Cauliflower is quite popular vegetable in Czech Republic and not just as an ingredient in vegetable soups. For a main course there are three cauliflower recipes: Breaded fried cauliflower, cauliflower pancakes and scrambled cauliflower (known as mozeček). Now fried cauliflower is most common and served even in restaurants in lunch menu, but my personal favourite are pancakes. This soft and fluffy meal beats all stereotypes about Czechs being only meat-eaters. Cauliflower meals are always served with potatoes.

Sweet fruit dumplings (ovocné knedlíky) are unreservedly linked to summer days. But as always there are many ways how to cook this sweet recipe. You can prepare fruit dumplings from leavened dough, curd cheese or potato dough. In this recipe we use curd cheese dough. Dumplings are filled with various fruits e.g. apricots, blueberries, strawberries, plums, whatever you like. After that dumplings are cooked in boiling water and served in several ways. For example sprinkled with grated curd cheese, melted butter and sugared or with sugar, cocoa, melted butter and whipped cream. This recipe for curd cheese apricot dumplings is really quick and delicious.

Summer just started (in the Northern Hemisphere) and that’s great time to bring you some summer recipes full of fruits. In Czech Republic roads are surrounded with small stalls selling fruits like strawberries and other berries. Strawberries are one of the favorites fruits among kids. So why not prepare an icy refreshment for your sweeties. Strawberry popsicles or ice lollies are awfully easy and good. And when served in icy fruit bowl, even your hubby won’t resist.

They call it Wallachian Kingdom, Plumdom or Bolkovo, according to known actor Bolek Polívka (Oscar nominated Divided We Fall), who self-proclaimed himself as king of Wallachia. But the real treasure of this region resides in its cuisine. Kyselica is traditional cabbage soup of Wallachia consisting of potatoes and sauerkraut and smoked meat or bratwurst. Poor families of Wallachia had a saying “potatoes and cabbage – living on all age”. But since times changed, smoked meat found its way into the recipe. This thick soup used to be served for breakfast so men had enough strength for all-day work in woods. One portion is so hearty it can substitute lunch. Not to forget sauerkraut soup is very good for a body tormented by hangover from a New Year’s Eve or dancing ball. On the other side of White Carpathians, our federal brothers Slovaks make very similar soup called Kapustnica. While Kyselica is white, Kapustnica is red, because of adding paprika.

Czech Bábovka or Marble cake is typical sweet bakery product. Many people remember the time when they were children and there was always a marble cake on their grandmother’s kitchen table. Most people prepare a two-coloured cake with dark and light parts, hence the term marble cake. You can add a lot of ingredients into the dough to make your marble cake unique, e.g. raisins, candied, chocolate or nuts. Marble cake is baked in a special form with a hole in the middle and it is decorated by sprinkling with powder sugar.

Marble Cake Form

Bublanina is a classic sponge cake baked during summer season. Mainly during season of cherries, strawberries and other berries. You can say that this sponge cake can be made with almost every fruit from people’s gardens – cherry, plums, strawberries, raspberries, peaches and so on. It’s fluffy and ideal with your afternoon tea or coffee.