SERBIAN TALES FOR GOURMETS I
September 2014
READY TO DISCOVER SERBIA?
FROM VASA CAKE TO WEDDING CABBAGE
Located on the crossroad of different cultural influences, Serbia is a place of most unusual culinary interweaving of European and Oriental cuisines. Thus, in Serbia you can find Wien and Budapest cakes, Turkish kebabs, Mediterranean wine and fruit, Central European noodles and dumplings, but also a wide variety of local authentic dishes and cooking techniques ~ from royal and common citizens, to monks and peasants table. Serbia is a country in which people love to cook and eat and most of all to host a traveler in their own home. At the same time, Serbia is a country of equally interesting artistic heritage, place where Italian Romanesque, Byzantine Classicism, Austrian Baroque and Hungarian Secession meet. All this facts make Serbia an ideal destination for hedonists in terms of food and art.
BELGRADE.
Welcome to Belgrade. Today we will start our gastronomy tour with a welcome lunch at the Belgrade Bohemian district. Then, we will head on a tour of Belgrade- the old and new where you will get the sense of how different Serbia is North and South of Danube river. We will also visit the medieval fortress and end the day having quiet dinner at the banks of Danube.
BELGRADE-PEĆINCI-SREMSKI KARLOVCI-NOVI SAD
Today we are traveling across Danube to the North to experience Serbia influenced by Austro-Hungarian Empire. Our first stop will be bread museum where you will see the breat making art and craft through the centuries in this region. After that we will visit Karlovci and have a workshop of making famous sweet bread Gugelhupf (Kuglof), one of the favorite sweets in the region of Vojvodina originating from once ruling Austria.
NOVI SAD – TOPOLA –SIROGOJNO
The day is reserved for one of the best cake workshops country has to offer- and it’s in Novi Sad, the second largest city of Serbia and also capital of Vojvodina district. You will have the chance to taste the Austrian style fine cakes such as Immortal cake, The Great Duchess and Vasa cake, using the original Wien, Budapest and Novi Sad recipes from 19th and early 20th century. In the afternoon we will visit Serbian Toscana- Topola and one of the most famous wineries in the country. An opportunity to taste a local delicacy – pig roasted on a spit with homemade bread and a wide variety of salads. In the evening we are getting to museum complex “Old village” in Sirogojno in Western Serbian Mt. Zlatibor where a mountain culinary adventure awaits.
SIROGOJNO – ZLATIBOR- SIROGOJNO
We will begin morning by making breakfast, buckwheat pie and kacamak (corn wheat porridge) with Chef of the local restaurant in the complex of Museum “Old village”. We will also learn the procedure of making bread. After the typical western Serbian peasants breakfast visit to the Museum permanent exhibition which exposes lifestyle in a peasant community in western Serbia in 19th century. We will be shown the procedure of making kajmak ( fermented milk cream ) and white cheese. Journey to montain Zlatibor – the center of dried meat production. We will hear the story about traditional meat drying procedure, how the famous Serbian smoked ham and other products are made.
SIROGOJNO – ZLAKUSA- BELGRADE
The last day is reserved for visit of legendary pottery village Zlakusa. There, we will have a workshop- cooking of wedding cabbage, probably the most famous culinary specialty from western Serbia with Mrs Mira Savic in family house of most famous local artisan – Milan Savic. While the cabbage cooks we will have the opportunity to see the process of creating famous Zlakusa pots, unique and ancient cooking dishes. Also there will be a possibility to create something from the specific Zlakusa clay together with local pottery masters.
BELGRADE-DEPARTURE
It was great having you! See you next time!