Reminiscing About Romania

On December 19, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Romania11 Comments

Looking back at our time in Europe, one of the most interesting places that we visited was Romania. It was unique for a variety of reasons, but it was definitely extremely interesting. Although we spent a couple of days in Bucharest, the highlight of our trip was the time that we spent in Brasov. It is nestled in the Carpathian mountain region and apparently has a variety of ski resorts nearby, although we didn’t do any skiing on our trip. Our hotel was located right in the city center and our room overlooked the main square with its brightly decorated Christmas tree. We really enjoyed the architecture as it was different than most of the other places that we visited. For this week’s Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge that must start with the letter R, we thought we would revisit Romania through photos. If you ever get a chance to visit Romania, we would certainly recommend spending a few days in Brasov.

Cabbage Rolls with Tomato Sauce

On October 11, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Recipes, Romania3 Comments

One of the classic meals that we had while we were in Romania were cabbage rolls. We knew that we wouldn’t be able to recreate them exactly as we had them, so we decided to go with a little different take on our attempt. We found the cabbage rolls in Romania to be a little dry and not particularly flavorful, so we wanted ours to be moist. This recipe is closer to the cabbage rolls that we had as children and we found them to be very tasty. Cabbage rolls may not be the most photogenic of meals to prepare, but it doesn’t always have to look good to taste good.

Stuffed Cabbage and Grape Leaves with Polenta in Romania

INGREDIENTS

1/2 lb Lean Ground Beef
1 Small Cabbage Head
1/2 cup Cooked White Rice
1 tbsp Onion – finely chopped
1 Egg – lightly beaten
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Garlic Powder
1/4 tsp Ground Black Pepper
2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
1 can Tomato Sauce – 8 Oz
1/3 cup ketchup
2 tsp Brown Sugar
2 tsp White Vinegar
1/8 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Ground Black Pepper
1/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese – shredded (Optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

Remove the core of the cabbage and place the cabbage in a large saucepan filled with water. Bring the water to a boil and begin removing the cabbage leaves as they become soft and translucent, approximately 10 – 15 minutes. Separate the leaves and set aside to cool. Add the oil to a medium saucepan and heat to medium-high. Add the onion and sauté for about 3 to 4 minutes until soft and then add the ground beef, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Cook until the ground beef is browned and then add the rice and set aside to cool. In a medium sauce pan, combine the tomato sauce, ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, remaining salt and pepper, and heat over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Stir the beaten egg into the cooled meat mixture and then spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of the mixture into each cabbage leaf. Roll the cabbage leaf like a burrito, tucking in the sides as you roll. Place the cabbage rolls into a baking dish and the spoon the tomato sauce over top of the cabbage rolls. If using cheese, sprinkle over top of sauce and cabbage rolls. Place the baking dish, uncovered, into an oven that has been preheated to 350 degrees. Bake for an hour or until the sauce is bubbly and hot.

Nature’s Little Surprises

On April 13, 2017 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Iceland, India, Photo Challenge, Romania1 Comment

Whenever we get out into nature, we are often surprised by something unexpected. Sometimes it can be as simple as sighting an unexpected animal, but other times it is something more dramatic. This week’s Daily Post Photo Challenge is Surprise, so we chose a few photos that remind us of how fascinating nature can be.

We were touring an old church fortress in Romania on an extremely cold day and took several photos of the hallways as we walked through the labyrinth of corridors. After we returned home and went through our pictures, we had several photos with ghostly images. We did not see any of the fog-like images while we were actually touring the church, but obviously our camera captured the frozen air even though it wasn’t visible to the naked eye. If you use your imagination, you can potentially even imagine it to be a ghost instead of a natural phenomena.

One of the things that we visited when we were in Chennai, India, was a location called Tiger Cave. It was unearthed after the horrible tsunami of 2004. To think that something so amazing can be uncovered from a violent act of nature is truly an interesting contradiction.

When we were in Iceland last February, we drove out along the coast, which was frozen and beautiful. Then, suddenly, the ground thawed and we were surrounded by lava rocks and there was not a flake of snow to be found.