of shredded lettuce of your preference.

Toss together, in a bowl, with some salt and pepper.

Add 1L of kefir or buttermilk or yoghurt thinned with milk (since you are not likely going to lay your hands on a proper soured milk).

Serve like a soup, garnished with chopped dill fronds or/and chives.

To enrich it, you can add a cup of cooked, baby shrimp, or diced ham, or wedges of hard-boiled eggs.

BOTWINKA:

Two fistfuls of baby beets with tops, washed and diced (the beets AND the tops). Cover with water (no more than inch above the level) bring to boil and simmer for 10 min. Set aside to cool (so you might want to make that a day before).

Again – add 1L of kefir or buttermilk or yoghurt thinned with milk (since you are not likely going to lay your hands on a proper soured milk).

Season with salt, pepper, and several, finely minced, garlick cloves. Mix well and chill in the fridge for few hours.

As in previous recipe, serve with a cup of cooked, baby shrimp, or diced ham, or wedges of hard-boiled eggs. Garnish with chopped dill and/or chives.

YOUNG POTATOES WITH … 😉

Fill 1/3 of individual soup bowls/plates with kefir or buttermilk or yoghurt thinned with milk (since you are not likely going to lay your hands on a proper soured milk).

Add several boiled young potatoes.

Garnish with warm, large chunks of crispy fried bacon and roughly chopped green onion. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

As we say in Poland – SMACZNEGO! 😊