Chicken with Spicy Walnut Sauce (Satsivi —
Russia)

The tart walnut sauce (Satsivi) is a traditional element of
meat, fish or poultry dishes from the Georgian Republic.
Be careful
that the juice does not spatter onto clothing, as it will
stain.

6 large chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
3/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
3/4 cup unsweetened pomegranate juice
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Remove bones and skin from chicken breast halves.
Heat oil in
skillet until hot.
Cook chicken over medium heat until brown on
both sides, about 10 minutes.
Remove chicken.

Cook and stir onion in oil until tender.
Stir in remaining
ingredients.
Add chicken.
Heat to boiling; reduce heat.
Cover and
simmer until chicken is done, about 10 minutes.

Remove chicken to warm platter with slotted spoon; keep warm.
Heat walnut mixture to boiling; reduce heat.
Simmer uncovered,
stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes.
Spoon
sauce over chicken.

Yields 6 servings.

Russian Chicken Pie (Kurnik)

Pastry
2 cups water
1 cup uncooked regular rice
2 teaspoons instant chicken bouillon
2 large onions, thinly sliced
8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup chicken broth
3 cups diced cooked chicken
2 tablespoons minced parsley
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon pepper
4 hardboiled eggs, peeled and
finely chopped
1 tablespoon minced dill weed
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon water

Prepare Pastry; wrap in plastic wrap.
Heat water, rice and
bouillon to boiling, stirring once or twice; reduce heat.
Cover and
simmer 14 minutes without lifting cover or stirring.

Remove from heat.
Fluff rice lightly with fork; cover and let
steam 5 to 10 minutes.

Cook and stir onions and mushrooms in butter in skillet over
medium heat until onions are light brown.
Mix half and half and
cornstarch; stir into onion mixture.
Stir in chicken broth.
Heat to
boiling, stirring constantly; boil and stir 1 minute.
Stir in
chicken, parsley, lemon juice, salt, nutmeg and pepper.
Mix chopped
eggs and dill weed.

Spread one-third of the rice mixture in bottom of ungreased 12 x
7-inch baking dish.
Layer with half of the chicken mixture and half
of the egg mixture.
Repeat the layers; top with remaining rice
mixture.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Unwrap Pastry; place on well-floured cloth-covered board.
Roll
into a 13 x 8-inch rectangle with floured stockinet-covered rolling
pin.
Cut a 1-inch circle in center of pastry.
Place Pastry over top
of dish; turn edges under and flute.
Mix egg yolk and water; brush
over pastry.
Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Yields 8
servings.

Pastry
1/4 cup firm butter or margarine
1/4 cup shortening
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 tablespoons cold water

Cut butter and shortening into flour and salt until particles
are the size of small peas.
Sprinkle in water, 1 tablespoon at a
time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry
almost cleans side of bowl.
Gather pastry into ball; shape into
flattened rectangle.

Russian Easter Bread (Kulich)

It is traditional to make the design XB meaning “Christ is
risen” on top of each of these little towering loaves.

2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees F)
3/4 cup lukewarm milk (scalded, then cooled)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup cut-up mixed candied fruit
1/4 cup chopped blanched almonds
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
Lemon Icing

Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl.
Stir in milk, sugar,
salt, eggs, shortening, raisins, candied fruit, almonds, lemon peel
and 3 cups of the flour.
Beat until smooth.
Stir in enough
remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.
Turn dough onto
lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 5
minutes.

Place in greased bowl; turn greased side up.
Cover; let rise in
warm place until double, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Dough is ready if
indentation remains when touched.

Punch dough down; divide into halves.
Shape each half into round
bun-shaped loaf.
Place in two well-greased 3-pound shortening
cans.* Let rise until double, 40 to 50 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Place cans on low rack so that
midpoint of each can is in center of oven.
Bake until tops are
golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.
If tops brown too quickly, cover
loosely with aluminum foil.
Cool 10 minutes.

Remove from cans.
Spoon Lemon Icing over tops of warm bread,
allowing some to drizzle down sides.
Trim with tiny decorating
candies if desired.

* Two (46-ounce) juice cans can be substituted for the 3-pound
shortening cans.

Lemon Icing
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon warm water
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Mix confectioners’ sugar, water and lemon juice until smooth.
Icing should be of glaze consistency.
Add 1 to 2 teaspoons water if
necessary.

Noodle and Cheese Casserole
(Lazanki s Tvorogom i Smetanoi — Russia)
(Lokshyna, Zapechena z Syrom — Ukraine)

12 ounces fresh lasagna noodles
1 pound farmer cheese
1 cup dairy sour cream
4 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/4 cup dry bread crumbs
1 tablespoon butter or margarine

Cut lasagna noodles into diamond shapes, about 1 inch wide.
Cook
noodles in 3 quarts boiling water until tender, about 3 minutes;
drain.

Mix cheese, sour cream, egg yolks, salt and pepper in large
bowl; gently stir in cooked noodles.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Grease 2-quart shallow casserole
with 2 tablespoons butter; sprinkle with bread crumbs.
Pour noodle
mixture into casserole; dot with 1 tablespoon butter.
Bake
uncovered until hot, 25 to 30 minutes.

Yields 6 servings.

Russian Apricot Pudding (Kissel)

2 cups water
1 cup dried apricot halves
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
Dash of salt

Heat water and apricots to boiling; reduce heat.
Cover and
simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.
Place apricots and 1/2 cup
cooking liquid in blender container; cover and purée
until uniform consistency.
Press purée through
sieve.

Mix sugar, cornstarch and salt in saucepan; gradually stir in
apricot purée and remaining cooking liquid.
Heat to
boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly.
Boil and stir 1
minute.
Pour into dessert dishes.

Serve with half-and-half or sweetened whipped cream if desired.
Yields 4 servings.

Russian Beet Soup (Borscht )

6 cups water
1/2 cup dried navy beans
1 pound beef boneless chuck, tip or
round, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 smoked pork hock
1 (10 1/2 ounce) can condensed beef broth
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 medium beets, cooked
2 medium onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 medium potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 cups shredded cabbage
2 teaspoons dill seed or 1 sprig dill weed
1 tablespoon pickling spice
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup dairy sour cream

Heat water and beans to boiling in Dutch oven; boil 2 minutes.
Remove from heat; cover and let stand 1 hour.
Add beef, pork, beef
broth, salt and pepper to beans.
Heat to boiling; reduce heat.
Cover and simmer until beef is tender 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Shred beets
or cut into 1/4-inch strips.

Remove pork from Dutch oven; cool slightly.
Remove pork from
bone and trim fat; cut into bite-size pieces.
Add pork, beets,
onions, garlic, potatoes and cabbage to beef mixture.
Tie dill seed
and pickling spice in cheesecloth bag or place in tea ball; add to
beef mixture.
Cover and simmer 2 hours.

Stir in vinegar; simmer 10 minutes.

Remove spice bag.

Serve with sour cream; sprinkle with minced dill weed, if
desired.

Yields 6 servings.