Hearty and comforting Lamb Shurpa Soup takes me back to my Eastern European roots. Nothing better on a cold winters day! You can use beef if you prefer. This soup is easy to make and tastes even better the next day. Print Lamb Shurpa Soup Hearty and comforting Lamb Shurpa Soup takes me back to my Eastern European roots. Nothing better on a cold winters day! You can use beef if you prefer. This soup is easy to make and tastes even better the next day. Course Main Course Cuisine European Keyword easy, lamb, main course, soup Prep Time 15 minutes Cook Time 1 hour Total Time 1 hour 15 minute ..read more

This Layered Smoked Salmon Salad is our family Holiday must have! Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving just wouldn’t be the same without this dish! This tradition Russian salad is usually made with herring fish but we prefer to use smoked salmon (just a taste preference). I love how simple this salad is and that it is made in advance which saves so much time, especially when I have a lot of other things to cook for the Holiday menu. Print Layered Smoked Salmon Salad (Shuba) This Layered Smoked Salmon Salad is a traditional Russian salad side dish. It's usually made with herring fish but we p ..read more

This is the classic Russian Olivier salad recipe, but with chicken instead of bologna as traditionally made. I got this Chicken Olivier salad recipe from my friend Inna. We tried it at her house once, it was the first time we tried it with chicken and we absolutely loved it this way! This is basically a fancy potato salad with chicken and it is served cold so it’s a great make ahead dish or potluck dish to bring. I also enjoy it served in a croissant for quick lunch/dinner sandwich! Print Chicken Potato Salad (Olivier Salad) This is the classic Russian Olivier salad recipe, but with chicken ..read more

This tomato, cheese, and black olive salad is so delicious! It can be eaten as a traditional European side salad or a spread on some baked baguette bread. No cooking required and can be made a day in advance or right before you eat it, however I prefer to make it at least a few hours in advance to give the flavors time to blend. Print Tomato, Cheese, Black Olive Appetizer Salad/Spread This tomato, cheese, and black olive salad is so delicious! It can be eaten as a traditional European side salad or as a spread on some baked baguette bread. No cooking required and can be made a day in advance ..read more

These vegan steamed dumplings (or Monti, European) are super delicious! Easy and fast to make and very simple ingredients. I was happy to come up with a good, meat-less recipe for steamed dumplings for my vegan friends. I made a big batch of the potato, onion, and squash filling so that I can steam another fresh batch of these the next day as they do taste best steamed fresh! You can even make the filling a day in advance if you season it, add the olive oil to it, cover and refrigerate to use the next day. I made a big batch of the filling so we had these for dinner yesterday, and I have enou ..read more

This chicken, veggie, and buckwheat soup is a new favorite recipe in our home. I have been making it every week for the past few weeks. It is a nice twist on the traditional chicken soup recipe. The sautéed blend of veggies give it a wonderful flavor and substituting buckwheat for the noodles makes it so different and refreshing, yet so filling and satisfying! I make a big pot to last us 2 days and we enjoy every spoon full. I think this is the only soup that I could never get tired of eating lol. I originally got the recipe idea for this soup from my sister in law, Liliya. However I adapted i ..read more

These braised potatoes are a classic European dish that I grew up eating. It can be compared to a stew because it is hearty with the tender potatoes, carrots and onion, and chicken and has a very tasty gravy. It’s a simple, one pot meal that can feed a big crowd. I like to make a big batch and eat the leftovers for lunch for a few days afterwards, but you can definitely make half the recipe. I do have this recipe posted as one of my very first recipes on the blog but I recreated that same recipe with chicken thighs, as my husband and I do not like to eat much pork meat. You can really use what ..read more

Borscht is a popular Ukrainian soup that I grew up eating. It seems that every family has adapted their own favorite recipes of this soup. I have the classic Borscht soup (with meat) recipe posted earlier but this vegetable version is a new recipe I got from my friend Lidiya. This is our new favorite recipe for this soup just because it’s so much lighter tasting with no meat and the veggies are finely chopped not shredded so they provide so much more flavor! I made a pig pot of this soup to last us a few days and it was so delicious and perfect healthy comfort food for this cold weather. Feel ..read more

These Pan Fried Potatoes And Bacon are a yummy, one pan meal. I make this dish on super busy week nights because it is fast, easy, and super delicious. It is actually one of my husband’s most favorite dinners. It pairs well with a fresh salad, or canned tomatoes or dill pickles. I had the awesome idea of adding bacon to this already great dish, and it takes the flavor to a whole notha’ level. As I am typing this recipe and uploading the pictures, I am practically drooling over the keyboard. Lol, jk. But seriously, this stuff is delicious and you absolutely have to try this recipe! Pan Fried P ..read more

This is my recipe for the Ukrainian Borscht Soup. When I just got married, I was very intimidated to try this recipe. It looked so complicated that it scared me. But looking back now it sounds silly because it is so simple to prepare. Borscht is a very classic soup that most Russian and Ukrainian people grew up eating. I remember in my childhood my mother made it like every other week, it was a staple at our house. There are many great recipes for this soup, and I have tried a lot, but this is the best Borscht recipe, tried and tested by my family. Feel free to play around with it, add or cha ..read more