Tanya Boksha is a Ukrainian foreign exchange student staying with a St. Louis family this year. Last month, Tanya's host family gave her a holiday treat by cooking food dishes from back-home recipes.

Sixteen-year-old Tanya is living with Damon and Jill McCoy and their three kids. She came last August for a year of study at Parkway South High School.

Tanya is one of several foreign students spending the 2003-2004 school year at Parkway South. While they study and experience American life, they also expose St. Louisans to the culture of their native countries.

Tanya with Damon and Jill McCoy

Recently, a number of Parkway foreign students were pictured in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's food section. The article featured some favorite recipes from their native countries.

But, for the January 7 celebration of Tanya's Eastern Orthodox Christmas, her host family turned the tables on her. They fixed her foods from her native Ukraine.

The dishes were a flaming holiday pilaf called "donagan plav." The other was a Russian-style soup, called "dilled borscht." (If you and your family would like to try their recipes, see sidebar below.)

And Tanya's cooks knew what they were doing.

Damon and Jill McCoy had lived in Russia for 1 1/2 years when he resident director of a foreign study program near St. Petersburg in Russia. He speaks fluent Russian, one of the languages Tanya uses.

His "borscht" recipe came from a cookbook that quoted an old Russian saying, "There are as many ways to cook borscht as there are cooks."

And the "donagan plav" recipe was cooked by Yelena Onufrieva, a Ukrainian who now lives in St. Louis. Tanya met Ms. Onufrieva during a school social event.

Tanya enjoyed the foods from home. But, she likes American food and admits her favorite food is ice cream. "I could eat ice cream for breakfast, lunch and dinner," she said.

The McCoy children have their likes and dislikes about Russian foods.

Fourteen-year-old Molly said she likes "mimosa" salad and cabbage rolls, called "golubtsi.' The salad includes hard boiled eggs, tuna, lettuce, apples and mayonnaise. The "golubtsi" is rice and sausage rolled in cabbage leaves and then baked.

But, Molly isn't too fond of "vinigret." That's a vinegar-based, cooked dish which includes potatoes, onions and beets. It's similar to German potato salad.

Seven-year-old Keagan likes Russian "pelmini," which includes meat and potatoes. It's got a coating like ravioli. There's also a meat-less version, where cheese replaces meat.

But, she doesn't like the "mimosa" salad. "I don't like eggs at all," she said.

Molly, Keagan and four-year-old Kelsey all like having Tanya staying with them. Kelsey spoke for her sisters when she said Tanya's "like having another big sister."

(left to right) Tanya, Anna Korunova and Lara Svobada

In addition to interviewing the McCoys, Young Saint Louis.com talked with Tanya and four other foreign students at Parkway South. We talked of their likes-and-dislikes about American food.

They also discussed their impressions of American education.

Tanya said, "I had heard American classes were easier than in Russia. But, I have honors classes here and they are pretty tough."

Igor Gubin is a 17-year-old from Uzbekistan. At slender 6'9", Igor likes to eat. He said his favorite American foods are cheese pizza, hot dogs and "burgers," anything with lots of meat. He added he likes desserts, "anything with sugar or honey."

He said American schools are "better sponsored (equipped) by government." He said schools in his country have set curriculum for all students, with few electives.

Klemens Vogel (left) and Igor Gubin

Sixteen-year-old Anna Korunova of Russia said she doesn't like most American fast foods, with the exception of pizza. She also likes sweet corn and apple sauce.

She also commented about the wide choice of classes in American schools. In her homeland, kids stay with the same group of students for all their years in school.

She said opportunities for theater and art in American schools are much better. Although Russia has a fine reputation for the arts, Anna said, "We pursue all that outside of school."

Sixteen-year-old Lara Svobada is from Austria. She said she helped her host family during the holidays when they baked vanilla croissants. But, mostly she thought American foods had too much sugar and fat.

Her mother has been sending her packages of her favorite Austrian foods.

Sixteen-year-old Klemens Vogel comes from Switzerland. He said, "Basically I love all food, Austrian or American."

He said he was with the same classmates for the first eight grades. Then, the schools split into different courses of study. He's in a college-preparatory "gymnasium," featuring sciences such as biology and chemistry.

 

Ukrainian Holiday Recipes

Here are recipes for holiday foods prepared for Ukrainian exchange student Tanya Boksha during celebration of her Eastern Orthodox Christmas:

Dilled borscht
(Serves 6; Preparation, 25 minutes; Cooking 25 minutes)

Ingredients:

6 beets, peeled and diced
3 carrots, coarsely grated
1 white onion, chopped
3 cups (9 oz./280 grams), shredded cabbage
1 3/4 cups (14 fl. oz/430 milliliters) canned vegetable broth
5 cups (40 fl. oz/1.25 liter) water, plus more if needed
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
3 tablespoons lemon juice
6 tablespoons (3 fl. oz/90 milliliters) lowfat sour cream
1/3 cup (1/3 oz/10 grams) chopped fresh dill

Cooking steps:

• In large saucepan, bring beets, carrots, onion, cabbage, broth, water and pepper to boil.
  
  
• Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the beets are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. If the soup seems too thick, stir in 1/4 cup (2 fl. oz./60 milliliters) water.
  
  
• Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice.
  
  
• To serve hot, ladle into individual bowls. Top each with 1 tablespoon of sour cream and sprinkle with dill.
  
  
• To serve cold, cool at room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least four hours or up to 3 days. Ladle into cups and top with sour cream and dill.

Flaming Holiday Pilaf (Donagan Plav)
(Serves 8)

Distinguished in both appearance and flavor, this dramatic pilaf provides a spectacular yet simple-to-make dish for a festive occasion.

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
2 cups seedless golden raisins
1 1/3 cups dried apricots
2/3 cups water (approximately)
1/4 cup sugar or to taste
2 recipes Plain Rice Pilaf
Baked quinces
Baked apples
Warmed brandy

Cooking steps:

• In a small skillet, melt butter over moderate heat. Add the raisins and sauté until golden brown, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and keep warm.
  
  
• In a small saucepan, combine dried apricots with water and sugar. Cook gently until the liquid in pan is absorbed and apricots are just tender and still intact, not mushy. Add them to raisins and mix together.
  
  
• On a large round serving platter, mound the hot pilaf in shape of mountain. Cover with dried fruit mixture. Place the baked quinces and apples alternately around the pilaf. With a long handle of spoon, make a hole in center of pilaf. Line the opening with aluminum foil and fill with warmed brandy. Ignite the brandy, turn off the lights and serve.

Note: 3/4 cup blanched almonds sauted in butter may be added to the dried fruits.