Despite some very stubborn temperatures, it’s officially spring in New York, and that means the artichokes and ramps are dancing through the produce aisles and the grills we have covered up out back are trying to get our attention and remind us to order charcoal, because at this point who knows how long it might take to ship.
But I haven’t pivoted to spring and summer eating yet. Not even close. In fact, I’m inadvertently eating record amounts of cabbage and other hearty food that feels like a nice, comforting hug around the extra 4 pandemic pounds I think many of us are sporting around our middles.
On Sunday it reached the mid-70s and I chose to celebrate with Nordic food. Hearty potatoes, caramelized cabbage, pan-fried hake. Creamed mushrooms. I walked 6 miles on Saturday to buy ingredients to make rye bread, and the starter has been fermenting on my counter for 3 days now. I can’t wait to slather that thick toast with some salted butter.
So, I don’t know, maybe eventually I’ll embrace warm weather eating. Maybe my waistband will demand it, when it comes time someday to wear one of those again. But in the meantime, I’m going to continue eating what I feel like eating, and these homemade rough-cut noodles and cabbage are just the thing. The recipe hails from the northeast corner of Slovenia, Prekmurje, where I spent some time a few summers ago cycling through cornfields and eating pork and desserts filled with poppy seeds.
If you’re craving comfort food like I am and maybe you’re getting sick of the macaroni and cheese or whatever noodles are doing it for you these days, give this a whirl. It’s a forgiving dish, but satisfying to make the noodles yourself. Google some images of Prekmurje while you eat it, and jot down in the back of your memory that someday, after this has all passed, you can go there.
Ingredients
- 9 oz. / 250g cabbage
- 3 tablespoons / 40g lard, white cooking fat or butter
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 oz. / 50g rindless smoked bacon, diced
- Pinch of ground cumin
- Few drops of red wine
- Salt
- 1 3/4 cups / 200g all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- To prepare the noodles, sift the flour into a bowl and make a well. Add the eggs and water, then whisk lightly with a fork. Work in the flour to make a dough. Knead until smooth.
- Roll out the dough thinly on a lightly floured surface and cut into strips about 1/2-3/4-inch wide, then cut them across into squares. Cut the cabbage leaves into squares about the same size. Set aside.
- Boil a large pot of salted water and add the noodle squares. Boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, until the noodles are tender.
- Melt the lard, fat or butter in a large pan. Add the sugar and cook until it starts to color. Add the bacon and onion and cook until browned. Add the cabbage, cumin and salt. Add a spoonful of cooking water from the noodles and cook the cabbage for 3-5 minutes. Add a few drops of red wine, mix and cook for 3 minutes. Drain the noodle squares and mix in.
Notes
https://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2020/05/06/slovenian-cabbage-with-noodle-squares/
