I am back in my home town, i.e. in Sofia, Bulgaria, for two weeks now and the weather is hot and sunny, just the way summer should be. I have spent this week sending out job applications for the Netherlands and meeting with some friends. Undoubtedly though, the highlight of the week was my special hang out with my friend Ramona who showed me in practice how brilliant her cooking skills are. So brilliant that I broke my front tooth from eating. (Just kidding it broke before that..)
My week started with a haircut and coloring of my hair because you never know if you will be lucky enough to be invited for an interview. In any case, I needed a refreshment of my color so I am pleased about it. It’s been a little disappointing with the application process where you are sending and sending and sending only to receive no answer or a rejection. I’m still positive, though, that I will be able to find a job within a few months.
I was happy when my friend invited me to try her homemade croissants and the Portuguese Pastel de Nata. I must say, however, that it is not so easily made. As much as I would like to convince myself that I would be able to do it the way she did, I don’t think I could nearly get there. It’s invigorating to see someone so good at something and even though my friend doesn’t believe me, in my impartial opinion cooking is really her thing. We studied together in high school and I have seen her learn and pass exams and all that stuff but when I see her cooking it looks so much more natural. Not to mention all these little tricks she knows like what to do with the egg whites so that they are not wasted when you only need the egg yolks, how to preserve products for longer or how to decorate a plate without using artificial coloring using different natural spices. You’d say anybody who knows a little about food would know these tricks or that she simply follows the recipe. However, believe me I always mess up something with food preparation. For me it feels more like a burden than something I would do in my spare time. When you see someone who puts all their creativity in this process, then you cannot but get inspired by their actions and encourage them. I do wish my friend all the best in her development in this sphere and I am eager to try out more.
I don’t know if you have ever tried to make croissants at home but I can tell you that the homemade ones are nothing close to the ones in the store or those machine-created stuff we buy when we don’t have time. It takes a lot of time with all the rolling and folding of the dough and letting it rest in the fridge but if you are patient you get there in the end. I can’t really tell you the recipe cause I don’t know it myself but from what I do remember you need to roll out the dough and leave it to rest in the fridge at least three times. I suppose baking it is the easiest part.
The other thing I tried at my friend’s place is Pastel de Nata. These are Portuguese desserts made out of puff pastry which she made herself and filled with cream before they are put in a super heated oven for 10 minutes. I imagine that you can make this dessert at home with a premade puff pastry if you don’t have the skill and patience to make one. The cream itself is not difficult and consists of egg yolks, milk, boiled water with sugar until you get a sugar syrup, cinnamon and vanilla. My friend added her special touch to it and made a decoration of golden caramel. There’s many videos out there how to make Pastel de Nata and it is really tasty. I haven’t tried many Portuguese dishes but I can tell you this one is my absolute favorite.
I hope you had a refreshing week or at least not a difficult one and treated yourselves to some nice dish, too. Which is your favorite dish? Do you like to cook or do you prefer someone cooking for you? Let me know!
Sincerely,
D. D.
The Sunlight Writer 