Kulajda soup: Dill heaven / Kulajda: koprove nebe

Dill is one of the major spices used in the Czech cuisine. It pretty much shares the throne with parsley, caraway seeds and thyme. We make dill soups, dill gravy, dill cookies….(just kidding with the cookies!). The fancy name for dill weed is Anethum graveolens, a member of the parsley family. It is native to the eastern Mediterranean region and western Asia. The word dill comes from the old Norse word dylla, meaning to soothe or lull. It dates back in writing to about 3000 B.C., where it was mentioned in Egyptian medical texts. Czech dill soup is one of my all-time favorite dishes. It is a perfect winter meal because it is rich, creamy and nutritious – no need to have a second course after this baby :0)

CZ: Kopr spolu s petrzelkou, tymianem a kminem vladne ceske kuchyni. Delame z neho polevky, omacky, buchty (no to snad jeste ne)…..kopr je proste milacek vsech Cechu (a myslim ze i Slovaku). Nedavno jsem narazila na vyborny recept na koprovku, trosku jsem ho upravila a tady je. Sdilim s vami mou nove nalezenou kuchynskou pohadku :0)

KULAJDA SOUP

Ingredients:

• 8 cups vegetable stock
• 1 pound of potatoes, diced
• 4 – 5 cups of mushrooms (cleaned and sliced)
• 1 cup of  heavy cream
• 1 cup of  milk
• 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour
• 3 eggs, hard boiled, sliced
• 1 cup of fresh dill, finely chopped
• 3-4 Tbs of white vinegar
• 1 Tbs of caraway seed
  salt

Makes about 6 – 8 portions

Method:

1. Bring vegetable stock to boil and add potatoes
2. after 10 minutes add sliced mushrooms, caraway seeds and salt
3. Whisk flour into milk and cream and thru strainer slowly, while stirring it, pour into the boiling soup (you will see it thicken). On low heat boil for 5 more minutes, potatoes should be now tender.
4. Add more salt, chopped dill and take off the heat.
5. Finish the taste with vinegar
6. Before serving, put small cube of butter on top and slices of hard boiled egg, serve with dark bread or sesame crisps.
7. Serve with fresh Czech rustic bread

PS: If you are a meat lover like my husband is, add some sausage into the soup which also tastes delicious.

Source:

http://redbeet.wordpress.com/2008/01/23/kulajda-soup-and-more/#comment-23

http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Czech_Cuisine