Pies

Perfectly Simple Cabbage Pie

August 15, 2014
milkandbun
52 comments
baking, cabbage, cabbage pie, food, food and recipes, food photography, food styling, photo, photography, pie, puff pastry, recipe, Russian pie, Russian recipe, sesame seeds, vegetables

I have made a puff pastry! Can you believe?! 😀 And it was a classic recipe, not a cheat one. Though it has turned out not really good as I expected, I think I put a bit much of butter, or it wasn’t very cold.. But I’m still proud of myself, and the pastry is hundred times better then the store-bought. Moreover, puff pastry in stores is usually made from margarine or palm oil, which are trans-fats, the worst type of fat you can consume.

The below recipe is a classic recipe of Russian cabbage pie. This time I used puff pastry, the pie turned out crispy, buttery, comforting and so tasty! When I lived in Russia, usually we made a good quantity of this dough (which I used in koulebyaka-pie), and made one huge pie with savory filling; if we’d had some remaining dough we made small pirogki (small pies) with jam or sweet tvorog (cottage cheese).

There is no filling recipe, because it’s hard to count grams of cabbage if you don’t know how big or small will be the pie. One loves when the dough is thick, another when the filling is falling out from the pie. You can have a look ‘the guide how to’ below, but the quantity of ingredients adjust to your own taste.

For the cabbage filling, shred some fresh cabbage, and slightly braise it along with chopped onion and spices. Then add coarsely chopped hard-boiled eggs, and season with salt, that’s it! The lovely cabbage filling is ready!

I know, the pie is very simple, but it’s so comforting, that after first bite you begin to feel like you are at home.. Sweet home! ❤ I’m bringing the pie to all party-people over there; I truly hope you will enjoy it!

Russian Cabbage Pie

The pie is equally good reheated for lunch or dinner next day!

Ingredients

Cabbage filling

Fresh cabbage, shreded

1 small or medioum onion, finely chopped

1-2 tsp cumin

2-4 Tbsp chopped fresh dill, optional

sea salt, to taste

2-3 Tbsp sunflower oil

2-3 eggs, hard-boiled

Puff pastry

300g flour

50g chilled butter

a pinch of salt

150ml very cold water

220g chilled butter for layering

Glazing

1 egg yolk + 1 Tbsp milk or only milk

sesame seeds for decoration, optional

Method

In a big frying pan, add onion, cumin, cabbage and fry on a moderate heat for 5-10 minutes. Reduce the heat, add salt, some water (if the cabbage begins to burn), cover and braise for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Season with salt, add chopped dill, if desired. Mix with chopped eggs.

Brush the pie with egg wash, sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake in preheated 180C/360F oven for 25-35 minutes (the mentioned time is enough even for a big pie).

Let it cool for 10 minutes. Enjoy with a glass of milk!

Transformer Pie

July 31, 2014
milkandbun
32 comments
baking, chicken, chicken pie, cooking, food, food and recipes, food photography, food styling, lunch, mushrooms, photo, pie, recipe, Russian pie, Russian recipe, savory pie

Transformer movie is now showing in cinemas here, I’ve already watched it, and you? I know it’s totally not girly film, but all those metal giants.. Don’t you want to be friends with one of those robots? 😀 The below pie is also like transformer. Why don’t you invite friends for a dinner and make a surprise for them, say that you had time to prepare only sugary pie with meringue top.. They didn’t guess until you begin to cut it.. Surprise! You’ve got a slice full of savory filling!

I used chicken and brown button mushrooms, but you can add some potatoes instead of mushrooms. The pie can be easily turned into sweet; use sliced apples or pears along with a handful of raisins, nectarines and blueberries are great too, and don’t forget to beat egg whites with icing sugar. Small disadvantage in sweet option are unused egg yolks, which should be used somewhere; put them in a small cup, cover with cling-wrap and next morning prepare scrambled eggs, or much better – make khvorost.

Transformer Pie

Servings: 6-7
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Ingredients (for 20cm/8inch round baking dish)

400-500g puff pastry, preferably homemade (with butter, not margarine)

2 small chicken breasts, around 350g

150g mushrooms, washed, sliced or cut into halves

1 leek or onion, chopped

1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh tarragon, optionally

1 whole egg

2 eggs, yolks and whites separated

1 tsp strong mustard, like English

2 Tbsp fatty creme fraiche or sour cream

50g grated Parmesan or any hard cheese, optionally

salt, pepper to taste

1 Tbsp oil + 1 tsp butter

Preparation

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry (4mm/0.15inch thick) and cut a 28cm/11inch disc. Line a baking dish, pop into the fridge for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut chicken into small cubes or strips; put in a bowl, add 1 egg yolk, 2 tsp sour cream, salt, pepper, tarragon (optionally), cover and leave to marinate for 20 minutes.
In a medium pan, melt butter and oil, add onion and mushrooms, fry on a moderate heat for 10-15 minutes. Add mushroom mixture to the chicken and combine.
Beat whole egg and egg yolk with remaining sour creme.
Take out the baking dish. Spoon the chicken mixture in, pour over beaten eggs.
Bake in preheated oven 180C/360F for 40-45 minutes.
Beat egg whites with a good pinch of salt until firm peaks. Optionally, you may gently fold in cheese.
Take out the pie. Spread the meringue mixture over the pie, bake for 20 minutes more or until slightly brown.
Allow pie to cool for 15 minutes. Slice and enjoy!

Check out another recipe – Kournik, Russian chicken pie!

Kulebyaka – Russian pie

Kulebyaka or Coulibiac is an authentic Russian hot pie, which has an oblong shape and features several fillings.

The word became from old Russian verb – ‘kulebyachit’, that means to make with hands, to shape, to bend and to knead.

Pies are always have been loved in Russia. Even famous Russian writers as N.Gogol and A.Turgenev glorified pies in their works. Various pies were always made for every holiday and festival, though it was posh royal celebration or small peasant occasion. Large pies stuffed with several ingredients were really popular, they were baked on Butterweek and Easter and served in taverns and small tea-houses, where each owner had a special recipe and baked very individual pies, different from anyone else’s, i.e. opened and closed pies, feature simple (potatoes or cabbage) or complicated (sturgeon with buckwheat) filling.

Festive&Delicious Kulebyaka by milkandbun

Only in the 17th century, the grand oblong pie, that features several fillings, was named ‘kulebyaka’. The pastry shell was usually made from the yeast dough (the recipe is below). The main distinction of the kulebyaka-pie from any other Russian pie is that the quantity of the filling should be two or three times exceeds the quantity of the pastry; the filling of grand (festive) kulebyaka is usually complicated and separated with thin pancakes.

The most popular fillings are salmon with buckwheat, ground meat with boiled eggs and rice, cabbage with mushrooms and onions, or visiga – a spinal marrow of the sturgeon, the last one is the unusual ingredient for nowadays, but in the 17-18th centuries it was very common.

In the 19th century, French chefs, who had worked in Russia, brought the recipe to France and adapted it to the modern cookery, thus the kulebyaka became popular pie not only in Russia. 🙂

Here is my version of the festival kulebyaka.

Kulebyaka - Russian pie

Servings: 6-7
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The yeast dough:

3tsp/5g instant dry yeast

100ml warm milk (or warm water)

2tsp white sugar

2 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp salt

200ml milk (or water), at room temperature

100g butter, melted

~600g all-purpose/plain/white flour

In a cup, stir warm milk, sugar and yeast together. Let stand until foamy about 10 minutes.
In a big bowl, crack eggs, add sugar, salt, milk, melted butter and stir together. Add sifted flour, yeast mixture and knead the dough until it’s smooth.
Cover the bowl with wet cloth, put in a warm place and leave to rise for 1 hour. After the time, knead the dough again. Repeat this step one more time.

The quantity of dough is enough for kulebyaka and one big pizza.

The filling:

600g fresh salmon, cut into small cubes

100g basmati or jasmine rice, cooked

200g mushrooms, sliced and fried

1 big onion, sliced and fried

4 eggs, cooked and chopped

2+2 Tbsp finely chopped dill and parsley

salt and freshly ground black pepper

The pancakes’ recipe you can find here. You can reduce the pancakes’ batter by half, because you need approximately 9 pancakes.

The glaze:

1 egg yolk beaten with 2Tbsp milk, 1/2tsp salt and 1/2tsp sugar

Assembling:

On a floured surface, roll out the dough to approximately 26cm*35cm rectangular and 6mm thick. You can roll the dough on a piece of baking parchement, thus it’ll be much easier to transfer the pie on a baking tray; moreover, you need to turn the pie upside down-the sealing should be on the bottom.
Coat the rolled dough with the pancakes.
Place the egg and herbs mixture lengthways down the centre of the dough.
Then arrange the mushrooms and onion mixture on top.
Next, arrange rice. And the last layer-salmon.
Cover the filling with pancakes, shape it to make a rectangular.
Then, fold the dough and seal the edges.
Transfer the pie upside down to a baking tray.
Decorate with pastry trimmings, and cut two slits in the top with a sharp knife.
Keep for a proofing for 20 minutes. Brush the pie with egg wash.
Bake in preheated 200C/400F oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden.
Leave to cool slightly for 15 minutes before slicing.
Serve with a glass of milk or a cup of freshly brewed tea.

Enjoy kulebyaka! 😀

Also I’m really excited to take part in the challenge “yeast and herbs”, that Angie organized with Catherine. I almost thought to give up, because I’m using yeast very-very rare in baking, finally after many days of brain storm it dawned on me that I already baked one awesome pie, so I came up with this recipe. It only seems complicated to make, just try it once and you will see that ‘kulebyaka’ is drool worthy dish! 😀

Moreover, are you parting at Fiesta Friday? Don’t ask me, because I do and now gonna check some great recipes, which have brought participants. Yay!

The ruby-red treat

Who doesn’t like a glorious cherry pie? 🙂

One of the good thing about this pie is that you can use different types of pastry crusts and cherries. I like to use fresh sour cherries, but here such cherries are nowhere to be found, I’ve seen only sweet and they are overpriced. So I quiet often use frozen or canned.

I made it a couple of times during the winter and I wish I would have made several more! The pie is quite easy to make and it came out amazing! Moreover, the fact that you can make the pastry ahead of time, makes the pie perfect for company or holiday parties.

Don’t forget that cherries should be pitted! The sugar amount for the filling varies depending on how sweet your cherries, adjust it to suit your personal preferences.

The ruby-red Cherry Pie

Servings: 1-2
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Ingredients (for 13 cm/5 inch pie pan):

Short crust pastry:

190g plain flour

100g butter, chilled and cut into small cubes

1/2 tbsp white sugar

a pinch of salt

30-40 ml cold water

Cherry filling:

300-400ml pitted fresh or canned cherries

1-2 tbsp white sugar, if needed

1 tsp corn starch

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 tbsp cherry liquor or brandy (optionally)

1/2 tbsp fine semolina

Glazing:

1 egg yolk+ 1tsp milk

1/2 Tbsp granulated white or brown sugar

Preparation:

Place all ingredients for the filling in a bowl, and gently combine. If you’re using fresh cherries, let them stand for 20 minutes, then toss it again.
Combine the flour, butter, sugar and salt until coarse meal. Pour water slowly and incorporate gently until the dough begins to hold together. Roll into two ball, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use (at least 30 minutes). The short crust pastry can be kept in the fridge for a week! I suggest to double the quantity of pastry and make it ahead, thus you can prepare a big pie for the family or several individual pies during the week.
Roll one portion of dough into 22 cm circle and transfer to the pie pan. Keep it in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap, while you roll out the top of the pie crust.
Roll the second pastry ball into smaller circle – 18-19 cm. Use a knife to cut vents into the top crust, so the steam has a place to escape while the pie is cooking. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 180C/360F.
Remove the crusts from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 5-7 minutes so they have time to soften.
Sprinkle the bottom pastry with semolina, and fill the pie.
Lightly brush the rim with egg wash. Top it with second crust.
Brush the entire surface with egg wash, sprinkle with granulated sugar.
Bake the pie for about 35-40 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cherry juices are beginning to bubble. Let the pie cool on a rack for sometime.
ENJOY! 😀

Pancake Pie

Today is ‘Forgiveness Sunday’, the last day of the ‘pancake festival’ (Butterweek) in Russia.

According to one old tradition, the more pancakes have been eaten during the Butterweek, the more successful will be the year.

As per another custom, a girl at the twilight, should took a pancake, went out and asked the first stranger his name. It was believed, that man’s name and look is similar to the future husband’s appearance. In case if the girl didn’t like the name ‘n’ look, she had to give a pancake to the guy. If she liked it, she had to eat a pancake herself. 🙂

There are lots of pancakes varieties, with savoury or fruit fillings. Mine 3 favourites: with cottage cheese, sweet condensed milk and salmon 🙂

Making pancakes could be really exciting and interesting, you can involve the whole family, invite friends and enjoy the holiday.

You can surprise your family by preparing this delicious pancake pie!

What’s more, I decided to participate in Fiesta Friday, organized by Angie from TheNoviceGardener. I’m happy to be involved in such virtual parties and get new friends. 🙂

The basic Russian pancakes recipe

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

650ml full fat milk

50ml warm water

250g all-purpose flour

2 eggs

a good pinch of salt

2 tbsp of sugar

2 tbsp of sunflower oil

1/3 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp of lemon juice or vinegar

Preparation:

Break the eggs into large bowl, add salt and sugar, whisk.
Add the oil and milk, whisk again.
Sift the flour into the bowl, whisk thoroughly.
Add warm water and whisk to incorporate any lumps.
Pour lemon juice or vinegar into a spoon with baking soda on it (to dissolve the soda), quickly add it into the batter and whisk a couple of times.
While the mixture is resting (it allows the ingredients to blend together better), heat the pan; grease the pan with some oil, if needed.
Evenly coat the pan with the batter. Cook about a minute, then flip the pancake and cook for 15-30 seconds more.
Keep prepared pancakes in warm place.

You can already enjoy the tastiest pancakes, dipping them into a raspberry preserve or hazelnut sauce, or prepare the pancake pie with salmon. It could be wonderful lunch or dinner for the weekend.

Pancake pie with salmon and cream cheese

Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

8 pancakes

200g salted or smoked salmon, always better homemade (find the recipe here)

120-150g cream cheese

2tbsp sour cream (substitute with crème fraîche, or single/double cream)

4-5 tbsp finely chopped dill

I used red caviare for the decoration, you can do it with salmon or just keep the top as is.

Assembling:

Blend the cream cheese with sour cream until smooth.
Cut the salmon into small cubes.
Arrange the first pancake on a plate, spread the cheese mixture and sprinkle with dill.
Cover with the second one. Spread some salmon on the pancake.
Cover with the third pancake.
Repeat all steps.

Have a lovely pancake time! 🙂