Ardei umpluti (stuffed bell pepper) Ingredients : 12 medium peppers, 1 3/4 lb/750 g ground meat, 2 onions, 2 tablespoons rice, 1 tablespoon lard, chopped parsley and dill, salt, pepper, 2 tomatoes; Sauce: 1 lb/500 g tomatoes, 1/2 onion, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon flour, salt, chopped parsley, 1 tablespoon lard, sour cream. Preparation : Wash the peppers, dry, core and remove the seeds. Mix the meat with two finely chopped raw or fried onions, a tablespoon of lard, rice, chopped parsley and dill, pepper and salt. Mix everything well and use this mixture to fill the peppers. Put one tomato slice as a lid on each pepper. Arrange in a pan and pour the following sauce on top. Fry the finely chopped onion and flour in lard until golden; add tomato sauce (from boiled and strained tomatoes). Add sugar and salt. If the sauce does not cover the peppers add some water. Spread some chopped parsley, set to boil for a little while then place in the oven to bake until done. Serve with sour cream. Chiftele marinate(a type of large meatballs covered with a flour crust or breadcrumb crust) - Meat balls, pickled Ingredients : Same ground meat mixture as for Moldavian croquettes, 4-5 tomatoes or 1 tablespoon tomato sauce, 1 small onion, 2-3 juniper berries, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 1-2 tablespoons vinegar, salt, chopped parsley and dill, lard for frying, flour (1-2 tablespoons). Preparation : Make meat balls out of the ground meat mixture, dredge with flour and fry lightly in a pan with hot lard. Fry quickly at hot temperature, on all sides. Arrange the fried meat balls in a pan and cover with the following sauce. Put a finely chopped onion in the pan where the meat balls were fried and fry it with 1/2 teaspoon flour and then add the boiled and strained tomatoes. Add salt, sugar, juniper berries, bay leaf, vinegar and chopped parsley and dill. Simmer, shaking the pan from time to time. Recipe for sour soup with meatballs (Ciorba de perisoare) Mix well by hand: 2.5 lb ground pork (or ground pork and ground beef mix) 1 onion finely chopped ½ cup cooked rice 1 egg finely chopped fresh dill and parsley to your taste salt and pepper. Make meatballs ca. 1 inch in diameter, roll them in flour, and set them aside. Fill about half of a 4 quart stock pot with cold water. Add to the water the following vegetables: 2 carrots shredded 1 parsley root ¼ celery root 1 onion or a few green onions a handful of leustean (lovage) herb, bruised (reserve for later) When the vegetables are softened, add 1 cup of rice. After the rice is cooked, add the meatballs one by one. Let the meatballs cook through then add 1 chopped tomato, 1 chopped green pepper, parsley, and celery leaves. Sour with fresh lemon juice to taste - start with the juice of one lemon (or brine from sauerkraut or a mixture of both). Add lovage herb. Simmer for 5 minutes. These soups are meant to be reheated and taste better with age. The sour soups are traditionally soured with bors, a liquid made out of wheat bran mixed with water and left to ferment. They are sometimes soured with sauerkraut juice. The soups may be traditionally thickened with a mixture of sour cream and/or egg yolks. Dovlecei umpluti cu carne - Zuchini filled with meat Ingredients : 6 medium sized zuchini, 14 oz/400 oz ground meat, 2-3 onions, 2 tablespoons rice, chopped parsley and dill, salt, pepper, 2 tablespoons lard; Sauce: 1 lb/500 g tomatoes, 1/2 onion, 1 teaspoon flour, salt, chopped parsley, 1 tablespoon lard, sour cream. Preparation : Remove the zuchini peel, halve lenghwise and hollow out. Prepare the ground meat mixture as for peppers filled with meat. Fill the zuchini, dredge with flour and fry in lard. Place in a pan and cover with a sauce prepared as for the peppers filled with meat. Simmer on top of the range, or better yet, in the oven. Serve with sour cream. Drob de miel Ingredients : Innards (heart, kidneys, liver, tongue, spleen) from a lamb, 2 big onions, 2 eggs, 1 tablespoon mixed chopped parsley and dill, 1 tablespoon chopped green onions (green parts), salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon lard, 1 bread slice. Preparation : Grind the innards with the finely chopped raw or slightly fried onion, lard and crustless slice of bread (previously soaked and squeezed dry). Add salt, pepper, chopped parsley and dill, chopped green onions, beaten eggs and mix everything well. In a well greased pan, set the washed lamb stomach so as to cover the bottom and sides of the pan with room to spare. Arrange the ground meat mixture, cover with the sides of the stomach and bake. When ready, turn onto a plate and serve with green lettuce Musaca de vinete - Eggplant moussaka Ingredients : 5 medium eggplants, 1 3/4 lb/750 g ground sirloin, 3 big onions, 3-4 tablespoons lard, 3-4 tomatoes, 1 egg, 1 cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon flour, 2-3 tablespoons broth or water, pepper, salt, chopped parsley, bread crumbs Preparation : Cut the eggplants into finger thick slices, salt and let sit for at least 30 minutes to drain their excess liquid. Finely chop an onion, fry slightly with a tablespoon of lard, add the ground meat, pepper and salt and let fry lightly. Do not overfry. Squeeze each eggplant slice, dry with a cloth and then fry in lard on both sides. On the bottom of a pan greased with lard and covered with bread crumbs, arrange a layer of thinly sliced tomatoes, then a layer of eggplant, then a layer of ground meat mixture. Do this until all eggplants and all meat are used up. The last layer must be eggplants. Top with thin slices of tomatoes. Bake for half an hour. Then pour sour cream mixed with flour, a tablespoon of meat broth and a beaten egg over the moussaka. Spread some chopped parsley over this and bake a little longer until it starts to brown. Serve immediately, cut into pieces. Vinete umplute cu carne - Eggplants stuffed with meat Ingredients : 6 small eggplants, 14 oz/400 g ground sirloin, 2 onions, 3 tablespoons lard, 1 lb/500 g tomatoes, 1 teaspoon flour, 1/2 teaspoon sugar, 1 tablespoon mixed chopped parsley and dill, salt, pepper Preparation : Remove the stems of the eggplants. Then set to boil for 5-6 minutes in salt water. Remove and keep in cold water until cooled off. Drain well and remove the insides. Do not throw away the insides, but keep in the colander. To the ground meat add finely chopped raw or fried onion, 2 tablespoons of lard, salt, pepper, chopped parsley and dill and the eggplants'insides. Mix well and fill the eggplant shells with this mixture. Fry some finely chopped onion with a tablespoon of lard, add flour, let it turn yellow, then pour the boiled and strained tomatoes over it. Add salt and sugar. Place the eggplants in this sauce, spread some chopped parsley and dill and let simmer, covered, until the liquid is reduced somewhat. Sarmale cu varza dulce - Regular cabbage rolls Ingredients : 1 large cabbage, 1 3/4 lb/750 g ground meat (mixture of pork and beef is recommended), 4 large onions, 2 tablespoons rice, 1 bread slice, 3 tablespoons lard, 5-6 tomatoes or 1 tablespoon tomato sauce, salt, pepper, chopped dill, 1 qt/1 l borsh, sour cream Preparation : Grind the meat with the crustless bread slice (previously soaked and squeezed dry) and a raw onion. Place in a bowl and mix with rice, dill, pepper, salt and finely chopped onion slightly fried in two tablespoons of lard. Mix everything well. Core the cabbage with a sharp thin knife and then blanch it with borsh. Then carefully remove the cabbage leaves, one by one, so that they do not tear. Cut larger leaves in 2 or 3 and then place a little meat in each cabbage piece and roll in. The smaller the rolls are, the tastier they are. Place a layer of rolls in the pan (take a deep one), then cover with a layer of chopped (julienned) cabbage, then a layer of thinly sliced tomatoes. Do this layering until all the rolls are made. The last layer must be tomato slices or add tomato sauce. Add a heaping tablespoon of lard, pour the borsh and let simmer on top of the range for 30 minutes. Then place in the oven so that the liquid is reduced. Serve with sour cream.