Skip to main content

Recipe Testing: (Untraditional) Zasmażana Kapusta

By

Every now and then I come across a photo of a dish with - maybe - nothing other than the name or a few scribbled words. Oddly, I used to clip food photos out of magazine without the recipe. Why?!?! I have no idea. That was the case with this dish. I did, however, write down: "sausages, sauerkraut, apples, potatoes."

So, I set about trying to create Zasmażana Kapusta without the slightest idea of how it was made. Okay, I could probably have Google'd it and come up with some instructions. But, heck, the challenge is the adventure part, right?!

I will say that after I made it, I posted a photo and asked if I knew anyone who had actually had the dish. Turns out my version didn't use the correct sausages (I used uncured bratwurst), I should have sliced the sausages, and many people didn't agree with the potatoes on the top. So, I will be re-doing this recipe with some of those changes in mind. My family actually liked the potatoes on top, and the photo I had in my old recipe binder showed them on top just like this, so that will still happen. But we will making the potato layer thicker...like a Shepherd's pie. But, as this was still tasty, I'm sharing my first stab at Zasmażana Kapusta.

Ingredients serves 8

  • 8 sausages (I used bratwurst, I'm told it should have been kielbasa)
  • 1 organic apple, cored and diced
  • 1 organic onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 T butter
  • splash of olive oil +more for drizzling on the top later
  • 1 t caraway seeds (I used black caraway)
  • 1 t fennel seeds
  • 4 C sauerkraut (I used a version from Trader Joe's, but I have made my own)
  • 1/2 C dry white wine
  • 2 to 3 organic potatoes, depends on size, scrubbed, dried, and thinly sliced (I use a mandolin slicer)

Procedure

Preheat oven to 400°F. Melt butter in a splash of olive oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven or other heavy lidded pan. Stir in the onions and cook for a few minutes. Add in the apples and stir to coat with the butter-oil mixture. Fold in the caraway and fennel seeds.


Spoon 2 C sauerkraut over the onions and apples. Nestle the sausage in the kraut and top with remaining sauerkraut. Pour in white wine. 


Arrange potato slices in a circular pattern over the top of the sauerkraut. Place pan, uncovered, in the oven. Bake the casserole until the potato edges start to get crispy, approximately 60 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.


Version two will include kielbasa sausages, sliced into thick coins, and a layer of mashed potatoes over the sauerkraut with the thin, crispy slices over the top of that. We'll see how that goes. Stay tuned!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Connecticut Lobster Rolls, Canned Lobster Bisque, and a 2019 Henry Fessy 'Maître Bonhome' Viré-Clessé #Winophiles

By
This month the French Winophiles group is looking at affordable wines from Burgundy.  Host Cindy of Grape Experiences wrote: "Burgundy, or Bourgogne, is known for its wines of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir... as well as Aligote, Gamay, Sauvignon, César, Pinot Beurot, Sacy, Melon in lesser quantities. Many of the well-known wines are quite expensive, but there are plenty of values to be found." Read her invitation here. And there won't be a Twitter chat for this event, so you will have to dive into the articles themselves to read about our pairings and findings. Here's the line-up... Wendy Klik from A Day in the Life on the Farm enjoys Domaine Chevillon Chezeaux Bourgogne Hautes Cotes de Nuits, 2018 Paired with a Maple Pecan Chicken . Camilla Mann from Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares her love of Connecticut Lobster Rolls, Canned Lobster Bisque, and a 2019 Henry Fessy 'Maître Bonhome' Viré-Clessé. Jeff Burrows of FoodWineClick! explains why we should Look t...
5 comments
Read more

Homemade Lorna Doone Cookies #SundayFunday

By
Today the Sunday Funday group is celebrating childhood favorites. Thanks to Stacy of  Food Lust People Love , Sue of  Palatable Pastime , Rebekah of  Making Miracles , and Wendy of  A Day in the Life on the Farm  for coordinating this low-stress group. Today Stacy is hosting and she's given us the following prompt: "Childhood favorites. Did you have a favorite dish growing up? It could be something your family cooked or a restaurant dish, even a Chef Boyardee canned good or packaged ingredients like Rice-a Roni or mac and cheese. Recreate THAT dish from SCRATCH for this event."  Here's the #SundayFunday childhood favorites line-up... Chili Mac from A Day in the Life on the Farm Ham and Mushroom Breakfast Burritos from Making Miracles Homemade Lorna Doone Cookies from Culinary Adventures with Camilla Homemade Wonder Bread from Karen's Kitchen Stories K-Mart Sub Sandwiches from Palatable Pastime Kempakki Dosa from Sizzling Tastebuds Meat Chilly Fry...
6 comments
Read more

Quick Pickled Red Onions and Radishes

By
If you've been reading my blog for even a short amount of time, you probably know how much I love to pickle things. I was just telling a friend you can pickle - with vinegar - or you can ferment - with salt - for similar delicious effect. The latter has digestive benefits and I love to do that, but when I need that pop of sour flavor quickly, I whip up quick pickles that are ready in as little as a day or two. I've Pickled Blueberries , Pickled Asparagus , Pickled Cranberries , Pickled Pumpkin , and even Pickled Chard Stems ! This I did last night for an upcoming recipe challenge that requires I include radishes. Ummmm...of course I'm pickling them! Ingredients  makes 1 quart jar radishes, trimmed and sliced organic red onions, peeled and thinly sliced (I used a mandolin slicer) 3/4 C vinegar (I used white distilled vinegar) 3/4 C water 3 T organic granulated sugar 1 T salt (I used some grey sea salt) 6 to 8 grinds of black pepper Proce...
1 comment
Read more