When we returned to my friend’s childhood home, there was a mountain of sweets waiting for us. First, there were the dry fruits: apricots, cherries, figs, etc. My friend made sure I tried every single one of them. Each one was better than the last. So sweet and so moist! I simply cannot believe the quality of the dried fruits I have had in Armenia. I love dried fruits, but they don’t always like me, so I have to be careful! I wish I could eat them all day!
Then, there was this thing called soujoukh. I am not sure if this is the right way to spell or pronounce this food, but just to avoid confusion, I mean the sweet kind and not the meat kind. Soujoukh is made by stringing walnuts and then dipping it in grape juice. When the juice hardens, it creates this sweet, creamy coating. I’ve had soujoukh before, and I was never a fan, because I always found it too chewy. But this one melted in my mouth. It is hands down the best I have ever had. My friend’s family in Ashtarak was kind enough to send a string home with me. What a treat! As an aside, when I returned to Yerevan and offered some to a friend, I didn’t tell him it was “special.” When he tasted it, he paused, said “mmmm” and asked me where I bought it. It’s that good!
Of course, no sweet table is complete without baked goods. There was the usual stuff, like gata (which I confirmed is also called nazoog) and a delicious cake with layers of condensed milk. These were all perfect. But the real standout of the bunch was the baklava. The baklava was made with honey instead of syrup. But the flavor of the honey was so smooth and sweet. It complemented the walnut perfectly. So simple, yet so delicious. It was one of those desserts that you eat slowly to savor every last bite.
Later in the afternoon, we left my friend’s mom’s house and went to her sister’s home that is also in Ashtarak. I hadn’t realized we were going to be going to 2 homes! It turns out it was her nephew’s birthday. My friend’s sister also lives in a large home. It’s definitely different than Yerevan where it seems most people live in apartments.
When we arrived, there were introductions made and wishes expressed for 2011. It was a very warm family atmosphere. Again, I felt right at home. When I looked over, I saw the dinner table was set. I was afraid to ask if we were going to eat again. I secretly hoped that perhaps the table was set for some occasion other than supper, but it wasn’t. How was I going to eat again?
The table was covered in food, and this was not, by any means, a small table. There was meat, fish, chicken, potatoes, pickles, coldcuts, cheeses, etc. They offered me something called tooti oghi (some kind of extremely powerful flavored vodka). That stuff is so strong, that you feel every drop going down your throat! I can’t even begin to imagine the potential hangover from drinking too much of this stuff! There was also sweet homemade wine.
There was one delicious grain mix called something like “aghast” that they told me is used to celebrate Trndez. This holiday is celebrated on February 14th, 40 days after Jesus’ birth. It has Pagan origins and was originally related to fire worship. Today’s celebrations still center around the fire. The priest blesses the fire, and people take the wood home. It appears to be the Armenian equivalent of Valentine’s Day as Trndez is a celebration of love and often involves the active participation of those who are engaged to be married. There is a website that provides more details about this holiday. I am pasting the link below. Please take a look!
I couldn’t eat much, because I was already full. But I did eat some really spicy peppers! I mentioned that I was having trouble finding spicy peppers in Armenia, so our hostess brought out the tiniest red peppers. They were so strong that I felt the burn just by touching the tip of my tongue! I had missed that feeling.
After supper came a visit to the cellar. Like the family in the village near Armavir where we spent some time this summer, this family keeps a cellar full of preserved foods. There was the homemade wine, basterma (a spicy cold cut), soujoukhs (sweet kind), jars of preserved veggies, and of course, lavash (Armenian flat bread). They kept the lavash in a special wooden cupboard to preserve the bread. The bread was very hard. I think they might wet it to moisten it and bring it back to life, so to speak.
The best part of this evening was the atmosphere. People from the community came and went. And as they arrived, we all made room for them at the table. In true Armenian style, there were endless toasts to everything good – the New Year, the elder man at the table, all Armenians around the world, etc. This is one of the joys of the Armenian table. There is always something to toast to. In my opinion, the best ones are the ones that go so long that someone has to remind the speaker that everyone wants to drink! This inevitably leads to giggles and a brief plea from the speaker to allow him or her to finish the thought.
To my surprise, I followed the conversation at the table with ease despite having forgotten my dictionary. Either my Eastern Armenian is improving or they were speaking slowly and clearly.
My hosts in Ashtarak all made me feel so welcome. I never for a moment felt like an outsider. I want to extend my warmest thanks to all of those who welcomed me into their homes. Thank you for the fantastic food, but most of all, thank you for sharing your day with me. Finally, a special thanks to KS for allowing me a chance to peek into her world. It was truly memorable. I will treasure the memories for ever.
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| Soujoukh hanging from the ceiling to dry. |
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| Homemade wine |
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| Basterma |
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| Lavash bread |
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