Today, Let’s Get Mythical is going to dive into another lesser-known but absolutely fascinating creature from Romanian folklore: the Balaur (pronounced bah-laoor). Much like the Zmeu from a previous post, if you’re into dragons, you’re going to want to keep reading!
New series alert! Let’s Get Mythical will focus on (largely) unknown creatures of Romanian mythology and folklore. No vampires allowed here! First up: the Zmeu….
What comes to mind when you hear the word “dragon”? A gigantic fire-breathing reptile, right? Well, you’re not alone.
But I’m going to have you toss that image aside because Romania’s Zmeu (pronounced zmeh-oo) isn’t your typical dragon. Imagine a mix of dragon, demon, and trickster–that’s a Zmeu! It’s like someone dipped a dragon in a vat of folklore, and this fascinating blend of magical mayhem emerged. Or maybe the dragon version of everyone’s favorite Loki.
Welcome to the second recipe in my Cousin’s Cookies Collection (if you’re new to From Dill to Dracula, check out recipe number one of four: Heather’s Cookies)!
These were never called Napolitane cu Caramel și Nuci (pronounced nah-pole-e-tahn-eh coo car-a-mel she noo-chee), or Wafers and Cocoa. Instead, these were lovingly called Ashley’s Cookies. Yes, I had my very own cookies. And, of course, they were my favorite of the three.
(Again, this is more cake-like than cookie-like, but who am I to question my grandmother?
I’m not. And I won’t.)
But these cookies… man! Because wafers are such a delicate (and thin) carrier, they quite literally melt into your mouth. There’s also a graininess to the filling that’s so nostalgic and comforting—it’s very different from popular fillings which tend to be smooth. Not this one. Smooth disappears. Being able to feel the filling gives it prominence. And deliciousness.
So much deliciousness.
(And, yes, I know that’s not a word you’re supposed to use when describing a recipe, but I can’t help it!)
↓ Recipe below ↓
Hi friends! *waves* This summer has been crazy and, for the majority of it, I haven’t even been home, so From Dill to Dracula has taken a hit. That being said, I have a lot of fun blog posts coming your way, and I’d like to kick it off with a series: My Cousin’s Cookie Collection.
Growing up, us four cousins on my dad’s side each had a cookie recipe named after each other. This recipe was always called Heather’s Cookies, so named after my eldest cousin. Of course, the downside to this is that I don’t have an official name for these cookies—lost in years and with age. And even though I’ve tried scouring the internet (and Pinterest) to find the proper name, I’ve come up empty handed.
Because this recipe uses biscuits, the only recipes that tended to come up were similar to my Salam de Biscuiti recipe, but this one is still… different. The addition of coffee (the instant variety) and a layering of cream to biscuit make it more of a cake than a cookie (even though that’s how we referred to them as kids).
Since I couldn’t very well title the recipe Heather’s Cookies, the best descriptor for this recipe I could come up with was Romanian Chocolate Layer Cake, or tortul de ciocolată din România (pronounced tour-tulle day ch-oh-k-oh-lah-tah dean Rome-ah-knee-ah).
This recipe is one of many I received from my grandmother in Romanian, and have since had my mom translate for me. Trying to translate recipes myself hasn’t gone so well in the past. Case in point:
(Shameless plug: If you don’t follow me on Twitter, please do!)
But I digress. It’s time for some food, right?
My husband likened this to a chocolate lasagna mixed with the texture of a tiramisu, and he’s pretty accurate on both counts. The layers of biscuit and cream are a lot like a traditional Italian lasagna, and because the biscuits are so porous, they absorb some of the cream and become soft, cakey bites. Yum! Enough talking. It’s time for some food, right?
Since there are four cousins, this will be the first of four recipes in my Cousin’s Cookies Collection. They’ll be posted in the order of the cousin’s age, so stay tuned for my very own cookies (“Ashley’s Cookies“) next!
↓ Recipe below ↓
—But first, some pretty pictures—
