Sweet and Salty English: Teaching English Through Baking: American Pancakes

By The U.S. Army (Culinary Soldier) [CC-BY-2.0
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)],
via Wikimedia Commons

Last month at the American Corners in Belgrade I premiered “Sweet and Salty English,” teaching English through baking. That’s right, baking. Julia Childs re-incarnate. Well, not really, but it's really cool! Each month spouses will showcase American baked goods that are not common in Serbia. We’ll teach them how to make our favorite sweet comfort foods like chocolate chip cookies, brownies, and pancakes. What better way to spread goodwill than through sugar? 

By Joshua

Serbians specialize in crepes (sweet and savory ones- my mouth is watering as I type), but have rarely tasted good ole fluffy American pancakes. So, on a Saturday morning, in my typical Balkan trolley cart, I lugged an electric griddle, a transformer, all the ingredients in individual Tupperware, and my grandmother’s apron (for good luck!). I had converted all the ingredients into the metric system, translated some tricky words and printed out copies of the recipe. At the Corners, I had volunteers come up and help me prepare the pancakes; they were appalled at the lumpy batter and amused by the bubble test. When all was said and done, we gobbled down the delicious pancakes. A journalist from Mondo newspaper filmed the baking demonstration and posted the recipe online. My kids thought I was famous. 

My trusty trolley cart

Since it was such a hit, I thought other spouses abroad might want to reach out to their local communities sharing something all people love: Sweets! All you need are copies of the recipes, the ingredients (make sure you can get them locally), and the finished product (since actual oven use might be a logistical issue). Each month I’ll have a copy of the recipes on my blog for you to share and enjoy. Click here for the printable version of the recipe. Prijatno! Give me some sugar!

Sweet and Salty English

American Pancakes

English	Serbian
Ingredients	састојци
Flour	Брашно
Sugar	Шећер
baking powder	прашак за пециво
Salt	Со
Milk	Млеко
Oil	Уље
Egg	јаје
Mixing bowl
To combine	комбиновати
To mix, to stir	мешати
stroke	замах
To moisten	овлажити
Lump	Грумен
Griddle/frying pan	Тигањ
To bounce	одскакивати
To sputter	пуцкетање
To grease	премазати
To turn	окренути
Rim	обод
broken	сломљен
bubble	мехур

Ingredients:

1 cup (225 ml) flour

1-2 tablespoons (15-30ml) sugar

10 grams baking powder

½ teaspoon (5ml) salt

175 ml milk

2 tablespoons (30ml) vegetable oil

1 egg, slightly beaten

In a mixing bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Mix the milk, butter and egg in a small bowl.  Quickly stir the wet ingredients into the dry ones, mixing with just a few strokes to moisten the flour.  There will still be lumps.

Heat griddle or frying pan until a drop of water will bounce and sputter.  Grease lightly.  Spoon on batter, spreading cakes to the size you want.  Don’t crowd or they’ll be hard to turn.  Turn when the rims are full of broken bubbles and before center bubbles break (takes about 2-3 minutes).  Turn only once.  The second side won’t take as long.

Yield: 12 small pancakes

The Gift of Grace: A Cultural Experience

When we live in a foreign country, our family tries to get involved in local activities.  We feel we have so much to learn from other cultures.  So, doing her part, my 6-year-old daughter has been taking ballet lessons in a Serbian ballet school for a year and a half now.  Up until March, my daughter was the first and only American in the school which has, I'm guessing, close to 100 students.  I'm learning Serbian and can get by with the Serbian-speaking director, fishing for words I know and then surveying the Serbian parents for clarifications.  My daughter who has some Slavic language experience from Macedonian preschool and is learning Serbian is the ultimate courageous soul.  I told her the first day of ballet class, that she would have to do more listening with her eyes than her ears.  "Do whatever the teacher does," I advised, something I have finessed over my years in non-English speaking countries.  Then I watched my brave little ballerina shadowing her teacher, almost always underfoot.

Vesna, her ballet instructor and director of the school, is an incredible teacher.  She teaches by performing imaginative stories, with her class of about 20 rapt six and seven year olds.  Every class is a journey into a world of fantasy.  She has the students act out characters, integrating ballet moves along the way.  During stretching exercises their fingertips are bugs crawling down to reach their toes; their arms are butterflies breaking out of a cocoon.  Sometimes they are walking in the rain holding "umbrellas" over their heads and leaping over puddles.  The children enact the stories with their bodies, pantomiming the moves.  Isn't that what ballet is in essence?  Telling a story with the body, symbolizing all the strength, grace, and effort of life?

Last year's winter performance on our Christmas Eve (the Serbs celebrate Orthodox Christmas in January!) was a test of my Serbian skills.  Of course, all the bulletins regarding the performance were in Serbian.  It's Serbia.  I wouldn't expect anything different.  The litany of instructions, buying the right costumes, finding out the details of the place and time of the rehearsals, and directions for the day of the performance stretched my Serbian capabilities to the max.  With a few trips and stumbles (on my part), and then some marvelously executed flutterings and leaps (on my daughter's part), her night as a snowflake and reindeer could not have been better.

Then in March, my brave friend (who doesn't speak a lick of Serbian) enrolled her fearless 4-year-old daughter in ballet.  When she started the class, my daughter took her by the hand and lead her through the hour, showing her the overseas survival skills that took me years to acquire: watch ever so closely,  do what they do, smile a lot, give hugs at the end.

And then something beautiful happened.

In May, in preparation for the end-of-the-year performance, a bulletin informing the students of the details was posted on the front door of the school.  Now here's the kicker:  the bulletin was in both Serbian and English.  Tears filled my eyes when I saw the sign.  Oh!  Since my daughter's friend had already left for summer vacation, that notice in English was for me.  For me.  Ahhhhh.  What an incredible gesture of sensitivity and caring.  I was so touched.

This fall, my daughter advanced to the "big girls" class and had to leave her friend behind.  Her mother and I weren't certain what would happen.  Well, we shouldn't have worried.  On their own volition, neither will miss a class and have been dancing their little hearts out the last few months.  No one needs words to dance!

This year's winter performance is coming up, on December 23 (whew! No Christmas Eve scramble this year!).  A few weeks ago, the information bulletin was posted on the door.  Once again, they gave a Christmas gift to the two crazy English-speaking moms:  it's in English.

And once again we learned something incredibly marvelous from this Serbian cultural experience:
the gift of grace.

Thank you, Vesna.
Hvala puno, draga Vesna.

20 Questions: Naoma Lee

Naoma Lee

The writer, educator, mother of three adores life abroad, especially the parts that emphasize what is most important to her: family, friends, and community.

Maandazi or Dunkin' Donuts? 

Dunkin' Donuts (how on earth do you know about Maandazi?)  I have my sources ;)

What do friends and family back home say about your choice of lifestyle?

They are all very proud of us, although they miss us quite a bit.

What's the loveliest thing you've experienced at post?  

Attending weddings and funerals of local friends (being invited in to their celebrations and mournings)

The scariest?

Having our car broken into multiple times in a short period of time.

What is one thing you have learned from each of the different cultures among which you have lived?

Uganda: Mi bambino es su bambino.  Don't be surprised to have your kids taken from you by well meaning strangers (they won't go far . . .).

Macedonia: There's always time for coffee.  (Meaning, people matter and time spent lingering builds good relationships).

Kenya: Harambee works.  (Harambee=together we can. It's social banking at it's core and it keeps the country afloat).

You have the best chefs from all of the places you've lived in your kitchen right now.  What are you having for dinner?
Butter chicken and garlic naan.  (But for lunch I had 5 Guys and a big bag of fries.  It's hypothetical which is calorie free).

How many degrees of separation are there between you and Steven Spielberg?

Two-ish.

What is some advice you would give to someone just starting out or considering this lifestyle?

leesonthego.blogspot.com

You need to maintain an open mind, open heart and open hand mentality in order to fully enjoy all that this lifestyle can offer.

How do you socialize at post?

I have a small but close knit core group of girlfriends and our families spend a lot of time together socializing at one another's homes (with kids) or dining out, etc. with grown ups only on occasion. 

If you had to evacuate in 12 hours, what are three things you would take with you (besides clothes, toiletries, and your family)?

(assuming this is hypothetical and that my hypothetical suitcase can accommodate sizable and cumbersome objects...)

Kenya: Carved wooden chest and framed paintings we have. 

What is the one thing you wish you could have taken with you from each of the countries you've lived?

Uganda:  Our church.  We attended a church that was 80% Ugandan and was a really special community for us.

Macedonia:  Cases of wine and ajvar. (And the 4 seasons).

Kenya:  The coast.  We love Kenyan beaches more than any other in the world.

You have 2 free round-trip tickets to anywhere in the world.  Where will you go? 

(Can I have 5?)  If only 2, but assuming my parents will come be with the kids, I'd say Belgium (Brugge) or Istanbul.

Would you rather be on a 14 hour flight or have 3 layovers? 

14 hours.  No doubt.

What is one book everyone should read? 

(One??? How to choose . . . ?)  The Bible.  After that "The Water Is Wide" by Pat Conroy

Real books or e-books? 

Tough choice!  For this period in life, e-books.

You and a shopping cart can be beamed into Target for 5 minutes.  What would you put in your cart before Scottie beams you back to Kenya? 

The entire Health and Beauty section (toilet paper, shampoo, toothpaste, lip gloss, hair color, diapers . . . etc, etc. etc.)

What is one thing you miss the most from your home country? 

(Other than family...?)

Convenience. (Followed closely by: Familiarity. Smells ~ flowers, the beach, rain, home).

Where is home? 

Wherever we are all together.  (And if I had my choice, we'd be all together in California more often . . .).

How would you title your autobiography? 

Lees On The Go ~ A Life Lived and Loved Abroad

Would you do it all over again?
ABSOLUTELY!

Follow Naoma's amazing journey at
http://www.leesonthego.blogspot.com!