Onion Skins and Butter Lambs 4

The Polish Ostara Feast

In Poland the Easter Breakfast is generally eaten cold (because of restrictions of cooking on holy days). No complaints here! Having your food cooked ahead and serving it cold makes for an easy meal.

Hard boiled eggs are a biggie for this, of course. My Babcia (grandmother) liked to use brown eggs for this occasion because they look more natural (and possibly because they reminded her of the chickens she had at home). You can also use the dyed eggs above.

A platter of kielbasa, and sliced baked or boiled ham was always on the table with a bowl of horseradish and a bowl of good brown mustard, for slathering on the meats. We'd also have plate of cheeses and a couple loaves of good bread – I recommend a crusty Polish rye or pumpernickel.

I guess my Babcia "cheated" on the no-cooking, because she always made a delicious sausage or chicken soup and her amazing potato pancakes. Unlike the Jewish latkes I've had, these were made from blender-ed potatoes (rather than grated). Fried in butter, they were thin and crisp. Accompany the pancakes with a bowl of apple sauce and another of sour cream.

Another of our staple items for this meal was my Babcia's Cucumber-Sour Cream salad. Flavored with just a bit of dill, it tastes like pure springtime.

Babcia's Potato Pancakes

(Forgive me, I've never measured when I make these. Someday maybe I'll sit down and figure out the measurements. For now, you'll have to deal and estimate.)

Potatoes, raw, peeled and roughly chopped

A small onion, peeled and roughly chopped

Flour, a few tablespoons

1-2 Eggs

Butter

Throw the potatoes and onion into the blender and pulse until they are fully mashed. Add in the eggs and a couple tablespoons of flour (just enough to bind the batter). The consistency should be close to pancake batter, but slightly more grainy.

Heat a skillet and add butter. Pour the batter into small rounds (the same way you'd do with pancakes) and flip when the underside is crispy and golden.

Babcia's Cucumber-Sour Cream Salad

6 cucumbers, peeled

Salt

2 cups sour cream

Sugar, a couple teaspoons (optional)

Dill (fresh if at all possible!) a small handful, chopped

Slice the cucumbers (crosswise) paper-thin. A mandolin can be very helpful for this job. Salt the cucumber relatively heavily and let it sit at room temperature for about a half hour.

Drain the cucumber slices and squeeze them dry. This is easiest to do in small handfuls. The idea is to get as much of the water as possible out of the cucumber.