"Budapest eat finger's!!!"

We said our byes to Patrick and his family, then hopped on a bus, then a train then another train into Hungry.

Our destination was Budapest, to see Jess. We planned to arrive for her birthday, and luckily things worked out. She met us at the train station, then took us to her gorgeous flat in the Jewish District. After being in the countryside for just under a week, it did feel a little bit discombobulating being in a new and unfamiliar city. But being a city girl, I soon adjusted. I fell in love with Budapest instantly. It was vibrant, unpretentious and oozed charm. Everywhere I looked, I found myself being awestruck, either by the architecture, street art, interiors and even the people. Little pockets of the city stood frozen in time, as if going into movie set.

Three-D Tree

Naomi, Jess’s sister also joined us in Budapest for birthday celebrations. We went out in town, had a few drinks, a nice Greek dinner and finished of with some super fancy cocktails at the Warm Up bar.

Birthday cake from mama wise!

Budapest Eat Finger's!!!... ?

Great cocktail bar serving fancy cocktails and shots in the Jewish District

In the morning Jess and I went to the local shops to pick up some food. It was a bit of a strange combination of ingredients: bread and hummus from the Jewish shop, Hungarian sausage from the butchers, and pomelo from the green grocers. Nonetheless, it was perfectly pleasant, and set us up for our busy days.

Breaky

Laura and I went to explore the town whilst Jess went to classes and Naomi worked from home. We went to the Hungarian House of Photography where we found this guy outside. I couldn’t resist, I had to take a picture:

Homeless man peacefully asleep on statue

We did some food shopping on our way home, to make bryndzové halušky in the evening as Jess and Laura had both brought some bryndza from the festival. Wilson, a friend of Jess’s also come over for dinner and was interested in seeing the process.

Wilson helping Laura in the kitchen

Bryndza (sheep's cheese)

Laura’s bryndzové halušky

Laura’s bryndzové halušky
Despite buying the wrong type of flour, the halušky turned out great. We made a few alterations, like making a sour cream and chive sauce to accompany the dish. But it worked pretty well. That night some of Jess’s friends came over and later we went out till the wee hours of the morning. I don’t remember feeling hungry once. It’s a workingman’s dish and can make you feel very sleepy after. Portions don’t have to be too big, although often it’s hard to resist as it taste so good. I find drinking palinka whilst cooking, and before and after the meal helps.

Ingredients (Feeds 6):
4 medium sized potatoes
4 cups of wholemeal flour
1 egg yolk
Bryndza, or a soft sheep's cheese
Smoked pork belly 400g, cubed (must be very fatty)
Sour cream
Chives, finely chopped
Salt and pepper

Method:
1. Start by putting the cubed pork belly in a frying pan on a very low heat. It doesn’t require any oil. Check on it from time to time
2. Grate the potatoes on the finest side of a grater. It is hard work, but worth it. I recommend doing it with friends and taking turns. Also have some palinka on the go, it helps
3. Mix in the flour and egg yolk into the potato mixture till it resembles the consistency of mashed potato
4. Bring water to boil in a large sauce pan. Add a pinch of salt
5. Using a flat grater on the smooth side, slowly press through the potato mixture into the boiling water. The halušky will sink at first, so be paitent, and wait till it floats on the surface. You will have to do this in batched. Keep the cooked halušky in a warm container/pot
6. Once all cooked, add the bryndza to the halušky and mix through
7. Make sure your belly lardons are crispy and golden, and that there is enough hot fat in the pan. This is especially important and it melts the cheese a little
8. In a separate bowl mix the sour cream and chives together
9. To serve, spoon some of the halušky mixture onto a plate, add some of the sour cream and chive mixture and top with the belly lardons and some hot fat