Lately an invitation for a short trip to Croatia was a very welcome change to this
never coming summer of 2010 and I accepted it with joy.
Nevertheless I´m not a real fan of the croatian mentality because of the missing friendliness and the missing of the typical "savoir vivre feeling" of the south like in France or in Italy. The little apartment in Novi Vinodolski we lived in had a wonderful balcony with a fantastic viewand a very nice little garden cultivated by an astonishing, very nice old Croatian lady. Every morning I went into the little garden and harvested a few leaves of her laurel and grated
them between my hands. What a wonderful light but though intense smell!
The cuisine of Croatia
There are not so many dishes and recipies the Croatian cuisine is known for, but a few very tasty ones I would like to mention here.
Honey
What I really liked is the honey of the region around Senji. It is full of taste and comprises all kinds of mediterranean aroma like rosemary, sage and laurel. They also have a very tasty sheep cheese there. Both you can by on sundays at the little market stands besides the country road to Zagreb.
Red wine
In addition we tasted avery smooth red wine in Croatia. It came from the well known vineyard Dignac (founded in 1902)from the peninsula of Peljesac. It is made out of the Plavac-Mali and has a deep, intense and clear tasteof berries and a fine tannin.
Furthermore I fell for the brand logo of Dignac: a little drawn donkey. Favourite vegetables
My very favourite vegetable of the Cration region is a kind of chard. It is nearly as fine as
our spinach, comes fresh from the fields and has an awesome taste. It is served together with fresh boiled potates (cut in little pieces) out of the pan .
Fresh sea food
And the best thing they serve with these vegetables are fresh grilled calamari covered with lots of fresh garlic pieces:-)
If you sit there in the shadow of the summer midday heat, eating this very fine dish, accompanied by a glass of fine white wine the happiness of mediterranean lifestyle arrives quickly.
The mountains of the outback of the caost of Croatia with their wonderful views inspire you to savour all the tastes of the mediterranean south as well as to dance a little tango:-)
dolce vita ahoi • monika ebert • mobile minds
