Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

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Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Bob on Sat Oct 31, 2009 10:35 am

http://www.babaskitchenonline.com/

Some of my fondest memories from childhood are the times spent in my Grandma Figlar’s kitchen. I remember spending many Friday evenings in her two-story house on Hill Street in Duquesne, Pennsylvania, surrounded by my aunts, uncles, and cousins. Dressed in her blue and white cotton housedress, quilted slippers, and a white babushka (scarf) covering her hair, my Slovak “Baba” stood over her stove for what seemed like hours, preparing chicken soup, mouthwatering golden buns dusted with flour, and lemon pie—all made without reference to a written recipe. Even today, I can recall the delightful aromas of fresh bread baking in the oven, the chicken soup slowly simmering in the large, "bottomless," white enamel pot on the stove, and browning butter in the old black iron skillet.
I grew up in Duquesne, a steel-producing town near Pittsburgh, where large numbers of Slovaks settled in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. My grandmother, Verona Straka Figlar, came to America from Slovakia in 1922. Although she left behind her own mother and the world most familiar to her to start a new life in America, she brought with her all of those aspects of her Slovak heritage that were an integral part of her identity.
In the Slovak culture, food is richly entwined with tradition and religious teachings, especially for Christmas and Easter, when special dishes are prepared and rituals observed. For example, on Christmas Eve, we celebrated with a meatless Vilia Supper (to honor the Christian practice of fasting). During this supper, we ate foods like bobalky, perfectly baked little balls of dough browned in butter and mixed with sauerkraut, and pirohi, ravioli-like pillows of dough filled with cabbage, cottage cheese, potato, or prunes. At Easter, we ate paska, a round bread with a golden crust and yellow center made from eggs, butter, and white raisins (indicative of living bread come down from Heaven), and hrudka, a bland, sweet, custard-like “cheese” made from cooked and separated eggs and milk (as a symbol of moderation).
Then there were the home remedies. Some I continue today, like adding a shot of whisky to a cup of hot tea when I have a sore throat; others I try to forget from my childhood, such as wearing cooked sauerkraut wrapped in a cloth around my neck to reduce the swelling from the mumps.
Whatever the occasion, “Baba’s” kitchen functioned as the center of her home. It was where this soft-spoken Slovak woman spent the majority of her days as wife, mother, and grandmother, preserving the traditions of her homeland. There, in her domain, she also assumed other important roles of comforter, teacher, disciplinarian, financial manager, and instiller of religious teachings, morals and values.
The kitchen also became the place where some of life’s most important lessons were taught and learned. In Baba’s kitchen I learned the importance of family. I also learned how to share because no matter how many of us showed up for dinner, Grandma somehow managed to divide the food among us in a way that made us all feel satisfied.
It was also in this kitchen I was introduced to the foods and traditions that were central to my Slovak and Rusyn heritage. Paska bread at Easter, bobalky at Christmas and halushki every Friday night…
Like many immigrant women, my Grandma Figlar was a wonderful cook. Sadly, I never got the chance to truly know my paternal grandmother, Elizabeth Fenscak Alzo, who died when I was two-years-old. However, I learned from my parents that Grandma Elizabeth was very skilled in the kitchen and spoiled my father with delicious meals. Fortunately, some of her recipes were passed down to her daughter (my Aunt Betty), and she prepared them often for family dinners and gatherings.
When Grandma Figlar passed away in 1984, my mother took over the roles of "expert cook" and cultural "torch bearer." Our kitchen became the gathering place for Christmas Eve and Easter Sunday celebrations. Mother would don her own babushka, pull out Grandma's large wooden board and rolling pin and prepare the various Slovak dishes to perfection. Although she opted to keep her "recipes" handy, my mother probably could have prepared all of the dishes without reference. Of course, she had a great teacher.
My mother passed away in 2000, leaving my family one more step removed from our heritage. While we try to preserve our Slovak traditions, it becomes increasingly difficult in today’s hectic world, as my family becomes more scattered. The time spent with loved ones is limited to holidays and special occasions.
It is often said that you do not truly appreciate a person until he or she is no longer present. I am so grateful to my grandmothers for passing down their recipes and life’s lessons, and I pay tribute to them with this book.

Pirohi Recipe

http://www.babaskitchenonline.com/
____________________________________________________________________________

These are the real deal! and she is not related to me as far as we both know---[my family original name was also Figlyar changed to Figlar and to Figler. Her family name stopped at Figlar and we both had grandfathers named Janos Figlyar.]
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Muad'dib on Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:52 am

Hmm, my family is also from Slovakia, though of predominantly Hungarian descent. I'll check this out.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby emre on Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:09 pm

Love me some pirogis. :) This year for Christmas I'm gonna make my girlfriend cook a giant pot of pelmeni! ;D
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Areios on Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:01 am

Zhong_Kui wrote:Hmm, my family is also from Slovakia, though of predominantly Hungarian descent. I'll check this out.

I'm almost sure they were hungarians. Many hungarians emigrated out of Hungary form the first WW. (mostly from countrys like slovakia serbia wich were hungary once) I don't promise it, but if you have some details I can do a little search in hungary.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Areios on Sun Nov 01, 2009 11:01 am

Areios wrote:
Zhong_Kui wrote:Hmm, my family is also from Slovakia, though of predominantly Hungarian descent. I'll check this out.

I'm almost sure they were hungarians. Many hungarians emigrated out of Hungary form the first WW. (mostly from countrys like slovakia serbia wich were hungary once, and almost every one went to the west or to america) I don't promise it, but if you have some details I can do a little search in hungary.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Bob on Sun Nov 01, 2009 12:22 pm

Areios:

At the time my grandparents left, Slovakia was part of the Austrian/Hungarian Empire--my grandparents knew how to speak both Slovak and Hungarian--they lived in a village 25 miles from Budapest. Although I can't spell the village it sounded like Ubrez [ooobrish was the sound]. Their names was Figlyar and I have been told that it is most likely they had German origin.

Of course the other side of my family is from Montecatini Terme/Pistoia and Lucca---growing up with both sides was a homestyle gourmet delight.

Figlyar means jokester and it holds true for my family. LOL
Last edited by Bob on Sun Nov 01, 2009 12:24 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Muad'dib on Sun Nov 01, 2009 12:34 pm

Areios,

I am more than almost certain I am fully hungarian on that side. My family name is "Madar", which means "Bird/Fowler" in Hungarian, and in Slovak means "Hungarian". :) My Grandfather is from near Bratislava, my grandmother was from Pest, though originally that side came from near Rumania.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Areios on Mon Nov 02, 2009 12:03 pm

It's interesting that some of you have some hungarian heritage. It would be interesting if you could tell me if it was originaly Madar or it was Madár back in the days. Many family names are also names of towns. And it was a town near of Bratislava/Pozsony that was called Madar. I don't want to be rude or anyithing but Madar in hungarian only means bird. Flower is Virág.

Bob,
You have a uniqe name and yes it's 95% that it's a german. It's harder for me to search because every slovak city or village had a hungarian name also, but slowly they banished those names specialy with they new law... (it's a probelm to get some maps) I'm gonna look maybe I can finde something.
Last edited by Areios on Mon Nov 02, 2009 2:03 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby shawnsegler on Mon Nov 02, 2009 1:35 pm

I likes me some Magyar Metal!!!




Edit: OoOooooohhhhhh....Pokolgep has a tune with your name in it, Dan!!!!

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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Darth Rock&Roll on Mon Nov 02, 2009 2:34 pm

why haven't them peoples gotten rid of the roman name for "slave" ?

Slavic. I would have dumped that moniker 1400 years ago when the red scourge finally faded.

;D
Coconuts. Bananas. Mangos. Rice. Beans. Water. It's good.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Muad'dib on Mon Nov 02, 2009 4:43 pm

Areios

Fowler, not flower.

Fowler = one who hunts/keeps birds. I was pretty sure it's just bird though. I have a lot of hungarian born friends in Tokyo of all places.

And I would have to look on some gravestones to verify which it is.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby BillyK on Mon Nov 02, 2009 4:49 pm

Darth Rock&Roll wrote:why haven't them peoples gotten rid of the roman name for "slave" ?

Slavic. I would have dumped that moniker 1400 years ago when the red scourge finally faded.

;D


the roman (latin) word for slave is servus.

the word slave itself stems from slav (because lots of slavs were, well, enslaved in medieval europe), not vice versa. the term slavs had for their own people (slovenci) originally probably meant something like "people of renown" or "famous people".
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Areios on Tue Nov 03, 2009 4:12 am

yup and hungarians are not slavic people. :)
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Muad'dib on Tue Nov 03, 2009 1:25 pm

No we are not.
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Re: Slovak Home Style Cooking--Baba's Kitchen

Postby Bill on Tue Nov 03, 2009 2:23 pm

Are any of you related to Vlad III Dracula?
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