I wrote this article for the May/June 2010 issue of Serb World USA magazine. It is copy written and appears here with their permission.
What is a “Serbian Cooking Show”? How can I be a part of one? Two very good questions. Another is: Why should I host one?
I hope to answer these questions and more while telling you about ‘The Serbian Cooking Show” I was lucky enough to attend. You may even find yourself planning one before you finish reading this article.
“The Serbian Cooking Show” that I attended was held at a Junior Potluckers luncheon in February of 2010. Of course, if there are Junior Potluckers, there must be Potluckers. That is the original social club of Serbian women in Southem California that began in 1955. They have been gathering together for potluck lunches and friendship ever since. (Click for “The Potluckers”)
When we, their daughters and daughters-in-law, wanted to join their group, they referred us to their first rule: No children. However, they did encourage us to form our own group: the Junior Potluckers.
The Junior Potluckers began in 1972 and met for several years until the demands of families and careers made it too difficult to continue. The group was re-launched in 2007 with much enthusiasm and over 30 active members. All of our members are either of Serbian descent or married into a Serbian family. This is in no small part why the food is always so plentiful and delicious and why we laugh and talk so much, often all at the same time.
While each luncheon has been special in its own right, it is “The Serbian Cooking Show” that I want to share with you. “The Serbian Cooking Show” was held in the home of Anita. Cynthia “Sindi” co-hosted with Anita. They had the idea early on to make their potluck a Serbian-themed luncheon. After all, that is our original connection. “But what prompted them to host a cooking show?” I wondered.
Was it the potluck hosted by Sylvia and her cousins last March? For that potluck, Sylvia requested each of us to bring a short written piece about our “Serbian/Croatian memories: travel, poetry, or prose.” When we read aloud what we each wrote, it brought us all close. We recalled events that brought to light our connected and shared history.
Sylvia remembered being a child who was curious about our Serbian tradition of 
“things done in threes”: we crossed ourselves three times; the bride and groom walked around the Holy Table three times; choir responses were sung three times; and, to her young eyes, we even gathered in threes after church in three main areas of the church grounds. She went on to describe the old St. Sava Church in Los Angeles, comparing the “red brick and bumpy, white mortar” to the mostaccioli that was served every Easter. Oh, that mostaccioli! Yum!
Natalie wrote with pride of being raised a “Crnogorka” (Serbian word for a person from Montenegro). She described how she, like all the children, fought with her mother every year when it came time to memorize a poem to recite at St. Steven’s Church, but how much taller she stood upon seeing the smiles on her parents’ faces as she took the stage in her Montenegrin costume. She explained how being raised to be proud of her heritage and faith gave her the inner strength that has carried her through life – good times and bad.
Several of us shared stories of our first trips to Yugoslavia ~ our expectations, our realities. Meeting relatives who had very little but shared all they had. Of seeing familiar faces and hearing familiar rhythms of language and music, only to realize they were part of us and were a reflection of our own heritage.
Each story prompted another. The weekly and annual rituals of our Serbian Community and church were repeated time and time again, year after year. While there are many years separating some of us Junior Potluckers when it comes to age, we each seemed to recall the same events: kolo or tambura lessons; Serbian Summer Camp in Jackson, California; and Sundays at church with the great lunches that followed.
We shared common stories about our grandparents and their lives in the Old Country or about their early years in America when they founded our churches and established communities. We recalled Serbian poems and songs that we memorized as children. We sang them once again.
Thinking I had found the origin of “The Serbian Cooking Show,” I asked Sindi and Anita if this was their inspiration. Surprisingly, they said, “No.” They added that, of course, that day cemented their plans for a Serbian-themed lunch but explained that the cooking demonstration idea came much later ~ at the Christmas Potluck held in my home in December of 2009.
In December, two Junior Potlucker sisters, (actual sisters) Diane and Dona, contributed their burek to the luncheon. While devouring their burek, conversations quickly turned to food and our favorite Serbian dishes.
We spoke of how our grandmothers and mothers would lay a table of fabulous food about which today’s celebrity chefs could only dream. We were in awe of their ability to not only prepare such tasty treats but also to do so without many of the modem tools we rely on today: no Kitchen-aid mixers, food processors, or dishwashers. We marveled at the variety of dishes they prepared and at their perfectly set tables with ironed damask cloths and napkins setting off their spotless silver and crystal. They did all that and got their families dressed ~ with hats, gloves, and ties ~ and to church on time!
We were lamenting the fact that we had each learned only a few of those marvelous dishes because our heritage is in those recipes. Our “foremothers” brought them from the Old Country. Yet, somewhere in the years between childhood and adulthood, many of us hadn’t taken the time to learn as many as we would have liked. The reasons were varied. The recipes often seemed to take too much time or were too rich for today’s diets. We were too busy with school, sports, or careers to stay in the kitchen and learn. But, we now realize what a priceless treasure those recipes are.
At this very point, while on our second or third helping of that burek, the idea of ‘The Serbian Cooking Show” emerged. Why not share what we had learned with one another? ‘The Serbian Cooking Show” was on!
Anita and Sindi had already started making plans for a Serbian themed luncheon. All they had to do now was line up the cooking demonstrations. Of course, Diane and Dona’s burek, still fresh on our palates, was the first recipe that came to mind. The discussion centered on which Serbian recipes the group most wanted to learn and who among us made them the best.
Two more sets of sisters came quickly to mind: Natalie and Romilda’s mother Helen’s light-as-air rostule, and Veronica and Georgia’s mother Jovanka “Jean”‘s perfect priganice.
To complete the show, Donna was tapped to be our own “Paula Deenovich” for commentary. The lovely Donna arrived in the perfect silver-white wig and made sure we didn’t miss any critical steps during the cooking show.
The foods being demonstrated became part of the lunch menu ~ yeah! All the same, Anita and Sindi provided a Serbian feast: kajmak (a Serbian soft cheese spread), kupus i kastradina (cabbage and smoked kid), kobasica sa kiselim kupusom (sausage and sauerkraut), and many more dishes.
A few of us filled in with appetizers or desserts, as requested, to “complete” the menu. In truth, the menu was already quite complete but, being Serbian, we had learned the golden rule of hosting from our mothers and grandmothers, ”You better have a little extra… just in case.”
Our grandmothers would have been proud of the tables Sindi and Anita set. 
There were Serbian touches everywhere: red, blue, and white tablecloths, napkins, and plates; bottles of sljivovica with their distinctive leather-appliqued covers; and a copy of The Serbian Cooking Show Vocabulary at each plate. Kolo music played in the background, not that you could hear it through all our laughter and conversation. We each wore an apron, most with a Serbian theme. We appeared ready to help, but mainly we were ready to taste.
The “Show” began with Diane and Dona making their now-famous burek. It is a meat strudel or pita rolled tightly in phyllo dough and can be cut into appetizer-sized pieces.
They began with a sheet of phyllo dough laid on a clean kitchen towel and “Lots of butter!” as our Paula Deenovich joyfully exclaimed. Not being a shy crowd, those of us who include burek in our own repertoire offered tips and variations on how “we” do it.
However, we all fell silent as we watched Diane deftly lift one side of the kitchen towel and roll the burek into a perfect, tight roll ready to be placed on the baking sheet. We broke into applause. We were silent once again as we bit into the warm, flaky burek slices. The only sounds were muffled sighs: ”Mmmm.”
Next up were sisters Romilda and Natalie to share their mother’s rostule, the classic delicate, fried pastries. Although Natalie tells me that the first time she made rostule on her own, her Uncle Dan said, ‘I don’t need a spoon for my coffee, I’ll just use Nat’s rostule”. However, her cousins Diane and Dona, Dan’s daughters, insisted that their cousin’s rostule were fantastic, which is why they were selected for ‘The Serbian Cooking Show.”
And they did not disappoint. As soon as I tasted them, I was transported back to my Baba Rosa’s kitchen in East Los Angeles. I didn’t think anyone could make rostule as tasty as I remember hers. I was wrong. These rostule were as beautiful to look at, golden-brown rosettes and bow-ties lightly coated in powdered sugar, as they were melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
Our final demonstration of the day was priganice, the quintessential Serbian doughnut. Our third pair of sisters, Veronica and Georgia, presented the recipe their mother, Jean, taught them. She had learned the recipe from her mother, Cvetija. We all knew that Veronica kept the ”priganice pot” she inherited from her mother on the ready: these are her husband’s favorite dessert.
Toasting a job well done!
After tasting the priganice that resulted from their demonstration, I know why each generation was so eager to learn. They were light and sparkled with a dusting of granulated sugar. First, the warm sweet dough fills your senses, and then a bit of warm apple fills your mouth-lovely!
Not only did these three pairs of sisters share their wonderful recipes and techniques with us, they also shared history and tradition. They came better prepared than most chefs on my favorite TV cooking shows. Each pair brought all the raw ingredients, mixing bowls, and cooking utensils they would need. And, yes, the “priganice pot” was there too.
Where certain steps would take too long to do from scratch with an audience- for example, waiting for yeast dough to rise-they brought along one to “swap out,” allowing us to see the steps required and the final result. Most importantly, they brought joy: the joy of us all being together; the joy of sharing; and the joy of creating new memories so closely linked with our past.
Due to ‘The Serbian Cooking Show,” a few of us have braved making these dishes we have so long loved to eat, but never knew how to make. Others are looking into their old recipe boxes for favorite Serbian recipes to be revived.
Several weeks later, when Marlene (another Junior Potlucker member) volunteered to make fresh green beans for the Easter banquet at St. Steven’s Church, she thought it would be fun to have her “Potlucker Sisters” help out: 10 Junior Potluckers showed up on Saturday morning to clean and prepare 200 pounds of green beans. Eleanor even brought her grand-daughter along to help. Yes, the rituals of our Serbian church and community are repeated time and time again, year after year.
I asked several of the ladies who participated in ‘The Serbian Cooking Show” what the day meant to them.
Natalie recalled how preparing rostule would take hours because her mother 
Helen’s recipe made huge quantities. “We would grunt and groan anticipating having to spend the time preparing that dessert,” Natalie said, “but once in Mother’s kitchen, time was forgotten. We chatted about family and friends and laughed endlessly, remembering numerous stories from our youth, just as we did at “The Serbian Cooking Show.”
Anita said, “It’s seems that so much of culture is carried in the food as it is so key to the togetherness and socializing that maintains a cultural group. Taste is also powerlul in evoking memories. Our cooking show brought that together for me in a very personal way.”
At the conclusion of our fabulous “Serbian Cooking Show,” Anita shared an adage her mother and grandmother would often repeat: “To do something with a friend cuts the work in half and doubles the pleasure.”
Sindi echoed that sentiment: “The whole thing was a tradition being passed from one generation of Potluckers to another. Anita and I decided that it would follow the food channel format just to make it fun. We just had the best time planning everything. We used the Serbian colors and aprons to accent the whole affair because we wanted to be surrounded by traditions.”
So, are you ready now to host your own “Serbian Cooking Show”? Here is a recap of a few basics you’ll need: Determine which dishes you want to share, and have copies of the recipe(s) available. Choose your audience, and assistants: family, in-laws, friends. Have all ingredients and pans ready to go. Don a great apron. Put on music. And, be prepared to laugh and tell stories along with sharing great cooking tips. Now you can be part of a tradition that has been repeated in many different ways over many, many years.
To quote Anita and Sindi, “Thank you for coming to ‘The Serbian Cooking Show.”‘.
Click for the recipes:
Serbian Meat Burek
Rostule
Priganice
