Moldova: People, places, food and wine

Moldova has come to have such a multi-faceted identity, it seems it hardly has one at all. Warm, sentimental, despite being its own merciless critic. Rich, yet not making the most of its bounty. Constantly mislaid between the terms conquered and liberated. Nostalgic, yet oblivious. Conservative, yet always willing to embrace anything coming from abroad and consider it superior. Proud of its history, though often unacquainted with the names of its own ancestors. A11 at once living in the 215t century and the Middle Ages, it's torn between East and West, without ever choosing a side. Moldovans celebrate Christmas twice, open the champagne bottle at different times on New Year's Eve, when "mom's" homemade traditional dishes and sarmale share the podium with the Soviet Olivier salad.   Ultimately, while we may not like ourselves, we can at least accept that this is who we are. So, let's take the time to come to know ourselves, to understand our nature and just what "this" entails. That is the straightforward message of the book you're holding in your hands. It's a sentimental looking glass which we hope you'll enjoy. In it, you'll find places worth seeing, experiencing and discovering, uncomplicated and worthwhile people, as well as chefs respectful of all that is authentic. You will find cherdele, larzanci, pit-cooked mutton roast, alivenci, beetroot leaf pies, covrigei opariti, hams, scordole, iahnii, game, chisalite, cutcut, reduced borscht with hatmatuchi and drehlita, raw egg pies, gozleme, ghevreci, cnisuri, kiur, cozonac and other babe, all generously splashed with noble wines, bragi, cherry liqueurs, steaming tuica, as the case may be. Expect aromas, sweet scents, forgotten tastes gathered from the smoke furnaces of peasants and the scented notebooks of some gentlewoman, prudently seeking refuge abroad. Get ready for recipes to cook in spring, summer or winter, for fasting or feasting (in Orthodox Christianity, fasting involves a vegan diet rather than not eating at all), for remembrance, in memory of our grandparents, and for reveries. There will be humble as well as richly luxurious Moldovan dishes, including Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Jewish, Roma and Gagauzian cuisine. It would be a shame to pretend we haven't all been stewing in one and the same pot for centuries.