Other than frozen pierogi and kielbasa, I can't recall ever eating Polish food. And those hardly qualify as authentic.
So when a review copy of Polska: New Polish Cooking by Zuza Zak (Quadrill, $35) arrived on my desk, I was intrigued. From the cheerful red and white illustrations on the cover, featuring traditional folk art, to the approachable recipes, history and cultural background and beautiful color photographs of the food and Polish countryside, everything about Polska is inviting.
The first recipe I tried was for an extraordinarily fluffy omelet with stewed berries that was a big hit at my house.
Zak writes, "This fruity, 'sponge cake' omelette -- omlet biszkoptowy -- is not the kind of savoury omelette you would usually find in the West and it's far tastier than your average sponge cake."
And in fact the omelet is light and fluffy like a sponge cake, yet it does not contain enough flour to be considered a pancake.
The omelet is ethereally light and soaks up the juice from the stewed berries without deflating.
Zak calls for serving the omelet with a drizzle of honey and a dollop of creme fraiche. I didn't have any creme fraiche and used maple syrup instead, and it was still delicious.
Other intriguing recipes include Tatras Winter Warmer-Creamy Mulled Beer; Cardamom and Vanilla Karpatka Cream Cake; Buckwheat Blinis With Aubergine Caviar; Cumin Babkas on a Sea of Marinated Red Peppers; Butter Beans in a Marjoram and Tomato Broth; Spelt Sourdough With Crispy Onions; and Melt-in-Your-Mouth Mazurian Potato Marjoram Pie.
Fluffy Omelette With Stewed Berries
5 ounces mixed berries such as blackberries, raspberries and strawberries (I used a little more)
3 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar (I used a little less)
4 eggs, separated
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon butter
Creme fraiche and honey, for serving
In a small saucepan, combine the berries, sugar and a tablespoon of water. Swirl to moisten the sugar and cook over low heat until the berries have softened and released their juices, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, beat egg whites to stiff peaks, then add the yolks, one at a time, followed by the flour.
Heat half of the butter in a small (4- to 6-inch) skillet over medium heat, swirling to coat pan with melted butter. (If you have 2 small skillets, make both omelets at the same time.) When the skillet is hot, add half of the batter. Cook 2 to 3 minutes, using a heat-safe spatula to loosen the edges, then gently shake the pan to loosen the omelet. Carefully flip to uncooked side and cook about 2 minutes more.
Serve topped with the stewed berries, a drizzle of honey and dollop of creme fraiche, if desired.
Makes 2 servings.
Food on 09/14/2016