When talking about food, Zlatko Puntijar (62), restaurateur, collector, and publisher of historical cookbooks, does not speak only about tastes and aromas, but also takes us back into the distant past. His latest book, "New Cookbook" by Marx Rumpolt from 1581, is a true treasure that takes us back to the kitchens of Croatian greats and nobles of the 16th century.
"This is the oldest cookbook that existed in Croatia. Unfortunately, the original was stolen from the National and University Library in Zagreb, but I managed to find a valuable copy, had it bound in leather, and returned it to the library, at least in that form. Then we translated it from German and published it, with identical illustrations and Gothic letters," says Zlatko, who has already published "The Cookbook of Count Nikola Zrinski" from 1662, as well as "The First Croatian Cookbook" from 1813.
However, Rumpolt‘s cookbook holds a special place because it is the oldest and testifies to how people ate in Croatia almost five hundred years ago.
"The author of the book, Marx Rumpolt, worked at courts all over Europe, so he collected recipes from various parts of the continent. Everywhere he went, he learned and picked up something new. He was a top chef of his time. For someone to decide to finance the publication of a book at that time, it meant they had to be sure they were working with the best. The book really contains all kinds of dishes, with lots of spices mentioned, and dishes from swans, seals, to peacocks. Interestingly, ginger was already mentioned back then as being used a lot in dishes, then disappeared for many years, and only began to be used intensively again about thirty years ago.
Recipes on the Stari Puntijar Menu
What surprises us today is the fact that turkey had already become established on our tables in the 16th century, and very quickly after it arrived from America," reveals Puntijar, who is very passionate when talking about food because he is not only a publisher and collector but also a man who has dedicated his life to gastronomy.
He notes that he will include several dishes from the cookbook on the menu of his restaurant Stari Puntijar. Among others, venison Hungarian style and certainly three or four turkey dishes, as there are about twenty recipes for that type of meat. However, all these dishes, which are three hundred or even five hundred years old, Zlatko emphasizes, must be adapted to the present day because the ingredients and spices had a completely different taste. Zlatko especially enjoys working with game and preparing dishes from the many cookbooks he owns.
"There is a lot of quality game in Croatia, mine comes from the area around Varaždin. I also love old dishes like Bavarian schnitzel, veal in lemon sauce from the first Croatian cookbook, apples in dumplings, and similar," he says. Otherwise, Zlatko comes from a family that has been in hospitality since 1838, and today he is the owner of the Museum of Gastronomy, the largest collection of cookbooks in Europe, with more than three thousand titles.
Lamb for Popes
"I have two thousand menus, a thousand guides, I‘ve been collecting all my life, I‘m a collector, cookbooks are my priority, everything else I do on the side, from traveling to the internet, acquaintances and friends help as well. I even have the smallest cookbook in the world. Through my love of collecting old cookbooks, I get inspiration for our menu," explains Zlatko.
Although he has hosted many famous people in his restaurant, he was most impressed by the visit of two popes. In Stari Puntijar, he hosted Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI.
"We made them Bavarian schnitzel and schnitzel in lemon sauce, but they insisted on lamb chops," says Zlatko, who six years ago appeared with his eldest daughter Matea on a cooking show in China.
The hour-and-a-half show was dedicated to Croatia, they prepared venison in black soup, Bavarian schnitzel, and apple dumplings, and as a side dish, green rice with spinach.
"I wanted to make something different, but still include rice, since the Chinese are most famous for that," concludes Zlatko.
Venison Hungarian Style
Ingredients for 4 people
Small onion, 0.8 kg venison, 1 apple, teaspoon mustard, a little pepper, salt and cinnamon, 100 g breadcrumbs, 15–20 almonds, 15–20 raisins, 1 dl oil or 0.10 kg fat
PREPARATION
Sauté the onion, add the meat, pour in beef stock, add grated apple, mustard, pepper, salt, and cinnamon. When well sautéed, thicken with breadcrumbs if needed, and towards the end add crushed almonds and finely chopped raisins.
Chicken with Parsley Root
Ingredients for 4 people
Parsley root, 1 dl wine, tablespoon honey, pepper, a little saffron, ginger, breadcrumbs, meat of one chicken, oil or fat
PREPARATION
Cut up the chicken and sauté the pieces, then add grated parsley root, pour in wine and stock, add honey, pepper, saffron, and ginger and let it simmer. At the end, thicken with breadcrumbs if needed.
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