Baklava
The baklava is a specialty that adorns the table of every Christian family during Christmas Eve dinner. The baklava is also the major dish in the Islamic feast of Ramadan Bairam when the guests are treated, and was once part of any family celebration or a Feast day of a Saint.
Needed ingredients: For dough: 1 kg. filo for baklava, 500 gr. walnuts- chopped, 200 gr. semolina, 150 ml. oil.
For sorbet: 2 kg. sugar, 1 l. water, 2 bags of vanilla sugar, 1 lemon.
Preparation method:
The nuts are chopped. The semolina is fried with the vanilla sugar and the finely ground saks. Prepare round tin with No. 36. Sprayed with oil and the filo pastry placed on top of one another. On each filo sheet put oil and semolina, and every second sheet put oil, semolina and nuts. The last few layers are left without nuts. Once you lay down all the filo sheets cut them in a form of diamond or baklava. The baklava covered with aluminum foil and baked in a preheated oven for 1 hour. The foil is removed after half hour of baking. After baking, the baklava is left to cool. The sorbet is prepared with 2 kg. of sugar and 1 liter of water. Add vanilla sugar to the mixture and by the end, finely cut circles of lemon. The sorbet is ready when it starts to create foam. When the baklava is fully chilled the hot sorbet is poured over it and put aside to chill before serving it.
Halva of semolina
Lean halva of semolina is a dessert which is melting in your mouth. It is often made in area of Gevgelija, and it’s served cutted into cubes or same shape made in die.
Needed ingredients: 250 gr. oil, 500 gr. semolina, 750 gr. sugar, 1 l. water, 2 vanilla sugar.
Preparation method:
Put the oil in a pan to heat, add the semolina and with continuing stirring fry it until the mixture gets pale brown color. Add the sugar, vanilla sugar and water and stir it until it gets thicken. The halva of semolina is placed in a bowl, it is leveling and let it stand.
Kadaif
Another dessert with water sugar from the Turkish menu is Kadaif, that is traditionally prepared for Trimmers, and that is not left out in everyday gathering of older generations.
Needed ingredients: 500 gr. Qatayef (kadaif), 250 gr. nuts, 200 – 250 gr. margarine, 1 vanilla sugar. For the sorbet: ½ kg. sugar, ½ l. water, 1 lemon.
Preparation method:
Half of the kadaif is placed in a rectangular tray smeared with margarine. Finely sliced nuts, mixed with the vanilla sugar are evenly placed on the kadaif, and in that order put the rest of it. Melt the margarine and with that fluctuate the kadaif and put it to bake in a preheated oven at moderate temperature until it gets darker color. The water sugar is made in a heated pot with a half kg. sugar and a half liter of water. The content needs to simmer for ten minutes, then add the lemon cut in quarters and let it simmer for a while. What will the density be depends on taste. Poor the hot sugar water on the cooled kadaif, and when it gets cold cut it into cubes.
Mlechnik (Milking pie)
Mlechnik is one of the recipes that highlight and make our kitchen special. Sweet-salty, variant of preparing of Mlechnik is found only in Strumica.
Needed ingredients:The salty part: 500gr. layers; 200 gr. cheese, acidic water; 100ml, 100 ml. oil; 2 yolk; 2 tablespoons yogurt, salt.
Preparation method:
First prepare the filling for the salt part. In a bowl mix the yolk, cheese, sour water, oil, yogurt and a pinch of salt. In a round greased pan put one layer crust, but the ends need to be outside. The layer is coated with oil. Then do krashnik in a way that we take one layer on which we put the filling and wrap it in rolls. The layer with the filling is placed at the end of the baking pan and it should be wrinkled. Make several more layers on the same way so the whole baking pan will be covered and to form krashnik. The layer from the bottom, which ends are out of the baking pan, are shifting over the krashnik. Put the noodles in the middle. Mix the ingredients for the sweet filling (milk, eggs, sugar, and vanilla sugar) and spill over the layers in the baking pan. Krashnik is coated with a mixture of slightly acidic water, oil and egg. Bake at temperature of 200 degrees about 40 minutes. Be sure to be well baked underneath.
Ravanlija
Ravanlija is a lite dessert with sorbet which can be found on the menu of any restaurant in southeastern Macedonia.
Needed ingredients: For the dough: 3 eggs, 12 spoons of sugar, 12 spoons of ground/crushed walnuts, 12 spoons of cooking oil, 12 spoons of milk, 12 spoons of semolina, 12 spoons of flour, 1 baking powder. For the sorbet: 3 cups of sugar, 1 vanilla sugar. Lemon juice
Preparation method:
Mix the eggs and sugar throughout with a mixer. Add the milk and cooking oil and mix them some more. Then gradually add mixture of semolina, nuts, flour and the baking powder. Mix well until the mass gets consistent. The dough is placed on an oiled baking pan no.28 and is baked for about 25 min. at 180 degrees. The sorbet is made by adding water and sugar in a pot until they boil. Finally, vanilla sugar and little lemon juice are added. Once chilled and cut into cubes, pour the sorbet over it.
Tatlia
Sweet Tatlia of fresh cheese is another recipe that people from Radovish are proud of. Tatlia is a dessert with a rich flavor that can saturate every gourmets.
Needed ingredients: 1 kg. fresh cheese, 1 cup semolina, 1 cup oil, 1 cup sugar, 1 baking powder, ½ cup flour, 7 eggs.
Preparation method:
In the baking pan put chopped cheese and all the other ingredients. Bake at temperature of 180 to 200 degrees. Sorbet is ready after the water with sugar will boil for ten minutes. Pour the half of the sorbet over the Tatlija, then put it again in the hot oven it soak the sorbet. Then remove it and cover it with remaining sugar.
Sarlija
Similar to Baklava is Sarlija – dessert topped with sorbet. Baklava is the best when is made of rolled layers that bend and arranged in a circular tray. This specialty is used to be made for every holidays and celebrations.
Needed ingredients:
For the dough layers: 600 – 700 gr. Flour, 200 ml. water, 1 tablespoon oil, 5 gr yeast, salt.
For the sorbet: 1 kg. sugar, 1 l. water, 1 vanilla sugar.
For the filling: 200 gr. semolina, 200 gr. nuts - finely sliced, 100 ml. oil, 1 vanilla sugar, peel of 1 lemon – grated.
Preparation method:
Sieve the flour and pot the pecivo in it and a little salt. Gradually add water and oil to make the dough. The dough should be affirmed, so the amount of water can vary depending on the flour. The dough is divided into 7-8 balls and one by one are сукаат on the floured surface with a long roll. In a heated pan put a little oil to fry the semolina. When the semolina gets the smell add vanilla sugar and grated peel of lemon and stir. Each rolled crust is sprayed with oil, semolina and nuts and with pushing it gathers on both sides and rolls like a little drill. Завитканата crust is placed in the middle of a oiled pan with no. 32 and wound in a circle. Each layer should be done on the same way, in a circle, starting from the end of the previous crust. When the baking pan is full, cut the Saralija and bake it in a heated oven on a 160- 170 degrees for about 40minutes until lightly goes brown. Sorbet is made as follows: put 700 gr. sugar into a pot and cover it with 700ml. water. Add to the content 1 lemon juice and 1 vanilla sugar and place it on fire to boil. Sorbet is ready when you pour the mixture with a spoon, which will have thread density. Saralia should be cooled off before it will be poured with the hot sorbet. Instead of homemade layers can be used 500 gr. ready layers but they should be baked for a shorter time, until lightly browned.
Zerde
The zerde is a lean rice pudding suitable for the fasting period and it is traditional recipe from the region of Strumica characteristic for the Trimeri celebration.
Needed ingredients: ½ kg. white rice, 1 kg. sugar, 2 l. water, 3 vanilla sugar, Cinnamon.
Preparation method:
The rice is left overnight to sit in water. The following day is strained and crushed by hands. Once prepared, the rice is put to boil in a pot with 1 l. water while stirring constantly. Add the sugar and continue with the stirring. Boil it for about 1 - 1:30 hours over lower heat. The zerde will be ready when it gets white and shiny color and mass become firm and dense. Shortly before being ready, add vanilla sugar. While still warm place the zerde in shallow containers and sprinkle them with cinnamon.