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Mikhailo-Afonsky monastery
At the end of the 19th century, there was no monastery larger than that of St. Michael’s Monastery of Mount Athos in the Northern Caucasus. In 1877 the monastery’s location on the slope of Gora Fiziabgo was decided. It was constructed with the help of many hands from people all over the world - following the suggestion of Father Martyrius, the monastery’s first abbot, each pilgrim travelling to the monastery brought a stone with him that would be used to help build the holy structure. Over ten years the monks managed to build an entire religious complex with multiple churches: The Church of the Transfiguration, of the Holy Trinity and of the Assumption as well as churches built in the name of Archangels Michael and Alexandra. A century ago thousands of pilgrims visited St. Michael’s Monastery of Mount Athos every day. After the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 however, the r...
Peter-the-Great wheat porridge
The enchanting St. Petersburg, with its numerous canals and islands, white nights and architectural monuments has always been a city surrounded by myth and legend. It exudes a certain mystical force that has helped to attract both art and people to the area, writers and poets of whom have proved some of the most important. In the 19th century St. Petersburg was the home to writers now known all over the world including Alexander Pushkin, Nikolai Gogol, Fyodor Dostoyevsky and many others. When meeting to discuss their work, these literary figures didn’t meet only in fashionable salons, but in what were dubbed “literary cafes.” One such meeting place was Nevsky Prospect’s Wolfe and Beranger Confectionary, which opened in 1816 and closed for good in the middle of the 19th century. After the confectionary shut down, the building hosted several other establishments including the restaurant th...
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Peter-the-Great wheat porridge
Geography of taste. Pea porridge with quail and mushroom sauce
The cuisine of any people is formed by the region in which they live. Since the key features of the northern latitudes are endless forests and long winters, the Russian table has an abundance of hot soups, salted delicacies, fermented dishes, mushrooms, wild game, and all types of porridge. Porridges are a favourite of people in modern Russia to this day, made from oats, wheat, and barley. In the old days, however, the most popular porridge was made from peas – pea porridge. In our times, chefs are rethinking old Russian culinary traditions. Many restaurants, thanks to modern technology and fashionable gastronomical trends, are bringing back old recipes, allowing today’s gourmands to rediscover their taste. Host of The Geography of Taste, chef Vladimir Pavlov, has taken on the challenge of “resetting” the once beloved, now almost forgotten, and irresistibly tasty pea porridge. And he’s ...
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