Before I get stuck into this weeks recipe, I’d like to take a moment to wish my beloved Village Feast a very happy first birthday! It’s overwhelming to think that in only twelve months I’ve managed to cook and post over seventy recipes. Inevitably, I have added a couple of inches to my waistline (and hubby’s too!), but I’m proud to say that it’s all been worth it. Village Feast has given me a platform to discover the deliciousness of century old recipes and share them with passionate cooks all over the world.

As an ode to true village cooking, this week I bring you one of my favourite greens, the humble sorrel leaf. Known as ‘kiselec’ or ‘kisleca’, this sour spinach-like herb is loved by many, there is even a Macedonian folk song called ‘para beri kiselec’. Often used as a pastry filling with spinach or added to spinach stew, I enjoy it wilted with egg and served on toast.

Continue reading Rustic Sorrel Omelette (Kiselec so Jaca)

I’m always on the lookout for a cheaters version of my beloved Macedonia favourites. Although nothing beats the taste of fresh homemade pastry sheets, I rarely have half a day to make the sheets from scratch. So when I stumbled across the super thin wheat wraps made by Mountain Bread, I knew I was onto something BIG!!

Mum often makes her cheats zelnik with fresh lavash, a thin and soft Middle Eastern flatbread. It makes for a quick substitute, although the texture is nothing like zelnik, and unless you add a good measure of water to help soak the bread, the final result is too dry.

I made this cheats zelnik with softened leek, but you can try other classic fillings like spinach and cheese, tomatoey onion, or sugary apple and walnut.

Continue reading Cheats Zelnik with Softened Leek

Kadaif or Kataifi is a curious shredded pastry, similar to a fine vermicelli noodle. Originating in the Middle East, kadaif is used to make numerous desserts and occasionally savory dishes too.

Often made with similar ingredients to baklava, that is, nuts, sesame seeds, filo pastry and sugar syrup, this ‘like baklava but not-baklava’, as a friend likes to call it, is delicious and relatively easy to make.

My mums recipe for kadaif is vegan and requires little fat. Once baked, the sweets need to be drenched in the sugar syrup and left overnight, otherwise the filling will be too dry. I recently made the mistake of not pouring enough syrup over, sadly the end result was too dry, and to my embarrassment I delivered a tray for a party…eeek!

Allowing the kadaif to stand overnight will ensure the shredded pastry absorbs all the liquid and plumps up, making a deliciously moist and moreish dessert.

Continue reading Kadaif with Walnuts and Sugar Syrup

My grandmother is a sensational cook! Although almost eighty, she still loves preparing handmade pastries, sweets and stews. Thankfully, she also loves teaching me all her traditional recipes to post here on Village Feast! I often show her the recipes online, she has a little chuckle and can’t believe that people are interested in her village recipes…I remind her that people from as far away as the U.S. are enjoying maznik, mlechnik and kifli…deep down I think she loves the attention and thinks she’s a little famous!

Like all of baba’s tasty recipes, her vegan cabbage rolls are no exception! I love them so much that I prefer them over meat sarmi. They’re super quick and super tasty! I make them with homemade pickled cabbage leaves, however pickled cabbage bought from the supermarket will also do the trick.

Enjoy these sarmi at room temperature or cold, served as a light lunch or meze.

Continue reading Baba’s Vegan Sarmi (Posni Sarmi)

This recipe was discovered by my sister Mira, it’s likely she stumbled across it in one of those trashy women’s magazines, or it was passed onto her by a friend, the reality is, she can’t actually remember where! So Mira passed it onto Mum, who passed it onto me over the phone. Turns out that I misheard the recipe and got it a little backwards, kinda like Chinese-whispers I guess. The other mistake I made was using chicken rather than pork fillet, as chicken was all I had in the fridge at the time.

Anyway, despite getting so many key ingredients wrong, the stir-fry was delicious, in fact better than I remembered my sister making it. This stir-fry has now become a weekly staple, but I like to call it the ‘Chicken Pork Stir-fry’ and it’s one of David’s favourites, so I always make sure I have some chicken breast, thinly sliced by my butcher ready to go.

It’s best to marinade overnight, but a couple hours will suffice. The cooking time is less than 15 minutes so it makes a perfect weeknight dinner. Serve with steamed green beans and medium grain rice.

Continue reading Mira’s Pepper Pork (or Chicken) Stir-fry

I love chocolate éclairs, be it with the traditional custard filing, ice cream or my families version with whipped cream. I find it quite easy to substitute éclairs for any meal, and just between you and me, that meal is often breakfast.

According to Wikipedia the éclair most likely originated in France during the nineteenth century, allegedly created by Antonin Carême, the famous French chef (and genius in my mind).

For me, chocolate éclairs say party-time, partly because I only ever indulge at celebrations, but also because they are a celebration as you bite through the delicious layers of heavenly light pastry, luscious cream and chocolate.

Despite looking complex, making decadent chocolate éclairs is easier than it first appears. The choux pastry is quick and uncomplicated, much easier than making other pastries (i.e. short crust pastry). I’d love you to give his recipe a try, you won’t be disappointed, neither will your family and friends!

Continue reading Heavenly Chocolate Éclairs

Who would have ever thought that a fussy, borderline vegetarian like myself, would one day become a passionate foodie! My family never ceases to remind me that I only ate the most boring and unadventurous foods in my youth, like plain pasta, rice, potatoes and…my favourite…Maggi two minute noodles! It’s a disgrace knowing that I caused my poor mum so much grief. To her amusement, one meal I did enjoy back then and still do now, is her yummy baked chicken and red rice. It’s definitely far from being bland or boring, it’s actually bursting with delicious flavour.

I often make it with homegrown leek and free-range chicken, but you can substitute with brown onion if you can’t get your hands on leek. You might also try pork rather than chicken. The inclusion of sundried tomatoes is a recent addition by me, so feel free to leave them out if you prefer.

By making a big batch, it makes for a quick and easy reheat dinner, perfect for early Spring with a dollop of natural yoghurt.

Continue reading Baked Chicken with Red Rice

Despite being the first day of Spring here in Sydney, I’m still freezing! Apparently it’s hitting 25°C today but I’m not holding my breath as all I can see are grey clouds!

If you’re like me and feel the chill or perhaps you’re just feeling a little low, then I guarantee that Mum’s comforting chicken noodle soup will warm you up.

The one thing I need to mention is the unconventional addition of a packet of chicken noodle soup mix. I’m not sure why mum has always included it, as I’m sure it would taste good without, but it tastes so good that I’m not planning on changing a recipe which in my opinion is perfect.

Continue reading Mum’s Chicken Noodle Soup

I have no recollection as to why or how my family came to call this delightful sweet treat ‘Queen Cake’. Mum claims that I have been calling it this since I was six or so….come to think of it, I do recall including it in my primary school’s annual recipe book and calling it ‘Queen Cake’…perhaps it’s because I thought it tasted so good that even the Queen would love it!

The irony of this is that my favourite cake in the entire world, may also qualify as the easiest cake to make in the world! Seriously, this cake is good and so easy that even my husband could make it!

Serve it warm with the optional dusting of icing sugar, or allow it to cool and spread with cocoa flavoured whipped cream and a generous scattering of chopped walnuts.

Continue reading ‘Queen Cake’ – a vanilla, chocolate and walnut swirl cake

Earlier this year I posted a heavenly cheese pancake recipe from Rasht, North Iran. Here’s a variation which replaces the feta with a bountiful mix of fragrant herbs. The interesting addition of baking powder to the mix helps the pancake stay light and airy during the frying process. Delicious warm or at room temperature with […]

Continue reading Mixed Herb Pancake (Kookooye Sabzi)