On the list of your future weekends: Warsaw, to see and taste…
Umieść Warszawę na swojej weekendowej liście, zobacz i posmakuj tego wspaniałego miasta…
Warsaw, a city destroyed during the bombings of the Second World War, was rebuilt with such meticulous perfection that UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site.
Today the capital of Poland is the beating heart and intellectual center of the country as well as an eclectic cultural space that relives the traditions of the past and projects itself into the future. If you are passionate about history, music and art, both classical and contemporary, Warsaw is a destination to put on your list of future weekends.
Not to mention gastronomy … but let’s go in order.
TO BE SEEN
The Old Town (Stare Miasto) Unesco Heritage, perfectly rebuilt after the bombings of the Second World War.
Market Square (Rynek Starego Miasta) with characteristic colorful houses and the statue of a Little Mermaid, sister of the most famous one in Copenhagen. Castel Square dominated by the Royal Castle, residence of Polish royalty between the 16th and 18th centuries-
The Royal Route that leads to the Wilanow Residence, a beautiful Baroque palace known as the “Polish Versailles”.
The Palace of Culture and Science, a 42-storey skyscraper (the highest in Poland) From the terrace you can admire a wonderful view over the rooftops of Warsaw
The Jewish Ghetto Before the Nazi occupation, 400,000 Jews lived in Warsaw, an indefinite number of Jews died. The Memory Road commemorates them with 16 granite blocks and the monument to the Heroes of the Ghetto
Warsaw Uprising Museum Multimedia itinerary that replicates the atmosphere of the 1944 revolt and the end of the Second World War
Rivolta di Varsavia – Powstanie Warszawskie
The bank of the Vistula river offers a suggestive walk where fashion and culture meet, here The Plażowa bar hosts free concerts performed by the best young Polish musicians. Speaking of music, in the Lazienski Park you can ammire the monument to Fryderyk Chopin, universally considered the prince of musical romanticism. Concerts are held under the monument which pays homage to the maestro’s music.
The Lazienki Park, is an enchanting 17th-century Baroque project, It hosts the Museum, the Palace on the Water, the Myślewicki Palace, the White House, the Orangery and a neoclassical amphitheater.
On the other side of Warsaw discover the Wedel Factory which produces the best chocolate, you can take tours and tasting and see the Praga district which escaped the bombings of the Second World War. Roman Polanski chose it to shoot the film “The Pianist” Today the neighborhood is a favorite destination for artists, designers, architects, photographers and is full of bars, restaurants, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces.
Wojciech Modest Amaro
The undisputed star of the Polish culinary scene is chef Modest Amaro, a TV personality, a book author and Poland’s first Michelin Star.
I had the opportunity to experience his superlative cuisine in his restaurant Atelier Amaro in Warsaw and, accoring to my column… I had to ask him a dessert recipe: the heart-shaped ginger cheesecake … to be loved, really!
GINGER CHEESECAKE
Ingredients
750g whipped cream
450g ricotta cheese
450g philadelphia cheese
80g ginger grated
100g honey
7 gelatine leaves
Mix well ricotta cheese and pass through sieve. Add philadelhpia cheese, ginger , honey and combine together. Measure 1/5 of cream and heat up with soaked gelatin leaves – add to mixture and blend well. Rest of whipped cream beat to stable peaks and add to the rest ingredients. Mix well. Pour into a tray or form. Let it sit in the fridge for at least 6hrs.
WAFFLE DOUGH
250g plain flour
30g sugar
7g salt
175g melted butter
212g milk
12g fresh yeast
Vanilla essence
85g egg yolk
15g egg whites
Extra 180ml milk
Mix well salt, sugar, flour in one bowl.
In a second bowl mix egg whites, egg yolk and few drops of vanilla essence.
In small pot warm up milk to 40’c , add yeast and let it start foaming for few minutes. Than add to egg mixture. Next add melted but cool butter and flour at last. Mix to smooth butter. After one hour add additional 180ml of milk and mix again Fry in waffle machine for 5-6minutes.
CHESTNUT TOFFEE
2 ltr cream
1kg sugar
250g chestnuts precooked
250g cold butter
Caramelize sugar in large pot , add cream and reduce by half . blend chestnuts with some of the caramel cream in a blender and return to a pot , boil for several minutes than add slowly cold butter to incorporate until smooth.
PRESENTATION
Smear the hot waffle with chestnut caramel, grate some fresh ginger than cover with cheesecake. Enjoy!
INFO
Atelier Amaro
Polonia Travel
