Dinner #2: SERBIA

We are in SERBIA!!! 

Serbian cuisine is thankfully, very different from Ukrainian cuisine. It is very eclectic and heterogenous, with influences from the Mediterranean (Byzantine Empire/Greece), the Oriental (Turkish) and the Hungarian cuisines. (And, we are so very excited to be able to get away from the trauma of dumplings!!)
"It has unique mix of various traditions; Serbian confectioneries are places where koljivo, baklava, nut roll and sachertorte live in perfect harmony."


The Menu: (This time, it seems we will actually be able to enjoy our  meal.)


Appetizer: Ajvar with artesan bread (Giuseppe): Ajvar is a type of spread made from bell peppers, eggplant, garlic and chili pepper. Delicious! And sooo easy to make.

Entree: Cevapcici with roasted potatos and tsatsiki (Amaly): Cevapcici is a grilled mix of minced meat (in our case, beef, pork and lamb) with other seasonings mixed in. The roasted potatos and tsatsikik are common in Greece as well, and worked really well with the cevapcici. The cevapcici were really easy to make, by just combining the meats together, throwing in the chopped onions and garlic and other spices- and then just rolling them out into sausages and patties. It took about 15 minutes to get the first ones on the grill after mixing everything together- so definitely easy to reproduce!       

Dessert: Baklava (Will): Delicious and oh so sweet! But extremely tasty at the end of such a spices-intense meal, and complemented with a strong, dark coffee.














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This is definitely our first success story. The Ukraine was such a disaster that having such a delicious and simple dinner was an extreme relief.


Menu recipes:
Ajvar and Baklava are currently still not available...we will try to get them to you! 

Cevapcici:
1 1/2 pounds ground pork

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 pound ground lamb
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
                                                   1/2 teaspoon paprika

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat a grill for medium-low heat.
2. In a large bowl, combine the ground pork, ground beef, ground lamb and egg white. Add the garlic, salt, baking soda, black pepper, cayenne pepper and paprika. Mix well using your hands, and form into finger length sausages about 3/4 inch thick.
3. Lightly oil the grilling surface. Grill sausages until cooked through, turning as needed, about 30 minutes.