Book of Days Tales

The territory that is now Latvia was controlled by major powers for centuries.  Finally in the aftermath of the Great War (WW I) the nation was able to declare independence only to be absorbed by the Soviet Union after the Second World War.  World War I devastated the territory of what became the state of Latvia, and other western parts of the Russian Empire. Demands for self-determination were initially confined to autonomy, until a power vacuum was created by the Russian Revolution in 1917, followed by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk between Russia and Germany in March 1918, then the Allied armistice with Germany on 11 November 1918. On 18 November 1918, in Riga, the People’s Council of Latvia proclaimed the independence of the new country and Kārlis Ulmanis was entrusted to set up a government and he took the position of Prime Minister.

Latvian cooking is rather basic, with little in the way of seasonings.  Piragi, bacon and onion stuffed egg bread buns, are a popular dish. To make them you make an egg bread dough, let it rise once, knock it down and roll it into a sheet. Then cut out circles of the dough, place a tablespoon of chopped bacon and onion that has been gently fried into the center of the circle, fold over into a semi-circle and shape into a crescent.  Let the buns rise, glaze with beaten egg, and bake in a hot oven (400°F/ 200°C) for 15 minutes, or until golden.  A tasty snack that you can find throughout Latvia.

Silke Kažoka is also typical, but more formal.  It is a complex dish made of layers of salt herrings and grated vegetables interlaced with horseradish flavored mayonnaise and garnished with boiled eggs. Quantities are deliberately approximate to suit your own tastes. Tinned herrings in oil will work in this dish.

Silke Kažoka

Ingredients:

400 gm salt herring filets in oil
4 small potatoes, boiled and peeled
1 large carrot, boiled and peeled
2 boiled eggs
2 medium beetroots, boiled and peeled
1 cooking apple, peeled and cored
400 ml mayonnaise
1 tbsp prepared horseradish
chopped green onion for garnish

Instructions:

Coarsely grate the potatoes, carrot, beetroot, and apple, and reserve on separate plates.

Mix together the mayonnaise and horseradish.

On an oval platter make a layer of grated potato. Spread over the potato a thin layer of mayonnaise

Next add a layer of the chopped herring slightly smaller than the layer of potatoes.  As the layering process continues the idea is to create a shallow hill.  Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise over the herring.

Continue the layering with the carrots and apple, with mayonnaise on top of each.

The beetroot layer comes next and should cover the top and sides of the “hill.” Spread mayonnaise over the beetroot and work it into the layer a little with a fork so that the mayonnaise takes on the color of the beetroot.

Separate the whites and yolks of the boiled eggs.  Chop the yolks and cut the whites into short ribbons. Decorate the sides of the “hill” with the whites, and spread the yolks on the top.

Refrigerate for at least two hours.  Garnish with green onions and serve.