Week 15- Shipka fest, lutenitsa and polyculture design

This month it was time for the big annual celebration of the village: Shipka Fest at Chirpanliev house! Even pandemic did not change the lovely atmosphere, although it was less people. The fest took place from Friday the 4th of September until Monday the 7th of September and was a good celebration. 

 

 In the beginning of September Tanya and helpers prepared the ground. 

 

Early Saturday morning all craftsmen arrived at the museum to set up their stands. Blacksmith Stefan Chakov, pottery master, weaver Stanko Kirov and other artists joined, selling crafts and demonstrating their skills to visitors of the fest. 

 

Also, an amazing tea demonstration made up of Turkey's traditional tea and pie took place at lunch and in the evening. At the lunch there were Slovenian film time one of the ethnographic museum “Chirpanlieva House”. In the evening ended with great alternative music. There were also many workshops at the weekend, a basketball demonstration by master Stanko Kirov, a bracelet-making workshop with Jasmine and a herbal ointments making workshop with Nadezhda Maksimova (bilkaherb@gmail.com). Shipka was a sunny, peacefully and cheerful. Eventually, Shipka fest was a success, with wounderful crafts and music. 

Until 27th of September we will finish the wild pond and polyculture design near the home. Polycultures are groups of plants and organisms that occupy a specific ecological niche. The environmental conditions in a specific location are often defined by the abiotic or nonliving components of that space. Sunlight, water, temperature, soil type, and minerals are the abiotic components of a site. Within this space certain plants and organisms thrive since they are adapted to the conditions. Nature does not like empty space that can be otherwise productive. Some of us went to clean west side of channel in this way elderlies can easily access the water.  Also we helped elderlies to carry woods, collect fruits and harvest potato. 

We were looking forward to make a The Bulgarian roasted pepper relish. This spicy-sweet condiment makes a delicious snack or appetizer. Spread it on a toasted bread round or cracker, serve it with meatballs or sausage, or simply spread it on a cold cut sandwich. Adjust the heat by using more–or hotter–peppers, or eliminate the heat altogether by omitting the chilis. 

Lutenitsa Ingredients (1)

 4 kg sweet red peppers 

2-2.5 kg ripe tomatoes 

1 kg eggplants 

2 jalapeño peppers or 1 hot pepper (optional) 

¼ onion

 2½ Tbsp olive oil 

1 tsp sugar 

1 Tbsp salt 

1 tbsp blackpepper mixed

1 tsp cumin

Instructions 

Arrange the peppers on a baking sheet and broil them 10-15 minutes until charred on one side. Turn over and broil an additional 10-15 minutes. When the peppers are blackened on all sides, remove from the oven and place in a covered bowl to steam. This will make removing the skins easier. Let them cool 30 minutes to make them easier to handle and to loosen the skin. While the peppers are resting, bring a pot of water to boil. Score the bottoms of the tomatoes with an X and submerge them into the boiling water. After a minute or two remove the tomatoes, rinse under cool water and peel. Roughly chop the tomatoes into quarters and again in half. Peel and seed the cooled peppers. Don’t worry too much if you can’t remove every square centimeter of skin as they are going to be pureed and cooked again. Removing as much skin as possible will make for a more pleasing final product as the skins can be chewy. But a little bit of pepper or tomato skin isn’t going to hurt anything. Put the peeled peppers, chopped tomatoes, onion and oil into a food processor or blender. Pulse process them on a low-medium setting (blender) or process at high speed (food processor) until they are a chunky sauce consistency similar to a relish or chutney. You can process them longer if you want a very smooth sauce but for spreading on bread or crackers, a little chunkiness is good. Pour the sauce into a large heavy pot, season with sugar and salt. Cook uncovered on medium-low heat 1½ to 2 hours. Stir frequently to prevent sticking or burning. After the sauce has thickened and nearly reduced by half, run a wooden spoon from the side of the pot towards the center. When the lutenitsa does not immediately flow back to cover the spoon’s trace, it’s done. 

For the Martial arts sport project we prepared a poster and make a stand at the school. The sport project will help youths a lot. We are very pleased to contribute this knowledge and help to them. 

Autumn meaning is mostly seed collecting and planting nursery. Collecting fall seeds can be a family affair or a solitary venture to enjoy the fresh air, autumn colors and nature walk. Harvesting seeds in fall is a great way to share seeds with friends. You can also save seeds from your favorite flowers, fruits, some vegetables and even shrubs or trees. Balkan Ecology offer a diversity of plants and seeds for permaculture, forest gardens and regenerative landscapes including a range of fruit, perennial vegetables (asparagus) and nut cultivars. Deliver all over Europe from Nov - March. - Give a happy plant a happy home.

(1)https://www.balkep.org/perennial-polyculture-research.html 

https://balkanecologyproject.blogspot.com/2020/01/the-biomass-belt-revisited-polyculture.html

 https://www.thepolycultureproject.com/online-learning-platform.html 

(2)https://feasterneurope.com/recipes/lutenitsa/