Czech Christmas traditions and customs

12:40 PM | Labels:

Look what we have found surfing around the net..We were looking for some interesting news about Christmas in the Czech republic and well, we guess we found some nice short reading before the big festivity.


We decided to list them below as we found them, pretty interesting stuff and very looking forward to your comments about it.

Czech Christmas dinner is connected with a great number of different customs, rules and superstitions. Very few of them are still observed today, and for good reason. 



- No lights should be lit in the house before the first star comes out. After it does, dinner is served.

- The table should be set for an even number of guests. An odd number brings bad luck or death.
An extra plate can be used to even out the number of guests. An extra plate should also be prepared in case an unexpected guest or a person in need comes by the house at dinner time.

- The legs of the table can be tied with a rope to protect the house from thieves and burglars in the coming year.

- No one should sit with their back to the door.

- Christmas dinner should consist of nine courses including soup, bread with honey, carp, potato salad, fruit (dried, fresh or canned), dessert (apple strudel or vánočka - Christmas bread), and other foods.

- No alcohol should be served on Christmas Eve.

- No one should ever get up from the Christmas table before dinner is finished. Doing so brings bad luck and death in the family.

- Everyone should finish their dinner and leave nothing on the plate.

- The first person to leave the table after dinner will be the first one to die in the coming year - that is why everyone should get up from the table at the same time.

- Any leftovers from dinner (crumbs, fishbones, etc.) should be buried around the trees to ensure they will bear lots of fruit.

- All household animals should be fed after dinner so that no one goes hungry on Christmas Eve.

- He who fasts all day until dinner will see the golden piglet on the wall.

- After Christmas dinner, no field is to be crossed until the midnight mass. He who does so will die within a year. 

- He who fails to give a present on Christmas Eve will be met with poverty.

- A pregnant woman will know whether she is carrying a boy or a girl once the first Christmas Eve visitor enters the house. If the visitor is female, she will have a daughter.


We all hope you enjoy the short reading and
we wish you a fantastic Christmas time with your beloved ones.


PS. Are you considering a lastminute trip to Prague? Look for accommodation with us, we still have the last few available rooms http://www.garzottohotels.cz/en/

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Posted by Unknown
Location: Praga, Repubblica Ceca

Christmas hangovers? We have the Czech cure.

3:20 AM | Labels:



Everybody experienced THE DAY AFTER.
Staying in Prague does make it happen more often for the simple reason that drinks are cheaper than in any other European country, so having a vademecum how to survive to Czech hangovers in Czech republic could be a good idea.


We have been hearing many myths about hangover remedies: they say that the hair of the dog that bit you will cure your hangover. But that is the British way.   
Brits teach in this matter, the University of Newcastle rated a sandwich with bacon like the best food to have the morning after. Stop counting calories, then, bread, bacon, ketchup is the new eating regime to survive the day.

Germans eat marinated fish, certain types are said to be miraculous.

Scottish people drink the Highland Fling, which is a pint of buttermilk.

Denmark and Ireland go for their heavy breakfasts: smoked eel on dark rye bread, topped with scrambled eggs, herbs and a slice of lemon  for the first and sausage, fried egg, bacon, white pudding, black pudding, toast, fried tomato and sometimes mushrooms, baked beans, liver or soda bread, all served with coffee or tea for the second.

What about a real Czech remedy?
Garlic soup - česnečka - is the answer. Easy, fast and it promises to be the number one cure. All you need is broth, potatoes, garlic and onions.


Suggestions where to go if you are lazy to make it yourself? Actually almost any Czech restaurant has it in its menu so it will not be that difficult to find one in max 15 minutes walk from anywhere you are.

In Prague are now some restaurants completely dedicated to soups, check them out on a Sunday morning after a wild night, it could be helpful.

If soup is not what you are actually dreaming of on a recovering morning, then we suggest you The Tavern and its not-low-calories menu but very tasty, the best burgers in town, together with Fraktal in Prague 7. Bottoms up!


And you? 
Do you have any remedy to share with us and suggestions how to survive to the numerous Christmas Dinners, Christmas parties, etc of this period?








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Posted by Unknown
Location: Praha, Česká republika

Hell's Czech Kitchen: Christmas Cookies

6:28 AM | Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

It is a big tradition in the Czech republic to start at least few weeks before the big Christmas celebration to bake Christmas cookies. Yes, Christmas cookies. Yes, few weeks before. Yes, they must bake all different types of cookies and yes, they usually bake a big amount for entire neighbourhood or family, acquaintances etc.
Some people even ask for days off at work to dedicate to flour, butter, sugar, spices and start the Christmas Baking Marathon.

If you are visiting the Czech republic in any pf the following weekd you will have the chance to taste these Christmas specialties almost everywhere, in cafes but also in street markets stands.

Starting from this, we know what you are actually thinking: well, let´s see what is then so special or delicious about this?

Talking as a non-Czech person - yes I am revealing my identity as editor of this blog - I must admit that Vánoční cukroví, this is the technical Czech name of them, are actually very tasty. So if you are a sweets lover or a spice lover - like cinammon, ginger, etc.- this is exactly what you were looking for to delight yor fine palate.

Here we go with 3  recipes. Three, two, one..go!

LINECKÉ PEČIVO - Foundation Cookies

This is the basic recipe for creating many different types of cookies. On the base of it, you can play with shapes, fillings, sandwiching them together with jam, on top sugar decoration, etc.
Use your fantasy, kids might be very helpful and it could be a fun family activity (apart from the cleaning after it).

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients:

  • 280g softened butter
  • 750g  sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 5g vanilla
  • 900 g all-purpose flour
  • Jam (optional)
  • Water Icing (optional)
  • Confectioners' sugar (optional)

Preparation:

  1. Heat oven to 180 degrees. In a bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until completely incorporated. Add flour and mix all.
  2. Roll dough between pieces of parchment paper to 3/16-inch thickness if sandwiching cookies together or 1/8-inch thick for other kinds. Remove top piece of parchment paper and cut dough into various shapes. Since the dough doesn't expand much when baking, a 1/2-inch space between cookies is still ok.
  3. If you are willing to make sandwiched cookies, prepare an even number of plain cookies and an even number of cookies of the same shape but cut a small "window" for the jam or any filling.
  4. It is oven time already! Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Do not let the cookies brown. Cool completely.
  5. If you are now moving to work on the sandwiching cookies, here is how you need to proceed: sprinkle confectioners' sugar over cookies with a "window", then spread jam or filling on "window-less" cookies. Join them together. Sandwiching cookies are done!
  6. If  you are decorating with water icing then you can sprinkle with coarse sugar, chocolate sprinkles, or whatever your heart desires.

PERNÍČKY  -  Gingerbread cookies

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Total time: 60 minutes, 5 minutes. It depends how fast you are and how many zou have to

Ingredients:

  • 450g all-purpose flour
  • 230g  sugar
  • 10g cinnamon
  • 10g  ginger
  • 5g allspice
  • 5g  nutmeg
  • 2,5g ground cloves
  • 2,5g baking soda
  • 10g warm honey
  • 2 lightly beaten large eggs
  • 15ml rum
  • 5ml lemon zest
  • Water Icing

Preparation:

  1. In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, spices and baking soda and mix all of them. Add honey, eggs, rum and zest and form a smooth dough. Wrap in plastic and keep it resting for 30 minutes.
  2. Heat oven to 180 degrees. Roll dough 1/8- to 1/4-inch thick between two pieces of parchment paper. Remove top parchment paper and cut out various shapes, leaving 2 inches between cookies. 
  3. Bake 15-20 minutes. Cool completely.
  4. When cookies are completely cool, decorate with Water Icing. 

VANILKOVÉ ROHLÍČKY -  Vanilla Crescents 

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Total time: 60 minutes


Ingredients:

  • 200g  butter, softened
  • 75g sugar
  • 30g vanilla
  • 15 ml water
  • 300g all-purpose flour
  • 8g salt
  • 300g finely chopped almonds or filberts
  • Confectioners' sugar

Preparation:

  1. Heat oven to 180 degrees. Cream butter and add sugar, vanilla and water. Mix together flour and salt, and add to creamed mixture, combining thoroughly. Add nuts until completely incorporated.
  2. Form walnut-size pieces of dough into crescent shapes and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 15-20 minutes.
  3. While still warm, roll in confectioners' sugar or vanilla sugar. 

VOSÍ HNÍZDA

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Total time: it depends how fast you are

Ingredients for the dough:

  • 300 g finely ground piškoty (very dry and hard cookies)
  • 120 g powdered sugar
  • 120 g butter
  • 50ml milk
  • 80ml rum (Tuzemák)
  • 20g cocoa

Ingredients for the filling:

  • 120g powdered sugar
  • 120g butter
  • 2 egg yolks
  • rum for flavour
1. Prepare a smooth dough from the specified ingredients.
2. Press small pieces into the special forms - it is a littel cone - that have been coated inside with sugar.
3. Make an indentation in the dough and fill with the butter filling.
4. Cover with whole biscuit. Remove from form. Let them cool in the fridge.

There are many other ones, but step by step. Anyone willing to try this upcoming weekend?
The first three sweets can be púrepared with much advanced and kept and stored in an airtight container. Czechs like to "decorate" their balconies with colourful containers full of sweets.

Let us know how the experiment went and..dobrou chut!





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Posted by Unknown
Location: Praha, Česká republika
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