200 g wheat grain (7 1/4 oz)
200 g poppy seeds
200 ml honey (7/16 pint)
100 g walnuts, chopped (3.5 oz)
100 g almonds, chopped
50 g currants (1.8 oz)
4 figs
4 dates
1/2 vanilla pod
1 tsp grated lemon peel
70 ml rum (1/8 pint)
2 tbsp cream
10 almonds, whole
Directions
(Keep care: preparation 6 hours !!)
Wash the wheat grain, leave to soak in cold water for
6 hours. Drain, then pour 2 l of boiling water over
the wheat, cover and cook over a low heat for 3 hours.
The grains should be soft but not mushy. Strain the
cooked wheat and leave to cool.
Wash the poppy-seeds thoroughly in cold water, scald
with boiling water and drain. Pour boiling water over
them, bring to a boil, remove from the heat and leave
to stand in a warm place for 3 hours. Drain and mince.
Soak the currants in rum or cognac. Cut the figs and
dates into thin strips. Crush vanilla pod in a mortar.
Pour the poppy-seeds into a mixing bowl, add cream,
honey, vanilla and lemon peel. Grind for 15 minutes,
then add the wheat, crushed walnuts and almonds,
currants, figs and dates. Mix well and transfer to a
glass bowl. Decorate with whole almonds and chill.
(From: Polish cooking, Warszawa 1993, ISBN
83-85477-34-9) Posted by Rene Gagnaux
Servings: 8 servings
Kutia (Christmas Pudding) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Christmas; Dessert; Holiday; Polish
The History of Recipes
It is actually possible to trace the history of written cooking instructions way back into distant history, at least as far back into recorded history as ancient Egypt, and possibly even further than that. However, mostly, these ancient recipes were just very basic hieroglyphic instructions for preparing meals.
In an interesting twist, the most ancient recipe discovered so far, according to academics are some clay tablets in the Sumerian language describing the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making anyone who tried it feel exhilarated and blissful. Progressing into Roman times 25BC a roman called Apicius wrote some documents which described recipes enjoyed by the Romans. In his publication, he tells us how the meals were split into hors d`oeuvres, main meal and desserts, known in latin as `Gustatio, Primae Mensae and Secundae Mensae`. Additionally, he recounts how the Romans used many spices, including some that we all recognise such as bay, fennel and asafoetida. Later, there were a couple of interesting recipe books which date from the fourteenth century ; a recipe book published under the title `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary called `Curye on Inglish`. Surprisingly, these have no connection with the indian food that appears on menues today, but instead recipes for the types of food eaten by the rich and powerful of the time. Later, in the fifteenth century, knights returning from the crusades brought back many spices and herbs from the holy land, including spices like basil and coriander. These new foods and spices prompted an explosion in recipe publications, some of which are now in private libraries. By the advent of the 1900s, cooking books are in high demand, due to better eduction, people having more free time and having more disposable income. The revolution that is television brings us cooking programs and the spin-off recipe books. Which pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everyone to search through thousands of recipes such as those found on this site. |
We hope you enjoy this Kutia (Christmas Pudding) recipe.
