Mini Maslenitsa
I celebrated a mini Maslenitsa with some friends- we ate Bilini (a pancake) salad, lox and a very inventive giant Sun-like cup cake.(according to wikipedia: In Russia, the last week before Great Lent is called Maslenitsa. Its literal meaning is "Butter Week", although a more appropriate translation would be "Pancake Week".) It is a celebration for the coming of spring after a long winter! My friend saw this in N. Novgorod and decided she wanted to share it with her friends. Maslenitsa was naturally suppressed during Soviet times. It's a combination of Old Slavic paganism and Christianity. It's like Russian Mardi Gras.
Here is an old fashioned Maslenitsa, illustrated by Boris Kustodiev
Here are our more modest attempts:
Joy and I in the kitchen. Joy is making an awesome sun shaped butter cake, I'm cutting fruit for the bilini. ( no caviar!)
sun cake!
We watched a Russian film in which a scene of Maslenitsa is depicted. It was really disturbing actually. One of the main characters got so drunk that he started eating his glass....erm. Maybe we are discussing this in the picture? I dunno! No heavy drinking that night though I did try some Birch juice.....it tased a little like vinegar. (not impressed) and a Plum and Strawberry wine from a vineyard in Action MA- very yummy.
Our modest spread:
Here is an old fashioned Maslenitsa, illustrated by Boris Kustodiev
Here are our more modest attempts:
Joy and I in the kitchen. Joy is making an awesome sun shaped butter cake, I'm cutting fruit for the bilini. ( no caviar!)
sun cake!
We watched a Russian film in which a scene of Maslenitsa is depicted. It was really disturbing actually. One of the main characters got so drunk that he started eating his glass....erm. Maybe we are discussing this in the picture? I dunno! No heavy drinking that night though I did try some Birch juice.....it tased a little like vinegar. (not impressed) and a Plum and Strawberry wine from a vineyard in Action MA- very yummy.
Our modest spread: