I am not Claudia.
Claudia is my mother and the true inspiration behind this website. My name is Jaime and I am trying to prove that I am a good daughter and worthy of being passed on the family tradition of being extraordinary in the kitchen.
You see, our family is Ukrainian. Very Ukrainian. By very, I mean a typical family meal does not fall short of 4 courses, with the main ingredients being butter, cream, onions, garlic, and more butter.
Claudia is an amazing cook. So much, that from when I was 3 years old I was told that I would need to learn her recipes and how to make each and every traditional (and not-so-traditional) dish in order for her to some day pass on her legacy and grow old gracefully – while I, on the other hand, slave in a hot kitchen cooking for my own screaming family.
I am now 32 years old and barely know how to recreate one single amazing recipe of my mother’s. Lucky for her, I haven’t started my own family yet – so we still have time. That’s where this website comes in. Over the next while, I will be cooking with Claudia and sharing her recipes as she teaches me her legacy through this blog. I figured there was no better way to learn her recipes than to blog and share them with the rest of the world.
Enjoy!
What a fabulous idea! All your pictures make me wish I was Ukrainian! Maybe I can pick up some good ideas for our dinner time
Thanks Jenn! You have always been a token Ukrainian to me
This is so smart Jaime. I wished now that my Grandma has passed that I had taken the time to learn her recipes that were “traditions” at holidays and other special occassions. Maybe I can learn through you instead.
Thanks Michelle! I figured this was a good way of getting all the recipes of my Mom’s out of her head and documented
The learning process so far has been pretty fun.
You go girl!! My background is Polish and Ukrainian, my husband has some Hungarian. Looking forward to reading more!
~Prairie Story …care of Alison Zulyniak
Us Ukrainian gals gotta stick together! Thank you so much for reading! Again, I look forward to reading your blog as well!
Can’t wait to come along for the ride!
What a fabulous idea!! How many recipe’s go missing with the loss of a loved one?! And that you are taking the time to learn them and SHARE them, is AWESOME!
Thanks so much Tavia! Yes, I figured I needed to get these “family secrets” down on paper somehow! Why not do it in a modern and fun way! Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoy!
Hi Jaime, I so enjoy your blog. I selected you to answer these questions to help others get to know you and your blog better. I hope you can play along!
http://prairiestory.blogspot.com/2010/10/tag-i-guess-im-it.html
~Alison
Thanks for the invite Alison! I will definitely play along shortly!
Hi Jaime, I was looking for some ideas for my first Ukrainian Christmas party that I’ve invited a few friends to and came across your Nalysnyky recipe. Love it…
Oddly enough i was reading the comments left by others and clicked on Prairie Story’s link (as i’m from the prairies) only to see that the Alison was someone i know! (Hi Alison!)….
Wonderful site! I look forward to see what you have to share…
Дякую
Chris W
Hi Chris, I’m so glad the blog helped you with your party! Manitoba is such a small place – that’s so great you know Alison too! I love the food community we have going.
Thanks for sharing you comments. Hope you had a great Ukrainian Christmas!
Claudia..are you the one I met in front of Pete’s Coffee today? We spoke about my wife’s Pilates Studio Pilates Vita. If so please contact me. I gave you my franchise business card 480-577-3378
Sorry Rick, I think you have the wrong Claudia! Best of luck in your business!
Hi, I love your site. I am not Ukrainian myself, but my husbandis. Normally we have our freezer stocked full of the staples (perogies, nalysnyky, pyrzhyky, and cabbage rolls) Unfortunately, this year, we ran out before Christmas so I have spent the entire weekend making all my dishes for Ukrainian Christmas. This is my first time so I have relied on your site for the pictures! Thanks so much!
Thank you very much for your comments Shawna! I’m glad you enjoy the site and the pictures are helpful! Merry Ukrainian Christmas and good luck with all the dishes!
Let us know how they turn out and feel free to post pictures on our Facebook page!
I am really glad I found your blog! My Baba passed away last summer and she was the cook of the family. Luckily, I was able to learn a few of the recipes and have copies of the rest but she never went into all of the traditional recipes. She was Russian and all the foods are pretty much the same but with different names. I look forward to seeing your and Claudia’s creations!
~Ang
I’m so glad I found your blog, my grandparents were from Ukraine I have some fond memories of things my grandmother would cook for us sadly they are no longer with us I was looking for the recipe for holopchi, I’m looking forward to making my own, thank you xx
We are thankful you found us Kerena! I’m glad our recipes can bring back fond memories of your family to you. That is our goal of this blog. I hope you enjoy and thank you for the lovely comment!
I had no idea that Aunt Claudia’s recipes were on your website. What a fabulous idea. Thank you so much for sharing!!!!
Thank you so much! Glad you like the recipes Angela!!