Siberian Soiree

What a whirlwind of a month! This international meal happened to come while we were in San Diego preparing for our wedding. It provided a unique and enjoyable experience to have Becky’s family participate with us. Several family members looked up their own Siberian recipes, so it was a surprise for everyone. Becky’s grandma, Jere, was a little worried she’d go home hungry for fear of an unappetizing menu, but was quite pleasantly surprised. Originally we were trying to stick with the general area where the dart landed (Sakha). However, we only found a few recipes from that region which, as best we could translate, were horse meat recipes (not readily available). We decided to open our search to all of Siberia. Here are a few facts about Yaku:

•It covers just under 2.2 million square miles which makes it the largest sub national governing body. It’s population is under one million…which explains the scarcity of recipes and variety. You basically take the entire population of Montana and spread it across Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana…plus a little more.
•The ethnicity is mainly a derivative of Mongol and Russian.
•Due to it’s high real estate commodity and heavy tourist traffic, this area was highly favored by the Czarists and Communists governments for exile.
•It is also the backdrop for Louis Lamoure’s book, “Last of the Breed.”

The menu for the evening had all courses. Cheryl, Becky’s mom, made Pikantny Syr (a spicy garlic cheese) that was placed on some tomatoes which made a great appetizer.

She also put it on some bread to accompany the meal.


Cheryl also made Siberian Sashlik (essentially a kabob of steak and veggies).


I didn’t see the recipe for the rice she brought, but I would imagine rice can be found there.

Becky, Caleb, Haley and I made Pelmeni (like a mini empanada that tastes more like lefse).



Matt Wendy and Porter made Sbiten (a spicy cinnamon and honey drink that, to me, seemed like it would be their version of apple cider). This was my favorite part.


They also made homemade lemonade…found at some of the exotic exile resorts.


Kevin and Sara made some pretty good cookies. The recipe title was Siberian Cookies. They were more of a flat cookie that was slightly chewy and tasted of cinnamon…quite good.


All in all, it was a fun dinner and everyone did a great job. These are the things that memories are made of. Upon our return to Denver, Caleb threw the dart and landed on…Mexico (the Sonora province to be exact).

Norway

Well, I started to get a little excited about the Norway adventure. Becky said that she could only find recipes for desserts and fish. I’m not a huge seafood fan (unless it is a particular salmon recipe) nor is she, but I could never pass up a meal of desserts. I suppose fish dishes should be abundantly available though given some of the following facts:

It is about two-thirds mountain and has over 50,000 islands off it’s rugged coastline. It borders the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a land mass roughly the size of New Mexico.
Norway is the second largest gas exporter in the world. It is ninth for oil exporting.
Norway’s flag is red with a slightly offset blue cross that is highlighted in white. The red and white are influenced by Denmark and the blue is an influence from Sweden.
This where Vikings come from…and the band a-ha


Becky decided to make Kjøttkaker. These are lentil cakes with gravy. To compliment this dish she also made Old Fashioned Baking Powder Biscuits, boiled potatoes, peas and Lingonberry Sauce. For dessert she made Norwegian Almond Bars and Peasant Girls in the Mist.

First things first, the lentil cakes were an effort to try a vegan dish. Just thinking about the dish makes my stomach turn. There were waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay to many lentils...enough to turn any Vegan into a ravenous carnivore. The lentils were a substitute for ground beef. Though Becky and I struggled with it, Caleb liked the dish.

The Lingonberry sauce was pretty good on those biscuits, which were also pretty good. I was unable to get to the Almond bars because my stomach was upside down with the lentils.

Becky said it was quite delicious, especially warmed up and with ice cream. After a while we had the Peasant Girls in the Mist. This is a rather dry dessert. It is apples, bread crumbs, cinnamon and whipped cream. It is a layered parfait. The recipe called for an excessive amount of bread crumbs. It made it really hard to enjoy the other layers.

After the eventful meal, it was time to throw the dart. I tried it with my eyes closed…after several attempts of missing the map, I had to open them again. I still missed the map…until finally I hit Siberia.

Timbuktu isn't that far

It is true, the dart landed in Mali. Timbuktu is a city and province in Mali. This proved to be a slight challenge for finding recipes. About the only thing that we could draw a connection to Mali with was the movie Sahara. Here are some interesting facts that we discovered:

1. First of all, Tombouctou is the proper spelling.
2. Timbuktu began its infamous registration as a pseudonym when its ruler Mansa Musa did a pilgrimage to Mecca in 1390 and dispensed large amounts of wealth along the way…so much so (approx. 180 tons of gold) that he and his party caused the Egyptian currency to loose its value.
3. Timbuktu amassed its wealth due to its advantageous geographic position (right at a crossroads for terrestrial trading routes)
4. It was also known for it’s rich passion for knowledge. In the 12th century, Timbuktu boasted three universities and 180 schools.
5. Due to the development of nautical trade routes, envious tyrants and political unrest, the area lost all of its luster
6. The flag is simple, it is three horizontal stripes (Green, Yellow and Red). Don't confuse it with their neighbor Senegal (exactly the same except Senegal has a green star in the middle) or with Guinea (another neighbor with the same flag, but the colors are reversed.)

So we only found a few recipes. Caleb chose to make Poulet Yassa (Senegalese Chicken), Fufu (similar to mashed potatoes, but made with yams), and Meni-meniyong (a sesame seed, honey and butter concoction that is supposed to be a “candy.”).



The chicken sat in a marinade. It turned out pretty good. I am not a fan of yams, but the Fufu was actually quite a good compliment to the chicken. Utensils are not a common item, so we ate with our hands.
We, unfortunately, had a mishap with the treat. The seeds were supposed to be baked before adding the honey/butter mix. The recipe instructed a bake time of 8-10 min…that was waaaaaaaay more than enough to brown the seeds. We ended up with, what looked like, little black ants…but tasted far worse, I’m sure.



Caleb actually didn’t mind the burnt flavor. He said, “Just suck on it. Don’t chew.” Becky was especially sad because we used some high-end honey that was a gift from her grandma…and it went to waste. (I hurried and made a lemon meringue pie for later.) After dinner, Becky threw the dart several times. She kept landing off the map or the ocean no where near land. She finally landed on Norway…she shouted, “Yay! I can make lefse!” That is a traditional food in her family that is made at Christmas…I’m sure she’ll try something new though.

Maldese

Ah, the Maldives…The capital is Male. It is a cluster of islands located south of India. There diet is similar to Micronesia in that they consume local produce, wildlife and ocean life. The big difference is that they are heavily influenced by India, Arabic countries and some of Asia. Most of their diet includes curry. They eat a lot of tuna as well. Fact time:

1. The Maldives flag is pretty simple. It is Red (in honor of the lives sacrificed for the country), Green (for peace and prosperity) and, in the middle is a crescent moon (representing Islam).
2. The country’s main economical engine is tourism.
3. Only recently has the country experienced a true multi-party presidential election (held in 2008). A previously jailed activist became the new president…might make for a good movie.
4. Some tsunami victims in 2004 were relocated here.

The food selection for the menu included; Chicken Curry, Roshi, Potato Mashuni and Dhonkeyo Kajuru. The chicken turned out dang good!



I made an executive decision while purchasing the ingredients (by the way, I found everything I needed at Whole Foods and the staff was quite helpful). I decided not to use one of the ingredients, Dorset Naga. Apparently, it is contending for “Hottest Pepper in the World.“ When Becky read about it, it suggested handling the pepper with gloves because the juices would become an issue. I decided to use a Poblano pepper. I really liked the mashuni…it was kind of like coleslaw. Becky only took a bite. She does not like uncooked onions…at all! The Roshi is pretty much a tortilla, but they turned out pretty good. The Kajuru was interesting to make, but the recipe renders quite a bit of it.



It is, essentially, a banana fritter. We decided to have some hot chocolate with the Kajuru…not sure if it is ethnically correct, but was quite delicious.

After dinner, Caleb was up again for throwing the dart. He landed on Newfoundland. Unfortunately, he was pretty bummed about eating Canadian cuisine again and begged for a “re-throw.” Fortunately, that created an opportunity. He was allowed a “re-throw” if he agreed to make dinner the next night as well. He did (we ended up having pasta. I think kids should already know how to boil water by this point.) Becky made some chocolate/nutella covered orange chews for FHE dessert too. YUM! Back to the new dart toss, Caleb through the dart so far that it landed in Timbuktu.

Brrrrrrr, Nunavut????

So Nunavut has a more challenging variety of dietary options. Becky looked high and low, but Caribou and Char are not a common produce in these here parts. We opted for a common substitute to Char…Salmon. Time for a few small facts:

1. Nunavut is the furthest northern province in Canada and almost the world…I think it is only surpassed by Greenland’s political map and I’m sure there are some Siberian contenders.
2. There are only 14 countries that have larger geographical boundaries and it is the fifth largest country subdivision in the world…poor governor.
3. The major population, and reason for Nunavut becoming it’s own province, are the Inuit…Don’t call them Eskimo! That would be derogative slang. Apparently “Eskimo” is only tolerated in Alaska who do not have Inuit, but rather Inupiat and Yupik people.
4. The Nunavut flag is interesting, it includes an Inukshuk, a five point star and common national colors.

After being heart broken on not finding Caribou, Walrus, Polar Bear, Seal, Muskoxen, Char or even whale blubber, we ended up having an Inuit recipe for salmon. It consisted of salmon, onion, garlic and lemon. Becky and I aren’t big on aquatic life, but Caleb is. None the less, the fish was decent. It was a bit on the dry side though (completely wrapping the meat in tin foil might help to trap the moisture). We also had Bannock…a traditional bread that accompanies meals. It was fun to watch Becky and Caleb make this. Whether there is a huge impact on flour ratio due to altitude or simply a typo in the recipe, they had quite a sticky mess. We ended up adding approximately another cup or so of flour. The Bannock turned out quite delicious.



We did not find a dessert recipe…but Becky is going to make a peach pie later.

I tried throwing the dart backward today…after making new constellations in the wall, I figured I should throw it facing the board. I landed on the Maldives. Should be fun trying to figure out what to have.

Micronesia

And the tradition begins! We decided to start a new family tradition with our new family. Each week we will throw a dart at a map of the world. Over the course of the next week, we will do some research and pick food from the selected target for the next weeks menu…Caleb was determined not to throw the dart anywhere near the Western Hemisphere. The first toss missed the map altogether. The second toss landed on Micronesia…the map is pretty small so it is hard to decide which island group the dart landed on. A few small facts;

1. There are four island groups that make up Micronesia - Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap
2. The Micronesian flag is a pale blue representing the Pacific Ocean and the four stars in diamond shape represent the four island groups
3. Their diet consists of locally grown meats (like chicken), oceanic life, fruits and vegetables

We decided to have Micronesian Chicken as our entrée. We asked some friends, the Bowen’s, to join us. They enjoy trying new foods and are fantastic cooks. They decided to make Micronesian Rice as the complimentary dish. The dessert was Baked Papaya. We didn’t have any challenges acquiring the ingredients…accept for the beer. There is a marinade that the chicken is soaked in and continuously dipped in during the grilling. Beer is a key part of the marinade. I went to the store to procure a can. Apparently, it is not possible to purchase just one can…nor can one purchase beer between the hours of 11 pm and 8 am at the store. I have heard of Happy Hour, but not Prohibition Hour. My attempt to be discrete didn’t work. Fortunately the recipe provided alternatives for the marinade. The chicken turned out quite good. The rice was fun and included a spice that turns it red. I’ve never had papaya. It turned out okay. I think the sweet creamy coconut glaze made all the difference.

The tradition kicked off with a success! It was Becky’s turn to throw the dart for our next adventure. After several attempts…one of which landed in the ocean no where near any body of land, she finally landed on Nunavut. That is in Canada…See next blog