Mmm. Estonian sauerkraut & barley soup!

[LiberalEsto]

And as a bonus, I'm upwind of Washington DC and tonight's SOTU!

[Redstone]

1. What's some other typical Estonian food? I'm curious.

Redstone

[LiberalEsto]

3. Sauerkraut, pork, potatos

herring, sour cream, and more sauerkraut.

And cold cuts for breakfast. A typical summer breakfast at my Estonian cousin's house includes cheese, salami-type sausage, butter, Estonian sour rye bread, tomato and cucumber slices, chopped dill, chopped scallions, homemade cottage cheese, fried eggs, bacon and maybe some hot oatmeal if that's not enough. I may have left out a few things.

[Redstone]

4. Kinda like Minnesota, yes? Sounds like a great way to start the day.

Redstone

[LiberalEsto]

6. My cousin was horrified

when I had a slice of bread and a mere scoop of cottage cheese and tea. She feared I would starve. If I ate like that, I would weigh 600 pounds.

What do you have for breakfast?

[Redstone]

7. If Mrs R is home, a fried egg sandwich with cheese (she worries that I don't

get enough calcium because I can't drink milk), and a tall glass of pomegranate & black-cheery juice.

If she's not home, just the juice.

Redstone

[LiberalEsto]

10. Mine: 2 cups of tea

and a granola bar or Cheerios

[Redstone]

13. A lot healthier. But Mrs R knows that if she's not around and lunchtime,

I won't eat then, either. I'll be working and forget to.

And, being a mother, she always worries about everyone having enough to eat.

And, hey, you ought to try the pomegranate & cherry juice. It's REALLY tasty!


Redstone

[SOteric]

2. head isu!

:hi:

[LiberalEsto]

5. suur ta"nu!

soovin Sulle samat.

[musiclawyer]

8. I was in Tallinn 5 years ago

I loved the fish for breakfast! They also have this bread that's really thick and almost black, very delicious. People were kind of closed, but warmed up when you tried to speak their own langauage. I was told not to go to the Russian part of Tallinn..... And oh, the most beautiful women in the world IMHO. I always wanted to marry and Estonian gal after that.

[LiberalEsto]

11. Tallinn's a wonderful town!

But remember, those beautiful Estonian gals eventually fill up on too much Estonian food & become pudgy Estonian vanamemms like me.

[LiberalEsto]

9. Recipe

Estonian Sauerkraut & Barley (my reduced-fat version)

1 small bag sauerkraut(drained and rinsed)
1 Granny Smith Apple, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup barley
1 bottle non-alcoholic dark beer (or regular dark beer)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup shredded green cabbage
3 boneless pork chops with all visible fat removed

Combine everything except the pork chops. Add enough water to barely cover the mixture and put the chops on top.

I cooked mine in a crock pot, but it can be covered and simmered on low on the stove for a couple of hours, or covered and baked at 350 degrees in the oven for a couple of hours. It's done when the pork is thoroughly cooked and can be cut with a fork. Check while cooking to add more water if needed.

Add salt & pepper to taste.

[Zookeeper]

17. That sounds great!

I'm always looking for recipes that use sauerkraut. I love it, but the only way my mom served it was with pork roast.

Thank you, thank you, LiberalEsto! :hi:

[RetroLounge]

12. My wife is Estonian

Too bad the traditional cooking has been lost to generations of her family living in Wisconsin...

RL

[LiberalEsto]

18. There's a fairly new cookbook out

"Estonian Tastes & Traditions" by Karin Annus Karner, who is the wife of someone I knew from Estonian summer camp. 2005, Hippocrene Books, NY $24.95. It's well written and I've tried a couple of the recipes.

It's $17.22 at Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/Estonian-Traditions-Hippocrene-Cookbook-Library/dp/0781811228

I didn't like Estonian cooking when I was a kid -- I wanted spaghetti, pizza, Chinese food. So I never learned to cook from my mom, who was a wonderful cook and died when I was 23. I learned a few dishes from an older cookbook put together by Esto women from Los Angeles.

[RetroLounge]

20. Thanks for the tip...

:hi:

RL

[Stu DeBeouf]

14. Tere

Sauerkraut-barley soup is a staple in my house.....with lots of pork and bay leaves.

[eppur_se_muova]

15. LOL! It took a second to 'get' the picture in your sig line! nt

[LiberalEsto]

19. Tere Sulle

ja head tervist!

[Xipe Totec]

16. Now that "sounds" great!

Let us announce the SOTU with trumpets!

:evilgrin: