Comments on: Doña Olga, La Cocinera Mágica

By: Sugar, Saffron, Spices — The Arab Influence on Spanish Cuisine, a Brief Meditation « Gherkins & Tomatoes

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:12:34 +0000

[...] mingling of the Arabic and Spanish culinary cultures first enticed me when I bit into one of Doña Olga’s empanadas in Fram, Paraguay. How closely they resembled the meat-filled briwats/briouats of Morocco, [...]

By: Culinaria Russia: A Picture Book for Grownups « Gherkins & Tomatoes

Culinaria Russia: A Picture Book for Grownups « Gherkins & Tomatoes — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 16:33:25 +0000

[...] there was Olga, the cook who sustained me during my Peace Corps years, whose Russian roots rarely extended to the [...]

By: cbertel

cbertel — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:25:04 +0000

Oh, you were only 16 when you went to Paraguay — that’s wonderful that there was a program in place for such cultural experiences. I wish every child in every country had the opportunity to live in another culture for a while — imagine what the world would be like then!

By: rachel

rachel — Fri, 15 May 2009 16:57:37 +0000

Oh wow! So many memories. Even the photos…. Bife al caballo. And chipa?

Terere. I am just flooded with memories of my experience there. Thanks for this.

I can’t wait to check out the recipe you have for empanadas. I’ll tell you I thought that my Senora Luzko was the best cook in town. She made the best sopa paraguaya ever AND all of the Ukrainian/Polish things she would fix. It’s where I came to love that sort of food.

Who knew that I little girl at the age of 16 would be exposed to so much.

Again, thanks!

By: mae

mae — Wed, 13 May 2009 14:52:08 +0000

I love this story. Beautiful!