Ala bala portocala...

De prajitura asta imi aduc aminte cu drag. Era nelipsita la noi in casa de Craciun. Tin minte ca o admiram in nestire pe mamica mea...nu am crezut ca voi fi in stare vreodata sa o reproduc. De aceea sunt foarte mandra de cum mi-a iesit, in special de vreme ce e prima incercare.

Foile:
150 gr zahar
1 ou
2 lg miere
50 gr. untura
1 lgta rasa bicarbonat dizolvat in 2 lg de lapte
500 gr faina

Zaharul, mierea si untura se pun la bain marine (la aburi) si se amesteca pana se topesc zaharul si mierea. Se adauga oul si laptele cu bicarbonat si se amesteca pana se ingroasa compozitia si se schimba culoarea (se face mai aurie). La inceput o sa se dubleze in cantitate (sa aveti un vas destul de mare, ca la mine era sa se reverse) si apoi scade din nou la cantitatea originala. Atunci este gata.
Luam de pe aburi compozitia si se toarna fierbinte peste faina si se framanta bine. Aluatul obtinut se imparte in 3 si se pastreaza cu vasul peste vasul cu apa fierbinte ca sa ramana cald/fierbinte.(cu aragazul stins)

Cabbage rolls is one of the signature dishes for all Romanian holidays. The origin is disputable, however, as it seems a lot of Eastern Europe nations have this as a traditional dish. However, I like to think of it as a Romanian dish, especially the way we make it.

You will need:

1 medium/large size cabbage
1 lb ground beef
some bacon or any smoked bones (for flavor)
1/2 cup rice
1 medium onion
salt and pepper (to taste-I actually taste the mixture :-)
8 oz tomato sauce
1 tbsp dry thyme

To make the cabbage soft enough to roll, you will need to either boil it (which will stink up your home :0), or you can freeze it and defrost it again. Once defrost, you will separate the leaves, and gently squeeze some of the water out. Here's a great tutorial on how to roll your cabbage rolls: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-tk4bTxn64

To prepare the meat mixture, you fry the onion in some oil(about 2 tablespoons), then add the bacon (you can skip) and fry it. Add rice and stir for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add to the ground beef, add salt and pepper and mix evenly (be careful, it might be hot; don't over-mix either). Make the rolls and place them in circles in the pot. Add the tomato sauce mixed with 8 oz water. Add as much water as needed to cover the cabbage rolls by 1 1/2 inch. Make sure the water/tomato sauce mixture has enough salt, otherwise it will pull out all the salt from the cabbage rolls and they won't taste that good. It should have the same concentration of salt as the cabbage rolls. Add the thyme (and the smoked bones if you chose not to add the bacon) and set to boil. Once it starts boiling, reduce the heat and let it boil slowly, covered. It will take about 45 min to an hour.
Eat them with sour cream or by themselves.

Luna Decembrie este dedicata de cei de la My Kitchen, My World lumii culinare romanesti. Nici ca se poate mai bine: este si luna Zilei noastre Nationale, si aniversarea Revolutiei, si luna cu cele mai bune mancaruri romanesti, si cele mai frumoase traditii de Craciun...Cine are mai buna mancare ca noi, romanii, de Craciun? Ufff, ca dor mai imi e de tara...Vorba ceea: "Fie painea cat de rea, tot mai buna-n tara mea." Ce sa faci daca al meu s-a nascut cu un picior in Romania si unul in State? I-am promis cand l-am luat ca unde se duce el ma duc si eu, nu viceversa. Asa ca...
Dar sa revenim la oalele noastre. Deci, e concurs cu mancaruri romanesti la My Kitchen, My World, asa ca hai sa dam mana cu mana si sa aratam lumii cum se manaca romaneste de Craciun...