Shepards energy boost

I came across an interesting and fabulous food, which was presented to me under the name  Masunjek. It is an old shepards meal, that is able to feed you for an entire day. And it tastes deliciously. Its soft and creamy, with a nice taste of gorgonzola. Not the strong, sharp, ripe gorgonzola taste but subtle, gentle and delicate taste that smooths your taste buds. And it is fairly easy to make – once you know how.

In theory, regular cream or sour cream is cooked with buckwheat flour until a soft mass is formed and oily spots start to appear on the surface. In practice, there are no real recipes to be found and one is bound to learn by trial and error. What can be found on the internet is that any cream – regular or sour, can be used.

First trial

200 g of cream was heated until it started to raise. Next, a spoon of buckwheat flour was added, mixed and cook on low fire. The flour was not easily mixed in, but under constant mixing a smooth, even mixture was obtained. The volume of the mixture decreased steadily as water evaporated. Constant stirring was needed, to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pan. At the end the mass turned to a gum-like consistency and after some more heating oil started to appear. This was the sign that the process is finished. The whole cooking time was around 25 minutes.

The taste was sweet, subtle, with no hint of gorgonzola. The consistency was soft, silky, just perfect. Needless to say, all was eaten up before it got cold. Excellent results for the first trial!

Second trial

200 g of sour cream was mixed with a spoon of buckwheat flour heated up. The consistency of the mixture was gummy from the beginning. This was expected, since the consistency of sour cream is much firmer compared to cream alone. Addition of buckwheat flower in the beginning also increased the consistency. The gummy consistency proved to be a bad option, since the contact with the pan was not optimal. The mass was not heating up optimally and was sticking to the pan a lot. With time the consistency – as expected – increased. Consequently sticking increased and it was really hard to mix the mass. Situation improved when the oil started to appear, but was never the same compared to the first experiment. The whole cooking time was around 30 minutes. 

Final consistency was dry and crumbly – much worse compared to the first experiment. This was not hard to explain, once I compared the creams. Regular cream contained 30% fat while sour cream contained only  20% fat. I used too much buckwheat flour which resulted in dryness of the final dish. On the other hand, the taste was fabulous – if you like gentle gorgonzola taste. Apparently sour cream adds much more gorgonzola flavor to the final dish, compared to regular cream. This also makes sense, since sour cream is fermented, while regular cream is not.

The recipe

With the knowledge from both trials it is fairly easy to give a recipe for truly fabulous dish.

Ingredients:

1. 200 g of mixture (regular cream and sour cream) with 30% fat 
2. 1 tablespoon of buckwheat flour 

The cream should contain 30% fat – if it contains less, increase the amount of cream to match the total fat. Sour cream gives a gentle gorgonzola like taste, while regular cream gives a subtly sweet taste.  You can mix the creams in any ratio, to have more or less pronounced gorgonzola taste. Heat the cream mixture until it starts to raise. Add a spoon of buckwheat flour and mix. Continue to cook on low fire with constant stirring until the mass turns to gum-like consistency and oil drops start to appear. The whole cooking time is around 30 minutes. Serve with bread while still hot.

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