HUNGARIAN MIXED PEPPER STEW WITH KOLBÁSZ and RICE

HUNGARIAN MIXED PEPPER STEW WITH KOLBÁSZ and RICE
Lecso Kolbászal

AS SEEN ON CTV's LIVE COOKING SEGMENT

WITH KYLE CHRISTIE AND NANCY RICHARDS
OCTOBER 15, 2009 12:00 PM

(The Hot Hungarians were invited back by popular demand)
 

chef Helen czegeny & Clara Czegeny - from
Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes TM

My mom’s Hungarian Heritage Recipes are all over this recipe. Here is an ancient dish which originated in Serbia. Lecso is very versatile and essentially, is a stew of onions, various shaped and sized peppers including hot and yellow banana peppers, tomatoes and paprika. By adding sliced Kolbász, it becomes a main dish.  Served as a side dish with any breaded meat; veal or pork is a perfect match. Excellent with scrambled eggs for breakfast! Many people refer to this is the Hungarian Ratatouille. This dish comes together in 6 -8 minutes. Any longer and it will be baby food. Please don't stir it more than you have to - don't break up the peppers!

VERY INTERESTING MYSTERY SOLVED:  "LESCO" is NOT the basis for anything except LESCO - don't let anyone tell you otherwise.  Some would have you believe that you can prepare Lesco and then you can prepare any Hungarian dish. Not True!
Hungarians are genius when it comes to preparing Gulyás (goulash) or Paprikás Dishes. And, each dish has it's own unique flavour combination - more paprika, sour cream, etc. LESCO", on its own is healthy, satisfying and bursting with flavour and goodness. The fresh red peppers and tomatoes give the dish it's vibrant lively colouring, NOT the red paprika!

1 -2 fresh tomatoes
3 Hungarian White peppers
½ tsp pepper
1 14 oz can stewed tomatoes (whole)
1 - 2 Hot Hungarian Banana Peppers
¼ tsp sweet paprika
¼ cup tomato paste
3 red peppers
⅛ tsp hot paprika or
1 tsp salt
1 green bell peppers
1 tsp Hot Chili Pepper Flakes
3 med onions (cut in 1/2 moons)
2 tbsp oil or bacon fat

METHOD:  Prepare all peppers, core, devein and cut into 4-6 long narrow wedges.  If using fresh tomatoes:  cut tomatoes, skins on and stew along with peppers and onions. Cut onions into ½ moon slices. Place onions and peppers into large shallow pan (Dutch Oven or Wok) with oil/fat on high heat. Stir-fry until it becomes like a stew, cooked, but still firm; about 6-8 minutes. Then, add all seasonings, stewed tomatoes and paste. Let simmer until all flavours are melded; about 4-6 minutes.  

Hint: You can use pepper flakes instead of fresh hot peppers. Also – you can use assorted variety of peppers – fresh local to give colour and texture.

Serving Suggestion:  Serve with fluffy white rice or fresh Hungarian white bread. You can jazz it up or play it  down.  However you use, it you will find it to be very complimentary with a lot of dishes.

RICE SIDE DISH
Rizsa

1 cup long grain rice (Jasmine)
1 tsp salt
1 1/3 cup water
1 tbsp butter/oil (combo)

METHOD:  In a medium saucepan, heat oil and sauté rice in oil/butter for a few minutes – stirring – until translucent. Add salt , water stirring to blend.  Bring to boil, cover and reduce heat to a lively simmer for 15-20 minutes.  When rice is done, remove from heat and use a fork to separate rice kernels into fluffy mounds before serving.  (Note: Jasmine rice is by far the most beautiful rice for side dishes to main dishes.) Perfect rice everytime!

HUNGARIAN SAUSAGE
Lecso Kolbászal

1 pair Hungarian Kolbász
1/2 cup water

Prepare Lecso previous recipe above, except add 1 pair diagonally sliced Hungarian Sausage - Kolbász into the pepper stew and let it stew together.

Hint:        If sausage is too dry – stew beforehand in ½ cup water in a shallow saucepan for 10-15 minutes before adding to peppers. (Add both stewing liquid and sausage to the peppers).

Serving Suggestion: Serve with fresh Hungarian bread or alongside white rice.

For more "SECRETS OF HUNGARIAN COOKING" revealed by Chef Ilona Szabo, please visit our site and own this timeless cookery book.  70 Years of perfection in the making!

TANGY LEMON BARS

TANGY LEMON BARS

Shortbread Crust:

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/4 cup icing sugar

1 cup flour

1/8 tsp salt

Lemon Filling:

1 cup white sugar

2 large eggs

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (2 large lemons)

1 tbsp grated lemon zest*

2 ttsp flour

Garnish:

Icing sugar

lemon zest. 

Preheat oven to 350oF and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, an 8”x8” pan.

Shortbread Crust: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until creamy and smooth. Add the flour and salt and beat until the dough just starts to come together. Press onto the bottom of your prepared pan and bake for about 18 - 20 minutes, or just until lightly brown around the edges. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool while you make the filling.

Lemon Filling: In your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer,  beat the sugar and eggs until nice and smooth. Add the lemon juice and zest and stir to combine. Fold in the flour. Pour the filling over the shortbread crust and bake for about 17-20 minutes, or just until the filling has set. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. 

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar. These are best eaten the day they are made but can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for a day or two.

Yield: 16 - 2 inch bars

TIP:  Always remove the zest first before halving and squeezing the lemon.  Use a fine strainer to remove the seeds and pulp from the juice.

For more of these great recipes - visit our website to own a copy of this unforgettable delightful

treasure of Hungarian family recipes and favourites.

http://www.helenshungarianrecipes.com/

Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes - Earns TOP 10 EASTERN EUROPEAN COOKBOOKS

Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes - Earns TOP 10 EASTERN EUROPEAN COOKBOOKS particularly from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. (October 25, 2010)

Pauline writes........Clara has taken her mother’s treasured Hungarian family recipes and stories, and written them down into a spiral bound, homey cookbook. Full of information about the ingredients, techniques and tools, this little cookbook will make you feel as though you are sitting at the table with family enjoying one of Helen’s meals.

Pauline writes to Clara personally...You are very welcome! I find I am consulting the cookbook often to clarify Pauline’s recipes and to get new ideas. Thank YOU! And congratulations on becoming a best seller in Canada. That’s wonderful.

Pauline goes on to further explain - below is my selection of the ten cookbooks that best represent the cooking of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. Some old, some new  - they all have fresh and tasty recipes based on locally/home grown ingredients. For the most part, the style is simple, country cooking that reflects Pauline’ss heritage, from countries of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire, including Austria, Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Croatia and Serbia. & One book below; Food in History, provides a great overview of the origins of many of the ingredients and recipes. To read more – follow the link.

Pauline's Cookbooks - TOP TEN 

LEKVÁROS BUKTA - HUNGARIAN JAM-FILLED SWEET ROLLS

LEKVÁROS BUKTA

HUNGARIAN JAM-FILLED SWEET ROLLS

                              Bukta Photograph Courtesy of Barbara Rolek

Lekváros Bukta – or Hungarian Jam-Filled Sweet Rolls are in fashion again! This is a real Hungarian speciality. Bukta are oven-baked dumplings, made from a sweet yeast dough, sometimes served plain, but more often than not, filled with thick jam preserves. Bukta are a rather highly esteemed sweet dessert and are traditionally made all year round and available in countless variations with infinite possibilities for fillings.  They are baked in a large pan so that they stick together.

This recipe has always been a favourite of mine, since I was a little girl and allowed to help in the kitchen with cooking and baking in my mother’s Hungarian kitchen. The treat in the lunchbox was always a special surprise as well.  This recipe is especially old and secret family one. My mom filled them with thick preserves (Lekvar) plum or apricot or ground walnuts, poppy seeds and even farmer’s cottage cheese Túró.  The most popular filling appears to be the thick plum or apricot jam. Bukta are topped with powdered sugar or eaten plain and warm, but it get’s better, enjoy them with piping-hot vanilla home-made Devon custard.

This sweet delight is pronounced, "buukta” and oddly enough, the name means to “spill or fall out - haphazzardly”.  When the rolls are just out of the oven, they are flipped or spilled out from the baking sheet onto a pastry board. Letting them spill out means “Ki-bukni” They are enjoyed straight from the oven, when they are as fluffy as a baby goose down pillow or cold, or in my case, frozen. (left-overs get hidden in the freezer)

Originally, Buchteln were a Bohemian sweet dish. However, in the course of time they have become part of the traditional Austrian-Bavarian cuisine. Although we would like to claim them as truly Hungarian, and as is true of many of our Hungarian desserts which have their roots in Austrian dishes – we find that those Austrian roots go back to Bohemian roots (regions of the Czech Republic). These rolls in Slovenian are called buhteljni and in Czech buchty. And having said that, although considered home-dessert fair, one of the most famous Austrian Buchteln are served in the Café Hawelka in Vienna

Although many recipes for Bukta use a bready dough, my mother – Chef Helen Szabo uses a basic sweet dough prepared from sour cream. This versatile and very forgiving and workable sweet dough recipe is soft and silky and can be used for Cinnamon Buns and Braided Raisin Bread and of course – this special treat that I am sure you will enjoy –Bukta.

Yeast Proofing

2 Packets Active Dry Yeast

½ cup milk (lukewarm)

2 tsp sugar

1 tbsp flour

Basic Sweet Dough

4 cups flour

4 egg yolks

½ cup milk (lukewarm)

1 cup sour cream

1½ tsp vanilla extract

1 stick sweet butter

½ tsp salt

Fillings

Ground walnut meat

Ground poppyseeds

Apricot jam

Plum jam

Cottage cheese (farmers)

Extra Ingredients

1 stick sweet butter, melted (for brushing)

1 egg, beaten (brushing) (or whole milk)

Castor or icing sugar (for dusting)

(Yield between 26-32 rolls)

 

DIRECTIONS: In a medium bowl, combine yeast, sugar and lukewarm milk. Sprinkle with flour and let proof (about 20 minutes). Blend all other ingredients together, and then add yeast and remaining milk to form a soft dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume (about 45-60 min)

Remove dough from bowl and roll out onto floured surface to 2.2” thick. With a pizza roll cutter, cut dough into 2.5” X 2.5” squares (or smaller if you prefer) and let it rest for about 10 minutes. Place jam or preferred filling into a ziplock bag so you can pipe it right onto the squares.  Cut off plastic end and squeeze out about 1 tablespoon’s worth onto each piece. Alternately you can use 2 spoons to fill each square. When complete, brush parchment sheet with melted butter. Roll up the dough rolls and then place them rather snugly in rows onto a parchment lined baking sheet. 

When complete, generously brush rolls with melted butter so they won’t stick together. Cover and let sweet rolls rise for another 30 minutes until almost doubled in size. Finally, brush with beaten egg to create a light golden shiny crust. Bake in a pre-heated at 350^oF for 25-35 minutes or until golden. Remove immediately from oven.  Let rest for about 5 minutes – then flip out onto a cutting board. Place sweet rolls onto a plate and dust immediately with icing sugar and serve piping hot.  For a special dessert –serve with hot vanilla Devon custard below.

 

Vanilla Custard

½ cup cream

¼ cup milk

1 vanilla bean

½ cup sugar

2 tbsp cornstarch

Bring milk, cream, sugar and vanilla bean to boil. Add starch. Whisk well sauce thickens. Beat with a whisk for about 5 minutes. Serve hot over Bukta!

For more Secrets of Hungarian Cooking - please visit our website to own your own copy of the famous

Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes - by Clara Margaret Czegeny and Chef Helen Szabo-Czegeny

For more recipes and photos...
Helens Hungarian Heritage Recipes TM
 
Bukta Photograph Courtesy of Barbara Rolek  - For Complete Story - follow the link below.

Barbara Rolek,  Eastern European Food Guide, About.Com

Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes - Recent Reviews by Clara Czegeny

RECENT REVIEWS

Canadian Best-Selling Foreign Cookbook for 2010 "Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes" is a small treasure with a big heart. The loving result of a desire to honour an aging parent.

Gathering the best entries from her mother's memories and scribbled papers to create a cornucopia of treasured Hungarian family dishes that will delight even the most discerning palate. Clara Czegeny and her mother (Helen) co-authored this beloved, cherished and treasured Hungarian family recipe collection in Dec 2005.

Clara's daughter, Evangline Mackell of Design in Bloom joined her mother and grandmother and is the accomplished photographer and graphic artist for the cookbook. Truly, a three generation wonder! With old fashioned methods and attention to detail, Chef Helen keeps alive an age old tradition of exceptional European cookery.

Clara Margaret Czegeny is a self-proclaimed chef, educator, accomplished pianist and computer software engineer. Born in Montreal, Quebec, she now resides in Paris, Ontario, Canada.

In 2009 - Chef Helen Szabo-Czegeny and Clara Czegeny were highly commended and acknowledged for their amazing accomplishments by the Hungarian National Tourism Board. The board was especially impressed with the way in which Helen and Clara's treasured Hungarian recipes were spreading Hungarian Culture, Heritage and Patriotism by keeping alive the true classic Hungarian recipes outside the borders of Hungary in North America and the rest of the world.

Another recent acknowledgement came in the form of applause and praise from the Budapest Tourism Board for their excellent promotion of classic Hungarian cuisine throughout the world.

Visit the main website here.
http://www.helenshungarianheritagerecipes.com/

GÉRBEAUD SLICE - Zserbó Szelet

 

GÉRBEAUD SLICE

 Zserbó Szelet

The Gerbeaud Slice (Zserbo in Hungarian) is perhaps the best known pastry in Hungary and has a history of 125 years. Rich Hungarian cuisine can be experienced in restaurants and cafes throughout Hungary, but at "Café Gérbeaud", serving pastry, and confectionery and a diet-killing array of cakes and pastries in the old Pest part of Budapest. Refinement is the word at the Café.  This is the cafe where indulging one's sweet tooth is elevated to an art form. Here, one will find the finest range of pastries in the city. 

Desserts figured prominently as one of the first owners was a Swiss confectioner. Emile Gérbeaud invented the Hungarian speciality known as “Konyakos Meggy”, dark chocolate with a cognac-soaked sour cherry in the centre.  Gerbeaud is big and always busy, so  securing a quiet table in the vaulted section to the right of the central pasty counter is a treat.  The GÉRBEAUD, “Zserbó” is one of the signature desserts of Café Gérbeaud. It is baked for celebrations and special occasions such as birthdays and weddings.

Helen’s version has three layers of Linzer pastry, apricot jam, and ground walnut filling, with our special chocolate icing topping.

For the complete recipe, please consider purchasing our book by visiting our website.

Hungarian Rhapsody "Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes Capture Flavours of Heritage" Monday, February 27, 2006

Hungarian Rhapsody
"Helen's Hungarian Heritage Recipes"
Capture Flavours of Hungarian Heritage

Monday, February 27, 2006 

  Seniors Byline: Kit McDermott  In
Touch Dateline: BRANTFORD Source: The Brantford Expositor
COPYRIGHT BY SUNDMEDA 2006

There are books and albums for preserving memories and photographs of past and present events, as well as images of loved ones. But how do we recapture the taste and aroma of homemade delicacies, favourite meals or celebration dinners?

Easy for some, with cookbooks and family recipes for quick reference, not a problem for most of us. Imagine, however, that the creative chef and her secret recipes has most ingredients and methods for preparation stored in her head, with only bits of information jotted down on scraps of paper and the backs of envelopes, sometimes in Hungarian, or Swedish, German, or even Russian.

"That was the problem in our case," Clara Czegeny told me.

"My sisters and I were in the habit of phoning our mother, from Alberta, with requests for ingredients of familiar recipes, and mother would always include a mild rebuke, namely, we should have paid attention in her kitchen when we were girls at home."

When I suggested that Helen's Hungarian Heritage Cookbook must have been the direct result of solving the problems, Clara assured me, 'yes,' but it happened in rather a round-about way.

"We, the family, wanted to give mother a surprise party for her 80th birthday, Jan. 14, 2006. Last October (2005) I suggested that we put together a collection of her Hungarian recipes and offer them to the invited guests.

"Originally, we had planned to have five books printed, one for each of the girls in the family," Clara said. "Knowing that friends and relatives would bring gifts to the party, we asked instead that they make a 'Love Gift' donation, for a fund designed to support
a young missionary and his family in Hungary on behalf of our church, Evangel Pentecostal Church, on Fairview Drive in Brantford."

Clara told me that 55 books were printed, but after extra orders began arriving from friends in California, Ohio, Sweden and Australia, another 50 books were ordered. Her mother adds, "and the cheques kept pouring in, so that we ended up sending $1,100, that's 137,000 florins in Hungarian money, enough for a period of four months living expenses for the missionary family."

Although written, compiled and edited by Clara, her introduction in the book states, "Helen was the translator, the teacher, the master chef, chief editor and consultant."

Clara acknowledges support and thanks to sisters Elizabeth Hart and Anne Lindsay and their families, assisting with testing and tasting, and to Uncle Nick Czegeny.

Clara thanked her daughter, Evangeline, for her great contribution to the overall look of the cookbook, with its charming floral cover and illustrations, including colourful photos, the graphics and colour matching. Evangeline is a graphic artist and webmaster.

First published by Clara's, Dream Machine Publications, the cookbook was printed by Hurry Print in Brantford in January 2006. Included in the contents is a brief history of Hungary and foods, a bio of chef Helen, a checklist for successful baking, and the origins and development of Hungarian Cuisine.

It was when Clara and I spoke on the phone, setting a date for the interview, that Clara warned me not to eat lunch because her mother planned to offer samples of some of her favourite recipes. Naturally, I was glad to heed the warning and expected a tea party with home baking. Instead, to my surprise and delight, Helen had set the table for dinner, a three-course meal, followed by an astonishing array of dessert treats.

The traditional Hungarian chicken, or "hen" soup featured the delicate homemade snail noodles. The chicken paprika was served over another variety of noodles, with extra sauce on the side. The cucumber salad, served with an extra dollop of sour cream, to
bring out the flavour of special herbs, was delicious.

Where to begin describing the taste and texture of the cakes and pastries! The Hungarian names rolled easily off the tongues of Helen and Clara as they identified each dessert, with me recognizing kifli, poppy seed and walnut cake, and tiny jam-filled croissants.

I'm told that the French croissant is believed to have originated in Hungary, and then taken to France by the chef, one of many who were imported to Hungary by Royalty and wealthy citizens, adding famous French cuisine to the native dishes. There are also
Austrian and Turkish influences to be detected in the internationally famous cuisine.

Helen says she first learned to cook when she was six years old, wanting to surprise her mother, she says. "Even now, I always have six or seven types of baked goods in the freezer, in case someone comes in for coffee or tea."

She makes all her own pasta, showing me the variety, each type intended for specific recipes, with some noodles requiring hours of patient shaping by hand.

"We were all taught to make the tiny snail noodles," Clara said, "working with a small hand-held scraping board. And mother would say, the ones that unravel are the ones Clara made, so we'll put those in her soup," she laughed.

"Hungarian ladies in Brantford all get together to make those noodles, which are sold at the Hungarian Club on certain days, and are in great demand."

As for Helen, her serious training as an exceptional cook began when she was 13, taught by her great aunt, who was the wife of a High Court Magistrate.

"We lived in a small town located 240 km east of Budapest," Helen said. "It's a beautiful area, with great fields of poppies grown for their seeds, with guards posted to protect them from theft."

"I wanted to become a teacher, but the war started, the Russians invaded and set curfews, so I couldn't attend teachers college in a nearby city. Our village actually changed hands between the Russians and the Germans, nine times."

Helen Szabo met and married Alexander Czegeny, who, she says, told her to forget about teachers college, because, "she would be teaching their children."

"In 1947, we moved to Sweden, and our daughter Elizabeth was born. We lived in Sweden for six years."

Helen learned to speak, read and write Swedish and to this day she reads Swedish newspapers on the Internet, as well as Hungarian and Russian ones.

"But the climate didn't suit us, with the summers too chilly to grow my tomatoes and peppers," Helen said, explaining their move to Canada in 1953, settling first in Montreal, where Clara was born. There were many other Hungarian ex-patriots with shops
selling traditional specialties. There was a temporary move to Brantford to work in tobacco and third daughter, Anne, was born here.

"We settled in Brantford and my husband worked as a machinist at Massey's for many years and supervised the building of our house. He seemed to know so much about construction although he had attended agricultural school in Sweden."

Always an ardent gardener, Helen took over all the outside work following her husband's death seven years ago.

"I even caught her resealing the driveway," Clara smiled, "and sometimes I find her dressed like a spaceman, spraying the fruit trees or fertilizing the garden."

Helen loves her flower garden, but all the vegetables and herbs and fruit are preserved and canned in her well-appointed kitchen.

Nevertheless, the talented chef assures me that she always takes time to set the table and sit down for a complete dinner every afternoon, one of the secrets to staying healthy and active.

Kit McDermott finally and enthusiastically stated... "Helen's Hungarian Rhapsody of Recipes" truly captures the unique "Flavours of Hungary" and Hungarian Heritage. If you ever re-print the book, you already have a name!

For over 440 recipes that reach back as far as 70 years of perfecting, visit our website
to own your copy.  There is no other cookbook worthy of the honour and prestige afforded this recipe book.


HELEN'S HUNGARIAN HERITAGE RECIPES TM