Ми пекли бабки й коржики

Author: Olha Bachynska

Publisher: Видавництво Українського католицького університету

Number of Pages: 160

Cover: Hardcover

Reader Age: Adult

Year of Publication: 2024

This book may inspire culinary feats even in those who don’t enjoy cooking. Everyone will find something to their taste. It features cakes that were fashionable in the 1920s–30s and now nearly forgotten, as well as exquisite almond pastries. Moreover, the cuisine of Olha Bachynska and the people of Stryi impresses with its tradition and local character: cumin and poppy seed cookies, onion pies, crescent rolls, crispy treats, strucla, dolky, and pampushky. And yes — rye wine!

Yet the hope is that as readers turn the pages of this book, they will sense not only the aroma of the dishes, but also the spirit of old Stryi. That they will discover not only culinary creations, but also the vivid personalities of its people and the forgotten chapters of our history. Thus, this is also a cookbook with a story.

Another unique feature of this book is its language. In keeping with the tradition of the “Author’s Ukrainian Cuisine” project, the original text of vintage cookbooks is not modernized. We preserve the colloquial language of the time the book was written — a value no less important than the recipes themselves.

The book is based on the culinary notebook of Olha Bachynska — a successful woman and one of the directors of the powerful “Maslosoyuz” cooperative in the early 20th century. In addition, it is enriched with selected recipes from three other private notebooks of the same period, offering a fuller picture of the old Stryi cuisine and the tastes of its people a hundred years ago.