Notes about Recipes in this book

• Tarragon vodka

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    Good - summery, and does indeed make a mean greyhound.

• Horseradish vodka

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    Very intense and not for cowards. Likely a polarizing drink, but a good example of its kind.

• Bloody Masha

  • L.Nightshade on March 31, 2020

    The horseradish vodka is a breeze to make. To be honest, I forgot I had this one going and the horseradish sat in the vodka for a far, far longer time than the called for. No damage done, it was very flavorful. For the Bloody Masha, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, and black peppercorns are toasted in a dry pan, then finely ground. I found the aroma of this blend to be extremely seductive. The spices, along with lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, and dill are added to tomato juice. I omitted the honey and the prepared horseradish, as I didn’t want to add sweet, and my vodka was sufficiently horseradishy as is. I filled up some old Russian glasses, garnished them with cherry tomatoes, brined chiles, dill pickles, and prosciutto. These were wonderful! Mr. Nightshade declared it the best Bloody he’d ever had. I made breakfast for dinner, eggs scrambled with foie gras and onions, and roasted garlicky potatoes, and the Bloody Mashas were the perfect accompaniment.

• Chamomile vodka

  • Yildiz100 on February 26, 2020

    Wonderful stuff! I never knew chamomile could be so delicious. Move to the refrigerator after a few hours when house is very warm.

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    This is delicious and the best of the vodkas from this book. Excellent in a riff on a Bee’s Knees.

  • SheilaS on March 05, 2025

    I love chamomile tea and this vodka captures that floral flavor in a lovely way. I’m looking forward to trying this in a vodka tonic or martini.

• Baba Yaga

  • Yildiz100 on February 26, 2020

    Excellent. I was hesitant about using the full amount of simple syrup but it worked.

  • SheilaS on March 05, 2025

    I made this with Yellow Chartreuse as recommended as I don’t have Strega on hand. Perhaps that contributed to it being too sweet for me. Next time I’ll dial back on the simple syrup.

• Cacao nib vodka

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    A “grown-up” chocolate liquor that adds a beautiful undertone to drinks, especially a White Russian (as suggested in the book).

• Black/white Russian

  • hirsheys on March 07, 2021

    To make a black russian, you mix some of the infused vodka with coffee liqueur (they call for something fancy, but I just used kahlua) and chocolate mole bitters (they call for a specific type that were impossible to track down, but I finally found some that are delicious at whole foods). For the white russian you then add a bit of half and half and a little simple syrup. I left out the simple syrup (as I also had in the vodka) and went just a bit light on the half and half (just because of what was left in my carton - I used maybe 1.5 oz rather than the 2 oz called for). I found this to be a much more interesting and complex version of a white russian and just the right amount of sweet - I'm glad I didn't add the simple syrup. Will definitely make again with the remaining vodka.

• Hunter's vodka

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    This one was good, but not my favorite. I found it difficult to blend into a cocktail with its variety of spices. Possibly better for straight drinking.

• Dill flower vodka

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    This is delicate and not immediately identifiable as dill. Refreshing as a gin substitute in a G and T, especially with cucumber added.

• Sea buckthorn berry vodka

  • jenburkholder on March 06, 2025

    Excellent - tart, tannic, and full of sea buckthorn flavor. Great in a wet martini (the astringency needs a bit more vermouth, imo!)

• Grapefruit gin

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    This isn’t particularly “grapefruit-y” - it’s more like taking the gin and leveling it up. Easy and delicious, like to keep it around to replace plain gin in all sorts of things.

  • rmardel on March 31, 2025

    This noted by jenburkholder, this isn't grapefruit-y. I wanted more grapefruit so I modified the recipe. I used the peel of 2 grapefruits in a quart jar with one bottle of Plymouth gin. Infused for 4 days. Excellent flavor and aroma.

• Pinko commie bastard

  • rmardel on March 31, 2025

    Love this! Tart smooth, not too sweet with the barest hint of bitterness. I used my variation on the author's grapefruit gin (see note, infused 4 days) and it is wonderful. I love the strong grapefruit flavor, and the way the flavors balance out.

• Caraway rye whiskey

  • rmardel on April 02, 2025

    The flavor of the caraway is definitely present but not forward in this infusion. in the beginning the rye predominates and then there is a strong bite of caraway near the end the lingers temptingly. I did infuse my rye for nearly 5 days as I wanted to stronger caraway bite. It turned out well.

• Jewish rye

  • rmardel on April 02, 2025

    This turned out quite nicely. I did not add the kummel and did not feel the need for more caraway as I infused my whiskey longer than the recipe in the book recommended. The great softens and rounds out the whisky nicely but doesn't really change that this is a whiskey drink.

• Pickled beets

  • Yildiz100 on February 25, 2020

    We found these way too salty. Perhaps she mixed up the salt and sugar in the recipe? The juniper did not work for me here either. It didn't seem to complement the beets and had an unpleasant aftertaste. These will likely end up in the trash.

• Lobio

  • Jviney on June 15, 2019

    Man, this was good. I made it for a potluck using canned kidney beans and harissa. I left out the pomegranate seeds because I don’t love them; everyone that tried it liked it.

• Pkhali trio: red chard pkhali

  • jenburkholder on July 15, 2024

    This is so good. Only change was to use pecans, since I was surprised to find walnuts missing from the fridge. Quick to blitz together and more than the sum of its parts. Don’t omit the pickled stems!! (I skipped the adorable little balls and just served as a spread)

• Vinegret salad

  • jenniebakes on July 18, 2019

    This salad is so good, I can't stop eating it. I know she says to eat as soon as it's made, but I've kept it for a few days and it's great as leftovers... just very, very pink.

  • jenburkholder on August 14, 2020

    We thought this was only meh. The carrot didn’t seem to add anything; I wouldn’t bother including it. On a whole, it felt a bit one-dimensional. If I made it again, it would be a simplified version, no potato, carrots, or raw onion.

• Beet caviar-stuffed eggs

  • potatooryam on November 24, 2020

    I made just the beet caviar and really liked it, though I wouldn't go through the fuss of making my own mayonnaise next time. The leftovers were really good the next day with some homemade crackers.

• Perlovka salad with pears, mushrooms, hazelnuts, and sorrel

  • inflytur on November 07, 2018

    The sorrel/dill “pesto” gives this salad a vividly green flavor. It is worth the little bit of extra effort to quickly pickle the pear. This is good warm, at room temp, or cold. I made this for the cookbook club at my town library and it was the hit of the evening.

• Moldovan eggplant salad

  • potatooryam on November 24, 2020

    I thought this was fine but wouldn't repeat it, I didn't find that the flavors ever melded as much as I wanted them to. I like eggplant but don't love it, folks who are bigger fans might enjoy this more.

• Cabbage pirog

  • hirsheys on September 08, 2018

    The crust on this is extremely flaky and delicious (the grating technique works great - it's just messy.) The pickled mustard seeds make this a really unique dish. I ate this for days (I live alone) and it reheated fine, though the crust lost a bit of its crispness. On the other hand, it was one of the flakier versions I've made.

  • Lepa on December 22, 2025

    This is so delicious! We had a Russian -inspired lunch with friends yesterday and made this and it was the star of the spread. Even the kids couldn't get enough. I can't believe I have been paging past this recipe for years.

  • CaptainPantsless on February 27, 2026

    Incredible crust. There's an error in the size instructions for rolling it out. Filling was okay for me, but fam loved it. They ate all the leftovers cold from the fridge!

• Korean carrot salad

  • Stephenn31 on January 12, 2026

    The oil smelled so good with the spices cooking. I would make this again as written. I didn’t find it too spicy

• Dumpling dough

  • sarahawker on August 23, 2020

    Easy to pull together, a very stiff dough for hand rolling, you'll work out your arms by the time you finish the 8th round. Absolutely works well for the mold though.

  • potatooryam on November 24, 2020

    This dough is such a pleasure to work with. Easy put together and roll out.

• Siberian pelmeni

  • sarahawker on August 23, 2020

    These are so beautiful. I was gifted a mold and this was my first time experiencing/making Pelmeni. Takes awhile honestly,its a weekend project, but every family member LOVED this. Frozen half on a sheet pan and moved to a freezer bag.

  • Jviney on May 17, 2021

    These are not hard but are time-consuming. Well worth doubling the recipe when you’re making them so you can freeze them. They are delicious. I always think they will not work in the pelmenitsa but every time it does!

• Tvorog vareniki

  • potatooryam on November 24, 2020

    Delicious! Tastes as good as the ones I have had at the restaurant. I substituted farmer's cheese for the tvorog cheese and would continue to do so.

• Porcini barley soup

  • bching on January 24, 2021

    Tasty soup although I think a prefer using beef broth to the mushroom broth used here. I used frozen porcini which marred the texture a bit. I should add that Morales encourages the use of frozen porcini.)

• Schavel

  • Feelingsamtastic on July 14, 2023

    Granted I did use normal sour cream, but we were not fans of the texture or flavor. Also, since we used red veined sorrell (it's what we grew in the garden), it ended up a weird Pepto pink color...

• Short rib borsch

  • bching on December 26, 2020

    The best borsch I've ever made. It's a project but a fun and satisfying one when the snow makes the kitchen the most comfortable place in the house. Morales says that the mustard makes it borsch and I agree.

  • D.Barker on May 17, 2021

    This didn't work well for us. All the liquid cooked out, so during the long simmer time for the short ribs, must everything in the soup burned to the bottom. I added extra water to try and make it soup again, but it kind of had a burned taste. So I think this could be good with more liquid initially, but it was a pretty long time commitment for something that only turned out okay for us. It made me super sad, because I wanted this to be amazing.

  • meginyeg on December 20, 2023

    This was only ok. I have had other borsch recipes that were much much better. We won't make this again.

• Monday soup

  • jenburkholder on August 10, 2020

    This was a fine soup, cozy for a cold day, but nothing particularly interesting. We used sour cream instead of smetana, homemade veggie stock, and cooked the broccoli less.

  • Plumberful on February 20, 2026

    Utterly simple and more flavorful than expected. A pure bowl of comfort. I used homemade Creme Fraîche.

• Lyulya kebab

  • Feelingsamtastic on July 14, 2023

    This was sooo good, and quick to cook on a charcoal grill. Having aijika to dip with it was great (loved the tip to make extra spice mix so you could make both easily)

• Rabbit in a clay pot with draniki

  • hirsheys on September 08, 2018

    I made a 1/2 recipe of this dish and had to use chicken thighs, rather than rabbit. I also screwed up the timing, since I was baking Kulich (I made this on Easter, ironically) and mostly cooked the dish on the stove. This was delicious - like special stroganoff. Good on the potato pancakes (though I like my version better), but even better on egg noodles. I didn't have smetana, so I used 1/2 crème fraiche, 1/2 sour cream. Used boneless skinless thighs. Then I browned the thighs in Dutch oven, pulled them out, poured in the creamy mixture and let it cook down a lot, then put the chicken in and let it braise on the stovetop for a while until the sauce was reduced and light brown in color (1 1/2 hours or so…)

  • hirsheys on November 03, 2020

    Made again actually following the recipe (mostly) - baking as written and with rabbit, and it’s amazing. I love this stuff. Very cozy meal for a scary election night. (I used frozen porcinis, sour cream and creme fraiche, powdered porcinis, and homemade chicken broth instead of garlic broth.)

  • meginyeg on January 03, 2022

    This was delicious. I made it with the Smetana and garlic broth from the book. I didn't have fresh mushrooms so just increased the dried mushrooms. It is so so good. Definitely will make again.

• Draniki

  • hirsheys on September 08, 2018

    These were good, but too much like pancakes, not like the fritter version of potato pancakes (latkes) I prefer.

  • meginyeg on July 17, 2023

    These were delicious! Definitely will make again.

• Zephyr

  • inflytur on November 04, 2018

    Fun marshmallow candies. n.b. Thick apple purée - I used jarred unsweetened applesauce. I put some in a strainer for about 30 minutes and measured the required amount from that. Syrup - Make sure that the small pan you use has tall sides. The syrup easily boils over and will create a mess that is very difficult to clean up.

• Short rib zharkoye

  • Rradishes on December 14, 2018

    While the ingredient list is short and looks almost boring, the results are great. This is a super easy set-it-and-forget it type of meal, with minimal effort. Potatoes come out super flavorful, ribs are tender. I added parsnips to it as well, so it can be easily customized.

  • TrishaCP on December 20, 2018

    This was just ok for us. A little bland (I kept checking to confirm this recipe used no onions-I should have thrown one in regardless) and I thought the prunes tasted a bit off. I followed the instructions but slow-cooked on high for five hours instead of in the oven. Maybe the caramelization from the oven was what is needed, but I have too many better short rib recipes to try this again.

• Cauliflower schnitzel

  • Rradishes on January 18, 2019

    This was nice, the touch of marinating the cauliflower add flavor.

• Sirniki with raspberry kissel

  • Yildiz100 on February 24, 2020

    The pancakes are very nice, but the kissel was not pleasant. Very sour (no added sugar) and the potato starch gave it a slightly stringy texture.

• Braised chanterelles and potatoes

  • potatooryam on November 24, 2020

    I love chanterelles, I love potatoes, so I thought I would love this but it was just bland and not a great use of chanterelles which are so expensive around here.

  • bossjess on October 05, 2023

    The is one of my all time favorite things to do with chanterelles (I am a forager and have more than we can eat from October - December). The smetana is key; either make it yourself or buy at a Russian or Eastern European market. And patience, patience, patience. This gets better as it cooks, I like to let it go four hours or so. It's so rich and so delicious.

• Potato and carrot babka

  • Jardimc on June 24, 2022

    Made this without the soufflé topping and it was good. Next winter, I’ll try it with the soufflé topping as Bonnie recommends.

• Golubtsi

  • Aiolar on April 24, 2023

    Russian cabbage rolls with meat and rice in tomato sauce - DELICIOUS. Buy 2 heads of cabbage, and make rolls SMALL. 4 hour cook time (plus more to make sauce/center/shape rolls)

• Adjika

  • Feelingsamtastic on July 14, 2023

    I want to put this on all things grilled - SO tasty. Used harrissa as a substitute, as suggested

• Achichuk salad

  • Feelingsamtastic on July 14, 2023

    A great variation in the tomato cucumber salad! Even the left overs were excellent

• Smitten Kitchen

  The book is a delight on every page; a bit of history, a substantial amount of wry observations, some hilarious guides (how to navigate a Russian grocery store...

  Full review

• Food52

  ...a lot of these recipes are heritage recipes from the author’s own mama and babushka.

  Full review

• Food52

  When I opened the book, I wasn’t familiar with the food of the vast, diverse land of the former Soviet Union, and the many cultures and traditions it encompassed. This is no longer so.

  Full review

• Food52

  ...is part memoir; an exploration of the space Russian cooking occupies in Morales’ life.

  Full review