Author Archives:

Direcly from Pionka’s Chocolate Polish Chocolatier Mariusz Pionka started his career in Bristol when he decided he wanted to make chocolate from scratch.  The very first chocolates didn’t work out, but he didn’t let that stop him!  That’s when he fell in love with chocolate. He started researching and realised he needed to find work experience that would train him and show him the magic ways of Chocolate.  He found a job in a small chocolate factory in Spain.  After 2 years he came back to Bristol and started trading his own chocolates in and around Bristol Markets. Mariusz opened … Read more   

Christmas is coming and it’s time to get the mincemeat ready.  This is one of my favourite recipes.  It makes over 5 x 1-lb jars of mincemeat and will keep for a long time.  I make this every year and it sells well at Christmas Fayres.  Enjoy! Ingredients: 1 lb of currants 1 lb of raisins 1 lb of sultanas 1 lb of suet or vegetable suet 1 lb of apples, peeled, cored & finely chopped or grated 1 lb of caster sugar 4 oz of candied peel 1 lemon Teaspoon of salt Cinnamon and nutmeg 150 mls of brandy, … Read more   

Gołąbki means “little pigeons” and as with many Polish recipes, there are as many variations to the ingredients and cooking methods as there are Polish families! The filling is usually made with meat and rice, but you could replace the rice with buckwheat; or for a vegetarian version use mushrooms and onions instead of meat. Cooking methods can also vary.  They could be cooked in the oven, in a saucepan on the hob or, alternatively fried.  They are often eaten with a sauce, usually tomato or mushroom. Gołąbki are excellent from frozen, either raw or cooked. This recipe details gołąbki … Read more   

Being a butcher’s daughter, it has been difficult to choose my favourite main course meal.  I suppose it could be sirloin steak, however, I am going for something with a lot of flavour, relatively economic in terms of ingredients, easy to prepare and pop into the oven whilst getting on with other jobs.  Have you guessed?  It’s casserole with braising steak and vegetables. Here’s my recipe, and there is no set quantity of any ingredient so you can choose what amount you prefer according to taste. Braising steak (or stewing steak)CarrotsOnionsSwedeMushroomsGravy or sauce Directions:      Chop vegetables as required, cut beef … Read more   

Zupa Ogòrkowa is a traditional Polish soup made from “ogòrki kiszone” or cucumbers in brine. You can buy these from Polish shops or delis. If you can’t find ogòrki kiszone, the more readily available pickled cucumbers or gherkins will do just as well. This soup is easy to make and delicious. To make it even better you can make your own stock but this is not necessary if you don’t have the time or inclination.  All Polish cooks have their own version; this is a very easy one based on what I remember of my mother’s recipe. Ingredients: Serves 4 … Read more   

When I was little, we moved into a house in Wembley, London. From the neighbour’s garden, lush pears fell into ours. The lovely neighbours have encouraged my mother’s use of the pears and also enjoyed the chutney as much as we all have over nearly sixty years. My mother is still making it – wonderful. Ingredients                                          25g / 1oz Root ginger, roughly chopped1x5ml spoon / 1 teaspoon Cloves2.75kg / 6lb Pears, peeled, cored and chopped500g / 1lb Onions, peeled and chopped100g / 4oz Stem ginger, finely choppedGrated rind and juice of three oranges750g / 1.5lb Granulated sugar900ml / 1.5 pints … Read more   

When we bought a slow cooker I never thought of using it for puddings; however it makes excellent bread and butter pudding every time! Use the recipe as a guide; don’t follow it slavishly.  Any dried fruit will do, and obviously the amounts you use will depend on how big a pudding you want.  It is almost impossible to make this wrong – it will either be really good or excellent! You can also vary the flavour by adding lemon or orange zest and other interesting flavours. I’ve used all types of bread, but found it worked best for us … Read more   

One of the Polish Christmas Eve traditions is Compote – as the Polish climate is extreme, fresh fruits would not traditionally have been available in midwinter.  In fact, various different compotes made from fresh or preserved fruits are consumed all the year round. This one, using prunes and figs, goes back to the middle ages and echoes the cuisine of the Holy Land and is a Christmas favourite.  It is simplicity itself to make. Ingredients: 10 ounces of stoned prunes (My personal favourites are those lovely prunes d’Agen from the South of France) 10 oz dried figs One cinnamon stick … Read more   

Tea Brack is a sort of cross between cake and bread. The word Brack comes from an old Irish word, ‘breac‘, meaning speckled, which I imagine, refers to the fruit. The Irish are great tea drinkers so there would always be tea left in the pot at the end of the day to soak the fruit. The night before…375g/12oz mixed Raisins/Sultanas300ml/ ½pint Cold Milk-less Tea Place fruit and tea in a bowl and leave to soak overnight The next day…. Preheat oven, 170C/325F/Gas3. Grease and base line a 900g/2lb loaf tin, or a 20cm/8” round cake tin. To the bowl … Read more   

This recipe for a Strawberry Jelly Cake is from my father’s cousin, Zosia Ciesielska, in Krakow. She was a founder member and chair of the Sybir Association there, and how I found her is another story! Cake base Determine the size of your cake.  The proportions below are given per 1 egg. The standard round cake tin has an 9 in (approx. 23 cm) diameter – 4 or 5 eggs are recommended.  Six to seven eggs would be required for baking in a 10-inch tin. Ingredients per 1 egg: 40 g granulated sugar 30 g plain flour A few drops … Read more   

A Babka is often a sweet, rich yeast dough often baked with additional dried fruit, in a fluted baking tin which gives it the name “Babka”, or little grandmother.  The fluted shape resembling a grandmother’s skirt pleats In this example it is a two- flavoured/coloured version baked without the use of yeast. As specified in the recipe, Poles tend to measure ingredients using a glass.  When you bake this cake, simply measure all the ingredients using the same glass, or cup, then you can’t go wrong with this easy, delicious cake. Ingredients                                          5 egg 11/2 glasses sugar 21/2 glasses plain … Read more