Product Description
Compared to erotic games in the village bath, brewing opium and shoplifting live turkeys in your bloomers, immigrant life in Canada is beyond boring. So Baba is brewing up Old Country rituals in her kitchen.
'Baba's Kitchen: Ukrainian Soul Food with Stories From the Village' is a collection of outrageous stories and traditional recipes from refugees and immigrants. Author Raisa Marika Stohyn (Reisa Mary Stone) has spent nearly 50 years compiling this book, starting with pureed borsch as baby food and cutting dough circles for perogies as soon as she could reach.
In the form of a gonzo memoir, narrator Baba (grandma), tells wild-but-true stories such as:
"Baba is village berry-picking expert. I put berry stain on lip and say to Nazi, 'Come here, you.' Baba take him into forest to pick mushroom. He pick wrong mushroom. Oop, is dead Nazi." (Followed by exquisite mushroom recipes);
and
"Once I have dog name Bingo. He is German Shepherd body on Dachshund leg. Baba have no idea how these two make romance. Some idiot on 'YouTube' be happy to show you. He probably provide chair, too. This is true meaning of 'backyard breeder,' because for sure no one want to see this in front yard."
This combination memoir and cookbook is filled with Ukrainian proverbs and Baba's commentary on same: "Why is Ukrainian so big on dish from cabbage? We say, If there are potato and cabbage, then house is not empty. Baba herself never seen house with only these thing. Usually is at least chair and television. But you never know. Baba wouldn't doubt is some isolate American somewhere, carving couch from freakazoid big potato."
If you think making traditional Ukrainian food is time consuming, try Baba's 'Tips for the Lazy'. She coaches you how to easily make cabbage rolls: "Here is trick for peeling leaf from cabbage: Clean out freezer so you have room for cabbage, size your head. Put head cabbage in plastic bag. Stick inside freezer for at least forty eight hour. Or, if is middle of winter, lock cabbage in trunk of that junky car in front your trailer. Don't forget where you leave, or in spring your relative will have to move out of car because of smell.
This mean you have to plan ahead. Maybe this not so easy like Baba first think.
After two or three day, take cabbage out from freezer. Take out from plastic. Put in colander thing and let thaw overnight with no disturbance. If you make disturbance, cabbage might think it better off without you.
Next day, take out core like Baba teach you. Cabbage leaf will almost fall off by themself. Have clean towel underneath to catch wet."
Baba's Kitchen is 320 pages and 190 recipes, with a chapter on Ukrainian natural remedies. In a nod to Raisa's Jewish grandfather who moved to a Ukrainian village, there are references to Jewish culture and cooking. Including plenty of schmaltz.
'Baba's Kitchen: Ukrainian Soul Food with Stories From the Village' is a collection of outrageous stories and traditional recipes from refugees and immigrants. Author Raisa Marika Stohyn (Reisa Mary Stone) has spent nearly 50 years compiling this book, starting with pureed borsch as baby food and cutting dough circles for perogies as soon as she could reach.
In the form of a gonzo memoir, narrator Baba (grandma), tells wild-but-true stories such as:
"Baba is village berry-picking expert. I put berry stain on lip and say to Nazi, 'Come here, you.' Baba take him into forest to pick mushroom. He pick wrong mushroom. Oop, is dead Nazi." (Followed by exquisite mushroom recipes);
and
"Once I have dog name Bingo. He is German Shepherd body on Dachshund leg. Baba have no idea how these two make romance. Some idiot on 'YouTube' be happy to show you. He probably provide chair, too. This is true meaning of 'backyard breeder,' because for sure no one want to see this in front yard."
This combination memoir and cookbook is filled with Ukrainian proverbs and Baba's commentary on same: "Why is Ukrainian so big on dish from cabbage? We say, If there are potato and cabbage, then house is not empty. Baba herself never seen house with only these thing. Usually is at least chair and television. But you never know. Baba wouldn't doubt is some isolate American somewhere, carving couch from freakazoid big potato."
If you think making traditional Ukrainian food is time consuming, try Baba's 'Tips for the Lazy'. She coaches you how to easily make cabbage rolls: "Here is trick for peeling leaf from cabbage: Clean out freezer so you have room for cabbage, size your head. Put head cabbage in plastic bag. Stick inside freezer for at least forty eight hour. Or, if is middle of winter, lock cabbage in trunk of that junky car in front your trailer. Don't forget where you leave, or in spring your relative will have to move out of car because of smell.
This mean you have to plan ahead. Maybe this not so easy like Baba first think.
After two or three day, take cabbage out from freezer. Take out from plastic. Put in colander thing and let thaw overnight with no disturbance. If you make disturbance, cabbage might think it better off without you.
Next day, take out core like Baba teach you. Cabbage leaf will almost fall off by themself. Have clean towel underneath to catch wet."
Baba's Kitchen is 320 pages and 190 recipes, with a chapter on Ukrainian natural remedies. In a nod to Raisa's Jewish grandfather who moved to a Ukrainian village, there are references to Jewish culture and cooking. Including plenty of schmaltz.
