Windows to Russia

Hello,

These are some quick pictures from our latest trip to Ukraine. By far not all but just some to let you know what we did and saw. I am going to have several posts about things we did with pictures. But for now lets look at some recent photos of the visa run to Ukraine.

A monastery that we visited.

Part of the same Monastery. Their garden!

The hotel that we always stay in. (The Hotel Slavutich)

My sweetie taking pictures of all the beautiful sights. Everything in bloom!

Ukraine is beautiful right now. The trees are all leafing out and flowers blooming everywhere. They say that the Chestnuts trees bloom by May 1st and from what we saw they are almost in bloom now. Moscow, Russia is no where near as far along in the season of spring.

Have a nice day and more to be posted over the next few days.

Windows to Russia!
Kyle and Svet

comments always welcome.

Russia News Source: April 24th, 2009!

Rehearsal for the Victory Day parade in St. Petersburg:
The upcoming May 9 Victory Day parade in St. Petersburg will involve more soldiers and new military equipment than before.

North Korea to try 2 U.S. journalists for ‘hostile acts’:
North Korea said on Friday it would try two female American journalists arrested last month for border trespass and unspecified “hostile acts.”

NATO, Russia to share information on airborne threats:
Poland, Norway and Turkey are planning to set up a radar early warning network which will exchange information on airborne threats with Russia, the Polish defense minister said.

Georgian protesters interrupt president Saakashvili’s dinner:
A crowd of opposition activists gathered outside a restaurant where President Mikheil Saakashvili was eating, forcing him to abandon his dinner, as protests continued on the streets of Tbilisi.

Russian, U.S. experts to discuss strategic arms reduction in Rome:
The first round of Russian-American expert-level consultations on preparing the new version of the Strategic Arms Reductions Treaty (START) will begin in Rome on Friday.

Gazprom Neft buys minority stake in Sibir Energy:
Gazprom Neft has bought a minority stake in oil producer Sibir Energy, the oil arm of Russian energy giant Gazprom said on Friday.

Police kill militant leader in south Russia’s Daghestan:
A militant group leader suspected of numerous attacks on law enforcement officers was shot dead by police on Friday in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Daghestan, a police spokesman said.

Five killed in south Moscow multi-vehicle pile up:
Five people were killed and one person seriously injured in a six-car pile up in south Moscow early on Friday, a local emergencies spokesman said.

Opposition says anti-Saakashvili protests enter ‘active’ phase:
Georgian opposition leaders said on Thursday protests demanding the president’s resignation were entering their “active” phase, threatening to block Mikheil Saakashvili’s movements in the capital.

Hello,

For the next few days, Svet and I will be in Ukraine. It is that wonderful visa time and we get to go explore Kiev, Ukraine. We always enjoy the train trip from Moscow, Russia to Kiev, Ukraine. I call it the Kiev express!

We will see what is happening in Ukraine and maybe we will come across something interesting. I checked the weather and it is running -3 degrees C. at night in Kiev. So like Moscow it is still cold.

We should only be gone a few days and expect to be back by Thursday at the latest.

But….. (Life is a bowl of cherries – just watch out for the pits!)

Kyle and Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

It is Easter in Russia again and as you can tell I like to write about Easter. This is a special time of the year. So just look over these articles and video from Russia Today too find out all you ever wanted to know about Easter and more…

Have a very happy Orthodox Easter: April 19th, 2009!

http://kylekeeton.com/2009/04/from-russia-when-is-easter-western-or.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2009/03/recipe-from-russia-very-simple-kulich.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2009/03/from-russia-when-is-easter.html

http://windowstorussia.com/2008/04/100.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/04/russia-easter-april-27-2008.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/03/happy-easter.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/03/russia-great-lent.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/03/lent-around-world-easter-time.html

http://kylekeeton.com/2008/03/russian-easter.html

Windows to Russia!
Kyle and Svet

comments always welcome.

I was asked about these two recipes and since I was working on an article here in Moscow, Russia about those very recipes, I decided to post them early…

Kvass or kvas (literally “leaven”; borrowed in the 16th century from Russian квас (kvas)), sometimes translated into English as bread drink, is a fermented mildly alcoholic beverage made from black rye or rye bread (which attributes to its light or dark color). It is popular in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland and other Eastern and Central European countries as well as in all ex-Soviet states, like Uzbekistan, where one can see many kvass vendors in the streets. Its origins go back 5,000 years to the beginnings of beer production. (Link)

So lets make a very simple blackbread kvas:

Blackbread Kvas From Russia:

To do this right you need two tubs the same size. (wood preferred, but that is uncommon now, so it will work with good metal buckets. You can also use big glass jars)

45 – 50 ea slices of black bread, place upon large cookie sheets. Place in heated oven till bread is dry and hard. Not burned! Toasted like a crouton but no seasoning…

Place bread in one tub and pour over it 18 – 20 cups of boiling water then cover the tub and allow to stand until around room warmth. 80 – 90 degrees F.

Now you must strain this liquid through cotton cloth or cheese cloth without squeezing. (important part, do not force the straining process.) this is where people mess up. They try to hurry gravity. This leaves the parts of the black bread you do not want behind. This is where the second tub comes in handy.

Add to this strained liquid 48 ounces of molasses and mix it very well. (sorghum does work and in some places cheaper.) (not honey)

Now add 5-6 tablespoons of yeast mixed with 1 tbsp. wheat flour. Excess yeast and flour will destroy the kvas.

Cover lightly with a clean towel. (then go watch a movie and get a good night sleep)

After allowing to stand for 12-16 hours in a warm not hot, quiet place then strain through cloth into clean sterilized tub. (you will find lots of sediment)

Laddle into bottles with funnel, then place 1 – 2 raisins in each bottle; seal (good seal) and store in in the refrigerator or in a cold place. (cellar works good) I use screw top coke bottles and they work great.

Kvas is ready to drink or to use in 2 days time.

Now after a couple of days we can do several things with our delicious Kvas!

1. we can drink it.. (Ummmmm good)

2. We can make a fantastic cold soup or some say – salad.

Okroshka – cold soup – from Russia:

Raw vegetables – cucumbers, new onions, radish, boiled potatoes (no skin in soup) – eggs – ham (very light on the ham, just enough for the smoked flavor)!

Kvas of the black bread variety. (see above)

The ingredients are chopped into small squares and are mixed with kvas just before eating. The ratio of cut veggies to kvas is the same as cold cereal to milk. If that helps give an idea of how many veggies plus stuff to kvas! The idea is to have just enough kvas to keep the veggies crisp. The potatoes and eggs will suck the moisture out of the veggies and cause them to be limp. I like to top it off with a spoon of sour cream

That is it and they are easy to make. Just be very patient and you will succeed. Now remember the Kvas has a small amount of alcohol in it due to the fermenting yeast.

Yummy and more Yummy…

Windows to Russia!
Kyle and Svet

Related articles

• Russia: What Is A Sandwich? (windowstorussia.com)
• A Typical Day in the Village… (windowstorussia.com)
• A Russian Cabbage Pie… (windowstorussia.com)
• Medvedev signs law that likens beer to alcohol. (news.windowstorussia.com)
• Space cakes for cosmic dates (news.windowstorussia.com)
• Bread consumption down by 5 kg in Russia in last 3 years. (news.windowstorussia.com)

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Russia Today!

Kyle and Svet

comments always welcome.

Hello,

In Russia cabbage is very plentiful year around. So many things are made from cabbage in Russia because of this. One of the most popular items in Russia is Cabbage pies.

Lets make a simple cabbage pie today…

First the Ingredients:

1 and a 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
200 g softened cream cheese (8 oz)
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 medium head of cabbage, coarsely shredded
fresh basil, to taste (substitute dried)
fresh marjoram or oregano, to taste (substitute dried)
salt and pepper, to taste
300 g mushrooms, washed and sliced (6 oz)
4-5 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
chopped fresh dill

Lets Prepare the Dough:

Sift the flour then add the salt into a large mixing bowl. Then add butter and half the cream cheese. Mix by cutting the butter and cream cheese throughly into a smooth dough. Take out 2/3 of dough and roll with rolling pin on a floured surface 1/8 inch thick sheet. Then line a 9-inch pie dish. Roll out remaining pastry into a circle big enough to cover dish. Refrigerate both until needed later.

Lets Prepare the Filling:

Grease a large skillet with oil or use a Pam spray. Once hot at medium temperature add onion and cabbage. Then sprinkle the seasoning’s (herb) on top of cabbage and onions. At this point I cover and let steam until wilted, then sauté several more minutes. Then add the mushrooms cook 3-4 minutes more, stirring constantly. Take off the heat…

Lets put the Pie Together:

Take the pie shell with crust out of the refrigerator. Spread the other half of the cream cheese in the bottom of the pie shell. Arrange the sliced hard boiled eggs in a layer over the cream cheese. Then layer the just cooked cabbage mixture over the eggs and cream cheese. Cover with the other pastry that you had already rolled and cooled. Press crusts together tightly at the edges and you may seal with a buttered fork called fluting. Make sure that you cut a few slashes in the top crust to allow steam to escape or your pie will explode in the oven. My Grandma always cut flower designs but I just poke twenty holes with the fork tines. 🙂

Lets Bake the Pie:

Bake on middle rack in preheated oven (set on bake not preheat) at 400°F for 15 minutes then turn temperature down to 350° and bake 20-25 minutes until crust is light brown. To help the browning you may wash the top with butter after the first 15 minutes.

Then it is time to eat! Yummy…

Windows to Russia!
Kyle and Svet

comment always welcome.

Hello,

I was drinking my morning cup of coffee here in Moscow Russia. I was thinking about what is Russia and surrounding friends up to?

Lets start with a rematch in the sports:

On May 30 Russian giant Nikolay Valuev will defend his WBA heavyweight title against the only man that’s ever beaten him, Ruslan Chagaev of Uzbekistan. (Link)

That will be good because Valuev has wanted a chance to redeem himself. So while Valuev is preparing for his biggest match of his career. Lets go to georgia and see what fun Saakashvili is having with the locals and their show of love for him…

Georgian opposition activists, in their sixth day of street protests demanding the resignation of President Mikheil Saakashvili, they have put up tents in front of his official Tbilisi residence on Tuesday. (Link)

Isn’t that sweet, everyone loves him so much that they want to be close to Saakashvili. Could you imagine what would happen in America if people tried to get close to the president. (Camping on the White House lawn and streets?) Ouch…

Lets take a wander over to Chechnya, where police seized 60 kilograms of explosives on April 9, a senior Interior Ministry official said on Tuesday. They also seized, about 15 million counterfeit rubles ($450,000), mostly in 1,000-ruble denominations, and $90,000, in $100 bills, as well as printing equipment and materials, including paper with high-quality imitation security features. (Link)

Now that would have made a big boom and really looks like the bad guys where just trying to help the government to get some money out to the people… 🙂

While the crooks are making the cops work overtime in Russia, lets go look at…

An eight-year-old girl rescued five children from a burning house in Russia’s Samara Region, but failed to save her younger sister, local investigators said on Tuesday. (Link) Sad!

At least most made it out – But why where they left alone?

Lets go look at NATO right now…

By going ahead with the war games, NATO appears to be offering support to Mikhail Saakashvili, the Russian diplomat says. He says the move looks like ‘some sort of a challenge’ not only to the Georgian opposition but also to South Ossetia, Abkhazia and Russia. (Link)

Can we say stupid or I guess this is normal isn’t it? NATO is going to be waltzing into a hornets nest in Georgia. The people are on the verge of total riot and NATO is going to play war games. This is what the people are upset about in the first place. WAR!

Looks like just a normal day for what is happening around Russia…

Windows to Russia!
Kyle and Svet

comments always welcome.