www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Food - Recipes Koliva recipe

I was wondering if anyone could share their recipes for Koliva, as I have arranged to have a memorial for my grandma in March.

I believe people usually boil wheat and form a cross with Jordan almonds. A friend said one can also use rice, and I have seen bread used as well.

But I've never made the stuff, so would appreciate any recipes people may have.

Go to http://www.prosphora.org for a number of recipes.

OD, I have used both wheat and rice. Rice is faster to boil, but I prefer wheat. I recommend white wheat, not the more common red wheat (you can usually get it in bulk at health food stores). It takes several days to soak the wheat and then boil it to get it to the right consistency.

You can mix chopped nuts (almonds or walnuts) in with it, and add plenty of honey so it is thick enough to support your candle. Some prefer confectioner's sugar, but for me that is too sweet. You can also add poppyseed if you are making it Carpathian style (kutya).

I use golden raisins, Jordan or slivered almonds for the cross, first lining the outside of the bowl and making a cross in the center. You can also use a variety of candied fruits as well.

Diak,

I noticed that you said it takes several days to soak/boil.

I'm not one of those folks who generally have a clue what's for dinner until I turn to the fridge & cupboards scratching my head to figure what's available. I occasionally like 13 bean soup, or a soup made with split peas & barley. Under ordinary circumstances, these two factoids are not compatible, because prepping & cooking beans is normally a soak-for-a-day-boil-for-hours proposition - just like your wheat.

My split pea and barley soup is ready in about 30 minutes. My bean soup in under an hour - from dry beans to finished bowl. That's 'cause I CHEAT and use a pressure cooker.

Might I suggest you try the same. I'm guessing your wheat would be nice & tender in 30-40 minutes - 10 of those to get the pot up to temperature, and the rest under pressure. Hmmmm. Think I'm gonna try it myself. Yum.


Sharon

Sharon, thanks for the suggestion, and you'll be pleased to know you are not alone. My wife also gives me funny looks regularly when I make kolyva (she has even taken the PC out and laid it on the counter when she knew I was going to make some).

I'm just really old-fashioned (or is it stubborn??? :rolleyes: ) and try to take the 3-day approach to making it with wheat which is what the monks used to do (that old 3-day significance, you know .)

If you use rice it goes much, much faster (within an hour).

Randy, If you are going to take three days to soak the wheat, why not sprout and make it into bulgar? and then boil to make the kutya (my wife did this for a recent meal)
Adam

Diak,

As far as I am concerned, it *is* the old fashioned method. Honor your father and mother, eh? Well the pressure cooker I use is my Mama's old Presto. It's probably as old as I am, and in fine condition. None of these newfangled multi-layer-bottom designer pots for MY beans!

Sharon

Good point, Adam, sprouted grains are much healthier.

So, where are the recipes...???



Herb

Kolyva/Kutija Recipe:

Take wheat.

Boil until done.

Add sweetener.

Optional: add decorations.

Take to church.

For more in depth recipes, check the link in my previous post.

Dave

dear dave:

thanks very much.

I also finally found it on the website you posted.

I'll give it a try for this Friday's Presanctified!

Herb

I would suggest it more appropriate for the All-Souls Saturday, not the Presanctified. It is typically made for commemorations of the dead and in remembrance of the miracle of St. Theodore of Tyro last Saturday.

I had a recipe that called for "hulled wheat" Till this day I cannot find this kind of wheat, so I abandoned ship in trying to make it.
Is there an ordinary wheat that I could purchase in a grocery store to make it in place of hulled wheat?

Blessed Lent!
Daniel

Daniel, most all grocery stores have whole grains in the health food section. You might try a health food store also as they often have various grains in bulk. That's where we get ours. Of course, living in Kansas finding wheat is not a problem.

dear Diak:

Given what you said, is there a traditional (liturgical) food by which one breaks the fast after Presanctified?

I first had Kolliva with the Melkites who broke the fast after Presanctified with this wonderful Kolliva "cake" thing with silver candies and almonds in a cross shape.

Herb

Daniel,

I will hazard a guess that whatever wheat you find in the store is actually hulled, i.e. the hard, outer husk taken off already. It may just be that since they tend to do this anyway, they don't bother to mention it in the name.

Sharon

Herb, there is no reason you can't have kolyva to break the fast after Presanctified, as it is certainly "Lent legal". I was just observing that you usually see kolyva offered more often for services for the dead, the All-Souls Saturdays, St. Theodore on the first Saturday of the Great Fast as well as saint's days, name days, etc.

The prayer for blessing the kolyva in the Trebnik certainly has no limitations on when not to take it, and there is absolutely no reason why the priest couldn't bless it at the conclusion of Presanctified and everyone partake to break the fast. In fact, I like that idea a lot, because by the time we get out it is easily pushing 8 or so p.m. Hmmm, maybe next week...

But that white confectioner's sugar is too sweet for me (my kids disagree with me on this point ). Just nuts, raisins and honey are fine.

I actually made and brought kolliva to Liturgy last Saturday for the remberance of the miracle of Saint Theodore. I followed the simplest recipe I could find, one that only called for soaking overnight. Father blessed the kolliva after Liturgy, and I gave a brief teaching on the miracle. We have these wonderful pious practices, but over time the teaching behind the practice is lost. So it becomes imperative to remind the folks why we do such things.

BTW, in some stores they may be shelved as "wheat berries".

Father John:

So what's this super easy recipe of your's.

I'm into super easy!

Herb

Herb,

it was the Serbian koljivo recipe on prosphora.org:

prosphora.org page 16 [prosphora.org]

That is a great page for recipes, indeed. I have used three of those (Serbian, Greek, Romanian) and all turned out pretty well.

I highly recommend the Romanian recipe with rum...yum.