Saturday 5 May 2012

From Russia To The Ukraine....



Whilst I have focused previously on Russia, I would like today to shine a spotlight on the marvellous country of The Ukraine. 


 
We took the night train from Moscow to Kiev and thus saw little of the countryside but in our ‘first class’ train carriage had wonderful service from our conductor who gave us regular cups of tea from his steaming samovar.  

Not so good was the awaking in the early hours of the morning on the train, from the Ukrainian border police who woke us up in order to stare at our faces and then declared at 3am we did not look like our passport photos...after several rather anxious minutes they finally agreed they were happy...

Note to self...must make sure I go to bed with full makeup when crossing a border...

And on to Kiev!

What a wonderful place to visit!


 
This bustling city at the heart of the country of The Ukraine made a marvellous stopover after visiting Russia.

Like Moscow, it was really easy to travel around the city using the metro-you just had to remember the long names of the places written in the Cyrillic alphabet of the stations to make sure you didn’t get lost...

I do remember my father telling me that when he visited  Moscow in the 1970s that he had carefully written down the name of the metro station he had just exited only to find later after many futile attempts to find his way back to his hotel that he had copied down the Russian for ‘Exit’...

Kiev is a city like so many others we saw in Russia and the Ukraine, one of contrasts...

Outside would be your typical large rather unattractive urban sprawl but within the city were little gems...like this statue of a man proposing which is touched for good luck by many a couple!


 
In Kiev there are some fabulous museums and whilst there are two prices, one for locals and a higher one for foreigners, they are still very cheap to visit.  I love exploring art museums and the quality of the art was spectacular. There were also different styles and scenes of Ukrainian life which I had never experienced before. 

Kiev itself, is great to explore on foot and in the old part of the city, lots of places are situated close to each other. Many of the younger people of Kiev speak excellent English and were keen to help if you appeared lost!

On a more sombre note we also visited Babyn Yar, away from the main part of the city and scene of one of the most horrific episodes of history, where 34,000 people from the local Jewish community were rounded up in 48 hours, massacred and then buried in this ravine...the day we visited it was so very, very quiet...


 
The Ukraine was a wonderful place to visit, full of contrasts with glittering gold churches in the cities and beautiful countryside with equally stunning wooden churches. 



The people we met were all very proud of their history and heritage and I so much enjoyed learning more about this particular part of the world.


 
 To get more of a taste of these proud people please have a look at this little clip...



And now on to food! The rye bread we had was wonderful as were the various goulashes with fiery paprika and soups with delicious dumplings. But today I present...

Khachapuri -Georgian Cheese Pie



 
This is a tasty cheese pie that is very popular in Russia and the adjoining countries...

Although a traditional dish from Georgia, its fame has travelled across Russia and the former Soviet countries and has become a very popular ‘fast food’. I discovered it on the little stalls outside of the metro stations- either sold as slices from a large pie or as folded pastry in a small individual pie.

Tucking into the warm pastry and the oozing melting cheese was an absolute delight...

Each recipe is slightly different. The cheese mixture depends on the region but generally has a combination of salty and melting cheese i.e. feta and mozzarella or their equivalents.

I have added a taste of my own with a handful of finely chopped sage and chives.

Traditionally the pastry is made with yogurt however I have cheated and used ready made puff pastry.

Ingredients:

1 roll of ready made puff pastry-320g
200 g feta
250 mozzarella
 1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk
1 handful of freshly chopped chives
1 handful of freshly chopped sage
A generous sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200C
Roll out the sheet of puff pastry until it is twice as big again and nice and thin. Cut the pastry into two equal halves. Place one half on a large baking sheet lined with baking parchment.
In a large bowl combine the mozzarella torn in to chunks with the feta in chunks and mix together with a beaten whole egg. Add a generous grinding of pepper, chopped sage and chives.
Place the mixture on one of the halves of pastry but keep the outer 1cm edge clear. Cover the mixture with the other half of the pastry and crimp the edge to seal in the mixture. Brush the top with the beaten yolk of the second egg.
Place the pie in to the hot oven and bake for 25/30 minute until the top is golden brown.
Serve warm from the oven.



 
And finally, one last look at Kiev from across the river Dnipro, with the golden turrets of the Caves Monastery together with the enormous 200 foot metal statue known as ‘Mother Russia’ or ‘She Who Must Be Obeyed’ and... rather irreverently by locals... as ‘Tin Tits’



 
Have a good evening everybody!

29 comments:

  1. I do so love these posts. I will likely never leave the US and I do enjoy getting to see place through others photos and experiences.

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    1. Hi Becky,

      Thank you so much for your kind comment. One of the best parts I find too with blogging is seeing other parts of the world... I love reading your posts as it is always so interesting to hear how things are in your neck of the woods too!!

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  2. Another wonderful post. I am thinking your cheese pie sounds fantastic and I will give this recipe a go...but since I put a little garlic in everything lol I am going to tweak the recipe a little and add garlic. Such a wonderful journey your taking thanks for sharing...

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    1. Hi Dusty,

      Thank you so much for stopping by,
      I think the addition of some garlic would be fantastic-I’ll try it myself next time I make it!

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  3. Wicked i think this would go beautifully with a cheese mad friend who makes cakes. Another brilliant blog loving the tour, where are we off to next?

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    1. Hi Wobblymouse,

      Glad you liked the posts!! Not too sure where to go next...might be closer to home??

      Delete
  4. Another fascinating post GD... Of course, being who I am, I am mostly interested in reading about what the people in other parts of the world eat! I'd love that cheese pie, for sure.
    Had a little chuckle when I read that it is popular in "...Russia and its adorning countries". :)
    That statue is faintly reminiscent of the Statue of Liberty in NY, isn't it - but evidently symbolising the exact opposite principles.

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    1. Hi Mark,

      However much I read over my posts I always seem to miss something!!

      I’m with you on wanting to see what the locals eat. We only stayed in one hotel during the whole trip and that was in St Petersburg and luckily only had breakfast there...the waiters wore what looked like white hospital coats-and very little else underneath...

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  5. More wonderful photos GD. I am so enjoying these. The churches look beautiful... so ornate, the architecture actually reminds me a great deal of the type of churches they have in the north of Sweden.

    The cheese pie looks delicious... my neighbour makes something like this from time to time... I'm not sure where her family is originally from, but it is from that area I believe. She's heavy on the parsley which I find always delicious!

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    1. Hi Charles,

      The churches were spectacular and I loved the colours and shapes of them-so different from ours...I’ve only been as far north as Leksand in Sweden but yes the churches are so pretty there.

      Mmm-the pie with the addition of lots of parley-sounds good to me too!!

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  6. Great photos! And great looking pie too! I absolutely love your posts on Russia and Ukraine. Thanks so much for taking the time out and sharing.

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    1. Hi Sri,

      Thank you for your kind comment. I didn’t know quite what to expect before my visit but my experiences were so interesting so I’m glad of the opportunity to share them.

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  7. I love the third photo down - those spires are just fabulous. That pie looks delicious - pure comfort food. I looks a bit like the Turkish borek?

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    1. Hi Liz,

      You are right! It is also similar to little cheese pastry triangles I used to eat in Malta and all around Greece-one of those universal dishes that probably every country has their own variation-bit like our Cornish cheese and onion pasty!

      Those spires are beautiful-difficult to get a good photo as the camera didn’t know what to focus on...

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  8. Thank you for showing me Kiev, a city I have never visited. I love the statue of the man proposing to his girl. And that pastry dish with the chives looks and sounds very yummy xx

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    1. Hi Charlie,

      Kiev is wonderful to visit. The metro and the bus service is relatively easy to use to explore both within the city and the surrounding areas in the countryside. The Ukrainians are very friendly and hospitable and keen for foreigners to enjoy their country which they are justly very proud of.

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  9. I've never been to The Ukraine and doubt that I'll ever make it. I've really enjoyed these posts of your Russian holiday, though, especially the architecture. Really quite beautiful. This cheese pie is my kind of souvenir! Thanks for sharing so much of your trip with us.

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    1. Hi John,

      Thanks for stopping by. The cheese pie is rather scrumptious though I didn’t make the cheese myself which you of course could!! Your posts on making cheese are fantastic!

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  10. So sorry, I have only just spotted this post. Spectacular buildings, sculptures, and fascinating facts, I enjoyed it all. Then you post about melted cheese...I have just had my evening meal, but roll-on lunchtime tomorrow, if I can wait that long. I can smell that pie, I love the smell of cooked cheese. Lovely post.

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    1. Hi Elaine,

      There is something so irresistible about a pie with melting oozing cheese isn’t there!!

      Delete
  11. Khachapuri has been in my bookmark folder for ages and I totally forgot abotu it until your post. I am wanting some ,please. I have been coming by and enjoying reading your posts, though not commenting much.

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    1. Hi Shaheen,

      Thanks for dropping by and lovely to hear from you. Hope you are coping with this ‘lovely’ Welsh weather at the moment!!

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  12. What a wonderful tour...your photos are great. I had seen the statue before but did not realize it was in Kiev.

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    1. Hi Karen,

      Thank you for your kind comments!
      Yes the statue is in the old part of Kiev on Andreevsky Street near the church of Saint Andrew. I heard that lots of couples visit it but we were the only people there that day...

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  13. That was quite a trip. Your photos are spectacular and I imagine seeing the real buildings must be even more spectacular. Wondered if such buildings could be built today?????
    The cheese pie has got to be the most delicious 'fast food'.

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    1. Hi Norma,

      That trip was rather special!

      Glad you liked the pie!!

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  14. I enjoy the way you do your posts, ending up with food... such magnificent architecture... and the cheese pie... urmmmm...

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    1. Hi Lrong,

      Many thanks for your kind comment! I hadn’t actually realised that with my posts that I ended up with a recipe-must be my subconscious working!!

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  15. What a fantastic post. I know so little about the Ukraine. These few photos you have shown are so beautiful and that huge statue (of liberty?) rising up above the trees is truly magnificent. The proposing couple made me laugh though - the woman looked rather loose showing off her leg like that. But it's history is obviously traumatic.

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