Traditional Lithuanian dinner

Lithuanian Saltibarsciai (Cold Beet Soup)

Ingredients 500ml kefir or buttermilk 3 medium beets, boiled and peeled 2 large cucumbers, diced 2 eggs, hard boiled a bunch of chives, chopped a bunch of fresh dill,chopped salt 450 g potatoes

Instructions Boil the potatoes. You can either serve the potatoes boiled or to add an extra crisp, quickly sautee them in oil before serving. Slice the beetroot. Chop the eggs into small dice. Chop the onions leaves and the dill into small pieces. Pour the kefir or buttermilk into a large bowl or saucepan and add the chopped ingredients and half of the lemon juice. Taste and season salt and additional lemon juice as required. Ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with the remaining dill

Potato-Meat Dumplings (zeppelins - cepelinai )

Ingredients 1 kg potatoes 3 large potatoes, peeled, boiled and mashed 1/5 cup starch Salt For filling: 100 g ground meat Onion Gravy: 200 gr bacon, diced 1 small chopped onion 1 cup sour cream pepper to taste

Instructions Grate raw potatoes, squeeze dry, mix with starch and salt. Knead well. Make dumplings stuffed with filling. Seal seams, smooth with damp palm. To make softer dough use boiled and mashed potatoes instead of a third of raw potato gratings. Put zeppelins into boiling water and cook for about 30 min. The gravy: Fry the bacon and onion until tender.  Drain and combine with sour cream and black pepper. Thin with 1-2tbsp milk if necessary.

Žagarėliai /Twigs

Ingredients 500 gr. flour ½ cups butter 6 egg yolks 2 whole eggs 2 tablespoons sugar 1 cup sour cream 1 teaspoon vanilla extract some   powdered sugar some   oil

Instructions Blend yolks and 2 whole eggs with sugar until thick and lemon colored. Sift flour into eggs, add sour cream, vanilla . Mix well. Beat dough with rolling pin, folding dough inward, until dough shows blisters. The more air is incorporated into dough, the lighter the twigs. Let dough rest in refrigerator for a couple of hours. Roll out dough very thin, cut into strips, 10 cm long and 2 cm wide, cut a slit in center, pull one end through slit. Heat oil in deep pot or deep fryer, to keep oil from foaming add 2 pieces raw potato. When the twig is placed into hot oil and rises to surface fast, this means that oil is at right temperature. Fry until golden brown on both sides. Drain twigs on paper towels or brown paper and dust with powdered sugar while still hot.

Lithuanian Kisielius (Cranberry Pudding)

Ingredients Cranberries - 2 cups   Water – 1, 5 litre   Sugar - 1/4 cup   Potato Starch - 3 tbsp  

Instructions Place the cranberries in a saucepan and cover them with three cups of cold water. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes allowing the cranberries to split and the flavors to blend. Remove from heat. Force the mixture through a food mill or sieve. Discard the cranberry skins. Dissolve the starch in half a glass of water. Boil the water and add the cranberry juice and dissolved starch.  Carefully add the sugar and mix gently while boiling. When it is done, pour the liquid into cups for serving.