
I am nearing the end of my masters thesis these days. It is a collection of essays about women in my family and their relationships to food. One of the essays is about my Auntie Tunkel, the woman who raised my grandmother and her siblings. She immigrated from the Ukraine when she was 14 years in order to marry a man who she had never met. It wasn't a happy marriage, but according to family lore, she still managed to enjoy life and make everyone around her feel loved and appreciated.
Auntie Tunkel was an excellent cook and was particularly known for her stuffed cabbage. For the last few weeks, I've been bugging my mom for her stuffed cabbage recipe because I needed to include it in the thesis draft, and on Tuesday she finally came through. As she talked me through it on the phone, I could tell that she was recalling the taste memory of the dish as well. Writing down the recipe, I started to get hungry and by the time we got off the phone I was ready to bolt out of the house and head to the store for the necessary ingredients.
It's a time-intensive dish, but perfect for the weekend when you want to put a little more energy into cooking. When this dish is done, you'll be rewarded with a fragrant kitchen, an excellent meal and tasty leftovers (unless you are cooking for a crowd). The recipe is after the jump.

On occasion, I enjoy such toothsome canned fish as Riga Sprats and various other types that I find in Russian markets in my neighborhood. I must admit that I've never seen canned catfish anywhere. Prior to seeing this photo, I would have been more than willing to try some. Now I might think twice.










