December 21, 2003
Beigli & Chrusciki
Sounds like an eastern European law firm.
Anyway, that's how I spent yesterday, making beigli (a Hungarian pastry filled with apricot, walnut, and raisin) and chrusciki (a Polish cookie made of fried dough covered in powdered sugar). These are the labor-intensive family holiday treats. I'm learning how to make them, and have been learning for the past few years...there's something of a learning curve, and when you only practice one out of every 365 days, that curve is a bit steep, especially for those of us who don't bake and don't grasp the subtleties of how dough feels. There's a lot of "feel" in these recipes.
My sister has the flu and couldn't help this year...the responsibility of carrying on these traditions is really in her hands, because she can bake. But I did an okay job:
Beigli
Chrusciki
In fact, I'm enjoying both right now with a cup of strong coffee, and I have to say that I did just fine.
(I'm not going to type up the recipes...what I have on paper barely matches what my mother told me to actually do...but if you want the recipes because you've actually heard of either one of them or something, drop me a note and I'll be happy to send them. In my life I have met maybe three people outside the family who knew of chruschiki and one who knew beigli. Even better...if you have ever made beigli and know how to keep the crust from cracking, please please please email me. That secret seems to be buried with my great-grandmother.)
Posted by Nic at December 21, 2003 09:47 AM | TrackBackI'd love the recipe for these!
As for the cracking crust, you might be able to add a couple of teaspoons of water to the crust and cut back just a little on the butter, but then you'd be sacrificing the flakyness. That's an experiment to do, but I wouldn't think it's a good trade off. Looks wonderful, and I LOVE apricots.
Posted by: Ted at December 21, 2003 10:39 AMyou could add me as #4. ahh, crushciki's - I think I'll ask my mom to bake some in time for Christmas.
Posted by: liz at December 21, 2003 06:51 PMPlease share with me the Chrusciki recipe too. My mom used to make them when I was a toddler, and she has since lost the recipe - but has often mentioned them. I'm now 32 years old and I would like to surprise her with a good Chrusciki recipe.
Posted by: Steven at August 2, 2004 12:58 PMHi,
My great aunt used to used a piece of cardboard (like the kind that tin foil comes in) and fashion "sides" for her pan. She'd fold a length in half and put one beigli on the bottom half to hold it there. The "side" would be about 2-3 inches high. She'd pack the beiglis fairly tight. Five fit at a time and bake them. She said that the cardboard stopped the edge ones from getting too brown in the oven, but I suspect it also helped to hold those little guys together too. You'd have to give it a shot. I'm pretty new at doing these myself too.
Chrusciki...
1/4 C soft butter
1/2 pint sour cream
3/4 C sugar......... cream all together well
add
8 egg yolks... one at a time... mixing well
then add
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 jigger of rye whiskey or dark rum,, combine
now add dry ingredients
4 C flour
1 tsp baking powder
alternating with 1/2 C milk
dough may be sticky.... turn out onto well floured board and knead till manageable... Shouldn't take much....
Cut into three sections,,, wrap separately and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or more.... Work with one piece of dough at a time.... Roll out to at least 1/8" thick and cut into strips then cut strips to at least 4" in length... slit each strip in center and pull one end thru center to make the "Bow Tie"....
Fry in hot vegetable or peanut oil till slightly golden turning to fry the other side.... Drain on paper and coat (while warm) with Xsugar.... (powdered sugar)
Enjoy
This was my grandma's recipe that was given to me 55 years ago.....
Another dish that was a staple on Christmas eve was Kapusta... cabbage soup..... I love it anytime..
Kapusty
1 small head of cabbage chopped thinly
1 8 or 13 oz can of sauerkraut (drain & reserve liquid)
1 clove of garlic minced
1 med onion diced small
1/4 teasp celery seed
1 T flour
2T oil
with oil and flour make a roux let cook for 3 min then add kraut juice from can,,,, mix well
add garlic, onion & celery seed.... stir
now add all the kraut and cabbage with water... (chicken stock can be used instead of water) cook till tender..... season to taste...
bayleaf can be added in final step....
This is also called peasant soup....
This soup is served with seperate bowls of boiled diced potatoes, sauteed mushrooms and seasoned smothered onions.....
Beigli (Hungarian Walnut Pastry/cookies)
or
Kindli..... a Jewish pastry/cookie...
Both these recipes are similar to crushciki, the only difference is that there is yeast in the dough... Sounds alot like the French Biegnets.....
Hope you found all you needed to make your bounty.....
Just make sure you have a full day to do this.... or make your doughs one day then fry the next....
Good luck.............. Patsy
Thanks, everyone! Lisa, I'll try the cardboard thing this year, and Patsy, thanks for the recipes. My family and I are quite tickled to hear about others' traditions with the beigli and crushciki!
Posted by: nic at December 11, 2004 05:01 PMI love crushciki and beigli. My mom and her friend used to make them all the time when I was young, growing up in former USSR. Of course, my mom did not have it written anywhere. Now my daughter has been bitten by a baker's bug but it's too late. Or may be not. I'd very much appreciate if you could send me both recipes. My dughter would be extatic too.
Posted by: Genrietta at January 4, 2005 09:18 AMMy grandmother made wonderful kindli (beigli) when I was a child. I simply adored it (she made the kindli in one large roll).) I would love to get a copy of your recipe. Thank you so much!
Posted by: Fran at January 6, 2005 12:11 AMI'd love the beigli recipe -- I have collected several, but no single one is quite right, and I'm trying to reproduce a particular version. I do remember chrusciki from my grandmother's friends, who made them and brought them over often when I was a little girl -- I loved them, but the beigli are the best!
Thanks,
Nan
I've made Chruschiki, also called love knots and served as a pastry at Polish Weddings to solidify the Wedding (knot).
I enjoyed my mom's kapusta-fried with pork fat, onions and peppers. Yes, I miss mom's traditional Polish foods.
I'm still searching for her Chocolate Cake made entirely from scratch, using bakers brand bittersweet chocolate pieces.
Enjoy life! Carol