NOM. NOM. NOM. Nothing but Russian Food!!

So, news flash.... I'm in Russia!! So naturally, my belly gets fed Russian food!! Weird how that works, right?? (; A huge distinction of each country is the food! So, I figured I would dedicate an entire post to what it's like being in a Russian kitchen. 

Just so I'm not responsible for anything...there are a few precautionary measures that should be taken:

There are lots of pictures of food. Delicious food. It would not be surprising if you find your mouth watering, hear a growling tummy, or suddenly have the desire to eat Russian food.

You can't say I didn't warn you.

With that, let the inside scoop of The Russian Kitchen be revealed...

I will start with answering one of the first questions you Americans ask me: "What does McDonald's taste like in Russia?" THE SAME. They do however, have a few different, customary options on their menu such as pear milkshakes, cheese sauce for your fries, and cherry pies (which are different than their apple pies in America). I'm not a huge McDonald fan, but I wouldn't be a true American if I didn't at least try it while I was here! So, I can say that I have tasted the McDonald burger and fries in Russia, and they taste the exact same!

Lets leap from cliche to every day meals...  During the week, we eat lunch with our kids. Below is a picture of what a typical meal looks like.  We have soup with bread, a side dish, and compote.  Russians eat soup like it's going out of style! I have had so many variations of soup here, it's crazy!  Of course soup wouldn't be complete without some fresh, soft bread! I've never had such squishy, delicious carbs! Anyway, moving on to the rest of our meal... at our school, we either get mashed potatoes with fish and pickles, buckwheat with 'beef' and cucumbers, or noodles with chicken.  Now, I say 'beef' because Russian meat is a little... eh (sketchy).  You don't question what you put in your mouth, you just eat it.  Even if that means you get a few fish bones mixed in there... (yes, I am speaking from experience.) 

To add a little bit of sweetness to the meal, they give us what is called compote.  Compote is their version of juice, but of course homemade!  They just boil a bunch of fruits together in a pot and pour it into cups and serve it warm! 

This is a picture of my favorite soup! I call it 'Wednesday Soup' because it's what we used to get every Wednesday, sometimes being the only thing keeping me going Wednesday mornings. It's creamy and has shredded carrots, potatoes, pickles, shredded chicken, and corn!! Mmm.. (:

                                               

While we're on soups... there is a Russian soup called borsch. One word: amazing!  This soup has shredded chicken, potatoes, beets, carrots, dill, cabbage, tomatoes, and onions.  I have eaten it about four times already... yea, it's that good!

The biggest meal here is their lunch, which they call 'dinner'.  So, skipping what we call dinner, and straight to the best part- DESSERT!!! Desserts here are endless! Yea, it's quite a dangerous thing.  I've never craved sugar so much in my life! Russia has got it all!! They love pastries here so plenty of those to go around, they have ice cream that comes in lots of fresh fruit flavors, and pies like nobody's business!

On the left are blinis.  This is Russia's version of a pancake.  These ones are miniature apple blinis, so normally they do look different. They look like a thick crepe.  You can put anything your belly so desires on top.  Russians absolutely love sweet and condensed milk, and that is what is in that little blue can.

On the right is an apple 'pie'.  It was more of a dense cake, but either way it was delicious!! Sveta, our Russian mom, made both of these for us, so yes, it is entirely Russian!!

Okay, so these sweet tarts aren't Russian, nevertheless, they were so rich and sweet! And hey, they even had a dash of healthy fruit on them so we didn't have to feel too guilty... (;

All these are made of is a pie crust, fresh fruit, and a yummy pudding-like filling that is under all of the fruit!

 Back to Russian food.. These are two different pies.  On the left is a lemon pie and on the right is an Italian pie.  The lemon pie  has, well, lemons... it was actually super tart though and tasted almost as if they had plopped full lemons in the filling- peel and all.  The Italian is mozzarella cheese and tomatoes.  My sweet tooth didn't win this time, I'd have to say the Italian was my favorite of the two!

Russian meals.

Homemade pelmini (пельмени). 

Pelmini are pretty much like raviolis.  You can fill them with whatever you want, but this batch we filled them with beef!  This is kind of a long process when cooking them from scratch, but it is worth it when you pop one in your mouth after hard labor! 

 This is what they look like after you have filled the centers and cut them out before plopping them into boiling water to cook!

After making these, those who helped were deemed 'True Russians' by our Russian mom, Sveta.  What a proud moment for all who were involved (: 

 I know, this isn't Russian. I put this up purely for bragging rights.  I shared some Mexican love and made homemade tortillas for the girls! And, of course, we needed toppings for them! Viola! A Mexican dinner was thus made! 

Switching gears to the BAKERY!

This is an everyday temptation.  If your mouth hasn't watered yet, it's no secret that it is about to...Walls of pastries and sweet goodness. From to the ceiling to the floor, I'd say it's pretty safe to say this stuff is nearly impossible to say "no" to.  I'm pretty good at holding back (for how much there is) but, I mean, c'mon... I'm only in Russia once!!

On the left is an apple bread that is frosted at the end.  I call it an apple cake drumstick.

On the right would be a breaded hot dog, or as we like to call it in America, a pig in a blanket! And next to it is a delicious, sweet muffin!

Of course this post wouldn't be complete without a generously frosted cinnamon roll!! 

(cue the glands to water)

 My friend Bre and I made a lemon-blueberry pie. On pie day.  This was before we put this little guy in the oven. Much love and artistic talent was put into the making. And with a scoop of ice cream on top, my belly definitely approved!

 The top shelves were little mini cakes and on the bottom were the big pretty ones!

Birthdays are taken very seriously here. Cakes are made and decorating is nothing less than top-notch, detailed work. 

Sweets, sweets, and more SUGAR!

 Here is something new and fun! Candied fruit! On a stick! A sweet fruit kabob! 

This is a box of chocolates.  But not just any box of chocolates.  First off, they were a gift to me.  I received these a while back for a Russian holiday called Women's Day!  They celebrate women, girls, moms, sisters, aunts, grandmas...! Second, chocolate here is... GOOD!!! What?? If you know me, you know darn well that chocolate is not something that I enjoy.  But Russia has done it yet again! It's a sweet, so of course it's good here! 

 Hard candy. In piles. 

Let me just freak out for a second...!!! Yea, this little guy is definitely coming home with me! He is made of white chocolate. Russian white chocolate. Eating him is still under consideration, I'll probably give him a name and keep him as my pet. AHH (:

Can you say sweet?? Holy.. This looks like a s'more, yes? Well, it tasted exactly like a s'more! It had a crumbly bottom, marshmallow center, and a thin chocolate top! All that was missing was a warm campfire! 

 I found 3 meter long licorice!! Russia knows how to do this whole *sweets* thing.. Good or bad? I haven't decided yet.

 Another thing Russia has really got down, is their vodka.  Apparently it's a big deal...? But you would never know because it's not like every store's shelves are stocked like they are expecting some kind of famine or anything... ;P

 They have an abundance of wine too..

Enough about Russian's addictions... Mine would be good-lookin' men! I mean.. err. ICE CREAM! (:

 However, a good ice cream break wouldn't be complete without a good view... (;

You could say I am pretty well fed... my belly is always full and satisfied! 

I couldn't post a blog solely on food without a group picture of us all at one of our favorite fast food places here, called Teremok.  

I hope I did a good job at making your belly grumble. I now have lots of recipes to add to my list of things I can make! Now, excuse me while I go and make myself some Russian grub. (: