Vegetarian Products

Todays lesson included the use of a variety of meat analogs: meat substitutes for vegetarian dining.

These include Silken and Firm variations of tofu: soybean curd made by coagulating soy milk then pressing into molds; Result is low in calories and contains no saturated fat or cholesterol. Silken Tofu retains a higher water content, allowing it to be used like a mayonnaise or in dressings.

Also, Seitan [Known also as "wheat meat"] This is wheat gluten, made by washing away the starch leaving a malleable substance which can then be shaped into a variety of forms.

As well as Tempeh: fermented soybeans formed into a cake; higher fiber, protein and vitamin content than tofu.

"prosim k stolu" - Russia Day I

Clockwise from top left: Borscht, Blini and Caviar I, Blilni and Caviar II, Slavic Chocolate Pie, and Kasha

"prosim k stolu" - Russian for "Please to the table"

Long tradition of hospitality and comaraderie.

Common foods: bulgur, yogurt, grilled meats, river and lake fish, sheeps cheeses, sumak, pomegranates, fenugreek, beets, cabbage, potatoes, pork, sausages

Influences:

• Profound French influence from late 17th to early/mid 18th century
• In Caucasus: Chinese and Indian
• Scandinavian in Baltic states
• Commonalities with Polish, Hungarian, and Romainian cooking
• Large populations of Jews and gypsies

Zakuska - "little bites" - Russian hors d'oeuvres

Culturally isolated from Western Europe till 17th century (Peter the Great)

Marie-Antoine Careme worked in St. Petersburg: time of Charlotte Russe, Beef Stroganoff, Beef Shish Kebob, Salmon Coulibiac, Chicken Kiev, Chicken Crouquettes Pozharsky