A classic winter treat, Croatian Krafne Doughnuts are best made by hand from a dough as soft as hotel pillows, with a touch of lemon zest and rum or brandy, and come together in 2 hours or less. So much fun to fry and roll …
A classic Rosace a L’Orange, made up of layers of genoise sponge and creme legere, a mix of creme patisserie and whipped cream, on top of which sit soft candied orange slices. A French classic which isn’t as difficult as its reputation. Un Challenge I …
If I told you that the height lacking, Moulin Rouge reveling, ultimate bohemian artist Henri Toulouse-Lautrec was the inventor of (albeit) chocolate mousse, would you believe me? I’m not surprised that he did. Saying yes too much to life (or just enough), absinthe for breakfast …
I love coffee. I like to think I love the flavor, but, at this point, it is the feeling of drinking coffee that makes me happy, though the flavor rarely disappoints. Like my Croatian relatives, I can’t drink coffee from a tall paper cup while …
This classic Croatian sweet yeast bread is made with a homemade almond filling and swirled into a roulade shape. The end result is something in between a babka and a pound cake—moist from the addition of sour cream–bursting with sweet almond and topped with white …
A Journey Into Time As I crack open the window in the pentagon shaped living room, the room that feels like a cabin on a ship perched high in the trees above the street, I feel cold, but no wind. There is a soft, periwinkle …
A Christmas Eve Tradition Christmas Eve in Westchester, 1985. It was our last Christmas in the only home I had ever known in life and childhood, the big California style house on the hill, the one with modern additions thanks to my Croatian born father’s …
A Christmas Failure The Christmas Season came too quickly for me. We lost our 17 year old feline child (grandmother), and, through loved ones and workplaces, I got sick the weekend before Christmas. It was all happening too fast–missing connections with friends, buying gifts last …
Croatian American Holiday Baking I did not grow up with Medenjaci. My mother, an avid baker, who filled full notebooks of ONLY Christmas recipes, often made gingerbread cookies, ginger spice biscuits, and homemade gingerbread houses, with the help of my brother and me. She was …
Mysterious Origins I never understood where it came from. My maternal grandfather was Croatian, from Sinj, on the Dalmatian coast. I’ve written plenty about him, recently in the Inquisitive Eater here. He was, at least on many levels, not typically American, even though he came …