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Hometownlife.com
Sept 19 2010
New cookbook offers taste of Armenian cuisine, heritage
September 19, 2010
by Sharon Dargay O&E STAFF WRITER
Armenian Cuisine - Preserving Our Heritage, a new cookbook set to
debut Sept. 24 at St. John Armenian Church's fall festival, maintains
culture while eliminating all the `atch-key-chop.'
`There's a saying in Armenian - atch-key-chop - which means `as much
as your eye sees,'' explained Dolly Matoian, an Orchard Lake resident
and co-chair of the Southfield church's Women's Guild cookbook
committee.
When grandma or great-grandma cooked, she often skipped measuring
implements in favor of eyeballing the ingredients - atch-key-chop.
Most of the recipes that St. John's members submitted for the cookbook
were `passed from grandmother to mother or mother to daughters,' and
many used Armenian terms, hand-mixing methods and approximate
measurements.
Matoian said the 12-member committee reviewed about 600 recipes,
narrowed the collection to 450 and updated them to include modern
methods and terms.
`We got things on slips of paper that someone's mother or grandmother
wrote. We had to re-write it so it's as user friendly as possible,'
said Charlene Apigian, a Canton resident and committee member. `Try
explaining a pinch of this or a coffee cup full of that. Coffee cup -
What size is that? We took these things and re-measured and tried
different recipes.'
YOUNG COOKS
The cookbook project grew out of a cooking and recipe DVD production
that Matoian chaired. The church sold about 2,000 DVDs, many to young
members and to non-Armenians as well.
`Many younger people had asked for cooking classes and I asked certain
people I knew who were well known to teach that. Some of the recipes
you had to see being made. Those were on the DVD,' Matoian said. `It
was so well received. These are recipes the younger ones want to learn
to make.'
The cookbook is geared to age 35-50. Pairs of committee members worked
on different sections of the book, updating terminology and method,
testing and tasting.
Apigian and another committee member tackled the meat recipes -
everything from a think Armenian pizza to meat-stuffed vegetables.
Apigian even used her own backyard grape leaves in one recipe.
`What I've always liked about Armenian recipes is the amount of
one-pot meals,' Apigian said, adding `The beauty of this food is that
it all can be frozen. Someone who is working can do a little work on
Sunday and have meals set up for the week.'
Matoian said the book includes about 93 vegetable and grain recipes.
Even some of the meat dishes mix vegetables with lamb or beef.
`Armenians are known for healthy eating. They were eating yogurt
before it was popular,' Matoian noted. `Our people live very long.'
She and other members of the Guild have been busy since June,
preparing 1,000 cheoregs, a braided brioche-like sweet bread, 5,000
rolled grape leaves and 6,000 meatballs for the upcoming festival.
`We make them every Monday and Tuesday. All of them are ready to be
sold at the festival. People wait in line for them.'
The cookbook is $25 and is available at the festival, located at St.
John's Armenian Church, 22001 Northwestern Highway, Southfield. Or buy
it from the church during business hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Monday-Friday, with cash, check or MasterCard. For more information or
to buy the cookbook, call the church office at (248) 569-3405. Or
visit the church Web site at www.sjachurch.org.
The festival runs Sept. 22-26. Visit the church Web site for a
complete list of activities.
http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20100919/LIFE/9190325
Also see for recipes http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20100919/LIFE/9190326
From: A. Papazian
Sept 19 2010
New cookbook offers taste of Armenian cuisine, heritage
September 19, 2010
by Sharon Dargay O&E STAFF WRITER
Armenian Cuisine - Preserving Our Heritage, a new cookbook set to
debut Sept. 24 at St. John Armenian Church's fall festival, maintains
culture while eliminating all the `atch-key-chop.'
`There's a saying in Armenian - atch-key-chop - which means `as much
as your eye sees,'' explained Dolly Matoian, an Orchard Lake resident
and co-chair of the Southfield church's Women's Guild cookbook
committee.
When grandma or great-grandma cooked, she often skipped measuring
implements in favor of eyeballing the ingredients - atch-key-chop.
Most of the recipes that St. John's members submitted for the cookbook
were `passed from grandmother to mother or mother to daughters,' and
many used Armenian terms, hand-mixing methods and approximate
measurements.
Matoian said the 12-member committee reviewed about 600 recipes,
narrowed the collection to 450 and updated them to include modern
methods and terms.
`We got things on slips of paper that someone's mother or grandmother
wrote. We had to re-write it so it's as user friendly as possible,'
said Charlene Apigian, a Canton resident and committee member. `Try
explaining a pinch of this or a coffee cup full of that. Coffee cup -
What size is that? We took these things and re-measured and tried
different recipes.'
YOUNG COOKS
The cookbook project grew out of a cooking and recipe DVD production
that Matoian chaired. The church sold about 2,000 DVDs, many to young
members and to non-Armenians as well.
`Many younger people had asked for cooking classes and I asked certain
people I knew who were well known to teach that. Some of the recipes
you had to see being made. Those were on the DVD,' Matoian said. `It
was so well received. These are recipes the younger ones want to learn
to make.'
The cookbook is geared to age 35-50. Pairs of committee members worked
on different sections of the book, updating terminology and method,
testing and tasting.
Apigian and another committee member tackled the meat recipes -
everything from a think Armenian pizza to meat-stuffed vegetables.
Apigian even used her own backyard grape leaves in one recipe.
`What I've always liked about Armenian recipes is the amount of
one-pot meals,' Apigian said, adding `The beauty of this food is that
it all can be frozen. Someone who is working can do a little work on
Sunday and have meals set up for the week.'
Matoian said the book includes about 93 vegetable and grain recipes.
Even some of the meat dishes mix vegetables with lamb or beef.
`Armenians are known for healthy eating. They were eating yogurt
before it was popular,' Matoian noted. `Our people live very long.'
She and other members of the Guild have been busy since June,
preparing 1,000 cheoregs, a braided brioche-like sweet bread, 5,000
rolled grape leaves and 6,000 meatballs for the upcoming festival.
`We make them every Monday and Tuesday. All of them are ready to be
sold at the festival. People wait in line for them.'
The cookbook is $25 and is available at the festival, located at St.
John's Armenian Church, 22001 Northwestern Highway, Southfield. Or buy
it from the church during business hours, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Monday-Friday, with cash, check or MasterCard. For more information or
to buy the cookbook, call the church office at (248) 569-3405. Or
visit the church Web site at www.sjachurch.org.
The festival runs Sept. 22-26. Visit the church Web site for a
complete list of activities.
http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20100919/LIFE/9190325
Also see for recipes http://www.hometownlife.com/article/20100919/LIFE/9190326
From: A. Papazian