When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Vodka

~Blog Post #1~

13 April 2015

by Ryan Rodriguez

       Hello my friends,

today we are taste testing some delicious Russian foods. Why?--because I have always had a lay-man's passion for Russian culture, and I saw this Food Blog and Festival as an opportunity to learn a bit more about this Eastern European civilization. However, I knew my stereotyped knowledge would not get me far; once in a blue moon the comrades might have a cup of lemonade or juice with their [alcoholic] drinks (Anton Chekhov). Seriously though, I learned that Russia's cuisines are quite diverse because of the vast and multi-cultural expanse of the country; therefore, Russian foods have been unofficially broken down into three main categories: traditional Russian cuisines, Soviet Union cuisines, and "peasant cuisines"(Deborah F. Bryceson). On the contrary, due to years of economic struggle, war, and poverty, Russian dishes are mainly geared towards rudimentary types of food. For two centuries, Russian ancestors lived mainly on variations of soups and stews. When they were not eating Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup, they were digging into the raw ingredients for the stew. For example they would serve roasted beef and baked vegetables on a plate rather than in a bowl; this meal called kholodet. Although I am over simplifying the stew scenario, more cultured styles of food would not develop until the late 19th century due to the popularization of Pelmeni, or more commonly known as "pigs in a blanket."

Bibliography:

• Bryceson, Deborah Fahy. Peasant Food Production and Food Supply in Relation to the Historical Development of Commodity Production in Pre-colonial and Colonial Tanganyika. N.p.: n.p., 1978. Print.
• Irakli Iosebashvili, Gourmand (7 July 2009). "Russian cuisine: Preserve the summer with fruity varenye". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 27 December 2014.
• "Russian Cuisine." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 2 Mar. 2015. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.