Czech Foods Recipes

This dish is a perfect subtle creamy lemon pasta with chicken (or chicken-style pieces for a veggie-friendly version).  Despite the dark/grim background of the photo (it was dark by the time dinner was finished), creamy lemon pasta with chicken is actually a perfect spring or summer dish.  Feel free to omit the chicken, and make it as a side dish for your main.  Lemon goes well with fish right?  Does pasta go with fish?  So many questions. Questions aside, this dish has become a household favorite, and has been made many times since that photo was taken. Note: Plan ahead, as chicken needs to be cooked and have time to soak up the lemon juice. You will need: 250 grams of Farfalle (bow-tie) pasta 3 medium chicken breasts fully cooked (preferably baked) and thinly sliced 2 tsp garlic powder (divided in half) 1 tsp ground black pepper 12 oz. (350ml) hot water   with two dissolved chicken stock cubes 1 cup (approx 235ml) heavy cream 2 1/2 Tbsp flour 1 1/2 Tbsp...

I am one week into this process and the results look grim. The week long activity of feeding the mixture with a few tablespoons of water and flour each day yielded no results. By “results”, I was expecting the mixture to start bubbling and increasing in size (as reaction to the daily feeding).What went wrong? My guesses are many.   First of all I kept the covered bowl of this mixture in a window sill that is a tad drafty. I would expect the temperature in this area reaches no higher than sixty five degrees Fahrenheit. The ideal room temperature for a yeast culture to grow should be warmer. Also, I am using wheat flour that is a tad old. Not sure if this makes a difference. Third, the recipe I am following did not mention adding any outside sugars to kick start the process. Some of these sour dough starter methods I have read online mention adding a little sugar or juice to move this along. My concoction so far is nothing more than a flat bowl of mush that occasionally separates, bu...

I threw this recipe together SO quickly for a (Christmas) family get-together a while ago.  These are quite quick to make and use easily found ingredients.  They taste amazing, making it hard to just eat one even though you know that amount of cheesecake cannot be good for you! You will need: 18 cupcake wrappers 18 oreos (peanut butter, mint, double stuffed, chocolate any flavor is amazing) +6 oreos for crushing (24 total oreos) 16 oz. (approx 450g) of cream cheese at room temperature 1/2 cup sour cream 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla 2 eggs 1. Line cupcake tray and place 1 oreo at the bottom of each. 2. Place 6 oreos in a food processor and crush (or do so by hand in a large plastic bag). 3. Beat room-temperature cream cheese until smooth. 4. Beat in sugar, vanilla, and eggs. 5. Fold in oreo crumbs. 6. Divide mixture amongst the 18 holders. 7. Bake at 300°F (150°C) for 18-22 minutes. 8. Chill cheesecakes before serving.

One of my latest endeavors currently is preparing a Czech rye bread. There are so many variations of how to make a rye bread that it gets really confusing on which one is the appropriate method. One common theme I am realizing while I research via the web is that the rye flour in the states is much different than those sold in Europe. The rye flour here in the states is much coarser and produces a tougher texture than the smooth rye found in the Czech Republic. I have not begun my search yet for rye flours but will maybe have to suffice with what is available at the local store if I cannot find any refined rye flour. So, the first step in preparing rye dough is by making a starter. Many recipes prefer that the rye bread is made with a starter as opposed to using quick or instant yeast. The "starter" process is basically growing your own yeast /bacteria culture by mixing flour with water and covering it. Throughout the next seven days or  more, the yeast will become active as ...

This is my attempt at re-creating Culver's pumpkin concrete shakes that I used to get on vacation with my family at this time of year in Wisconsin.  Pretty much the only difference was the more drinkable consistency.  But if I'm honest, I always found fighting with 'concreteness' of a concrete shake to be a bit frustrating anyways.  If you prefer a ridiculously thick shake, all you need to do is reduce the amount of milk to your preference.  Simples! You will need: 1/2 cup milk (fat-free is fine) 2 cups vanilla ice cream Approximately 1/3 cup pumpkin 1 Tbsp dark brown sugar 1 tsp cinnamon Pinch of nutmeg Pinch of cloves  *Go easy on the nutmeg and cloves, as unless you are working with very very finely ground high quality spices or it will affect the texture Yield: 2 small or 1 large milkshake There are two options for mixing this.  Either throw all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Or, combine in a large bowl and whisk until smooth.  Th...

Some of my favorite after dinner Czech treats are kolacky.   There are hundreds of kolacky recipes out there, but I still stick with this simple one, especially when I am worried about having time to prepare other items be it dinner or other holiday bakery such as a houska/vanocka. Most kolacky recipes you will find do not use cream cheese in the dough; which is one of my favorite ingredients in this recipe. The rich cheese dough tastes delicious aside from the fruit filling. I have posted a raspberry recipe on this site before and I just recently prepared a batch of apricot kolacky. For the filling, just about any apricot fruit filling will work whether using Solo filling, preserves, or jam. The recipe is a family keeper and I even enjoy one or two of these for a quick breakfast. Fruit Filled Kolacky 1 Cup All Purpose Flour 1 Stick Butter, softened 3/8 Cup Cream Cheese, softened ¼ cup sugar Apricot Fruit Filling (Jam, Preserves, or Canned Pastry Filling) 1. Cream softened butter, ...

Spicy sausage and tomato penne is the perfect dish when you are in need of some easy comfort food!  It honestly took me longer to do the dishes than to make the food.  I can only imagine how easy this would be if I had a dish washer...  A girl can dream! 220g/ ≈ 8oz penne pasta 250g/ ≈ 9oz white mushrooms 570g/ 20oz tomato spaghetti/bolognese sauce (spicy, if possible/to taste) Pinch of onion powder Pinch of garlic powder Pinch of pepper Pinch of salt 8 thick-cut pork sausages   *I feel like 6 brats may be a good substitute You will need a large pot or deep frying pan 1. Cook penne according to package instructions.  This can be done on another burner while working on the sauce to save time, 2. In a large pot or deep frying pan, brown and thoroughly cook sausages. 3. Remove sausages from pan, but retain the fat/juices.  Allow sausages to cool slightly. 4. In the mean time, prepare and cut mushrooms into medium-large slices. 5. Fry mushrooms in the sausage ...