January 6 - the evening before Christmas - is called Christmas Eve (Nomad). This name is associated with the ancient custom of Orthodox Christians to eat sechivo on this day - bread grains soaked in water - porridge. Sochiv can be not only porridge and vegetables, any lean food, as well as juice - lean milk from different seeds: almond, nut, poppy seed, hemp, which is used to season porridge on Christmas Eve.

On the eve of Christmas, it is strictly necessary not to eat until the first star appears in the sky. The evening meal on Christmas Eve begins with kutya. This is a special, ritual porridge. It is brewed from barley, wheat, rice, peas, and seasoned with honey, raisins, poppy seed, almond or other lean milk. The grain symbolizes resurrection life, and honey and other sweet seasonings symbolize the sweetness of the blessings of the future blissful life.

Kutya is served not only on Christmas Eve (which is also called “Lenten kutya”), but also on the second day of Christmas: for women - woman’s porridge, at christenings - baptismal porridge, at wakes - funeral kutia - kolivo; on New Year's Eve (old) on Vasilyev's evening - "rich kutia" and on Epiphany - ("hungry kutia").

Rice kutia

Sort the rice, rinse, add water, and bring to a boil. Place on a sieve, pour over cold water, put back in the pan and cook in plenty of water until soft. Place back on the sieve and cool. Scald the almonds, peel them, chop and grind them in a bowl intended for kutya. Add granulated sugar, dilute slightly with water, stir, combine with rice, raisins and sprinkle with sugar. Served with lean milk.

Christmas puff pastry

For the dough, mix a glass of boiled cream and flour, add 1 tsp. butter or margarine and salt. Cover with a napkin, let stand for a while, or put in the refrigerator overnight. Peel the apples, remove the core and add granulated sugar. Cut the dough into squares large enough to wrap an apple.

Explosions(uzvar, vzvarets)

This is the name of various decoctions: beef onion, cabbage, cranberry, which are prepared on Christmas Eve and served with kutya. But at Christmas, kutya is served with vza| from fruits and berries, sweetened with sugar, honey or raisins.

With starch

Take a mixture of different dried fruits and berries, add water, add 1 tbsp. starch, cook until soft. Place on a deep dish, sprinkle with sugar, pour over the strained squash | fill the napkin with the broth and cool.

With rice

Boil the rice, place in a sieve, and pour cold water over it. Boil various dried fruits with sugar, place in a sieve, mix with rice. Place on a deep dish, pour in the broth.

2 cups rice, 400 g dried fruits, 2 cups sugar.

Lean milk

Prepared from walnuts or other nuts, or a mixture of them, poppy seeds, almonds. Accordingly, nut, poppy or almond milk is obtained. Prepare nut milk as follows: grind 200 g of nuts in a mortar, gradually adding 3-4 glasses of cooled boiled water. Strain. Add sugar to taste, cool and serve with kutia. Lenten milk is prepared from poppy seeds and almonds in the same way.

Wheat kutia

Pour the wheat into boiling water, bring to a boil, place on a sieve, pour over cold water, put in a saucepan or pot, add water, boil, close the lid tightly and put in the oven to simmer until soft. After this, remove and cool. Rinse, rinse with boiling water, then cold water, crush, add sugar or honey, a little salt, mix with wheat. If the kutia turns out to be thick, add a little cooled water in which the wheat was boiled.

2 cups wheat, 1 cup poppy seeds, 1/2 cup sugar, 3 tbsp. honey, salt.

Kutya with raisins

Cook the fluffy rice, mix with granulated sugar, cinnamon and scalded sultanas, bring to a boil. To serve, pour over almond milk.

1 cup rice, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1 cup sultanas, cinnamon.

"Christmas cookies"

Chop the butter together with some of the flour with a knife, pour in sour cream, knead into a homogeneous dough, roll part of it into a layer. Then add sifted flour with sugar and grated lemon peel to the remaining dough, knead again and roll out the second layer (both 1 cm thick). Bake in the oven over medium heat until light brown. Place plum jam on the hot layer, cover with another layer and cut into oblique pieces. Decorate the top of the cookie slices with candied fruits and strips of plum marshmallow.

200 g margarine, 3 cups flour, 1/2 cup each sugar and sour cream, grated lemon peel, 1 cup plum jam. Fold the edges into an envelope, pinch so that the juice does not leak out, grease the egg and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake until the puff pastry is golden brown, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Prepare 12 delicious Lenten dishes for Christmas using the recipes in this article.

On January 7, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Nativity of Christ. The day before, January 6, the 40-day fast of Christmas ends and Holy Evening begins. Needless to say, Christmas has been popularized?

Many consider it one of the New Year holidays, a reason to meet with friends, eat at the table, or have a glass of strong drink. Not only do they not fast, but they don’t even know basic Christmas traditions.

But for our ancestors, Christmas had a special meaning; they prepared for it very carefully: they cleaned up their home, went to church, observed religious canons, and invited only their closest and loved ones to the house that evening. Perhaps we should think about resuming traditions? First of all, prepare the right Lenten dishes for Christmas.

What festive dishes are served at Christmas?

Those who observe Orthodox canons do not eat anything on January 6 until the first star lights up in the sky in the evening. She notifies the world that Jesus Christ was born. This means that you can sit down at the table and have a delicious meal.
Festive dishes for Christmas are served following certain rules:

1. There should be 12 dishes, that’s exactly how many apostles Jesus Christ had. The Slavs also believed that 12 dishes on the table at Holy Evening symbolize 12 months, and as tasty as the dishes are, those months will be so generous in food and harvest.
2. Dishes must be lean. That is, there should be no butter, milk, sour cream, eggs or meat on the holiday table. You can eat fish.
3. Before preparing each dish, you need to read a prayer.
4. It is advisable that all family members take some part in preparing food for the holiday table.

IMPORTANT: There should be no alcohol on the table on Holy Eve!

Option for table setting for Christmas.

Each housewife has the right to choose which Lenten dishes will be included in the holiday menu. But two will be mandatory:

1. Kutya. - a symbol of resurrection after death, it must be prepared for funerals. You can read about how to cook it deliciously in.
2. Uzvar is also a symbolic drink, which was always prepared when a child was born in a family.

Together, kutya and uzvar represent memories of the birth and death of the Savior and every person who lived on earth.

VIDEO: Lenten recipes

12 delicious Lenten dishes for the Christmas table

So, an approximate Christmas menu, in addition to kutia, may include the following dishes:

Uzvar

The tradition of cooking uzvar originated in Ukraine, and was later adopted by residents of many Eastern European countries. Essentially, the drink is a compote of dried fruits, dried berries, honey and sugar. But not simple, since after the water boils it does not cook, but is immediately removed from the heat.

Uzvar turns out to be concentrated, since it is customary to take 0.5 kg of dry berries and fruits for 2 liters of water. Which ones exactly are up to the hostess to decide. Take 3 tbsp of honey for the specified volume of drink. spoons, sugar - to taste.

Here is one of the uzvar recipes for which they take:

• dried apples -100 g
• dried plums or prunes – 100 g
• dried pears – 100 g
• raisins - 100 g
• dried apricots – 50 g
• dried cherries – 50 g
• honey - 3 tbsp. spoons
• sugar – 3 tbsp. spoons

1. Dried fruits and dried berries must be soaked. They do this in different ways: overnight, for 2 hours or for 15 minutes.
2. Pour in the straightened, soaked fruits and berries, fill them with water, bring to a boil and immediately remove. Sometimes they do it differently - they simply pour boiling water over the ingredients.
3. Honey and sugar can be added immediately. But in boiling water, honey loses its strength and becomes harmful. Therefore, it is better to put it in the already cooled uzvar.
4. Uzvar is prepared 3-4 hours before the feast so that it has time to brew. Serve and drink either chilled or slightly warm.

IMPORTANT: Uzvar on the table on Christmas Eve replaces alcoholic drinks. Both adults and children drink it throughout the feast. Sometimes uzvar is poured over kutya.

• potatoes – 5 pcs.
• carrots – 2 pcs.
• onions – 2 pcs.
• pickled cucumbers (medium) – 5 pcs.
• parsley root (small) - 2 pcs.
• tomato paste – 2 tbsp. spoons
• lemon
• different greens
• salt, sugar, pepper
• olives and olives
• water - 3 l

1. Potatoes are put into salted water first. To do this, it is cleaned, washed, and cut quite finely. You can also throw a bay leaf there if you wish.
2. At this time, the dressing is prepared in a frying pan: finely chopped onions, grated carrots, parsley root, and cucumbers are sautéed.
3. Add tomato paste and pepper to the sautéed vegetables. They will be stewed, as it were, since the cucumbers and paste will give a lot of liquid.
4. Add the dressing to the potatoes, cooked until done. Cook the hodgepodge covered for 5 minutes. If desired, add cucumber pickle and a little sugar to it.
5. When serving, Lenten solyanka is decorated with chopped herbs, rings of olives or black olives, and lemon slices.

Does cabbage with mushrooms seem like a simple dish? It will turn out festive if instead of champignons you take dried porcini mushrooms and beautifully decorate the stew.

• white cabbage – 1 kg
• dried porcini mushrooms – 300 g
• carrots – 1 pc.
• onion – 1 pc.
• tomato juice - 0.5 cups
• salt, pepper, herbs

1. Porcini mushrooms are soaked for 1 hour.
2. Prepare frying of onions and carrots.
3. Finely chop the cabbage and send it to stew. If you salt it at the very beginning and lightly crush it, there will be a lot of juice, you won’t have to add water.
4. Immediately add finely chopped porcini mushrooms to the cabbage and cover the saucepan with a lid. Simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Add frying, tomato juice and pepper to the prepared dish, simmer for another 10 minutes.
6. When serving, lay out the dish in a neat mound and decorate with herbs.

They need:

• champignons – 0.5 kg
• onion - 1 pc.
• loaf – 200 g
• milk – 200 ml
• starch – 1 teaspoon
• salt pepper
• flour or breadcrumbs

1. The champignons are cleaned and cut into quarters, and fried for 10 minutes along with finely chopped onion.
2. Onions and mushrooms are put into a meat grinder. They also roll a loaf soaked in milk.
3. Salt, pepper, and starch diluted in 30 ml of water are added to the minced mushroom (it is needed for the cutlets to “set”).
4. Cutlets are formed from the minced meat, breaded and fried on each side for 2-3 minutes.

Lenten cabbage rolls are stuffed with rice and carrots. Needed:

• cabbage with wide leaves - 1 head
• carrots - 4 pcs.
• onion – 1 sh.
• rice – 0.5 cups
• vinegar – 50 ml
• vegetable oil – 50 ml
• greens, salt, pepper, sugar

1. Rice is boiled as follows: add 1 part of it to 2 parts of salted water, bring to a boil, cook under the lid until the water boils away.
2. To ensure that the leaves are easily separated from the cabbage and do not tear, boil the cabbage head directly in boiling water for 5 minutes.
3. Peeled carrots are cut into strips or grated on a Korean grater and sautéed together with finely chopped onions.
4. Combine rice with carrots and add pepper.
5. Cabbage leaves are stuffed with minced meat and cabbage rolls are formed. Place them in a pan one by one, pour boiled water so that the cabbage rolls are covered.
6. When the water boils, add vinegar, vegetable oil, pepper, sugar and salt.
7. Simmer for 20 minutes.
8. Greenery is used for decoration.

The vinaigrette

A simple but beloved dish, vinaigrette, is quite suitable for the Christmas table.
It is prepared from:

• beetroot – 3 pcs.
• potatoes – 3 pcs.
• pickled cucumbers – 4 pcs.
• carrots – 2 pcs.
• salad onion – 1 pc.
• green peas – 200 g
• olive oil – 100 ml
• table or apple vinegar – 50 ml
• salt, pepper, herbs

1. The beets can either be boiled or baked in the oven (they are baked in foil for 2 hours).
2. Potatoes and carrots are peeled, washed and boiled.
3. If the peas are frozen, boil them in boiling water for 5 minutes.
4. All vegetables are cut into cubes approximately the size of peas.
5. Prepare a dressing from oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.
6. Dress the salad, add chopped greens to it.
7. Stir it.
8. If desired, add sauerkraut to the vinaigrette.

Carp from the oven

You can bake carp for Christmas. In Eastern Europe they love this river fish and know how to cook it. It is often baked with sour cream and cheese, but on Christmas Eve the dish should be lean, and these ingredients should be discarded. Instead they take:

• carp – carcass 1-1.5 kg
• onion – 1 pc.
• honey - 4 tbsp. spoons
• vegetable oil – 100 ml
• balsamic vinegar – 3 tbsp. spoons
• coriander seeds – 3 tbsp. spoons
• rosemary sprigs – 3 pcs.
• salt pepper

1. The fish is washed and scaled. Leaves his head. The carcass is cut in the rib area.
2. Prepare a marinade from melted honey, seasonings, balsamic vinegar and vegetable oil.
3. Keep the carp carcass in the marinade for about 1 hour.
4. Place the carp on a greased baking sheet and cover with foil. You can completely wrap the carcass in foil and pour the remaining marinade into this “cocoon”.
5. Bake at 200 degrees for 40 minutes.
6. Carp baked in this way can be served on a bed of potatoes or any other vegetables.

Bean pancakes

At Holy Evening, pancakes are often made, but you can make pancakes not from potatoes, but from beans. Take:

• beans – 100 g
• flour - 2 cups
• water – 1.5 cups
• starch – 1 teaspoon
• yeast – 2 g
• sugar, salt
• vegetable oil – 1 tbsp. spoon.

1. A dough is made from warm water, yeast, sugar and a small amount of flour.
2. The beans are boiled and mashed with a fork.
3. Add bean puree to the dough, a spoonful of vegetable oil, diluted in 2 tbsp. spoons of water starch and remaining flour. Salt the dough.
4. It should rise twice for half an hour.
5. Bean pancakes are fried in vegetable oil until golden brown on both sides.

Dumplings with potatoes and mushrooms

For this dish you need:

• potatoes - 4 pcs.
• champignons – 200 g
• onions – 3 pcs.
• flour – 2 cups
• water - how much dough will take
• salt, pepper, herbs

1. Champignons and 1 pc. chop the onions, fry together in vegetable oil for 5 minutes, they will turn golden.
2. The potatoes are peeled, washed, and boiled until tender. Add salt and pound into puree.
3. Combine mashed potatoes and mushroom frying.
   Steep dough for dumplings is kneaded from water, flour and salt.
4. Dumplings are made and filled with potato and mushroom mixture.
5. Boil the dumplings in salted boiling water until they float.
6. 2 pcs. Finely chop the onion and fry until golden in a large amount of oil. Prepared dumplings are coated with this dressing.

We already have ten dishes for the Christmas table. The other two can be anything. For example:

• fried porridge
  boiled, stewed or baked potatoes
• pickles and salads made from them
• fresh fruits
• pies with vegetable and fruit filling
• dressings from garlic, vegetable oil, herbs, etc.
• Lenten cookies

Lenten pies are an idea for the Christmas table.

VIDEO: Real rich uzvar made from dried fruits

VIDEO: Uzvar in a slow cooker

Christmas table decoration

On Christmas Eve, the family sits at a large table:

• a white tablecloth or a tablecloth decorated with traditional patterns is laid on it
• napkins are chosen to match the tablecloth
• straw is placed under the tablecloth, symbolizing the manger in which Christ was born

Lenten table for Christmas.

IMPORTANT: Today I often set the table in the colors of Catholic Christmas - red and white.

Table decoration option for Christmas Eve.

Church candles are also placed on the table and lit at dinner.

There is always one more device than there are people at the table. It will be for deceased relatives who are usually remembered at Christmas. There should also be a glass of uzvar.

Christmas dinner lasts a long time, followed by measured conversations in a measured manner. Those present must try each of the dishes. And only then you can sing carols or arrange a nativity scene and give gifts to the children.

VIDEO: Dishes for the Holy Eve before Christmas

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In general, it would be more correct to call this holiday Holy Evening, since traditional dishes on the Christmas table are prepared specifically for pm January 6th. The most beautiful and mysterious traditions, rituals and signs are associated precisely with Holy Evening and Christmas night, that is, from January 6th to 7th.

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And there should be exactly 12 dishes on the table for Christmas - according to the number of God's Apostles.
The main tradition of this evening is waiting, like a miracle, for the first star in the night sky. Young children perceive this tradition especially joyfully, constantly running in a crowd along with other children to look at the evening sky, and what a delight when the first Christmas star appears in the amazing evening January blue! As a child, it always seems so big and radiant that no matter what scientific points of view astronomers give about the January stars and planets, everyone knows for sure: this is exactly it, the star of Christmas.

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When the Christmas star appears in the sky, the whole family can sit down at the table and start celebrating.

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Cover the Christmas table with a light tablecloth, and According to tradition, you need to put a little hay under it.

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Placed in the center of the table candle in a container with wheat grains, lights up, and everyone thanks the Lord together. If you are not particularly devout and do not know how to pray, this is not a problem: tell God in your own words that you are grateful to Him for what you have, for the fact that He protects you and loves you, and ask for health, prosperity and love for yourself and your loved ones next year. Don’t be embarrassed, believe me, after such a sincere and not memorized prayer, your soul will feel warm and comfortable.

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And now you can start Christmas dinner, which necessarily begins with Lenten kutya and uzvar– traditional dishes for Christmas.

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12 DISHES FOR CHRISTMAS

As you already understand, you need to prepare exactly 12 dishes for the Christmas table. And these 12 dishes for Christmas should be lean, that is, not contain meat and animal fats, and indeed nothing from the animal world (no milk, no sour cream, no eggs, etc.). The only things you can cook for Christmas are fish, all kinds of grains, vegetables and fruits, Certainly. It will be possible to pamper yourself with balyk and sausages starting tomorrow, and you only need to prepare 12 dishes for Christmas that are meatless.

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Don’t worry that this “vegetarian” menu won’t be tasty - the recipes for dishes on the Christmas table have been tested and perfected over centuries and generations, so you’ll have something to please yourself and your loved ones. Moreover, in the modern world, such a menu for Christmas is more “exotic” for us than a traditional diet.

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Kutya

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This is one of the main dishes at Christmas - the hostess of the Christmas dinner. A rich supper and the Christmas feast of the next day began with kutya. After the Holy Evening, the kutya was left on the table overnight - so that the souls of deceased ancestors would also try the treat.

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The basis of kutya is wheat, barley or rice. Traditional wheat kutia contains a complex of vitamins B and protein (during fasting, the body does not receive enough proteins of animal origin, so their deficiency should be compensated for with vegetable proteins). Season the cereals with grated poppy seeds, nuts, dried fruits, and honey. These products are rich in beta-carotene, vitamins (B, C, E, K, PP and others) and microelements (potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron, manganese).

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Wheat kutia recipe
2 cups wheat
1 glass poppy seeds
100 g honey (or 1/2 cup sugar)
30 g shelled nuts
50 g raisins
salt - to taste

Method of preparing kutia from wheat:
Sort the wheat, rinse, add to boiling water, bring to a boil, place in a sieve, pour over cold water, place in a saucepan or clay pot, add water again and cook until the grains are ready.
Wash a glass of poppy seeds, pour boiling water over it, and then cold water, pound in a mortar until the mixture turns white, add honey, and maybe a little salt. Add chopped nuts, scalded with boiling water and strained raisins.

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Uzvar

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Uzvar was traditionally prepared for kutya at Christmas. If kutya is the hostess of the Christmas party, then uzvar is the host.
Actually, uzvar (or compote) used to be one of the most common traditional drinks. But if in summer it was prepared from fresh berries, then in autumn, winter and spring - from dried ones (cherries, apples, pears, apricots and others).

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Dried fruits and berries preserve vitamins, the lack of which we especially begin to feel in winter (it’s not for nothing that uzvar was a constant drink during Lent, when vitamins are especially scarce). The drink is rich in vitamins A, B, C, it contains calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium and other useful substances. In addition, uzvar regulates the functioning of the stomach and intestines, and also has a positive effect on the functioning of blood vessels.

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Uzvar recipe:
200 g dried pears, 200 g dried apples, 200 g prunes, 100 g raisins, 200 g honey, 3 liters of water.

How to cook uzvar:
Prepare dried fruits. To do this, wash the dried fruits with warm water and soak them in cold water for 10 minutes.

Pour 3 liters of water into a saucepan, add pears and apples and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Then add prunes and raisins to the uzvar and cook for another 10-15 minutes.

At the end, add honey, let it boil and remove the uzvar from the heat. Cover the uzvar with a lid and leave for 2-3 hours to infuse. Strain the uzvar and serve chilled.

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Dumplings with potatoes, mushrooms, cabbage

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Dumplings are perhaps the most delicious Lenten dish. They are a must have for the Christmas table.
We prepare the dough for dumplings from coarse wheat flour. It is rich in vitamins B and E and is better absorbed by the body than premium flour. In addition, wholemeal flour contains pectin and fiber. Figuratively speaking, such flour is a broom for the intestines.
The filling for dumplings is boiled potatoes in their jackets. It is in unpeeled potatoes that the nutrients are preserved under the skin, in particular, the layer of potassium, which we usually cut off when peeling raw potatoes. Add fried mushrooms and onions to the potatoes. You can use other fillings: stewed cabbage, berries.

Dough for dumplings
For the dough you will need: 0.5 kg of flour, 250 ml of water, 2 tbsp. spoons of vegetable oil, salt to taste.

Method of preparation: sift the flour, add water, salt, vegetable oil and knead into a stiff dough. Cover it and leave it for about an hour, during which time you can prepare the filling. And then you can start cutting the dough and making dumplings.

This dough turns out elastic, it can be rolled out thinly, and it does not boil over in boiling water. These dumplings may have little dough and a lot of filling.

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Dumplings with potatoes

For the filling you will need: 0.5 kg of potatoes, 1 medium carrot, 2 medium onions, vegetable oil, dill, ground black pepper, salt to taste.

Method of preparation: finely chop the onion, grate the carrots on a coarse grater, fry in vegetable oil and set aside a small part of the frying for later seasoning the finished dumplings.

Peel the potatoes and boil in salted water. Make a puree by adding frying, chopped dill, pepper and salt.

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Lenten dumplings with cabbage

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For the filling you will need: 0.6 kg of white cabbage, 1 medium carrot, 2 medium onions, vegetable oil, salt to taste, bay leaf.

Cooking method: Finely chop the onion, grate the carrots, fry in vegetable oil and set aside a small part of the frying for later dressing of the finished dumplings.

Shred the cabbage. Add it to the frying pan and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Finally, add a bay leaf and salt.

Cool the filling and you can make dumplings. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Add the remaining frying to the prepared dumplings.

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The vinaigrette

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Traditionally, vinaigrette is prepared from boiled (potatoes, beets, carrots, beans), raw (onions and parsley) and pickled or salted (cucumbers) vegetables. This set contains all the minerals and vitamins a person needs: C, B, PP, E, K, beta-carotene, potassium, iron.
We cut the vegetables for the salad into cubes, and season the vinaigrette as usual with vegetable oil. It helps to better absorb beta-carotene, which carrots are rich in and is the main source of vitamin E.

Vinaigrette recipe
potatoes - 3-4 medium or large pieces,
carrots - 1 large or 2 medium pieces,
beets - 1 piece,
sauerkraut - 100-150 g,
salted or pickled cucumbers - 1-2 large pieces,
onion - 1 medium piece,
vegetable oil,
salt, freshly ground pepper
optional: green peas, boiled beans, canned mushrooms

How to prepare vinaigrette:
Wash potatoes, beets, carrots well. Place the vegetables in a saucepan, add water, bring to a boil and cook until tender.

Tip: vegetables can be wrapped in foil and baked in the oven at 180°C until cooked. Each vegetable must be wrapped separately in foil. You can also boil vegetables in a double boiler.

Cool the beets, potatoes and carrots and peel them. Cut vegetables into small cubes.

Cut the cucumbers into cubes. Squeeze the sauerkraut from the brine.

Peel the onion and finely chop.

Place the beets in a bowl, add a little vegetable oil and stir - then the beets will not color the rest of the vegetables.

Add chopped potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, cabbage, onions to the beets, salt and pepper, season with oil and mix.

Tip: You can add green peas, boiled beans, and canned mushrooms to the vinaigrette.

Chill the vinaigrette in the refrigerator before serving.

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Stuffed cabbage rolls

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The traditional recipe for cabbage rolls contains meat. But during Lent, the filling can be replaced with stewed mushrooms, carrots and onions. Then cook as usual.
Homemade cabbage rolls recipe
White cabbage 500 gr.
Stewed mushrooms
Rice 1/3 tbsp.
Salt
Sugar
Ground black pepper
Tomato paste 3 tbsp. or tomatoes 5-6 pcs.
Carrot 1 pc.
Onions 2 pcs.
Peppercorns 5-7 pcs.
Bay leaf 2 pcs.

How to cook cabbage rolls:
Wash the cabbage, remove the stalk and place in a pan with boiling water.

Cook the cabbage until the top leaves are well separated (about 10 minutes). Remove the separated leaves from the boiling water. If you make cabbage rolls from young cabbage, then you need to cook it for no more than 2-3 minutes.

Boil the rice until done.

Pass the stewed mushrooms and onions through a meat grinder. Add salt, pepper, rice to the resulting minced meat. Mix everything thoroughly. Add 3 tablespoons of water to the minced meat.

Cut off the thick vein from the cabbage leaf (from the stalk), lay out some minced meat, and wrap the cabbage leaf in an envelope.

Place the resulting cabbage rolls in a saucepan.

Prepare the sauce: fry finely chopped onion and grated carrots in vegetable oil, add tomato paste, salt, a little sugar, peppercorns, bay leaf, water. Bring the sauce to a boil.

Pour the resulting sauce over the cabbage rolls, cover the pan with a lid and simmer over low heat for about 40-50 minutes, depending on the size of the cabbage rolls and the quality of the cabbage.

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Fish aspic

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A beautiful holiday dish that can be served during Lent.
Ingredients:
pike perch weighing 1 kg,
1 onion,
1 carrot,
1 white root (parsley, parsnip or celery)
1 bunch of greens,
lemon to taste
2 bay leaves,
5 black peppercorns,
2 peas of allspice,
30 g gelatin,
salt to taste,
1.5 liters of water.

Fish aspic - preparation:
Clean the fish, gut it, remove the gills and rinse thoroughly.

Separate the head, tail, fins, bones, skin from the fish, place in a pan along with vegetables and spices.

Pour in cold water, bring to a boil, reduce heat, carefully skimming off any foam that forms.

Cook the broth for 1.5 hours over very low heat, so that the liquid only “stirs” a little and does not boil.

Cut the fish fillet into portions.

Place the fillet in the broth, add salt and simmer until cooked for 30 minutes.

Then very carefully remove the pieces of fish fillet from the broth with a slotted spoon so that they do not break, and place them into portioned bowls.

Strain the broth through several layers of gauze.

The viscosity of the broth, and therefore the solidification of the future fish aspic, can be checked by squeezing a drop of liquid in your fingers - if the fingers stick together well, it means that the fish aspic will harden. If stickiness is not felt, you can use gelatin.

To do this, dilute a bag of gelatin in warm broth until completely dissolved and pour the gelatin mass into the broth.

Pour broth over the fish, garnish with boiled carrot figures and herbs. It is better to garnish the fish aspic with lemon slices after it has hardened so that the dish does not become bitter.

Place the fish aspic in a cool place to cool completely, and then into the refrigerator.

The fish aspic will be ready in 4-5 hours.

Serve fish aspic with horseradish.

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Lenten borscht

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Red borscht was traditionally cooked for Christmas.
How to cook lean borscht:

Cut red beets (1 kg) into slices, soak for two days in cold water with a crust of black bread. Soak dried mushrooms overnight and boil. Boil the beets and cut them. Chop fresh carrots and parsley. Pour boiled beets, carrots, mushrooms, parsley with beet brine and cook until tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

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Fried carp

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Fish is especially useful because it contains a lot of phosphorus, which takes an active part in metabolism.

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How to cook:
We take purely Slavic fish - carp. We clean from scales and entrails. We cut large fish into pieces. Sprinkle with salt and ground black pepper to taste.

Fry in sunflower oil, without flour and without batter, on both sides over medium heat (you can first cover with a lid so that the fish is fried inside).

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Sauerkraut

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Another traditional Slavic dish. Cabbage is mixed with frozen cranberries. Cranberries and cabbage complement each other - in combination, you get a good set of vitamins and microelements (vitamin C, iron, calcium, protein and other useful substances). Sauerkraut for the Christmas table must be prepared three days in advance.
Compound:
white cabbage (late varieties) - 5 kg (net weight of cabbage),
carrots (large) - 4 pcs (1 kg),
salt - 100 g (*do not use iodized salt)
Preparation:
Wash the cabbage, dry it and cut the head of cabbage into 4 parts - you get 4 large cabbage wedges. Cut the stalk and finely chop the cabbage (you can use a special grater).
Wash the carrots, peel them, wash them again and grate them on a coarse grater.
Measure the salt and pour it into a small container (bowl or saucer).

Place 3-4 large handfuls of cabbage in a saucepan (or large plastic bowl), sprinkle with some salt, mix well and grind the cabbage with salt until juice appears.
Add some carrots to the cabbage and stir.
Then compact the cabbage with a wooden masher or rolling pin.

* You can add flavoring seasonings to cabbage: cumin, dill seeds.
Thus, in small portions, adding cabbage, carrots and salt, compact all the cabbage with a wooden rolling pin so that a large amount of juice appears in the groove from the rolling pin.
Then, with clean hands (you can use your fists), press the cabbage in the pan so that all the cabbage is covered with cabbage juice, put a plate and press down with pressure (you can use a 3-liter jar filled with water as pressure).
Stick a wooden rolling pin into the side (to release gases).
The cabbage ferments for about three days (at room temperature).
Several times a day you need to pierce it with a rolling pin (a clean knitting needle or a long knife), reaching to the bottom of the pan, and you can see how a large number of bubbles - gases - are released (if this is not done, the cabbage will turn out bitter).
On the third day (the fermentation time for cabbage may vary slightly), the brine brightens and subsides, and the foam also disappears.
Also, the readiness of cabbage can be determined by taste.
Transfer the finished cabbage to a clean jar (do not compact it too much), pour in brine, cover with a plastic lid and store in the refrigerator.

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Stuffed peppers without meat

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A great Lenten recipe for Christmas. If your family does not fast, you can stuff the peppers with minced meat and rice.

What you will need:
6 sweet peppers
2-3 carrots
2-3 onions
2 tomatoes
1 eggplant - to taste
4 cloves garlic
1 tbsp. rice
500 ml vegetable or chicken broth
vegetable oil
tomato paste - to taste
salt, spices - to taste

How to cook:
Wash the pepper, remove the stem and remove the seeds. Finely chop the vegetables and simmer in heated vegetable oil until cooked, adding salt and spices to taste.

Boil the rice until half cooked and mix with minced vegetables - the filling is ready. Stuff the peppers, then place them in a saucepan, adding vegetable oil to the bottom, and pour broth on top.

Simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes, then add finely chopped fresh herbs, tomato paste, spices and finely chopped garlic. Reduce heat and simmer for another 25-30 minutes.

Stuffed peppers are ready. Serve with fresh herbs, sour cream and garlic.

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Mushroom pie

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For the test:
1.5 cups flour, 100 g margarine, 4 g dry yeast, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 0.5 cup liquid (water), 2 teaspoons sugar.

For filling:
1-2 large onions, 500-700g fresh champignons, 1/2 teaspoon salt

How to cook the pie:
Prepare lean yeast dough. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1.5 hours.
Finely chop the onion.

Pour vegetable oil into a deep frying pan and heat over high heat.

Add the onion and fry with constant stirring until slightly translucent.

Reduce heat to min. Simmer the onion, stirring occasionally, while the mushrooms are cut.

Sort the mushrooms and wash if necessary. Cut into thin slices.

Add the mushrooms to the pan with the onions.

Stir until the onion rises from bottom to top. Add some salt.

Turn up the heat and fry with constant stirring until the mushrooms are fried to the desired degree (4-7 minutes).

Divide the dough into two unequal parts.

Roll out most of it into a circle with a diameter of 28-30cm (for a mold 24-26cm + 4cm on the sides), place on a greased baking sheet.

Place the filling in the middle of the circle and smooth it out.

Roll out the second half of the dough into a circle with a diameter of 22-24cm.

Cover the filling with a small circle and, lifting the edges of the bottom circle, pinch.

Brush the top of the pie with an egg, beaten with 2-3 tablespoons of water (it is better to use not the whole egg, but only the yolk).

Preheat the oven to t=200°C and bake the pie until browned (about 30 minutes).

If the pie begins to brown too quickly, cover the top with a piece of foil.

Remove the finished pie from the oven and transfer to a plate.

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Apples baked with honey and nuts

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Baked apples with nuts and honey are not only a lean and healthy dish, but also very tasty. Baked apples contain a lot of pectin - substances that absorb cholesterol and thereby reduce the risk of atherosclerosis.

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The enzymes contained in honey promote digestion and improve the absorption of food. Nuts strengthen the immune system, which is very useful in winter, lower cholesterol and blood sugar levels, improve metabolism, digestion and appetite.

What do you need:
shelled walnuts – 100 g
large apples – 4 pcs.
honey - 4 tbsp. l.

What to do:
Wash the apples and dry them. Cut off the top and stem of each apple, then carefully cut out the core.
Chop the nuts into coarse crumbs with a knife and mix with honey. Spread the mixture into the prepared apples. Place them in a microwave-safe dish, pour in 4 tbsp. l. water, cover. Cook for 2–3 minutes. at 100% power.

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Well, and most importantly, treat the Christmas tradition with respect and sincerity, and your good thoughts will return to you with increased goodness! Happy holiday, Happy Evening, Merry Christmas!

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The question of what to cook for Christmas has been relevant for many, many, many years. Every year on Christmas Eve, every Orthodox family sets the family Christmas table, which, according to tradition, should include 12 Lenten dishes,

Christmas is the brightest and most magical holiday. Christmas Eve - the night from January 6 to 7 is called Christmas Eve. Until the evening of Christmas Eve, Orthodox Christians adhere to strict fasting and break their fast only after the first star appears in the sky.

Before Christmas, it is customary to set the table twice: on January 6 - on Christmas Eve, the table must be fast, and on January 7 - on Christmas itself, here you can already prepare dishes from eggs, milk and meat. Many adhere to traditions and prepare 12 Lenten dishes for Christmas. The number 12 symbolizes the number of apostles; there were exactly 12 of them. Some people believe that 12 Lenten dishes at Christmas symbolize the number of days of Christmastide - there are also twelve of them.

There is very little time left until the Holy Evening and now it is important to know what to cook for Christmas 2017, what tasty and healthy treats to treat your family and invited guests. Many mysterious and beautiful rituals and traditions are associated with Christmas night, which are still honored and observed in many families - for example, children go and tell and sing carols at Christmas.

So what should you cook for Christmas? What dishes to serve on the table for Christmas? What does a classic Christmas menu look like?

According to tradition, it is mandatory to prepare kutya or kutya. This is a tasty and healthy porridge made from wheat (there are recipes for making kutia from rice or millet), with which the Christmas feast begins.

What to cook for Christmas - Recipes for 12 dishes for Christmas

1. Kutya

Ingredients: wheat grits – 1 cup, walnuts – 1 cup, dried apricots – 10 pcs; half a glass of raisins and poppy seeds; honey.

We wash the cereal and leave it in cold water for 4 hours. After this, boil the cereal in an aluminum or stainless steel bowl over low heat, adding 2 cups of water. When the porridge is ready, set it aside and let it cool. At this time, pour poppy seeds, raisins and dried apricots in different dishes with boiling water. When the water gets cold, drain it, grind the poppy seeds, cut the dried apricots into small pieces. We also cut the walnuts into small pieces. Mix the porridge with all ingredients, add honey to taste.

2. Uzvar (compote)

Uzvar – dried fruit compote. The traditional Christmas drink uzvar is brewed from a mixture of dried apples and pears, cherries and plums. Infused uzvar has a rich, pleasant taste, so cook it in advance - in the morning. This drink is also very healthy; in winter you can prepare uzvar not only for Christmas, Generous Evening and Epiphany, but also just like that, as an alternative to compotes (canned or frozen berries) and tea.

3. Lenten solyanka

The first dish for Christmas (on Christmas Eve) - How to cook Lenten solyanka?

Lenten hodgepodge with mushrooms is perfect for main course. For it you will need mushrooms (in winter, of course, the choice is small, so use fresh champignons, you can also use dry ones), a small head of cabbage, one carrot, two onions, two or three pickles, a small potato, salt, herbs, oil and pepper. So, put the water on the fire, while the water boils, fry the mushrooms and onions. Chop cabbage, carrots, potatoes and pickles. Place raw vegetables into boiling water one by one, let it boil, then mushrooms, let it boil, and before removing the hodgepodge from the heat, add garlic, herbs and vegetable oil. The first dish is ready.

4. Dumplings

Traditional dish for Christmas - Pampushki

Dumplings are served on the table instead of bread, but bread must also be on the table. Pampushki are cute round buns made from unleavened yeast dough, and it’s good to prepare a dish like...

5. Vinaigrette

For an appetizer, prepare a vinaigrette. For it we need boiled beets, carrots, potatoes, pickled cucumber, a can of canned peas, herbs and salt. We cut the vegetables into small cubes, finely chop the greens, then combine all the ingredients, add salt and season with oil. The vinaigrette is ready! During strict fasting, you need to eat lean dishes without oil, so if the vinaigrette is not seasoned with oil, it can be served on strict days.

6. Potatoes in foil in the oven

Christmas dishes recipes - Potatoes in foil in the oven

Ingredients: medium-sized potatoes (2 for each person), garlic - 4 cloves, herbs, vegetable oil, salt, spices, foil.

We wash the potatoes thoroughly, removing all particles of soil. Let dry and then grease with oil on all sides. We cut off part of the foil so that the piece matches the size of the tuber. Coarse salt and garlic are placed in the center of the sheet, and potatoes are sprinkled with salt on top. Packing. After the bundles are ready, it is necessary to make several holes in each of them with a toothpick. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, place the packages on a baking sheet, bake them for about fifty minutes. We check readiness. When there are no complaints, remove the foil, place the potatoes on a dish and sprinkle them with finely chopped herbs.

7. Stuffed cabbage rolls with mushrooms

Dishes for Christmas - Stuffed cabbage rolls with mushrooms recipe

Ingredients: champignon mushrooms, white cabbage, rice, onions, carrots, tomato paste, salt, pepper.

Chop the mushrooms and fry in oil. Add finely chopped onion to them and fry everything together. Three carrots, which go into the frying pan with the mushrooms and onions. At this time, boil the rice, which will then mix with the cooled contents of the pan. This is the filling for cabbage rolls. Stuff the boiled cabbage leaves. After this, lightly fry to fix the shape of the cabbage rolls. Place them in a saucepan. Prepare a mixture of water and tomato paste (for 1.5 cups of liquid - 3 tablespoons of paste), pour in the cabbage rolls. Simmer over low heat for 40 minutes.

8. Dumplings with potatoes

Dumplings on the Christmas table - What to cook for Christmas

Be sure to place dumplings with potatoes on the Lenten table. To do this, prepare the dough as for dumplings, only without eggs. The filling is mashed potatoes with fried onions. Then we make dumplings, boil and serve with vegetable oil.

9. Dumplings with cherries

Dumplings for Christmas - Sweet dishes for Christmas

Dumplings with cherries. A wonderful sweet dish that can be eaten as dessert!

Although you can make dumplings with other fillings: potatoes, cabbage, beans and even poppy seeds.

10. Baked fish with vegetables

Baked fish with vegetables is a great option for a delicious Lenten Christmas dinner.

Ingredients: Fish (fillet) 2 pcs.; Red tomatoes 1 pc.; Bell pepper 2 pcs.; Onions 2 pcs.; Garlic 2 cloves;

Clean vegetables and fish and prepare for further work. Cut the vegetables as desired and place on a baking sheet. Season with salt, pepper, olive oil and bake them in a preheated oven. Vegetables should be baked until done. Occasionally remove the baking sheet and stir them gently.

Rub the fillets with fish spices (or salt and pepper) and red paprika. When the vegetables are ready, place the fillet on top and pour over the juice from the vegetables. Place in the oven for 3-5 minutes. Then turn over and cook for another 3-5 minutes.

11. Blanks

Christmas dishes - Preparations for the Christmas table - Salads for Christmas

You can open a jar of vegetable salad from summer stocks - for example, pepper salad, eggplant salad, or prepare a sauerkraut salad. Two or three menu items vary each year.

12. Dessert

Dessert on the Christmas table - Sweet dishes for Christmas 2017

For dessert, we will prepare fruit jelly according to the principle of vegetable aspic. We cut the fruits, put them in glasses and fill them with a sweet gelatin solution.

The second dessert on the Lenten table can be baked apples with honey, nuts and dried fruits.

Try to prepare a proper Christmas dinner, because 12 dishes are not just food, but a wonderful folk and family tradition, and it just seems like a long time to make them. It's actually not difficult to get everything done.

What not to cook for Christmas - What dishes should not be on the Christmas table

During the celebration of Christian holidays, many people ask questions about the prohibition of certain actions. Find out what you can and should do at this time, and what you should refrain from, from this article.

The celebration of the Nativity of Christ has its roots in antiquity. On January 7, Orthodox Christians traditionally attend church and pray for the health of all relatives and loved ones. On this bright day, preference should be given to activities that develop the personality spiritually.

What to do for Christmas

On the feast of the Nativity of Christ, one should offer prayers to the Higher Powers, asking them for favor and mercy towards all people. If possible, it is worth visiting the church and attending the Divine Liturgy. You can light a candle and offer words of gratitude at home in front of your icons.

On Christmas Day, you can wash yourself and do everyday activities as long as they are aimed at satisfying your own needs and not for entertainment. Work is also not considered sinful if the forces are aimed at earning money for food and the most necessary things. You should wash clothes only as needed if the matter is urgent.

Hard work such as knitting, embroidery and sewing are also encouraged. Labor has always been held in high esteem. If this is not entertainment and leisure, but work or a gift to a loved one, the matter is considered God-pleasing and is allowed on any church holidays.

Traditional Christmas fortune-telling also takes place during this mysterious time, but the church does not approve of the occult and does not advise getting carried away with secret knowledge and looking into the future. Everything is the will of God, and according to his commandments it is worth building your life path.

Close relationships between spouses are also not forbidden if they have a desire to continue their family line and acquire long-awaited offspring.

A folk sign says that people who make purchases and trips to shops and markets on this day attract wealth and financial well-being into their lives. You can also leave a few coins for those asking for them to pray for your health.

What to Avoid at Christmas

On a great church holiday, you cannot swear and enter into conflicts and quarrels. Your negative thoughts may well become attitudes in life, and you will unwittingly program yourself for failure and bad luck. Spiritual growth and rise above negativity will help you avoid life’s troubles and enlist the support of Higher powers.

It is believed that on the bright holiday of the birth of Christ one should not wear black things, as they symbolize mourning attire. The best choice would be elegant items in light colors.

Entertainment activities aimed at achieving personal pleasure, as well as drinking alcoholic beverages in large quantities, are prohibited. This day is intended to work for the good of the family and pray for the salvation of the soul and guidance on the true path.