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Houbová smaženiceMushrooms scrambled with egg

In late summer and autumn, when half of Czechia heads into the woods with baskets, houbová smaženice is what the day's finds become for supper: fresh mushrooms fried with onion and a pinch of caraway, then scrambled with eggs and eaten with rye bread. It tastes of the forest, and cultivated chestnut and oyster mushrooms make a very good version in any season. Only use wild mushrooms that an expert has identified. The common mistake is crowding the pan, so the mushrooms steam in their juice instead of frying golden. Chef's tip: salt the mushrooms only after they have browned; salt too early draws out water and stops them colouring.

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Diós tésztaWalnut and sugar pasta

Diós tészta, walnut noodles, is a sweet main course that Hungarians eat for lunch or a quick dinner, often after a bowl of bean or vegetable soup, and it is a fixture of Budapest school canteens. Hot ribbon pasta is tossed with melted butter, then with ground walnuts and sugar, so the nuts cling in a sweet, toasty coat. Children adore it; it contains nuts, so mind allergies. The common mistake is using old walnuts, which taste bitter and spoil the dish; taste one before you start. Chef's tip: toast the ground walnuts in the dry pan for a minute until they smell rich, and a little lemon zest keeps the sweetness lively.

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Vajíčková pomazánkaEgg spread

Vajíčková pomazánka is the egg spread found in every Czech and Slovak fridge, piled on rye bread for večeře, the simple bread-and-spread supper, as well as at birthday parties and on trains. Hard-boiled eggs are grated and mashed with soft butter or mayonnaise, mustard and chives into a creamy, savoury spread, finished with sliced gherkin or radish. The common mistake is mashing the eggs while still warm, which melts the butter and makes the spread greasy; cool them in cold water first. Chef's tip: grate the eggs on the fine side of a box grater for a smooth, fluffy spread with no chunks of white.

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Zsíros kenyérLard on rye bread

Zsíros kenyér, 'fat bread', is the Hungarian village supper and wine-cellar snack, still eaten on summer evenings across the Great Plain: thick slices of rustic bread spread with pork lard, salted, dusted with sweet paprika and piled with raw red onion. It is made from pork fat, so it is not for vegetarians. Eaten with green peppers, radishes and a glass of something cold, it is plain food that is better than it sounds. The common mistake is using hard, fridge-cold lard straight from the block; it tears the bread and tastes waxy. Chef's tip: look for lard with crackling bits (tepertős zsír) or stir a few crushed pork scratchings into soft lard for the proper flavour.

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Velikonoční nádivkaBread, egg and smoked pork bake

Velikonoční nádivka ('Easter stuffing', also called hlavička) is a Czech and Moravian Easter dish, baked on Holy Saturday or Easter Sunday. Cubes of bread rolls are soaked in milk and eggs, then mixed with smoked pork and a big handful of young nettles, spinach or spring herbs, and baked until golden and puffy. It's eaten warm or cold, sliced, often beside roast lamb or chicken. For a vegetarian version, leave out the smoked pork and add 250 g fried mushrooms. Chef's tip: pick nettles wearing gloves and blanch them for 30 seconds, which takes away the sting.

75 minCzechMeat
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BáránypörköltLamb stew with paprika

For Hungarians, lamb is Easter food, and báránypörkölt is the classic way to cook it for Easter Sunday or Monday: chunks of lamb stewed slowly in their own juices with a lot of onion, sweet paprika, garlic, a little tomato and green pepper, until tender in a thick, deep-red sauce. It is served with nokedli (little egg dumplings) or boiled potatoes and a cucumber salad. Chef's tip: take the pot off the heat when you add the paprika, because paprika burns in seconds and turns the whole stew bitter.

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OsterpinzeEaster anise brioche

Osterpinze is the Easter bread of Styria, Carinthia and the area around Trieste, a soft, golden brioche dome with three deep cuts on top for the Holy Trinity, so that it opens into a crown as it bakes. The dough is rich with egg yolks and butter and flavoured with anise and lemon; old recipes add a splash of white wine, left out here. It is blessed in the Easter basket on Holy Saturday and eaten on Easter morning with ham, horseradish and eggs, or with butter and jam. Chef's tip: make the three cuts with scissors just before baking, deep enough to reach halfway down, so the crown opens wide.

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Pajagua mascadaBeef and cassava patties

Pajagua mascada is a Paraguayan street-food classic that appears on every table for the San Juan festival on 24 June, when bonfires burn and the night is full of games and traditional food. Minced beef is mixed with mashed cassava, onion, garlic and a little egg and flour, shaped into flat patties and fried until crisp. The name comes from Guaraní and refers to the 'chewing' of old Paraguayan cooks, who made it from leftover meat. Chef's tip: dry the boiled cassava well and remove its woody core, which keeps the patties light and crunchy.

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Húsvéti sonkaSmoked ham with eggs and horseradish

On Easter Sunday morning in Hungary the table is laid with húsvéti sonka, a whole smoked pork ham simmered slowly the day before, sliced cold and served with eggs hard-boiled in the ham's cooking water, freshly grated horseradish, spring onions and braided kalács. The cooking water then becomes the base of a bean or lentil soup the next day. Use a raw-smoked (uncooked) ham from a Hungarian or Polish butcher. Chef's tip: soak the ham overnight to draw out salt, and cool it in its cooking water so it stays juicy.

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KaguyjyWhite corn pudding

On the night of 23–24 June, Paraguayans celebrate San Juan with bonfires, games like walking over hot coals and the 'paso de fuego', and a table of traditional foods, and kaguyjy (also mazamorra) is one of them. It is a soft, creamy pudding of cracked white corn (locro) simmered slowly in water and then milk with sugar or honey, sometimes with orange peel. It is eaten warm or cold. It is gluten free. Chef's tip: soak the corn overnight and cook it until each kernel is tender before adding the milk, or it never turns creamy.

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Chipa so'oCheese bread with spiced beef

In Paraguay, families bake chipa in the clay tatakua ovens on Holy Wednesday so there is food for Thursday and Good Friday, when cooking stops. Chipa so'o ('chipa with meat') is a cassava-starch and cheese bread wrapped around a little filling of minced beef cooked with onion and egg, then baked until crisp outside and chewy within. It is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: knead the dough until it no longer cracks at the edges when pressed; dry dough splits around the filling.

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Húsvéti kalácsBraided Easter milk loaf

In Hungary the Easter table on Sunday morning centres on smoked ham, hard-boiled eggs, fresh horseradish and húsvéti kalács, a soft, braided milk bread enriched with butter and egg yolks. It is lightly sweet, so it suits the salty ham perfectly, and the leftovers make excellent French toast on Easter Monday. Many families braid it with three or four strands and bake it into a ring. Chef's tip: braid loosely and tuck the ends under, because a tight braid splits along the sides as it rises in the oven.

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MazanecEaster raisin and almond bread

Mazanec is the round Easter bread of Bohemia, baked on Holy Saturday and eaten on Easter Sunday and Monday. The sweet yeast dough is rich with butter, egg yolks and lemon, studded with raisins and almonds, and scored with a deep cross before baking so it opens like a flower. Old recipes soak the raisins in rum; here they are soaked in warm tea, so the bread is alcohol-free. Slice it and spread with butter and honey. Chef's tip: give mazanec a long, slow bake at a moderate heat, because the rich dough browns quickly and the centre needs time.

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Dowina (Kurdish yogurt soup)

Dowina, called ash-e doogh in Persian, is warming spring food in Kurdish homes around Newroz, when yogurt is plentiful and the first herbs are cut from the garden. Rice and chickpeas simmer in a tangy, lightly thickened yogurt broth, finished with fresh dill, coriander and a sizzle of dried mint in oil. It is eaten warm, never boiling hot, with flatbread. The common mistake is to heat the yogurt too fast without stirring, which makes it split into grainy curds. Chef's tip: whisk an egg yolk and a spoonful of rice flour into the yogurt before it goes on the heat; it holds the soup smooth all the way to the simmer.

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KalanehWild leek stuffed flatbread

In Kurdistan and Kermanshah, Newroz arrives with the first spring greens on the hillsides, and families gather wild leeks to fold into kalaneh, thin griddle breads cooked over a fire or a hot pan and soaked in melted butter. The dough is plain and soft, rolled very thin around a pile of chopped leek or chives with a little salt and pepper, so the greens steam inside as the bread blisters. Eat it hot, torn into strips, with yogurt and tea at a Newroz picnic. The common mistake is wet greens, which turn the dough soggy and make it tear; dry them well after washing. Chef's tip: brush the butter on the moment the bread leaves the pan so it soaks right in.

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Kapr na černoCarp in dark sweet-sour sauce

Before fried breaded carp took over the Czech Christmas Eve table, families in Bohemia served kapr na černo, 'black carp': fish simmered in a dark, glossy, sweet-sour sauce of root vegetables, gingerbread, prunes, nuts and dark beer. It is rich and spiced, closer to a medieval feast dish than to the modern menu, and served with bread dumplings or potatoes. This version uses a non-alcoholic dark malt drink so the sauce is alcohol-free; adults may use dark beer. Chef's tip: grate the gingerbread finely, so it melts into a smooth sauce rather than leaving soggy crumbs.

105 minCzechFish
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HrudkaEgg and milk cheese

Hrudka (also called sirok or egg cheese) is made in eastern Slovakia and among Rusyn and Slovak families abroad for Easter. Eggs and milk are stirred over a low heat until they separate into soft curds, then the curds are tied tightly in a cloth into a ball and hung to drain overnight. The pale-yellow, mild, slightly sweet 'cheese' is taken to church in the Easter basket on Holy Saturday and sliced at Easter breakfast with ham, bread and horseradish. It needs no rennet, so it is naturally vegetarian. Chef's tip: keep the heat low and stir constantly; high heat makes rubbery curds.

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AllerheiligenstriezelBraided sweet loaf

In Bavaria and Austria, godparents give their godchildren an Allerheiligenstriezel on All Saints' Day, 1 November: a large braided loaf of sweet yeast dough, brushed with egg and scattered with almonds or pearl sugar. The braid is said to recall the old custom of cutting a plait of hair in mourning, and the size of the loaf once showed how generous the godparent was. It is lightly sweet, with lemon and vanilla, and is eaten sliced with butter or jam. Some recipes add rum-soaked raisins; these are soaked in warm water instead. Chef's tip: braid four strands for an impressive, high loaf.

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Rybí polévkaCarp soup

In Czechia the Christmas Eve supper begins with rybí polévka, a soup made from the trimmings of the Christmas carp, which is often bought live at street stalls in the days before; here you simply ask the fishmonger for prepared carp trimmings and a fillet. The bones and trimmings make a clear stock that is simmered with carrot, celeriac and parsley root, then filled with flakes of carp and served with croutons fried in butter. Many families add the carp roe. Chef's tip: strain the stock carefully through muslin, as carp has many fine bones.

105 minCzechSoups
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Grillázs (Hungarian walnut brittle)

Grillázs belongs to Hungarian celebrations: it is sold at Christmas fairs and on saints' day markets, and at village weddings a towering grillázs castle or basket is often the centrepiece, broken up and shared at the end of the night. Walnuts are traditional, almonds are the fancier choice. The caramel is cooked to a deep amber, so it tastes rich and slightly bitter-sweet and shatters cleanly, with the toasted nuts giving a softer crunch. Serve shards with coffee, crumble it over ice cream, or press warm sheets over an oiled bowl to make a basket for fruit or sweets. It is naturally egg-free: melted, caramelised sugar sets glass-hard as it cools and holds the nuts together, with a few drops of lemon juice to keep it smooth. Chef's tip: warm the walnuts in the oven before they go in; the common mistake is adding cold nuts, which chill the caramel so it seizes and turns grainy before you can spread it.

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OblátkyChristmas wafers with honey

In Slovakia the Christmas Eve supper (Štedrá večera) opens with oblátky: large, paper-thin wafers stamped with a nativity pattern. The head of the household marks each person's forehead with a cross of honey, and everyone eats a wafer spread with honey, often with a sliver of garlic for health, before the cabbage soup. Families buy them from the church or bake them on a patterned wafer iron; this recipe also gives a pan method for thin, crisp wafers. Chef's tip: the batter must be thin like single cream, as a thicker batter gives a soft pancake instead of a wafer.

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Včelí úlkyNo-bake beehive biscuits

Včelí úlky ('little beehives') are a classic of the Czech Christmas cookie plate (cukroví), which families build up through Advent with a dozen or more kinds. They need no oven: crushed biscuits, ground walnuts, cocoa and butter are pressed into beehive moulds, filled with a smooth egg-yolk cream and sealed with a disc of biscuit. Traditionally a little rum is added to the dough; this version uses milk, and adults may add 1 tbsp rum. The cream is cooked to 71 °C so the yolks are safe, though anyone pregnant or vulnerable may prefer pasteurised yolks. Chef's tip: chill the filled hives before unmoulding, or they collapse.

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Szaloncukor (Hungarian Christmas tree candy)

Every Hungarian Christmas tree carries szaloncukor: sweets wrapped in shiny foil and fringed paper, hung from the branches in December and quietly eaten, one by one, by everyone in the house until Epiphany. The classic is soft white fondant, but the centres vary: tart fruit jelly, coconut, marzipan or nut. Here there are two fillings, raspberry jelly and coconut fondant, both coated in dark chocolate, so each bite gives a snap of chocolate and then a tender, melting middle. They are lovely with coffee or as a small gift. These are egg-free with no animal setting agent: the fondant is just sugar syrup cooked to the soft-ball stage and worked until it crystallises into a smooth, white paste, so no egg white is needed, and the jelly is set with agar-agar, which gives clean cubes that hold their shape at room temperature. Chef's tip: let the syrup cool to about 45°C before working it; the common mistake is starting while it is still hot, which grows coarse crystals and a gritty fondant.

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Sült gesztenye (Hungarian roasted chestnuts)

From November until the end of winter, the smell of roasting chestnuts drifts along Budapest's boulevards and around Christmas markets in every Hungarian town, where sellers shake them over charcoal and pour them hot into paper cones. Roasting turns the nuts sweet and soft, mealy like a baked potato but with a gentle nutty sweetness and a hint of smoke where the shell has charred. Eat them straight away, peeled with your fingers while they are hot, with a cup of hot tea, hot spiced apple juice or a bag of roasted pumpkin from the next stall. They are naturally egg-free, a single ingredient with nothing to bind: heat turns the chestnut's starch to sugar and softens it. A short soak in water before roasting adds steam inside the shell, so the nuts cook evenly and peel more easily. Chef's tip: cut a deep cross through the shell on the rounded side of every chestnut; the common mistake is skipping or under-cutting it, and then the steam bursts the chestnuts open in the oven.

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