Happy New Year!

Ukrainian Dried Fruit Compote Uzvar

4 ounces dried prunes, pitted
8 ounces dried apples, slices
8 ounces dried pear halves, quarters
1 cup honey (clover or wild)
1 cinnamon stick
6 cloves
2 quarts apple cider
1 lemon

Mint leaves

Preparation:
Combine fruit in a large pot and fill with enough cider to cover it by a third or more.
Add cloves and lemon peel. Simmer until the larger pieces are cooked but not falling apart.
Pour off liquid and cook until reduced by a third. To reduced liquid add honey, cinnamon,
lemon juice, and fruit. Reheat, stirring.

Taste, and add more lemon juice if needed. Serve warm or cold in crystal or clear glass
bowls with the mint leaves. Keeps in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Ciuperci la cuptor – baked mushrooms

500 g big mushrooms
salt, pepper, dill, garlic powder
olive oil

Filling:
150 g bread crumbs

Preparation:
Warm up the oven to 200 degrees C. Wash the mushrooms and cut away the stalks. Grease a tray

with olive oil, put the mushrooms on the tray bottoms up. In a cup prepare the olive oil mixture with

salt, pepper and garlic powder. Brush the mixture on the mushrooms. Chop the dill and sprinkle on top.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve warm as a side dish or as a starter with green salad and good bread.

Filling: Mix the breadcrumbs with salt, pepper, garlic powder, olive oil, 2 tablespoons of water

and the chopped dill. Fill in the mushrooms. Bake for 25 minutes.

Stuffed Peppers

8 large peppers - green or red
For the filling:
250 g minced meat
1 glass of rice
2 tablespoons of sunflower oil
1 onion
1 carrot
1 tomato or tomato paste
1 teaspoon of paprika
salt and pepper according to your preferences
1 tablespoon of flour

Preparation:
Fine chop the onion. Slice the carrots into small cubes. Heat up the frying pan with the oil. Stew

the onion. Add the carrots and continue stewing. Add salt. Mix the minced meat with the vegetables.

Add tomato paste. Stir well and add the rice in the mixture. Add paprika. Finally you can add pepper

or other spice of your choice. With the help of a spoon, fill the peppers with the ready filling. Dip the

peppers in flour, in order to seal them. Arrange the peppers in a clay vessel and pour them with water.

Bake the dish in the oven for about 40-50 minutes.

The ready stuffed peppers can be served in their own sauce or another sauce of your choice.

They are most often garnished with Bulgarian yogurt or sauce, prepared by yogurt, flour and an egg.

Potica - Nut Pastry

Dough:
1 package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks, beaten
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
.
Pumpkin Seed Filling:
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups unsalted raw pumpkin seeds

1/4 cup + 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 pound melted butter
2 large egg yolks, slightly beaten
2 large egg whites, beaten until stiff

Preparation:
Dough: Dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside. Heat 2 sticks butter, milk, 2 tablespoons sugar

and salt until lukewarm and butter has melted. In large bowl, combine yeast mixture, butter mixture

and beaten egg yolks. Add flour gradually, beating well. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover

with greased plastic and let rise until doubled. 

Pumpkin Seed Filling: In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add pumpkin seeds, 1/4 cup

sugar and vanilla, stirring constantly. Once the seeds have toasted, remove from heat and let cool.

In a large bowl, combine 1 stick melted butter, 2 egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Stir in cooled

pumpkin seeds, then fold in stiff egg whites. On parchment paper, roll dough 1/4-inch thick. Spread

with filling and roll as for Bulgarian Cherry Strudel. If potica is too long for your pan, cut it in half

and seal the ends or form into a horseshoe or wreath shape. Place on a parchment-lined sheet and

let rise, covered, until doubled. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Egg wash potica using 1 large egg beaten

with 1 tablespoon water.

Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour or until nicely browned. Cool completely before slicing. The potica can

be coated with a white glaze, dusted with confectioners' sugar or left plain. After egg washing, potica

can be sprinkled with raw whole pumpkin seeds. Alternatively, if the potica is glazed after baking and

cooling, it can be sprinkled with toasted whole pumpkin seeds.