Those who have tasted Georgian sweets know that they are very tasty and high-calorie foods, the preparation of which requires a minimum of available ingredients.
Today we will present you detailed recipes for several desserts, which are especially popular not only in Georgia, but also in other countries around the world.
Churchkhela: a step by step recipe
Churchkhela is a traditional oriental sweet. As a rule, such a Georgian dessert is prepared from grape juice, walnuts or hazelnuts. To thicken the resulting mass also use corn flour or ordinary starch.
So how is churchkhela prepared? The recipe for this sweetness requires the use of:
- freshly squeezed grape juice - 1 liter;
- nuts (hazelnuts or walnuts) - about 1 kg;
- cornmeal - about 2 large spoons;
- food starch - add to the mixture at the discretion (if necessary).
In addition to products, to prepare such a dish of Georgian cuisine, we need a thick needle with a thread.
Ingredient Processing
How is churchkhela made with walnuts or hazelnuts? To make such a sweet, you need to use only freshly squeezed grape juice. Corn flour is added to it , and then put on a slow fire and cooked until thickened. If the mixture does not thicken for a long time, add a little more cornmeal to it or add a spoonful of food starch.
While a kind of icing is being cooked, they begin to prepare the nuts. They are sorted out, thoroughly washed and dried in a pan for 10 minutes. After this, the product is cooled. After that, they take a thick thread and with the help of a needle carefully put all dried nuts on it. To get a beautiful dish, the thread should be 20-25 cm long, and the first nut should be strung at a distance of 5 cm from the end.
After the described actions, each rope should have about 10 nuts.
Sweets
Sweet Georgian dishes always have a special design. Churchkhela is no exception.
After the nuts are planted on a thread, they are dipped in the previously prepared glaze and suspended in a convenient place. In this form, the sweetness is left to dry completely.
After some time, the described procedure is repeated again, and so on until the layer of glaze reaches 2 cm.
It should be noted that such Georgian sweets are prepared for about 1-2 weeks. All this time, nuts must be dipped in the grape mass and dried. At the same time, it is required to ensure that churchkhela does not lose its softness.
After prolonged drying, the dessert can be safely consumed, and can be wrapped with foil or baking paper and placed in a cool place. In this form, Georgian sweets retain their properties for up to three months.
Cooking Pelamushi
For those who don’t know, pelamushi is a delicious Georgian dessert. It should also be noted that it serves as the basis for the preparation of the most famous Georgian sweet - churchkhella. However, such a treat is made much faster and easier.
So how to cook pelamushi? The recipe for this treat has been partially discussed above. But so that you understand what such a dessert is, we will present its method of preparation and serving in more detail.
So, to make pelamushi yourself, we need:
- fresh Isabella grapes - 3 kg;
- fried walnuts - about 200 g;
- white sugar - 20 g;
- cornmeal - about 2 large spoons;
- corn starch - add to the mixture at the discretion (if necessary).
Cooking method
Georgian sweets are especially tasty because only fresh and high-calorie ingredients are used to make them.
To make pelamushi, Isabella grapes are washed, removed from twigs and spread in a large bowl. After this, the berries are intensively crushed with a nibble or a rolling pin. This procedure is carried out until only seeds and skins remain from the grapes. If desired, fruits can be wrinkled by hand.
The resulting grape mass is laid out in a large saucepan and brought to a boil. After that, the fire is reduced. The contents of the dishes are stewed for three hours, periodically stirring with a spoon.
During the heat treatment, foam is removed from the juice. The result is a very sweet mass, halved.
Ready grape juice is left overnight, and filtered in the morning, using a sieve with small cells. Such a mass is called badag. It should be bright and clean.
After all the described actions, corn flour, starch and sugar are spread in a common container, and then about 500 ml of badagi are added to them. Having mixed the components with a wooden spoon, they are whipped with a mixer and a blender. As a result of this, you should get a homogeneous mass without lumps.
Final stage
After mixing grape juice with starch and sugar, pure badagu (500 ml) is poured into a large saucepan, and then the previously prepared mass with flour is gradually added.
After mixing the components, they are put on a fast fire and brought to a boil. Then the temperature is reduced. In this mode, the products are cooked for 8-10 minutes. In this case, the mixture should noticeably thicken.
The finished dessert is removed from the stove and laid out in deep bowls. After the pelamushi hardens (after about 2 hours), it is turned over and laid out on a plate with a smooth surface up. Then dessert is sprinkled with fried walnuts and served to the table with black tea.
Ready pelamushi should be stored in the refrigerator for several days.
We cook gozinaki in Georgian
Gozinaki is the same as kozinaki, but with nuts and fresh honey. To prepare such a simple and tasty sweet, we need only the following components:
- almonds - about 400 g;
- fresh honey - about 800 g;
- almond oil - for greasing dishes.
Cooking process
You can cook gozinaki in Georgian using different nuts. However, the classic recipe is one that uses almonds. It is thoroughly sorted, washed and dried in a frying pan or microwave.
Ideally, it is better to use almond plates to make such a treat. Although some cooks make gozinaki from whole or source nuts.
So, to make Georgian sweetness at home, spread fresh honey in a small pot and slowly bring to a boil. At the same time, the product is constantly stirred with a large spoon so that it does not stick to the walls of the dishes.
After the honey begins to boil and becomes transparent, and a foam forms on its surface, toasted almonds are laid out and mix well.
Cook these ingredients over low heat until the sweetness is caramelized and becomes very thick.
Having prepared the basis for gozinaki, not very deep, but wide form is greased with almond oil, and then lay out a mass consisting of honey and nuts. It is well distributed with a large spoon and immediately placed in a refrigerator.
After the sweet nut mass has hardened, the gozinaki are cut into the same squares and beautifully laid out on a flat dish. In this form, Georgian sweets are presented to the table with a glass of tea or other unsweetened drink. It is better to store gozinaki in the refrigerator for no more than 3-4 months.