If there was only one country to celebrate the end of year holidays, it would be Moldova, because we enjoy Christmas and New Year’s Day twice! The country, of Orthodox tradition, recognizes two calendars, Gregorian and Julian, and has institutionalized four public holidays. Some Moldovans are therefore back on January 6 and 13.
Add to that a certain sense of celebration. “The young people still go from house to house all night, recite poems, sing and receive chocolates, sweets, wine sometimes poured and mixed in the early morning in a large common jar”, says Oxana Cretu. Born in Moldova, the chef moved to Bordeaux in 2006, at the age of 21.
She first created a restaurant for meat chefs there in 2018, called “Cro Magnon”, offering cooking on salt stone. But, very quickly, the chef reoriented her dishes towards more plants by renaming her establishment “Inima” (“with all my heart” in Moldovan). “I am not vegetarian, and I did not want to do without animal proteins, she emphasizes. I work with superb regional products like oysters from the Gironde estuary, ducks and guinea fowl from the Dordogne… But I started to eliminate red meat and tried to enhance vegetables, which are too often disdained. » The chef’s sophisticated, sensitive and local cuisine (even the soy sauce is made in Cognac) now has all the assets to reach the stars.
For The world, it offers a party menu for six people that is entirely vegetarian. No expensive products: it is rather the elegance of the dressing and the combination of products that make the difference. Everything is inspired by his native country. The donut is the American equivalent of a Moldovan fried pastry. Kashkaval, a soft, hard sheep’s or cow’s cheese that is also found in neighboring countries, can be replaced by a French tomme. Finally, the apple remains linked to winter celebrations in the country, and will go perfectly with mulled wine. However, there is no need to mix several nectars in a large jar.
Chestnut and tangerine donuts
Ingredients
For the donut:
To prepare the day before
- 250 g cooked, peeled chestnuts
- 250 g of choux pastry
- 65 g of milk
- 50 g of egg
- 30g butter
- 2 g of salt
- 35 g of flour
Cook the chestnuts and shell them to obtain 250 g of fruit. Prepare the choux pastry. Bring the milk mixed with butter to a boil in a saucepan. Add the flour and let the dough rest for a few minutes.
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