Wine

Surprisingly, good wine is not easy to come by here.  My parents being the biggest wine connoisseurs I personally know were typically never satisfied with Croatia’s offering of reds and whites.  But we have to remember that we San Franciscans are lucky enough to come from one of the richest wine regions in the world, so naturally our taste for good wine is above par.  I find that most of the wines here taste vinegary, or too homemade (domaci) tasting, which is ok when you’re having a glass of it diluted with water, but no way you can down half a bottle plus.

Oh how I miss the delicious varieties of Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon of the central coast and Napa, so I have been on a mini mission to find some good red wine here.  Since I am on a non existent income I can’t buy the bottles that I have been longing to try here that are over 100 kunas (20 bucks), so I stick to what I can afford, around 3-5 dollars.  Oh so sad, but can’t forget on a mission here.  After many a nights of pouring whole bottles of wine down the drain for their lack of smoothness and flavor, I finally stumbled upon a couple decent bottles of red. 

One is known as “Plavac Hvar” (translation Blue Hvar).  Hvar is an island off the central Dalmatian Coast and a very popular tourist destination for its beautiful beaches and old Mediterranean villages.  The island is known for its red wine made from a small blue grape.  It is a pretty good bottle of red for the $6 price tag.  The other is “Laguna Merlot” from Istria, a region on the North Dalmatian Coast.  It is not as complex and rich as other the merlots I am used to , but for $5 it isn’t bad.

Most recently, as in this week, I discovered a Pinot Noir from the Povardarie region of Macedonia at a great price, 17 Kunas/3 Dollars!!!  This was just too good to be true.  Knowing I was more than likely wasting my $3, I just had to try it, and good thing I did.  It’s a flavorful, light, smooth wine that goes perfectly with just about any meal.  Apparently Macedonian wine is good and cheap.  My kind of wine.  Thank you Macedonia!     

Deep Fried Stuffed Crepes

Oh you can fry a dirty sock and I would eat it.  Deep fried food is like a little angel and devil sitting on my shoulder.   Every bite is “died and gone to heaven” good, but the aftermath on the digestive system is “died and gone to hell” bad.  This does not keep me from eating or making deep fried foods that’s for sure. 

I stumbled upon some savory palacinke/crepe recipes in my Croatian Cuisine cookbook.  As soon as I laid eyes on the deep fried number I was sold.  “Fried Breaded Crepes with Turkey Filling”.  The recipe seemed easy enough, but a bit time consuming, so I made what I could ahead of time as I knew this would be way too much to do all at once. 

I started with the crepes themselves.  The batter is the same as when making sweet crepes here in Cro (typically we do not add sugar to the batter as the filling is sugary enough.)  Speaking of I should really write an entire entry on making crepes as they are tricky.  That’s to come!  I then made the filling with ground turkey, pickled cucumbers and red peppers, sour cream, with a dash of nutmeg.  The crepes are stuffed, rolled like an egg roll, dipped in eggs, coated with read crumbs, and then deep fried.  Oh so good!  I forgot to take a pic because I wanted to eat them right away, so I leave you with the one below instead.  The recipe can be found under recipe tab above.  Enjoy!             

Eggs Benedict “A La Dalmacija”

I am so proud of myself right now!  I just recreated the breakfast/brunch classic Eggs Benedict to suit the taste of a Dalmatian!  My victim was no other than D, a true Dalmatian, born and raised in Zadar, who likes his eggs fried with a drizzle of olive oil on top with a hunk of bread.  Fair enough, but I have been trying to get him to eat new things, especially dishes from the States that I love and he has never tried.  Before going to soccer practice tonight I ask him what he wanted for dinner.  “Fried eggs” he says.  “Uhhhhhh again” I thought, so I took it upon myself to make something different of these fried eggs of his, while taking the chance to experiment myself.

Egss Benedict has been a long time favorite of mine.  How I miss a full plate of this soggy egg and english muffin combination smothered in Hollandaise sauce.  My birthday lunch of choice for years was Eggs Benedict with a mimosa from the Cliff House in San Francisco.  I decided to make it tonight, but knew I had to modify it a bit for D’s taste.  I have made Hollandaise sauce before and it is surprisingly easy; lots of butter, egg yolks and a little lemon juice.  Instead of the butter I used olive oil, the quintessential Dalmatian cooking ingredient.  A bit hesitant at first, I poured about a cup of olive oil to use (if this doesn’t work what a shame as the olive oil is gold here), and began the process of making hollandaise sauce.  Once the egg yolks were done I slowly added the olive oil, saying a prayer after each little pour.  After about a minute I saw that this was going to work, and once the entire amount of olive oil was beaten into the egg yolks I had my Dalmatian-Hollandaise sauce.

No English muffins here in Zadar, so a thick slice of white bread with a coat of olive oil on each side then toasted in a pan is the substitute.  Instead of poaching the eggs I fried them, just the way D likes them, then pan fried a few slices of soft prsut (bresaola would also work well.)  Put this together like you would your average Eggs Benedict with a dash of paprika powder on top and viola!  It is still very reminiscent of the classic, just with a Dalmatian twist. 

Back By Popular Demand – My Childhood!

At Cheleas's BDay party in 5th grade

The list is endless when it comes to things that I was embarrassed by beyond belief as a Croatian American kid living in San Mateo, California.  All I wanted was to be like the other girls who were wearing pink sparkly cowboy boots, with divorced parents, and able to sleep at friends houses over the weekend. 

The sparkly pink cowboy boots were out of the question because western wear was beyond comprehension to my family, and cowboys were reckless and easy, not to mention the boots themselves were way too expensive (a whopping 12 bucks at Payless.)  My alternative was knee high white socks with white keds.  There are endless photos of me wearing this quintessential outfit; white socks over my black leggings with dirty keds, a 49ers sweatshirt, side pony, with a look on my face saying “watch out cowboys!”  How I made friends in school is still beyond me. 

But it’s the food that my dide (grandfather) made on a daily basis that hit a “just shoot me” nerve once I turned 10.  As a little girl I loved my grandfather’s food.  He had been a chef for years so he knew what he was doing, and made the most delectable things.  One of my favorites was fried Girice (a small white fish).  I would come home from first grade to a plate full of these little deep fried fishies, eat them, bones and all, while watching after school cartoons such as Inspector Gadget.  He also made the best goulashes (rich meat stew) with polenta, and fish brudet (fish stew), all things I adored before I realized they were not as cool as tuna casserole and cheeseburgers. 

Fried Girice

Friends would come over after school (shout-out to Chels, Pam, Carol, Renee and Nicole) and my Dide was more than happy to serve up a plate of his fried little fishies.  I of course was more than willing to eat them, but played cool for my friends.

I will never forget the day I came from school to such an amazing Dide feast, telling him I was not hungry and secretly snatching a bag of chips to watch my cartoons with.  I would do anything to have one of his famous Dalmatian homemade meals today.  He was such a good cook, but more importantly he loved to eat, and to share his delectable creations with others.

Love you my Dide!

It's a Beautiful Day

Not a cloud in sight.  Here are a few pics I took from our balcony earlier.  The nice weather has made my little tomato plants sprout too!  So excited.  Off to the beach for some fun in the sun.

Mini Trick when Making Meat Sauce

This is one I learned from my Teta (Aunt) Dragica, and she learned it from my Barba (Uncle) Mario.  When making a meat sauce, whether for pasta, rice, or what have you, put the meat and the onion on pan together at once.  Many people tend to add the onion to simmer on pan first, then add the meat, but putting the two together keeps the onion from burning and allows the two to cook together, getting the fullest potential of flavor.  Below is my red meat sauce recipe. 

My Red Meat Sauce Recipe:  2 people (for all you couples out there!)

·        ¼ - ½ pound of ground beef or turkey (depends on how meaty you like it)

·        ½ medium onion

·        1 carrot

·        2 cloves garlic

·        1 cube or 1 tbsp chicken bouillon (Trader Joes has a good one)

·        1/2 cup Extra Virgin olive oil

·        2 cup water

·        1 Large can Tomato Sauce or Puree

·        2 Tbs Cream Cheese

Finely chop carrot and onion. Add olive oil into deep pan or pot under medium/high heat. Add meat, chopped onion and carrot, stir to make sure each piece is coated in oil. Mince garlic then add to pot. Add 1 cup water after garlic. Stir, and let sit for ten minutes. Add chicken cube/bouillon to pot and stir. Reduce to low/med heat. Stir and let simmer for another ten minutes. Add tomato sauce/puree. Stir for a couple minutes. Add the other cup of water. Let it simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Turn off heat, add cream cheese, and stir till it dissolves.

Sauce is ready to go, refrigerate for next day, or freeze for another time.

Enjoy all!!!!!

Favorite Things

There are so many delightfully delicious things to find in a Croatian grocery store, especially when you get to the super stores like Konzum, Kaufland, Interspar, Mercator and Kerum.  Croatia imports goods from the whole of Europe and Asia Minor, so there is a vast novel assortment of things for me to try.  This has been such a treat, and since I have legitimately relocated (going on five months now) I have comprised a list of food that I absolutely adore and would have a hard time living without in the States.

1. Ozujsko Pivo (Beer)

My go to beer!  Light, crisp and refreshing.  It is a Croatian marzen (pale-amber) lager, brewed in Zagrabacka Brewery for over 112 years.







2. Tomislav Pivo (Beer)

      A darker, stronger brother to Ozujsko.  Made in the same brewery, and named after King Tomislav, c910.

3. Kroki Krokets

      This is the closest Cro comes to cheese puffs.  They’ve got the puff part down, but no cheese flavor.  They offer instead peanut or ketchup flavor.  Both are surprisingly delicious and very addicting.

4. Kinder Maxi King

This is heaven in a small shiny package.  These amazing refrigerated bars are a cross between Snickers and an ice cream sandwich.  I could easily eat a dozen.  They are beyond decadent, not to mention full of calcium!   

5. Frozen French Fries

I know we have frozen fries in the States, but there has to be something in the potatoes here because I have NEVER had such better fries.  I sometimes insist on making fries at home instead of ordering from our burger takeout joint.  Super easy, somehow better tasting (since you know they are using frozen fries too), and cheaper in the end.





6. Canned Blue Fish


Also known as sardines.  Sardines in a can here are SO tasty and better than any can of tuna I have had in the states.  I can make a mean sandwich salad using them, and they are even good alone.


7. Puffed Rice Chocolate 

As a woman it is somewhat sad to say that I am not a fan of chocolate.  However I do enjoy enjoy this mix here.  It's puffed rice covered in milk chocolate.  Not too much chocolate and a nice crunch makes it the perfect sweet tooth fix.


8. Tuna Pasteta 

Pasteta is a meat paste/pate.  They come in these little tins or tubes filled with meat paste from chicken, pork, beef, and fish.  I enjoy the tuna variety.  It is perfect on crackers with a few green or black olives.  An easy and delicious h’orderve to serve.





9. Sauerkraut

      I adore sauerkraut, and had the hardest time finding it ready made (pickled) in the States.  You can make it yourself, but it’s a bit of a hassle and takes time.  Here in Zadar it is beyond abundant at the grocery store, and it costs no more than two dollars for ½ a kilo (I once found sauerkraut in a small jar at Whole Foods for 5 bucks, rip off!)   

10. Salami

      Nothing compares to the variety and quality of salami here.  My favorite is Zimski (Winter) Salami.  I like to get my very own whole piece (not pre or deli sliced) to cut at home and add on fresh baked bread.  Yum! 

11. Rakija

Oh Rakija!  This stuff can bring me from the lowest of lows some days (mom you didn’t hear that.)  Rakija is a very strong brandy.  It is typically made from plums, and is even used for a wide range of ailments including, stomach aches, ear infections and yeast infections.  I like taking a shot, or two, with a little honey and a lemon.  My version of a tequila shot here J