Sunday, October 12, 2008

Russian craziness

Wow, tonight was a truly authentic Russian dinner experience. I feel like I've traveled to and back from Russia in just a few short hours. I'll start from the beginning...

I came home starving after the apple picking so the plan to hit the gym right away was out of the door. I could not work out hungry and after I ate, I could not work out because I needed to digest. I called my dad to see what the plan for dinner was and he informed me that instead of the bbq he and his friends (from Russia, staying with my dad for a few days) decided to cook lamb instead. I don't eat lamb. I never liked it. It's not that I have anything against lamb; it's just that it has a very strong flavor that I just do not enjoy. He then informed me that that they'll be making some zucchini "cake" (made with mayonnaise... not sweet) so even the side dish was unhealthy. I was so upset, because I really wanted to be healthy and already incountered a few obsticles in that department earlier in the day and persevered and now I had to deal with more of the same. The plan was to go quickly, have my husband try the lamb and then come home, cook something healthy for myself and hit the gym. Ok, that SO did not go according to plan.

Here are a few of the foods that we were presented with. The table looked beautiful!



This were just some tomatoes with grapes. Very creative!

And this was the zucchini cake. Really they were crepes made with zucchini, layered with sauce (mayo+spices) and topped with pine nuts.



There was also a simple cheese plate and some kind of an eggplant dish (not pictured).



Again, the presentation was just adorable! This woman could work in a restaurant!!! She even placed two napkins in front of me and my husband with our initials in rose petals. This is my "E" for Elina. How very sweet of her...



The whole theme of the night was kind of celebrating our newly-wed status, which is why we had the special napkins.

This was my first plate (one of each):



I had a bunch more of the eggplant dish. It seemed healthy and was so unique tasting. The people brought their spices all the way from Syberia. It tasted almost like Indian food with a Russian spin to it. Very delicious.

Then came the main entree... the lamb. I had to try it to be polite.



The verdict: it was actually not bad, because the spices were so delicious and unique, but I wouldn't say I've been coverted to a lamb-lover :D This was a tiny portion and I didn't take any more. I was still trying to be good.

We were all dining for awhile. There was some vodka involved (I didn't have any) and lots of wine. I think I had about 2 small glasses of red. This all led to some bizzare (but very traditional!) Russian behaviour. At random moments they made us kiss (so awkward!) and kept on being very cheesy with love references and love songs! Seriously, they just could not stop singing in Russian, catching random words and starting songs with them. Oh, and of course they made sure to tell my husband how faithful Russian women are. It's aparently in our genes, just in case he was worried. Haha! Crazy crazy Russians. It was all good fun, though :D

I ended up eating another 0.75 slice of the zucchini cake, a few slices of a plum, 2 grapes and 1 Trader Joe's cookie. And no, I did not make it to the gym tonight :( Better luck tomorrow...

3 comments:

Adam said...

That was quite the experience last night! You have no idea how awkward it is when people in close proximity to you are singing loudly in a foreign language :)

Anonymous said...

o man
never thought this would be happening at parents' house.... i guess i have to be there next time to believe it .... i do feel bad for Adam

Elina said...

He was ok. A little vodka and wine go a long way ;)