William Penn Life, 2005 (40. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2005-04-01 / 4. szám
The Hungarian Kitchen with Főszakács Béla One potato, two potatoes.... FÁRADJON BE AMAGYAR KONYHÁBA. April brings us another month closer to warmer weather, starting a garden and enjoying the outdoors after the winter we just had. I always look forward to this time of the year because it marks the start of all the William Penn activities. There is my auditor meeting at the end of this month, followed by the Carousel Ball, the WPA bowling tournament in Detroit, the Hungarian festival in New Brunswick, the WPA golf tournament in West Virginia, the Branch 336 golf tournament for Camp Can Do in Harrisburg, the HRFA golf tournament in Ligonier, and the Hungarian Heritage Experience Week and the WPA Picnic-A Great Fraternal Fest both at Penn Scenic View in Rock-wood, PA. I enjoy being part of all the fraternal activities of the William Penn. It is a way we can preserve our Magyar heritage in the U.S. Nothing new to report about the cookbook; it's still being worked on. Here is a trivia question: What To enhance the flavor of chocolate for icing, a cake mix or brownies, use coffee instead of water. Just substitute coffee for the amount of water the recipe calls for. The stronger the cup of coffee, the more intense the flavor you will give the chocolate in your finished product. vegetable is the most consumed every single day in the world? The answer will be at the end of this article. Hope you're enjoying the new look of the Hungarian Kitchen and the articles. As always, if you have any suggestions to make it better, just send them my way by US mail or email. In the meantime, let's get cooking... This month, let's take a look at another staple of the Hungarian diet we all enjoy--potatoes. The Inca Indians from Peru cultivated this tuber over a thousand years ago. Sir Walter Raleigh planted potatoes on his property in Ireland. After that, the Irish started planting potatoes more than any other European country. Hungary did not always have the pleasure of this vegetable. Every time Hungary was invaded by another country, the only thing good to come of it was a new recipe or food item. The potato was part of the Magyar revolution in 1848 because many people could not afford to pay the high tariff on wheat or buy potatoes. After the revolution it became a staple of the Magyar diet. Hungary has experienced its share of famine a few times during a thousand year period. Potatoes kept many families from starving as they were easy to grow and readily available. Hundreds of varieties of potatoes are grown worldwide. In America, there are five basic categories we enjoy: Russet, Long White, Round White, Round Red and Boiling. RUSSETS also known as older, baking or Idaho potatoes, have an elliptical shape with a rough brown skin and many eyes. The flesh of this potato becomes dry and mealy when cooked. Russets have low moisture and high starch content making them excellent for baking, mashing and frying. Idaho produces more russets than any other state in the union. LONG WHITES also have an elliptical shape with a thin pale gray/ brown skin with imperceptible eyes. These potatoes were developed in California. They can be baked, boiled or fried. The thumb size baby long whites are also known as "Fingerling Potatoes". ROUND WHITE and ROUND RED potatoes are identical in shape with both having a waxy flesh with less starch and more moisture. They are better suited for boiling than for baking. Round Whites have a freckled brown smooth skin. Round Reds have a reddish brown smooth skin. They both make great mashed potatoes. Round potatoes are also good for pan frying and cooking in a stew or with SALT is an essential element for most living organisms. It’s the only rock we eat We cannot live without salt. When used in food, salt is a preservative, texture aid, binder, fermentation controller and color developer. Salt has even been used as currency. Kosher salt, Sea salt, Iodized salt and Rock salt are variations of the same product we also know as NaCI or Sodium Chloride. It is one of the most widely used of all preservatives and was a primary ingredient in preserving Egyptian Mummies. Salt has been the subject of wars, taxes and laws. One of the main reasons why scientists believe there may be life on other planets is because they have found salt in meteors and on Mars! 10 William Penn Life, April 2005
