If you've read 'Evenings on a Farm near Dikanka' by Russian classical writer Nikolai Gogol, you surely remember how adroitly one of the characters ate vareniki with sour cream that flew into his mouth by themselves. Of course, traditional Ukrainian vareniki don't have such super skills, but their taste is sure to make you think of the Ukrainian cuisine's magic. Ukrainian vareniki are often compared to Russian pelmeni or Italian ravioli. Vareniki's crucial difference from other similar dishes is their dough. Traditional Ukrainian vareniki can't be Lenten, that is, kefir and eggs are always added to the dough. What are vareniki like? Nikolai Gogol wrote that you could eat hat-sized vareniki at some farms. That's, of course, an exaggeration. The classical varenik is around 10 cm large and, contrary to pelmeni or ravioli, has a crescent shape. Vareniki's filling can be very different: potato, cabbage, potato and meat, potato and salo (pork meat), sweet or salted curd, pumpkin, cherries and so on. The filling is warped up in dough and cooked for five minutes or less. Vareniki are usually served with sour cream. Although it's truly Ukrainian dish, vareniki are well-known all over the world. People in different corners of the world took liking of vereniki's unusual and rich taste and installed monuments to varenik. In particular, Ukrainian varenik was immortalized in Canada and Russia.

It's impossible to imagine authentic Ukrainian cuisine without homemade sausage. This is an absolutely natural and unique product. Meat (often pork, sometimes beef) and salo (pork fat) are used in order to cook homemade sausage. Pig's gut is stuffed with meat and salo, boiled, and then fried on pan or baked in oven Homemade sausage is traditional Ukrainian dish cooked all around the country. Its recipe is basically the same in all regions, but housewives often add something special to it. For instance, some add cognac to homemade sausage, others never fry it, but leave boiled. Homemade sausage is mostly served as appetizer with piece of brown bread.

Traditionally, sauerkraut is made with cabbage and carrot, which grant the dish with light flavor and milky colour, as it doesn’t have any coloring pigment. However, there is a plenty of sauerkraut recipes, including sauerkraut with beetroot, in particular. Such a combination boasts slightly exotic taste, as well as a bright scarlet colour. Moreover the sauerkraut with beetroot differs in shape. Unlike the shredded cabbage used in traditional recipe, the sauerkraut with beetroot features petal-shaped cabbage.

The finished salad is a light and beneficial vitamin cocktail, which will compliment any meal. The combination of apples and cinnamon will add special zest to the salad.