Because I grew up in a Ukrainian/Russian family, I ate a lot of foods that other kids didn't eat. Borscht, shuba, plov, kotleti.... You get the point. Lots and lots of weird sounding foods! As a kid, I hated it. I wanted to eat what other kids were eating. Pizza, hamburgers, tacos, etc. Pretty much like every other kid on the planet. But Eastern European food was all my parents knew and loved. They grew up with it after all. I guess that was a good thing though, since Ukrainian/Russian foods are pretty healthy. 

I didn't really start eating ethnic foods until late into high school. Now that I'm older and have been trying foods from many different cultures, I'm loving it! Eating foods from around the world really opens your eyes to different cultures and people. It also introduces you to lots of new and interesting foods and flavors. However, ever since I got married and moved out, I've been missing Ukrainian/Russian cuisine. Yep, I miss my mama's cooking. Every time I go over to my family's or my in-law's house for dinner, I get so happy and excited to eat all the food! I don't really make it at home, so it really is a treat. 

One of my favorite things to eat as a kid was stuffed eggs. Now, I don't know exactly if this is an authentic Ukrainian/Russian food. I've never actually met anyone who would make these. But it was something my family made every once in a while and they were one of my favorite foods. One of the first things I ever cooked were these eggs. I actually remember mashing egg yolks and then stuffing the egg whites. Even now, I love love love these. They are kind of different. Not exactly deviled eggs, though they do have mayonnaise. These simple stuffed eggs only have 5 ingredients. And they only take about 15 minutes to make! Don't these sound awesome?! I mean if a kid can do it, you can do it too ;) 

One of my goals for the rest of the year is to collect all of my favorite family recipes. This isn't as easy as it seems because my mom doesn't really use recipes. She just cooks by memory and by the eye. I'm not like that. I like things to be precise and proper. So I need to have exact measurements to make something taste good. So as I collect the recipes and practice them, I'll post them to the blog. Everyone always asks me what Ukrainian/Russian people eat, and it's easier to show them rather than to explain. I'll name these posts "family favorites", because that's what they are. They're my family's favorites. But most importantly, they're my favorites.