Ajvar

 

I first had Ajvar (a sweet or spicy relish made from bell peppers and eggplant from the Balkans) when I lived in Germany in the 1990s.

We had a Middle School Assembly where we had Refugees from the on-going Wars in the Former Yugoslavia come and tell us about the War, their Culture and their Food. After the presentation we had a sampling of foods, like Ajvar, from the Balkans.

Every Nationality (Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, North Macedonian, Montenegrin, Kosovar, Slovenian, etc.) have their own versions of Ajvar as do every Family.

In 2010 my Mom and I went to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro and had lots of Ajvar (all the different kinds – homemade and store bought.)

When I lived in New York and Metro DC I was able to get Ajvar on a regular basis – especially at the Commissary, but since moving up here I have only ever been able to get it through the mail – until now.

Last week, when I was in a larger Town 5 Towns from mine and with 3 large Supermarkets, I found a jar of Homemade Ajvar imported from North Macedonia and so bought it.

Only until recently has my State been known for its bland food (my Mom would carry sauces in her purse when we went out because most places here only ever used Salt and Pepper to flavor their food.)

Things are changing and we have finally entered the 21^st Century of International Food.

Not only can you now get things like Ajvar, Russian Olivier Salad, Ukrainian Borsch, German Curry Ketchup, etc. in the larger Markets, but the local Restaurants have also changed.

In the next Town from mine we now have a Mexican Restaurant (owned and run by people from Mexico), an Irish Restaurant (owned and run by people from Ireland), an Italian Restaurant (owned and run by people from Italy.)

 Not too far away we also have a Greek Restaurant (owned and run by a Greek Veteran of the US Military), a Chinese Restaurant (owned and run by people from Hong Kong), etc.

As someone who has lived and travelled around the World I am really glad about all of these changes.

Even the local places (like Dinners) that have always been here and are run by locals have started to spice up their food to cater to all the new Residents that live here year-round as well as all the Summer Residents and the Tourists.