Czernina

Duck Blood Soup. The soup vegetables may be diced and returned to the pot or used in another dish per your preference. Add about 2 cups dried fruit: prunes, apples, pears, raisins, and simmer another 15-20 minutes. Fork-blend 2-3 Tbs flour with the blood and vinegar mixture, add about 1/2 cup stock 1 Tbs at a time, stirring constantly, then return to the pot. Season with salt and pepper, a pinch or 2 ground juniper berries (optional) sugar and a bit more vinegar if needed to get a sweet, sour, winey flavor with subtly spicey undertones. Simmer gently several minutes and serve over egg noodles, noodle squares, grated potato dumplings or cooked, diced potatoes. Variation: Fork-blend 1/2 cup sour cream with the flour and the blood-vinegar mixture before adding to the stock. Polish Soup Greens (1) 1 celery root 1 parsley root 1 parsnips 2 carrots 2 celery stalks parsley Clean, dice and cook all until tender. If to be added to some other soup, add about 1/2 hour before the soup is finished. Optional is 1/2 head of savoy cabbage or some brussel sprouts Soup Vegetables (2) 2 carrots, peeled 1 slice celeriac 1 leek 1 parsnips 7 peppercorns 2 grains allspice 1 bay leaf 1 tablespoon salt 1/2 head Savoy cabbage If being made as vegetable broth, put the veggies into a stock pot with 8 cups water. Otherwise, add to the liquid of whatever soup you're making. The carrots should be about 6 inches long. Use only the white part of the leeks and wash well to remove all sand. The parsnip should be smaller rather than larger so as not to overpower the flavor of the other vegetables. If celeriac is not available, substitute 2 stalks of celery heart, with leaves. Cook until all are tender. The vegetables may be cooked whole or diced.