Marusia (Maria) Kvit Flynn was born in Cleveland, Ohio, a city with a large Ukrainian population.  Her parents, refugees from Ukraine after WWII, had distant relatives in Cleveland; therefore, chose it as their new home. Growing up there as a young girl, Maria was not interested in cooking.  Not until she had finished college and found a job in Vienna, Austria at the United Nations did she start to think about cooking.  Often Maria would call her mother, a wonderful Ukrainian cook, and ask her for home recipes like Holubtsi (stuffed cabbages).   Maria particularly missed the holidays which were filled with traditional Christmas dishes such as Walnut Torte, pictured with the recipe on TCI website.

According to Maria, Ukrainian cuisine is very similar to other European cooking especially when preparing meats. The meats are cooked until very tender. If the meats have bones, “they fall off the bone when done. Steaks are not a staple in Ukrainian cuisine.”  What is in great abundance in Ukraine, as in other Eastern European countries, are dough dumplings, like baked Pyrohy and Varenyky (pierogis) which are boiled like pasta.  The fillings are varied from potato, and cheese, to meat,  mushrooms, and sauerkraut.  They are then topped with sautéed onions or bacon bits, and a dollop of sour cream.   The dessert version is filled with berries, usually sour cherries, covered in melted butter and sprinkled with confectionery sugar.

Because the United States has so many diverse cuisines, ingredients for Ukrainian dishes are not usually hard to find. Nevertheless, on one occasion, when Maria wanted to make her mother’s Ukrainian soup which Maria was convinced had spinach in it.  It wasn’t until years later that she found out the green leaves in the soup were sorrel leaves, not spinach, making it more tart.  Maria later found that sorrel was generally hard to find in most markets.

Now Maria has her own family, and enjoys cooking for them and others.  She has many Italian favorites like Chicken Cacciatore, and Chicken Piccata.  Maria eats very little beef, but does cook Beef Goulash, a family favorite especially with her Hungarian son-in-law.  Other Ukrainian dishes that Maria enjoys making are Chicken Kyiv and Borscht, a beet soup, that can either be made with or without pork.

When cooking daily meals, Maria likes to use recipes that are quick, easy yet delicious.  She says, “I am not one to linger in the kitchen.”   With company though she makes more complicated gourmet dishes like Shaslyk, marinated meat on skewers, grilled with vegetables.  “When all is said and done, and my guests enjoy my meal, that makes me most happy!”