"If you want to see heaven on earth, come to Dubrovnik."
— George Bernard Shaw (1929)
Besides the playwright, George Bernard Shaw, another Englishman, HRH The Prince of Wales (formerly King Edward VIII) and his friend, Mrs. Simpson, later the Duchess of Windsor, adored Dubrovnik and the Croatian Adriatic (the locals even claim that they wanted to settle there). Rumor has it that one of the reasons Edward liked this “pearl of the Adriatic” so much was the naturist (nude) beaches. Naturists on holiday from the U.K. and other spots in Europe first arrived in Croatia in the 1930s. The balmy weather, secluded beaches and clear Adriatic waters are still a draw for naturists today. However, the understory of Croatia is much darker than beautiful weather and nude beaches. For countless years this region of the world has been divided, restored, divided differently, restored differently. The principal players in this unhappy story are the Serbs and Croats, two Slavic peoples who have similar languages but very different histories.
The Serbs are Orthodox Christians who clung to their religion as a way to retain their national identity while controlled for almost 400 years of rule by the Ottoman Turks. After World War I the Serbs were alone in setting themselves in a separate independent state.
The Croats had been Catholic for many generations since they came under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian empire. They identified themselves as Central Europeans, not Turks. There were also Jews in Croatia and Muslims in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The Civil War in 1990-1991 was fueled by the collapse of Communism. Serbs lived in Croatia; Croats lived in Serbia. In Bosnia, three distinct cultural groups lived side by side, Muslims, Serbs and Croats. The Serbs began a wave of ethnic cleansing to make Serbia purely Serbian.
With all of this unrest and confusion, is it any wonder the Croatian football team always looked so unhappy at the World Cup? Compared to other teams, the Croats looked older and tougher in a rowdy sort of way. They have fought for their small parts of the world for centuries, and it shows in their demeanor. However, at least they made the finals. Perhaps this success on the world stage will restore some pride to these beleaguered, but proud people.
In an area as culturally and geographically diverse, the cuisine goes from one gamut to another. Among the most popular dish in the bulk of this region of tentative states and nervous populations is one very strange to Americans - black risotto. Risotto is a type of rice dish familiar to fans of Italian food. It is made with broth and a particular type of round rice called “Arborio.”
The difference in this and the Croatian-Serbian-Bosnian is the inclusion of black squid ink. This ink has a strangely bitter fishy taste with the unusual equality of turning the eater's tongue and teeth black. This side effect of black risotto doesn't seem to bother the native population but is off-putting to Westerners. Usually this black risotto is topped with a large portion of grilled octopus. All in all, not a dish for the squeamish.
With so much variety in populations, it stands to reason that the food offerings would also be varied. Along the Dalmatian coast the cuisine leans heavily to the sea, along with olive oil, garlic, rosemary and other Mediterranean elements. Food in Zagreb leans toward Central Europe. It is heavy on red meats, especially lamb, and includes cabbage, potatoes and carrots. Istrian food has two outstanding dishes, made only in Istria. These are Manestra, a bean soup and Fuzi, a hand-rolled pasta. Slavonia leans more toward Hungarian seasonings, relying on pork and red paprika, both sweet and hot, to season their food. Imagine living in a country where each section cooks their own cuisines and doesn't want to incorporate any tastes from another area. This newly formed country is by no means a melting pot.
In debating what recipe to give you I realized that not many people around here have access to fresh squid ink - or may not even want to have access. Some of the other specialties are just not even close to the general taste profile we have. Many of you have adventuresome palates, but wasting grocery money on something which may not please you is just foolhardy.
Although our great country is formed of so many varied nationalities, we've managed to create some wonderful fusion dishes. It seems the constant which runs through most different groups is a love for something sweet. A traditional sweet from southern Croatia is Candied Orange Peel. This sweet seems to be popular around most of the world. It is unbelievably delicious and worth the small amount of time invested. As the Lay's Potato Chip company once advertised, “I’ll bet you can’t eat just one!”
Candied Orange Peel
• Choose navel oranges that have a thick skin.
• 2 large navel oranges, 1/4 inch of top and bottom cut off
• 4 cups of sugar, divided
• 3 cups of water
Cut the peel on each orange into 4 vertical segments. Remove each segment (including white pith) in 1 piece. Cut into 1/4" wide strips. Cook in g large pot of boiling water 15 minutes; drain, rinse, and drain again.
Bring 3 cups sugar and 3 cups water to boil in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add peel. Return to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is very soft, about 45 minutes. Check to see that peel is not getting too soft and disintegrating. Drain.
Toss peel and 1 cup of super-fine sugar on rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment, separating strips. Transfer to cooling rack and let stand in a cool place until coating is dry, 1 to 2 days. Can be done ahead and frozen for up to 2 months.
NOTE: No matter how much you make, it will never be enough. Fully half of the strips will be eaten before they have ever cooled.
Fran Ginn is former chef/owner of The Back Door Café, who retired after 31 years in the food industry to be a grandmother. She can be contacted at fran@franginn.com.
