Have you read “Peeling Potatoes: Katie’s Story”? It is Book 1 in the Rocked in the Cradle of Coal series of historical fiction books for middle-grade children. The Rocked in the Cradle of Coal series follows the children of a poor Ukrainian immigrant family in the early 1900’s. Chapter 13 of the Book 1 tells of the simple yet meaningful ways this family celebrated Christmas in Pennsylvania coal country as Mama explains the spiritual significance of each tradition from the tablecloth to the 12 meatless dishes served for their Orthodox Christmas Eve dinner. Kutya, a sweet chewy wheat porridge, is one of the holiday dishes they would have enjoyed after sighting the first star in the winter sky. Oral tradition was the only way these illiterate immigrants could pass their beliefs and traditions on to their children, so they found spiritual significance in many everyday things and explained their faith in object lesson style.
Wheat berries are the main ingredient in kutya, and hearty wheat is an ancient symbol in the Ukrainian culture for life, prosperity, and health. One ritual observed by some families was tossing a spoonful of kutya up to the ceiling. If the grains stuck then the coming year would be prosperous, but if not bad luck was in their future. (I wonder who got to scrub the ceiling?)
Kutya is simple to make, but like most old made-from-scratch recipes, it is time-consuming. I adapted this recipe from one found in a very unique book titled “Beyond the North WInd” by Darra Goldstein (You can find it on Amazon). “Beyond the North Wind” is a delightful combination of Russian recipes and lore. It’s a great coffee table book to read for pleasure or as a reference when searching for delicious ethic recipes. Maybe you would like to make kutya for your holiday dinner, or serve it as a breakfast porridge on the big day.
See Notes*
Ingredients:
1 cup wheat berries
1/2 cup chopped blanched almonds
2 cups almond milk
Organic butter or substitute for greasing the casserole dish
1/2 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. poppy seeds
3 – 4 Tbsp honey
Sour cherry preserves
How to:
Soak the wheat berriies overnight in cold water to cover.
The next day, preheat the oven to 325F and toast the chopped blanched almonds until golden (6 – 8 minutes). Set aside.
Raise the oven temperature to 350F. Grease a lidded 1 1/2 quart casserole. Drain the wheat berries, place them in the casserole, and add salt.
Bring the almond milk to a boil and pour it over the wheat berries. Cover and bake for 1 1/2 hours until most of the almond milk is absorbed and wheat berries are tender, but chewy.
Meanwhile soak the poppy seeds in warm water for 30 minutes to soften, drain, then finely grind in a mini food processor.
When tthe wheat berries are done, stir in the poppy seeds, add honey to taste, and transfer to a serving bowl.
Serve warm or room temperature, sprinkle with toasted almonds and sour cherry preserves, if desired.
*Notes:
- Use fresh poppy seeds. Stale seeds can taste bitter and slightly rancid after grinding.
- You can find the book “Beyond the North Wind” by Darra Goldstein on Amazon.
- For the sour cherry preserves you could substitute raisins, dried cranberries, or apricots.
I’m sure that even picky-eater, Katie, didn’t complain about sweet nutty kutya on Christmas Eve. You can have it as part of the main meal, as a dessert, or for breakfast.
“Peeling Potatoes: Katie’s Story” would also be a sweet book to read with the children in your life this holiday season. To learn more about Katie, her big sisters, brother, and mother please follow this link:
https://amazon.com/author/jayne-m-booth
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