'Jak będzie Wigilia, tak będzie caly rok. 'As goes Wigilia, so goes the entire year': Polish proverb
Warsaw, Poland Christmas Eve 1995
Of all the places we’ve lived, Poland does Christmas the best. It helped that we’d rented a chocolate-box-lid worthy wooden house on the edge of a forest, a forest deeply snowbound for most of the winter where I could snowshoe or cross country ski on a whim and that there was a frozen lake close by where I would skate figures of eight while pulling our daughter on her sledge around the endlessly patient ice fisherman warming themselves with small primus stoves and large shots of vodka; but it was more than a guaranteed white Christmas that made the occasion extra special.
As in many Roman Catholic cultures Christmas Eve is the focal point of the celebrations and if you’ve ever felt that the magic and mysticism of the holiday have disappeared forever you should spend it with a Polish family, as we did with our neighbors that first year. We had been invited to share supper (“Wigilia” or vigil, symbolizing the wait for the birth of the baby Jesus), with them and from the moment we stamped the snow off our boots on the threshold, we were entranced by the special rituals which mark this occasion.
Before sitting down for supper, their two boys and our young daughter had gathered on the front porch to see who could spot the first star in the sky (“Gwiadzka”), in remembrance of the Star of Bethlehem. This accomplished we sat down at the dining table, which according to tradition had one empty chair and place set for “an unexpected guest” who might come by.
Supper began with us passing round “opłatki” (special communion wafers). Following our hosts’ lead we all broke off a piece, then kissed each other on both cheeks with good wishes for health and prosperity in the year to come. The centerpiece of the huge meal that followed was the carp which we’d seen swimming in our hosts’ bath tub a few days earlier and which was served glazed in aspic, breaded and deep fried; but there were also barszcz (beetroot) and mushroom consommés, light as air pierogi (small fried dumplings with several types of fillings- cheese, potato mushroom, cabbage and onions), herrings in oil and a variety of salads, which were followed by fruit compote and poppy seed cake. Naturally there was copious vodka, with shots of Żubrówka (bison grass vodka, a specialty distilled in the Białowieza forest in Eastern Poland where Europe’s last herd of bison still roam) and over dessert Goldwasser, an herbal liqueur with tiny flakes of 22 and 23 Carat gold leaf suspended in it, which looks especially magical in candlelight.
After dinner there were small presents for the children and then we trudged through the snow together to attend midnight mass in the church close by, with my daughter fast asleep in my arms in her snowsuit. The year to come promised much….
Sauerkraut & Mushroom Pierogi: Serves Eight
For the dough:
10½ oz AP flour
1 egg
Salt to taste
For the filling:
1lb sauerkraut, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
4oz mushrooms, finely diced
Sift the flour and salt together; add the egg and about 2-3 tablespoons of water. Knead the mixture lightly until you have smooth, soft dough. Let it rest while you tackle the filling.
Heat a frying pan with 2 tablespoons of oil. Add the onion, cooking until translucent, then the mushrooms and sauerkraut. Cook until there is no more liquid left in the pan. Set aside.
Divide the dough into four. Cover the others while you roll out each quarter individually. Roll each piece to about an eighth of an inch thick, then cut out “rounds” of 3 – 3½” circumference. Place a heaped teaspoon of the filling in the middle of each round, then fold in half and press the edges together firmly.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and then add the pierogi. When they start to float to the surface, turn the heat down and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain and serve with a little caramelized onion mixed with some olive oil and breadcrumbs.
This sounds the most simple yet delicious recipe- I will be making this over the weekend. I love any kind of dumpling!