Polistovsky Reserve, Pushkin's favorite dishes and monastic delicacies

The study of the gastronomic side of the Pskov region will begin with the Polistovsky Reserve. It is the largest supreme marsh system in Europe and the best place for digital detox. There is no cellular communication, let alone the Internet. In the reserve you will not only be guided along the bog trails and ride on a "mad stool" on a narrow gauge, but also properly fed. In the guest house in the village Cevlo (where several sightseeing routes start) you'll be treated to traditional Pskov region dishes: harcho with pearl croup or "rye", winter flapjacks, sour cabbage. A compote of blueberry and cranberry tincture can be a separate reason for a visit. The tour has to be booked in advance. For excursion it is necessary to have rubber boots, preferably higher. In memory of visiting the reserve you can buy herbal tea collections from the Polistava swamps.

From the food of the village we'll move on to the kitchen of the nobility. At the hotel complex "Altun Manor" there is a restored old barn, which houses a restaurant. Here guests are offered to make a gastronomic excursion to the Pushkin era. Restaurant visitors will be served with a bottle (beet with fish) or soup with brisket, a large chopped veal cutlet stuffed with spinach. For dessert - blanmange, gooseberry jam by recipe of nanny and golf apple pie. All these dishes were the poet's favorite. Oh, yeah, the side dish is served with boiled, slightly fried Pushkin potatoes. They say that Alexander Sergeyevich himself invented a tricky recipe for potatoes. One day the poet sat down with his friends and came home when everyone was asleep. Pushkin did not wake the servants, but decided to cook dinner himself. He fried yesterday's cold potatoes in butter, putting a frying pan in the oven on the coals. Subsequently, Alexander Sergeyevich repeatedly treated the guests with this simple but hearty dish. Orders for "Pushkin's lunch" are accepted for groups of 15 or more people, so individual guests should leave a request for lunch in advance. In any case, it is necessary to visit this institution: no one has left here yet hungry.

At 18 km from Pushkinskie Gory, in the village of Stolbushino, rises Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. To support the old temple, there was an idea to organize the production of natural products in the skete, which since ancient times glorified Pskov region. All goods are made by hand. Honey knockdown, 12 herbs and spices are in particular demand. Also here they make jam, juices of cold pressing without sugar, candied fruit, stewed berries and Ivan tea by special recipes. The leaves of this plant are picked by hand. There is no trade in the hermitage itself, as it is an active monastery with strict rules. You can find food in the Pushkin Mountains: in the church bench of the Svyatogorsk Assumption Monastery (where the poet's grave is located), in the parking lot near the cafe "Svyatogor", at the entrance to the museum "Mikhailovskoe" from the side of Bugrovo (Arina-R Hotel).

We'll stay in the Pushkin Mountains for dinner. In the restaurant "Zaozerie" you can be supplemented with dishes of European and Russian cuisine. The menu is standard, though something will pleasantly surprise you: "Olivier" with crayfish necks, pikeperch rolls with lemon chips, cutlets and dumplings made of moose.

Let's get out of the car and have a rest in the vicinity of Lake Dubets. The lake is large, but with swampy shores, it is surrounded by mixed forest. It is a favorite place for fishing among locals: there live bream, perch, pike and other fish species.

After long walks in the countryside, the most pleasant thing to do is to stay in a cozy hotel and sleep as soon as possible.