Since having my second child last year, I haven’t had much time to myself (read: none), so my gaming habits have… suffered, to say the least. When I do find twenty minutes of quiet, I turn on my Switch and load my newest favorite cozy game: Palia. (Brought to you by the original developers of The Sims franchise).
While playing, I met Reth—the local Palian chef. And one soup he’s constantly mentioning is his famous Lettuce Soup.
Lettuce Soup… where have I heard that before?
That’s when I realized I have a favorite Romanian lettuce soup! It’s called Supă de Salată Verde {Green Lettuce Soup} and, yes, it is what you’re thinking: lettuce in a broth.
But it’s also so much more than that, too… there’s also sour cream! (Go figure.)
Since I thought others (especially fellow Palia players) might be interested in trying a lettuce soup, I’m sharing this recipe from my cookbook!
↓ Recipe below ↓
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I was sitting out in my backyard with my mom when she looked over to our untamed planter box (we have a newborn aka our garden has sort of fallen by the wayside) and pointed out a weed that she said her grandmother, my great-grandmother, used to make a soup out of, and they’d call it Ciorbă de Lobodă (pronounced chore-bah day low-bow-dah). Naturally, I had to look up what this weed was (and taste it, but that’s beside the point…). Turns out, it goes by many names, like Lamb’s Quarters or Wild Spinach. Sure enough, tasting it, it did sort of resemble spinach!
So, instead of ripping it out, I decided to hang onto it, harvest it, and make some summer soup!
↓ Recipe below ↓
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Ciorbă de Porc (pronounced ch-or-bah day pork) utilizes Romania’s most popular protein in this hearty sour soup filled with vegetables, perfect for a cold autumn day when you’re looking for a quick and delicious warm-up. Traditional recipes use borș {borscht} as the souring agent, but since that’s not a very common ingredient to find I’ve replaced it with lemon juice.
Update 05.2021 // Hey! This recipe has been featured in the opening scene of the horror-survival video game Resident Evil 8 Village.
↓ Recipe Below ↓
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I’m a huge fan of recipes that make use of what you have, especially if it’s on the verge of meeting its trashcan demise. So while this Ciorbă de Legume (pronounced ch-or-bah day leg-oom-ay) has a list of vegetables that make up the soup, I give you free rein to add in whatever vegetables you need to use up! If it’s a heartier vegetable (think potatoes, cauliflower…) add it to the pot earlier in the recipe. If it’s a more delicate vegetable (think tomatoes, zucchini…) add it in near the end of the cook time.
This recipe, in particular, is a bit similar to my Transylvanian Bean Soup recipe (Supă de Fasole Transilvăneană), however, you’ll notice this recipe is a Ciorbă while that recipe is a Supă. So… what’s the difference? Both translate from Romanian to English as “soup,” though they denote key differences between recipes. “Supă” tends to refer to a sweeter soup with vegetables and/or noodles, but no meat, whereas “Ciorbă” tends to refer to a more sour soup with vegetables and/or noodles and is more likely to have meat in it (though neither of these recipes does).
Update 05.2021 // Hey! This recipe has been featured in the opening scene of the horror-survival video game Resident Evil 8 Village.
↓ Recipe below ↓
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Romanians love dips and spreads. I’ve already featured Salata de Vinete, an eggplant salad spread, and today I’m excited to bring to you another smokey veggie goodness recipe: Zacusca (pronounced zah-coo-sk-ah). And… surprise! Even though the star of this recipe is the red pepper, there’s eggplant in this one, too!
Fall is the perfect time to make this recipe. With the Autumn harvest, there’s an abundance of fresh vegetables with robust flavors just waiting to be made into something anew. Zacusca is smokey, salty, a little sweet, a little acidic, and fits perfectly atop a slice of crusty baguette. This is also a great recipe to couple with my Coca Bread, or Romanian Flatbread. It’s quick and easy to whip up and gives you a nice carrier to get the zacusca to your mouth.
Since it does take a while to complete this recipe, I wouldn’t fault you for passing it up. Thankfully, zacusca has become more mainstream, with some specialty grocery stores stocking it on their shelves. Here are some options I found from Amazon: here
, here
, and here
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↓ Recipe below ↓
—But first, some pretty pictures—
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