TRADITIONAL CROATIAN SUMMER MENU

OCTOPUS SALAD

Ingredients:

½ kg fresh, cleaned octopus 2 bay leaves 3 cloves of garlic whole peppercorns salt

Bring a large pan of water to a simmer. Add all the above ingredients and cover. Let the octopus simmer for about an hour or until tender but not over cooked. Remove the contents from the pan and rinse well with cold water, discarding the bay leaf, peppercorns and garlic.Cut the octopus in half and try to remove the slimy outer layer of the octopus with your hands, until left with a pinkish white meat. Cut the the entire octopus into cubes. The size is not very important since the meat should be very tender by now, I recommend about 1 cm.

Preparation method: cooked and cut up octopus small bunch of parsley onlion, spring onion or leek lemon juice extra virgin olive oil salt and pepper to taste

Place the prepared octopus in a bowl. Add finely chopped parsley, onion (spring onion or leek). As well as lemon juice of half a lemon or more, depending on your preferences. Season with salt and a little pepper right after adding a good tablespoon of olive oil. Mix well, cover and leave to rest for at least an hour in the fridge. Serve chilled.

FISH BRODETTO

Ingredients:

1 dl of olive oil 3 onions 4 slices of a whole garlic bulb ½ kg of tomatoes 1 ½ of fish for brudet : an eel,a grooper or

a red fish 2 dl of white wine 1 dl of vinegar corn flour salt pepper

Preparation method:

In a pot put 1 dl of the olive oil and 3 chopped onions until they get yellowish,4 slices of parsley and in the end put ½ kg of chopped tomatoes.When the vegetables is made into a densly sauce,put ½ kg of the strained fish for brudet. Stew all, agitating the pot and, at the same time, pouring 2 dl of the white wine and 1 dl of vinegar until it becomes dense.Put some salt, pepper and serve it hot or cold with cooked corn flour or with pasta.

„MARASKA“ PARADISO (PARADIŽOT)

Ingredients:

1/2 litre of milk 4 tablespoons of flour 4 egg yolks 4 tablespoons of sugar 3 egg whites 5 tablespoons of sugar Petit Buerre cookies Cocoa beans or grated chocolate (to

sprinkle it over)

Preparation method:Yellow cream:

Boil half a litre of milk. While the milk is cooking make a mixture of 4 tablespoons of flour, 4 egg yolks and 4 tablespoons of sugar and some cold milk. Put this mixture into the boiling milk. Cook it until it thickens (do not forget to stir it all the time to avoid creating lumps).

White cream:Whisk 3 egg whites till stiff. Add 5 tablespoons of sugar. Mix it thoroughly.

Finishing phase:Warm some milk. Place some cookies on the bottom of the bowl and pour just enough milk over them so that they absorb it. Then pour a layer of yellow cream over the cookies. Put a new layer of cookies over it. Add a new layer of milk. Add a new layer of yellow cream, a new layer of cookies and a new layer of milk. Pour the white cream over the cookies. Decorate it with cocoa beans or grated chocolate. Put it in the refrigerator and serve cold.

TRADITIONAL CROATIAN SPRING MENU

CREAMY VEGETABLE SOUP

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups mixed vegetables(french beans, carrots, green peas)

1 onion, chopped 1 1/2 tablespoon plain flour 2 1/4 cups milk 2 tablespoon butter salt 

Preparation method:

Heat the butter and fry the onion for 1 minute.Add the vegetables and fry again for 2 to 3 minutes.Add 3 teacups of water and cook until the vegetables are soft.Mix the flour and milk and add to the vegetables. Cook for at least 3 to 4 minutes.Serve hot.

PAŠTICADA

Ingredients: 2 kg beef leg 2 kg red onion (same quantity as meat) carrots, celery, parsley, garlic, dry plums salt, peppercorns, 4-5 cloves 1 tablespoon of honey or marmalade 1 l of red wine veal bones soup stock

Preparation method:Cut the meat on all sides with a sharp knife and lard it with finely chopped carrots, onion and bacon. Leave in a bowl overnight or pour vinegar over it and leave for 24h (turning the meat every now and then).Put oil, fat and the meat in a big pot and fry until it gets yellowish on all sides, then take the meat out. Put half the quantity of finely chopped red onion in the pot and stew on a mild flame. Put back the meat and cover it with the other half of the onion (cut into slightly bigger pieces). Add half a kilo of chopped carrots, handful of dry black plums, bunch of celery, bunch of parsley, a whole garlic bulb, 4-5 cloves, peppercorns, a teaspoon of honey or marmalade and salt. Stew on a mild fire, covered. Pour some soup stock over. After half an hour, add 2-3 spoons of tomato puree, pour a litre of soup stock, half a litre of a good red wine, and leave it for two hours on a mild flame.When the meat is ready (stab it with a fork to check), take it out, cut into thin slices and put in a bowl. Add on top strained remains from the pot. If the sauce is not dense enough, you can mix a spoonful of flour with some water, add it into the sauce and cook for some more. Pašticada is served with home-made macaroni or gnocchi.

ROŽADA (CRÊME BRULÉE)

Ingredients:

1 l milk 30 dkg sugar 2 small vanilla sugar packets lemon peel 7 eggs 2 egg yolks 20 dkg decaramelized sugar 1 dl milk for making carmelized sugar

Preparation method:

Cook well milk, sugar, vanilla sugar and lemon peel and leave it to cool down. Beat thoroughly eggs and yolks with already prepared milk. In another saucepan prepare caramel using 20 dkg of sugar and a few teaspoons of milk, which should be warmed up slowly until it gets yellow. Grease a baking tin with butter, then put in the caramel and pour over creme brulee (rožata) mixture. Then put the tin in a larger saucepan filled with water, bake in the oven at 180° degrees for about 40 minutes.

When rožata is cooled down, turn it quickly upside down on a plate and put it in a frigde to cool down completely. The plate should be deep enough for the rožata juice (if not overbaked, the caramel remains liquid).

TRADITIONAL CROATIAN SONGS

KLAPA

The klapa music is a form of traditional a cappella singing in southern parts of Croatia, in Dalmatia. The word klapa translates as "a group of friends" and traces its roots to littoral church singing. A klapa group consists of a first tenor, a second tenor, a baritone, and a bass. It is sung „on ear“ which means without a leader. The motifs in general celebrate love, wine (grapes), country (homeland) and sea.

It is usually composed of up to 8 male singers singing very harmonic tunes. In recent times, female vocal groups have been quite popular, but in general male and female groups do not mix.

Klapa is very popular at weddings, funerals and other festivities. Listening to a klapa singing is very relaxing and people enjoy joining in the popular tunes and singing along with a klapa.

Many young people from Dalmatia treasure klapa and sing it regularly when going out eating or drinking. It is not unusual to hear amateur klapa singing on the streets in the evenings over some food and wine.

In 2012, it was included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.

DALMATIAN KLAPA

SINGERS OF BEĆARAC, FROM SLAVONIJA

BEĆARAC

Bećarac is a humorous form of folk song, originally from rural Slavonia, and eventually spreading across Croatia. Bećarci are always teasing, mocking and are usually sung by a male company at village parties.

Bećarci are usually performed at the peak of a party as a drinking song after the crowd is sufficiently warmed up by wine and music. A series of bećarci can last indefinitely. The lyrics are often made up at the spot or improvised, and the best ones are spread and reused for later parties.

In 2011, it was included in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists.

TRADITIONAL CROATIAN DANCES

Splitski ples:

Performed in a festive outfit whose origin dates back from the 19th century

Male outfit originates from a type of clothes worn in Dinara region (mountain close to Split)

Female outfit originates from the seaside. Festive female dress can be found in different colours

The outfit for Splitski ples iS more festive. It is lighter and airier

Main characteristic of the dance is elegance and softness of movement

Consists of 3 dances: monfrina, četvorka and šaltin polka

Historically, dances are performed in all parts of Croatia. For Dalmatia, we chose to write about Spliski ples and Vrličko kolo.

SPLITSKI PLES DANCERS

VRLIČKO KOLO DANCERS

Vrličko kolo:

Most preserved part of Croatian ethnographic treasure

In Dalmatian hinterland „kolo“ represents the oldest and sometimes the only dance tradition of a village

Based on a rythm which depends on the human nature

The outfit for Vrličko kolo is very known outside Croatia, one of the most recognized parts of our cultural heritage

The outfit is better suited for a village festivity, rather than a town festivity (outfit for Splitski ples is better suited for that)

It is heavy and has lots of layers

One of the main characteristics is jewellery: peacock feather on the cap and gold coins on the dress for the female outfit and gold coins on the cap for the male outfit.