My New Russian Friends

So, something very strange happened yesterday. My Blog stats suggested that more Russians (yep)
read my Blog in the last week than people from the United States. I'm still at the baby stages of blogging, but this strikes me, surprises me. I'm getting a few hits from Southeast Asia, Mexico, and Great Britian.

What does that tell me about the Russians? That they like food, that they are fond of laughter, that they are particularly enamored of children. Perhaps their own.

I've always been fond of them. They birthed and nurtured those thundering geniuses: Rachmaninov and Tchaikowsky; Dostoyevski and Tolstoy. I love the domed architecture that shelters the Russian Orthodox church, the lush countryside and beautiful roads, their dark Russian bread. They are great at cold-weather foods.


I found a Russian cookbook. This is my experience: you can be a great cook—in your own tradition. You really need a mama to show you how to do it. Mine is German-American with a little bit of Amish/anabaptist tossed in. But I'm spotty, at best, with food that comes from outside my own culture. I was lucky with an Americanized version of Japanese hot pots, but I didn't understand the original recipes. I was embarrassed by my uninspired, insipid macaroons.


I did find a recipe for Russian roasted pork loin with a stuffing of apples and raisins and orange. Yummo. I'll let you know how it goes.


Thanks to everybody who checks in.