Back to school: childhood recipes Muscovites make

From our school days we remember not only copybooks with slanted lines and the squeak of chalk on the board, but also the cafeteria. Some warmly associate it with breaks from lessons and light-hearted duty shifts. Others — with the taste of that very mini pizza, fruit compote, or airy buns. Today these simple dishes can take us back to youth, when crushes felt brighter and the only worries were quizzes.

For Teachers’ Day, the Food.ru media platform found out which nostalgic school dishes Muscovites search for most often — we share the ranking and recipes in this material.

Overall, on the platform residents of the capital opened school-dish recipes more than 9,400 times, and this year views have exceeded 2,000.

Leading the ranking is the legendary mini pizza from the school cafeteria. Moscow residents viewed the recipe on the media platform more than 3,300 times. It turns out this childhood favorite is easy to make, and the main ingredients can be found in every home.

Second place goes to the salad «School», with more than 1,100 views. Its main ingredients — carrot and apple — give the dish a juicy, sweet taste and provide the body with many vitamins and trace elements. The salad is dressed with sour cream: this helps fiber absorb better.

Rounding out the top three most popular school dishes is gravy with sausages. Muscovites viewed the recipe more than 600 times. The gravy can be served with any side, for example pasta or buckwheat porridge.

In fourth place is the dessert «Poloska» — a shortcrust pastry bar with fruit preserve or jam, enjoyed by Soviet schoolchildren. The filling can be swapped for any you like — for example, lemon curd or another custard. The recipe collected almost 600 views on the media platform.

Fifth place goes to another variation of the school mini pizza, which gathered more than 500 views. Here the ingredients include mushrooms, olives, and basil, and yogurt is used for the dough.

We suggest recreating the most popular of these recipes at home to briefly return to carefree childhood days.

Mini pizza from the school cafeteria

Ingredients:

• wheat flour — 500 g;

• water — 250 ml;

• egg — 1;

• cooked sausage — 200 g;

• tomato paste — 50 g;

• pickled cucumber — 1;

• cheese — 150 g;

• vegetable oil — 30 ml;

• instant dry yeast — 1 tsp;

• salt — 1 tsp;

• sugar — 1 tbsp;

• mayonnaise — optional.

Method:

1. In a bowl, mix water, yeast, and sugar. Leave for 10 minutes until foamy. Add salt and the egg, and stir.

2. Sift the flour and add it to the egg mixture. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, then add the vegetable oil.

3. Grease a deep bowl with oil. Place the dough inside and drizzle a little more oil on top. Cover and leave in a warm place for 1–2 hours.

Tip: a preheated oven works as a warm spot — set the bowl with the dough beside the oven, with the door slightly ajar.

1. Dice the sausage and pickled cucumber. Grate the cheese on a medium grater.

2. Optionally, dilute the tomato paste in 50 ml of water.

3. Divide the dough into equal pieces and shape into balls. Dust with flour and roll out.

4. Preheat the oven to 200 °C (392 °F). Line a baking sheet with parchment and arrange the dough rounds on it. Brush with tomato paste, then add the cucumber pieces, sausage, and cheese. Add mayonnaise if you like.

5. Bake the pizzas for 15 minutes.

6. Serve this handy snack at home with tea or take it on the road, to school, or to work.

Salad «School»

Ingredients:

• carrots — 5 (500 g);

• apples — 2 (150 g);

• sour cream — 100 g;

• sugar — 1 tbsp;

• lemon juice — 1 tsp;

• salt — to taste;

• rye bread — optional.

Method:

1. Wash the apples, then wash and peel the carrots. Grate both on a coarse grater and mix in a salad bowl.

2. Add salt, sugar, and lemon juice to the sour cream. Dress the salad.

3. Serve with a slice of rye bread.

Gravy with sausages

Ingredients:

• sausages — 2;

• carrots — 2 (200 g);

• poultry seasoning — 1 tsp;

• water — 100 ml;

• rye flour — 2 tbsp (60 g).

Method:

1. Wash and peel the carrots. Grate on a medium grater.

2. Remove the casing from the sausages, halve each one, and cut into small slices.

3. Place the carrots and sausages into a dry, preheated skillet and sauté for 10 minutes.

4. Add the flour and stir.

5. Pour in the water and bring to a boil. Simmer for another 5–6 minutes, stirring occasionally so the gravy stays smooth.

6. Serve with any side dish.

Earlier, Muscovites shared how much they spent on Teachers’ Day gifts.