My Cloth Diapering Bleach Fiasco

I have read that some people recommend the use of bleach in washing cloth diapers.  Everyone's washing situation is different, different water, different machines, different detergents, different diets in their children even. 

But bleach did not work for me.  I used it once, and as I poured it in, I thought "How hypocritical I won't use this for cleaning my bathroom because it can cause cancer and is just plain bad for you, and here I am, pouring this on organic cotton and other fabrics that are going to touch my baby's skin". 

That should not have been my concern.  I realized, when I opened the laundry room later to smell mustard gas (the whole house had to be aired out and the diapers stripped, an all day fiasco), that human urine contains ammonia, which when combined with bleach, causes mustard gas.  And that when you have hard water, your diapers get "buildup" of ammonia easier. 

It was one of those moments in my motherhood when I remembered why I don't use harmful chemicals in my house.  Now, I just use detergent and water.

If you liked this post, please check out how I wash my cloth diapers.

My Mushroom Sour Cream Sauce

There is a mushroom sauce recipe I make which is my personal favorite and one I am personally proud of.   Don't tell my family, but I usually linger in the kitchen to eat extra of this sauce with fresh bread.

Of course, I have to give credit where credit is due, I got the idea to make it from "Polish Heritage Cookery" by Robert and Maria Strybel (Hippocrene Books, 1993).  I was looking for a different sauce to pour on top of homemade golabki since my husband hates tomatoes and, even though I love them, every once in a while I go out of my way to accommodate his tastes.  The first time I tasted the sauce, I was immediately reminded of a sauce my mother would occasionally make which I was always a fan of as a child.



Ingredients:

2 packs of Mushrooms (This time I used the caps, sometimes just the stems, just depends on what I need the parts for)
1/4 Sweet Onion, diced and caramelized in Butter
2 tablespoons of Butter
1 tub of Sour Cream (16 oz.)
1 tablespoon Flour
1/2 to 1 cup Milk
salt and pepper
a few sprigs of Parsley, chopped
1 Glass of White Wine

Clean the Mushroom caps and slice.  In saucepan, cook until liquid from Mushrooms is gone.  Remove the Mushrooms and set to side with the Onion.  Melt butter, add the flour and stir to make a roux.  Add the Milk and stir on low until thickened and bubbly.  Stir for another couple of minutes.  Return the Mushrooms and Onion to the saucepan.  Add the White Wine and heat gently for a couple more minutes.  Add the Sour Cream and heat through very gently.  Add Parsley, salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Or, you could do it in this order:

Clean the Mushroom caps and slice.  In saucepan, cook until liquid from Mushrooms is gone.  Add the White Wine and deglaze the pan, if you need to.  Cook for a couple of minutes on low until the alcohol has cooked away.  Add the Onion.  Add the Sour Cream and heat very gently on low.  Stir the Flour into the Milk in a separate cup thoroughly, and pour into the saucepan, stirring constantly.  Continue stirring while heating the sauce on low heat until thickened and bubbly, then heat for another couple of minutes.  Add the parsley, salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Some Side Notes:

The Wine can be skipped, and broth can be added instead, if you wish.  The order of the ingredients can be mixed around (I know professional chefs are probably screaming Noooo! right now but as a mommy who cooks food her family actually eats, who are pickier diners than some adults paying $100 for a dish, trust me, it will be OK). 

This isn't the best picture of it, as I had it out a couple of minutes waiting and waiting for everyone to get in place for the oplatki prayer and the Wigilia dinner.  But it tastes great!

This sauce or sauce is delicious served on golabki (for my meatless golabki recipe, check out http://polishmamaontheprairie.blogspot.com/2010/12/my-meatless-golabki.html), potatoes, breaded chicken, Kotleti Schabowe, rice or many other dishes.

When feeding younger palettes, wine is always reduced as much as possible to remove as much alcohol as possible or eliminated from the dish entirely.  Also, many people don't allow children to eat foods with alcohol in the sauce, that is at your discretion.  As long as the alcohol is cooked away, many European families do not feed their children something different than the rest of the family because exposing them to as broad a diet as possible expands their culinary palettes for the future.  Smacznego!

My Meatless Golabki

One traditional dish for Wigilia is meatless golabki.  In fact, all of Wigilia dishes are meatless.  However, I didn't grow up with meatless golabki for Wigilia, and could not find a clear recipe either online or in any of the 4 Polish Cookbooks I own.  So, I made one up based on what I thought would taste good together and some traditional Polish ingredients. 

I served the golabki with my own mushroom gravy.  The dish was a hit with all 3 generations of my family.  Even my picky 5 year old loved it. 

So, I wanted to share it with others who might be looking for ideas for Wigilia dishes, everyday Vegetarian dishes, or even for a frugal dish to stretch the family food budget.

Ingredients:
one Cabbage head
Potatoes, peeled, diced and boiled
2 packs of Mushrooms, stems only, diced and cooked until no liquid remains
1 Egg
2 Egg yolks (I merely was using them instead of another egg since I had left over yolks from baking cookies)
1/2 Onion, diced and caramelized in butter
1 Carrot, diced and boiled until soft
1/2 teaspoon Vegeta (but you could use salt and pepper instead)
2 tablespoons Sour Cream
a couple of sprigs of fresh Parsley, chopped

 

I used a Savoy cabbage head, since that was on sale at the local grocery store.  Yesterday, the cabbage was frozen and this morning I pulled it out to thaw.  After about a couple of hours of thawing, I cored the cabbage, peeled off the large green tougher leaves to use as a protective cover on top of the golabki while baking later.  The leaves which were too small to stuff, I chopped up to use in the filling.

Potatoes were diced and boiled.  Mixed into that were the cooked stems of mushrooms, the caps were used for my mushroom gravy.  Also added were a 1/2 onion diced and caramelized in butter, 1 egg, 2 egg yolks, 1 carrot diced and boiled until tender, 1/2 teaspoon of Vegeta, a bit of fresh parsley, and two tablespoons of sour cream.

On top of the golabki, I added 2 more diced and boiled carrots, a very light drizzling of oil, and a sprinkling of Vegeta.  They were tucked in under their blanket of tough outer cabbage leaves (the "blanket" keeps them moist and protects them from any burning) and put into the oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees.  I think the dish would also be nice with diced bacon added in the filling to stretch some meat in a frugal dish, but again, Wigilia is traditionally meat free. 


Smacznego!

Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia (Merry Christmas)

I plan on spending time with my family for the next couple of days.  So, I wish you all a Merry Christmas, Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia.

And since we can't share oplatki over the internet, I will leave you with the words written on this year's oplatki package, the first few of lyrics to "Silent Night, Holy Night", Franz Gruber's version translated into Polish (the "Silent Night" most English speakers are familiar with).

Cicha noc, swieta noc!
Pokoj niesie ludziom roszem,
a u zlobka Matka Swieta,
czuwa sama usmiechnieta
nad dzieciatka snem,
nad dzieciatka snem.

Cicha noc, swieta noc!
Pastuszkowie od swych trzod
biegna wielce zadziwieni
za anielskich glosem pieni,
gdzie sie spelnil cud,
gdzie sie spelnil cud.

And a link to a website that gives lyrics to the much older Polish "Silent Night", "Wśród Nocney Ciszy".
http://members.fortunecity.com/john_deere/Koledy1.html

Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia!

Preparing for Wigilia Supper

Tomorrow is Wigilia so I made a few trips to several stores in preparation.

At the Polish store, I bought homemade barszcz, mushroom stuffed uczki, a jar of herrings in oil and onions, pickles, Wroclawski bread, and the oplatki.

At the grocery store, I bought a ham for Christmas day, 4 packs of mushrooms (for sour cream and mushroom gravy, yummm), cabbage and all the ingredients I was lacking for meatless golabki, some fruits, jelly for Kolaczki, fish, and potatoes (I love English Roasted Potatoes).

I have the cabbage in the freezer (a tip I learned from my Polish priests wife, freeze it, thaw it, and it's easier than boiling the cabbage) and have a lot of cooking to do.

So, I hope you all have a wonderful and peaceful Wigilia. 

Wigilia: A tale about a Polish-American family on Christmas Eve

Amidst Preparations for Wigilia and Christmas...

The last few days have been filled with cleaning, baking, and cooking.  Mostly baking cookies (it seems as fast as I am baking them, half keep dissappearing right after my husband enters the room, hmmm). 

Thankfully, my husband went to the local Polish store a couple of days ago to buy premade Polish foods we can eat while I am baking all these cookies.

Todays lunch... Meatballs in Polish Dill Sauce...

alongside Ruskie Pierogi (Pierogi filled with Potatoes and Cheese) which I fried in butter...

Yummm...  Now, on to finishing my older daughter's Christmas wish list (my younger child will be happy with a box and wrapping paper still at this age).  Where do you find the goose that lays gold eggs, a live purple cat, and a Polish Princess crown?  Wish me luck!

Bezy, or Meringue Cookies

Bezy (Beh-zih), or Meringue cookies in English, are some of the simplest but complicated cookies I have ever cooked.  Simple in terms of the amount of ingredients and steps, but complicated in terms of, if you don't understand the steps, you get egg white mush, which I will admit was my result the first two batches I ever made.

Every year for Christmas for at least the past ten years, I have not given toys or gift cards to friends and family, I have only given out homemade cookies. 


The first three years the cookies were not really great and took me so much energy to make, I felt discouraged.  But I spent a lot of time and energy in them and gifted them anyway, because "it's the thought that counts".  I've gotten better since.


Ingredients:

6 egg whites (so that there is plenty of liquid for the mixer to really mix well)
3/4 to 1 1/2 cup sugar (depending on how sweet you like it) You can use regular or powder or raw sugar

Optional:

pinch of salt or 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar to help stabilize the bubbles in the egg whites
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or rum extract

Separate the egg whites and leave to room temperature for half an hour. 

Beat the egg whites until foamy.  A tip: Make absolutely sure there is no oil on the bowl or wire whip (whisk) as this will prevent the bubbles from properly forming.  If you are going to add the salt or cream of tartar, this is when you would do it.

 

 

Once you have soft peaks to your egg whites (I whip mine on 8 on my mixer up to this point, then switch to 4 while adding sugar), you can begin adding the sugar a little at a time.

 

 

Mix until the sugar is all dissolved.  Or the egg whites have stiff beaks and you don't want to over mix.  Add the vanilla or rum extract and mix completely.

 

Once you have either glopped them onto the cookie sheet or piped them, it's time to put them in the oven.

 

Bake at anywhere between 200-275 degrees for 1-2 hours.  I prefer mine at 225 degrees for 2 hours.  I like mine to be completely dry all the way through but some like theirs soft and gooey inside.

They didn't even get a chance to be set down before my husband, and then my older daughter right after, stole one.

 

I hope Sw. Mikolaj likes these!  I hope they last until Sw. Mikolaj comes...

 

Smacznego!


Notes:  If you pipe them using a smaller hole, they will be more crisp and solid.  If you pipe them using a larger hole or just glopping them onto the baking sheet, they will be more fluffy and melt-in-your-mouth.

If you use raw sugar, they will be more of a tan color when done and the inside will be darker.  This is because of the natural color of raw sugar.

You can also stir in chocolate chips or chopped walnuts into the whipped flavored egg whites just before piping for a more interesting texture, if you like.  We like them plain with vanilla extract.

Kogiel Mogiel, My Secret Polish Home Remedy (and Sin-Dessert)

Everyone has a home remedy they lean on for a sore throat, especially in the winter time.  Mine just happens to also be a kind of sin food I've made on my own since I began elementary school.  There is something so comforting about this simple dessert.  It's called Kogiel Mogiel. 

You might also know this as a Kogel mogel, Gogl-Mogl, Gogel-Mogel or Gogle-mogle, in Yiddish.  This is a rudimentary egg-nog, which is why some call it a "Polish Eggnog". 

The recipe is said to be from 17th century Central Europe but, I personally believe that because the recipe is so basic, it could be much much older.  Kogiel Mogiel became much more popular during the 1980's under Communism because candies and chocolates became extremely difficult to purchase.

All you need is an egg yolk and sugar, 1 egg yolk to 1 tablespoon sugar ratio.  Or you can use honey.

Beat it (about 10 straight minutes by hand or less by mixer) until it is super thick and this gorgeous color. And then, you cross yourself, hope your cholesterol levels won't go nuts, and grab a spoon.  Mmmmm...  So bad for you.  And you can put in some rum or cognac if you feel extra naughty!

Smacznego!

My Obsession With Bread

I have an obsession with bread.  I don't mean basic US grocery store breads. 

I mean the kind of bread that smells so deliciously fresh it makes your mouth water.  The kind of bread which crunches just right when you squeeze it.  The kind of bread that you can eat a plain slice of it and it actually tastes delicious and the texture doesn't turn to mushy slime in your mouth or stick to the back of your teeth.  The kind of bread that is only good for a couple of days before it turns either stale or grows mold on it, because there are no artificial preservatives or fillings in it.

Bread like this...

My husband doesn't buy me chocolates to show me he loves me, he buys me at least two loaves of good bread.  I can't eat that much but because good bread making is a dying art form, I prefer to buy too much and financially help keep good bread making alive in our culture.  Buying local delicious bread is also a great inexpensive way to support local businesses.

I would also one day like to be skilled at bread making but, as of this time, my breads have always come out less than perfect.  However, practice makes perfect and I don't have any family close by to teach me, so I just keep trying.

Some places to buy good bread are ethnic markets, bread shops, etc.  At the Polish store, I usually buy a loaf of Wroclawski chleb (a light rye bread without caraway seeds that is oblong shaped), a loaf of Babuni chleb (a much coarser medium colored rye bread), and perhaps a dark rye or whole wheat loaf. 

My family in Poland also talks about how amazing Polish bread is.  They recently had a guest visit from Holland and we all discussed the differences in breads between our countries, a very interesting conversation.

The word for bread in Polish is "Chleb" (pronounced Hlehb with the "Ch" making a harder "H" sound). 

If you are interested, a polish blog I follow, http://amarantqa.blogspot.com/ has recipes and information about breads and other foods.  Google translate in the Google toolbar can help with translation of her site into English.  The pictures on her site are beautiful in themselves, as well.

Smacznego!