Week 9: Albania

One 'problem' I've discovered through this project is that sometimes it is really tough to narrow down the selection of wonderful new foods to just those dishes that I need for one dinner.  This week was one of those times.  Albania has a rather surprising selection of interesting dishes... more than I needed for my dinner... so I expanded and tried Albania a little early, just so that I could fit in one extra dish.  The fried meatballs (or Qofte të fërguara) were so good that I'll go ahead and include the recipe here as an extra.

Dinner:  Tarator, Salad, Byrek Mi Spinaq, Gjellë me Arra të Ellit, and Tavë Kosi
Dessert:  Halva
Extra:  Qofte të fërguara

Tarator, or cold Cucumber Soup, is a staple among that area of the world... from Greece, where it's called Tzatziki to Iran, where it's called Ab-Doogh-Khiar, to Bulgaria where again, it's called Tarator.  Simply, it's yogurt, garlic and cucumbers, though I added dill and ground walnuts.  It is perfect for a summer dinner.  Though the littlest did eat all of his, I'm not sure that I would say it was a hit with any of the littles.  The husband really liked it and for that I am grateful.

Tatator

Our book listed a spinach pie called "pieta" as Albania's most traditional dish.  I actually have been looking forward to our Albania dinner, because I imagined that pieta would be very similar to spanikopita.  And just thinking about spanikopita makes my mouth water just a little.  When I started researching Albania cuisine online, I had some difficulty finding an acceptable recipe for pieta... come to discover that the Albanian spinach pie is actually called "byrek".  All the littles claimed the byrek to be their favorite and with the eldest eating three helpings, I can't help but believe them.  How did it compare to spanikopita?  Well, the byrek had a much creamier spinach filling.  When asked which he preferred, the husband actually liked the byrek.

Byrek... or as we like to call it, Pieta

My slice

I read that Gjellë me Arra means dish with nuts and is traditionally made with veal or chicken and walnuts in Albania.  While Chicken with Walnuts may not be the national dish of Albania, it is the most typical dish.  It was a popular dish at the dinner table.  While some of the littles ate the chicken and left the walnuts, the eldest kept asking for more topping.

Gjellë me Arra

As I was putting together my menu, I started questioning the completeness of it.  When I asked the husband for input, he thought maybe adding a little lamb into the meal would be a good representation of the region... and of course, he's right.  It wasn't exactly what I was thinking, I was trying to come up with another vegetable dish!  Anyway, reading that the Tavë Kosi (or Lamb with Yogurt) is the national dish of Albania, I conceded and added it to the menu.  My extra vegetable dish that I was searching for?  Salad!  Both were well received.  The lamb and yogurt was the husband's favorite and the eldest's second favorite (after the byrek).  I didn't try it, but heard that the yogurt had a very nice flavor.  The salad with it's feta cheese and kalamata olives... who could resist?

Tavë Kosi

Cucumber and Tomato Salad

I can still remember the first time that I ever tried Halva.  It was back in the summer of 1996 when a friend of mine came back from a trip to Turkey, with souvenirs.  It was so different and yet, divine.  I looked for it anytime I was in an international store, but didn't get the opportunity to try it again until November of 2000, when the husband and I were in Turkey on vacation.  We bought a huge block of it and brought it home and then it was gone.  Eleven years later and I finally attempted to make it!  Ironically, it took me this long to look up a recipe and make it... and recently I've found that they sell it at my local international market!  Anyway... there are many different types of halvas.  The Turkish halva that we tried had a tahini (or sesame paste) base, while Albanian halva has a flour base.  And apparently the base makes all the difference!  The Albanian halva was stickier... really trying hard to come up with a good analogy... more like the consistency of peanut butter or really thick butter cream frosting with the grainy texture of cream of wheat.  I know... that doesn't sound very appetizing.  In fact, other than just being super sweet, it really didn't have much of a flavor, even after adding rose water and saffron.  As a comparison, the Turkish halva is more like the consistency of maple candy, but not even close to that sweet.  I absolutely prefer the Turkish halva.

Halva

We've been so lucky to be able to share these last few meals with friends. Though this time, our friends decided to share a little something with us... sticking with our theme.  We were surprised with a little Raki (in a not so little bottle)!  Raki is an anise-flavored spirit that is a popular apéritif in Albania and other Balkan countries.  When it is mixed with chilled water, it turns milky white and is commonly referred to as 'lion's milk'.  Let me assure you... it was terrible!  We all tried it and none of us could take more than a few sips before giving up.  But no matter how terrible the Raki was... it was an incredible experience that we were able to share with great friends!

A popular drink in Albania

Let's toast to Albania!

Interesting Facts:
- Albania borders Greece, Montenegro, Kosovo, and the Republic of Macedonia
- The language of Albania is Albanian
- Albania's capital, Tirana, is its largest city
- The Albanian currency is the Lek
- Albania is 27,898 square miles - about the size of Maryland
- The population of Albania is 3,155,271
- Albania gained independence in 1912, though it was not recognized by other countries until 1913.
- Albania was a part of the Ottoman Empire for nearly four centuries.
- Albania is called "Republika e Shqiperia" in its native language
- The official motto of Albania is "the faith of Albanians is Albanism"
- Greeks make up 1.2% of the total population of Albania
- In Albania, nodding the head means no and shaking the head means yes
- Albania has never participated in the FIFA World Cup, however have continuously placed 1st, 2nd or 3rd in the Balkan Cup.