Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Winter vocab - activities and clothes

Own source

It's still a winter season in Poland, so I thought that some of you may find the winter vocabulary useful.
Poland has beautiful mountains in the south with many great skiing and snowboarding resorts. Polish three main mountain chains are: Góry Świętokrzyskie, Karpaty and Sudety. Personally, I am more of a hiking fan than a skiing fan (oops...), and trust me, Poland has some breathtaking views to offer.
My favorite winter activities are: hiking, snowball wars, making a snowman, sleigh ride ("kulig") and drinking hot chocolate! What about you?
For pronunciation, I recommend a Google Translator - it's pretty good! Have fun!
Winter Activities:
winter - zima
snow - śnieg
snow is falling - pada śnieg
snowball - śnieżka, kula śniegu
snowballs - śnieżki, kule śniegu
to throw snowballs - rzucać śnieżki
snowball war - bitwa na śnieżki
snowman - bałwan
to make a snowman - zrobić bałwana
ice - lód
ice skating rink - lodowisko
ice skates - łyżwy
go ice skating - iść na łyżwy
cold - zimno
sled - sanki
sled riding - zjeżdżać na sankach
sleigh - sanie
sleigh ride - kulig
*(sleigh pulled by horses)
ski - narty
skiing - jeździć na nartach
ski-lift - wyciąg narciarski
snowboard - deska do snowboard'u
mountains - góry
trip to the mountains - wycieczka w góry
hot chocolate - gorąca czekolada
Winter clothes:
beanie - czapka
hat - kapelusz
gloves - rękawiczki
scarf - szalik
jacket - kurtka
earmuffs - nauszniki
winter shoes - obuwie zimowe
or
boots - buty
sweater - sweter
turtleneck - golf
vest - kamizelka
long johns - kalesony :D

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Ostatki - the end of the Carnival season

"Ostatki" is the name for the last days of Carnival, starting on Fat Thursday and ending on Tuesday - day before Ash Wednesday.
Among the most famous Carnivals are without a doubt Carnival in Rio de Janeiro (5 days of partying and colorful parades), Carnival in Columbia, Carnival ball in Venice and Carnival in New Orleans in the USA.
Clubs, pubs and restaurants in Poland organize "Ostatki" parties. 
One of the oldest customs was to dress up, sing, dance, visit neighbors and do different tricks. This custom used to be popular in many villages across the country. 
Today, people gather together to dance and have fun, before the Lent and more peaceful time of a year arrives.

Thursday, February 16, 2012

Faworki Recipe

Final product.
Faworki are the best! I don't make them often, but at least once a year.
And today is a day. Fat Thursday. I made them in the morning and enjoyed with my coffee.

Recipe:
2 cups all purpose flour,
4 egg yolks,
3 Tbsp sour cream,
1 Tbsp sugar,
1 Tbsp vodka or white vinegar,
1 Tbsp water,
1 quart of vegetable oil for frying (can be canola, sunflower or coconut oil as well),
powdered sugar for topping 

My mess:)

  1. Mix flour, egg yolks, sour cream, sugar, vodka/vinegar and water. Knead a dough. It will be sticky and you might need to add a little more flour (tablespoon or so) during step 2. It should be elastic. 
  2. Roll out the dough on floured surface making sure that it's very thin - "paper thin". (Every time I do this, I think that it's thin enough and it's not. My recommendation: do your best).
  3. Cut into strips (about 4 in. long) and make a slit in each one (approx. 1 in. long).
  4. Take one end of the strip and put it through a slit making a bow tie.
  5. Heat oil in a large pot. Carefully throw 4-5 faworki (note: faworki is already plural, so not "faworkis" 😊) into the oil. Fry until golden on both sides (It doesn't take long, so don't leave the pot with hot oil on the stove).
  6. Drain on paper towels and top liberally with powdered sugar.
Smacznego!

Monday, February 13, 2012

Valentine's Day in Poland / Write your card in Polish!

Couldn't resist :)
Valentine's Day (in Polish: "Walentynki" / "Dzień Zakochanych") is celebrated in Poland since the beginning of the 90's. This American holiday became very popular in Poland and won hearts of the younger generation, but not only. People find it to be another ocassion to celebrate, go out and have a good time.
And it's celebrated in the same way - cards, flowers, chocolates, dinner, movies... Who doesn't like a holiday like this?
It's a perfect day to tell someone "I love you" - "Kocham Cię" or "I like you very much" - "Bardzo Cię lubię" for the very first time. It can be done in an anonymous way ("anonimowo") by sending a card or by a song dedication on the radio. However, most people decide to be brave and confess their feelings ("uczucia") in person.
Here is some help, if you wish to write a Valentine card in Polish :o)

Valentine phrases and vocabulary:
Kocham Cię - I love you
Kocham Cię bardzo - I love you so much
Lubię Cię - I like you (a feeling)
Podobasz mi się - I like you (finding someone attractive)
Zostań moją Walentynką - Be my Valentine
Jesteś słodka - You are sweet (about female)
Jesteś słodki - You are sweet (about male) 
Twoja Walentynka - Your Valentine (female)
Twój Walenty - Your Valentine (male)
**********
Walentynki / Dzień Zakochanych - Valentine's Day
Walentynka - a card for Valentine's Day
 but
Walentynki - cards for Valentine's Day (plural)
miłość - love
uczucie - a feeling
but
uczucia - feelings (plural)
serce - heart
Amor - cupid
kwiaty - flowers
czekoladki - chocolates
bilety do kina - tickets to the movies
kolacja - a dinner
romantyczna kolacja - a romantic dinner
pocałunek - a kiss
romantyczny pocałunek - a romantic kiss

Happy Valentine's Day!

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Rafaello - no bake dessert

Treat yourself!
If you love coconut, this one is for you.
Rafaello is a coconut dessert that is named like a popular coconut candy, and it's very easy to make.
All you need to do is make pudding. The rest is a piece of cake - literally :))
Sweet and rich coconut filling combined with salty crackers (yes, crackers) - what a great treat!
Please don't substitute crackers with vanilla wafers... - that's a completely different dessert :))
The crackers soften after few hours and they give a nice taste to this no bake cake.

And when there is food, there are memories! Anytime I think about this dessert, I think of my high school friend Ania, who shared with me the recipe for Rafaello :)).
It's been years since I made one, and I couldn't find the recipe that she gave me.
So I started searching for it online.... 
You can make your own pudding from scratch or make it simple and use vanilla Jell-o Cook & Serve Pudding. I went for Jell-o and skipped butter.

Recipe:
2 small vanilla puddings - Jell-o Cook & Serve (not the instant kind),
4 cups milk (for pudding),
1 stick of softened butter (optional),
2 cups coconut flakes plus 1 cup for topping,
2-3 rolls of salty crackers (I used Club and Ritz crackers )

  1. In a small saucepan combine milk and pudding mix. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly. Bring to a boil and set aside. Let it cool
  2. Mix softened butter until fluffy. Add 1 Tbsp of cooled pudding at a time and keep mixing.
  3. Stir in 2 cups of coconut flakes. Place in the fridge for 5-10 min.
  4. Place crackers on the bottom of 9x13 in (23x33 cm) pan, spread some pudding filling and repeat the layers two more times (3 layers of crackers and 3 layers of pudding filling). Top with coconut flakes. If you wish, brown coconut flakes on a frying pan before topping the cake.
  5. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 3-5 hours.
  6. Invite your friend for some cake and coffee!
Easy, isn't it? :)
Smacznego!

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

50-tka

Specjalnie dla Ciebie Mamo! :o)
Kocham Cię!!

Spełnienia marzeń Mamuniu!
Kocham Cię bardzo!!!
Całuski, cukiereczki, ciasteczka
- jest też dla Ciebie babeczka :-)