Serbian Vegan Recipes

Huh? That's what I said too. My wife is all excited because she just got her first "personal chef" catering type gig. Long story but it's a Serbian family (he's a surgeon not that it matters) and they just had a new baby and the family is vegan.

So... looking for appropriate dishes/recipes. I figure if anyone can point me in the right direction some of you here can! Any help? Off to do the Google thing.

Thanks,
Fred

Wow - I have no help to offer whatsoever, Fred, but I will be interested in what you find.

Fred, I got no clue about that cuisine. I got no cookbook about that cuisine (closest I come is Hungary). But I do know how to use Da Interwebz:

1. The Wikipedia page on Serbian cuisine gives some history and a list of dishes:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serbian_cuisine

2. The website for expats has recipes and even a culinary dictionary:
http://www.expatserbia.com/enjoy-serbia/serbian-food-recipes

3. How about raiding the menu of a Serbian restaurant for ideas?:
http://www.kafananyc.com/menus.shtml

HTH.

[Robin Garr]

Because of an active refugee community, we have lots of Bosnian restaurants around here, and I've traveled (and judged wine) at the other end of the former Yugoslavia, Slovenia (with a little dip into Croatia).

Based on this experience, I'm afraid a vegan Bosnian feast is going to be tough. South Slav cuisine is basically about MEAT. Beef and lamb, and flatbread and maybe a salad.

Check out this website, which is indigenous and probably more trustworthy than the crowd-sourced wiki. Unfortunately, it reinforces what I said above, with more details:

http://www.serbia.travel/about-serbia/t ... bian/food/

If your folks are okay with the idea of using plant-based meat analogues, this is a field where the technology is rapidly improving as the market expands with aging Boomers and curious hipsters. Beyond Meat and Gardein are particularly good brands of faux meat; Simple Truth (distributed by Kroger groceries in this region) and LightLife (a brand of agribusiness giant ConAgra) are more corporate, but they all make surprisingly good meat-free substitutes.

[Robin Garr]

I don't like About.com much - sometimes their "experts" aren't - but this page might be of interest, as it outlines what Orthodox Catholic Serbs eat during Lent, when meat AND dairy are against the rules, which sounds vegan, but note that they might include seafood and fish.

Still, if you don't want to go the fake-meat route, this page lists some Orthodox Lenten recipes from the region that might do the job for you:
http://easteuropeanfood.about.com/od/or ... ecipes.htm

I'd think long and hard about using LightLife ground "beef" to make some tasty ćevapčići (finger-size ground beef bites on flatbread), though.

Fred, as Robin says most Balkan cooking is heavy on the meat, but Serbians might have some appreciation for other cuisines, so I'd look to Mediterranean vegan dishes. Rice pilafs, stuffed grape leaves, tzaziki, burghul wheat, spanakopita, cabbage and bean soups, good bread, etc. She's probably going to have to talk to them about what they normally cook and eat, too.

Mark Lipton

When I think of Serbian food I think of that roasted red pepper accompaniment they seem to use with everything. But I guess that's not enough to be a meal!

However, as mentioned above, why not just ask them what they like to eat? Maybe they don't feel limited to 'Serbian' food at all.

Thank you all for your suggestions. My wife says they have been very helpful. I guess the family specifically requested Serbian style vegan dishes. So far she has decided to make:

Serbian Pogacha Bread with Roasted Eggplant & Red Peppers (Ajvar)
Spicy White Bean Soup (Pasulj)
Warm Potato Salad - (Serbian-Style)
Cabbage Rolls (18) Stuffed with Rice & Vegetables (Posna Sarma)
Vanilla Crepes (12) with Fresh Strawberries & Dairy-Free Chocolate Sauce (Palacinke)

I don't know much about any of it but I just read it for the first time and it made me hungry!

Thanks again.

Ajvar!! I was trying to remember the name.

Today I 'burned' another eggplant according to the directions in "Plenty." I didn't even have a recipe in mind, I just wanted to season the smokey flesh and use it as a dip. Those eggplants are so good -- and "burned" red peppers are a beautiful match for them.