Na Zdrowie!

Tonight, a meal fit for a Slav!

The menu featured varied versions of pierogi, golabki, bigos, kabanosy, kielbasa, and sauerkraut. The table was ringed by eleven friends all acquired in the last decade. We were pouring exotic brews with names like Zywiec, Okocim, and Dojlidy Magnat and other potables such as Kasztelanski Mead and Stawski Prawdziwa Zytnia Koszerna Vodka.

Conversation ranged from friendly banter (read, “the dozens”) to toasts of recently lost friends. By the end of the meal, this usually dessert-o-phile group was too stuffed to even attempt a bite of Berry Szarlotkal, let alone any of the other traditional Polish treats available.

While knifing through my kielbasa, I remembered a few meals at my paternal grandparents’ home on Bussendorfer Road in Hamburg, New York. Mary (nee Mazur) and Thomas Niedbala lived on a small farm where my father and his siblings were reared and my grandfather (as I remember) worked as a millwright and they kept a large garden and chickens.

Each year, the local paper would publish the photos and names of graduating high school seniors and my grandmother would review the list and circle the names of the “good Polish children” in that year’s class. My memories of “grandma” are mostly centered on food and her particular jingoism. Grandpa would show my brother and me the old chicken coop, his garden, and his various files, calipers, and other tools (many of which I have to this day).

I also remember my mother (a woman of pure Gaelic descent) trying her hand at various Polish dishes from time to time – usually with great success.

My garden has a healthy stand of horseradish with leaves approaching four feet in height. After the first frost, I’ll dig up the root, cut off the crown to replant, then bring these clumps of tear-inspiring-delight into the house for cleaning and grinding. If you’ve never ground your own horseradish, be sure to do it either outside or under a strong vent hood – and be prepared to enjoy a little bit of heaven.

Why do various tastes and smells arouse so many memories? I would expect each of us has a variety of sensory triggers that will stimulate seemingly random memories and emotions.

Polish food and horseradish obviously are some very positive triggers for me. Please pass the nalesniki.