The autumn months are great for a delicious culinary holiday in Croatia, the harvest is ready and now we can enjoy the culinary treats! The grape harvest is done, just the sweet muscat grapes are still harvested, the forests are full with beautiful edible and non-edible mushroom, the chestnuts fall together with the yellow, orange and brown autumn leaves. In Istria the best truffles are found and eaten. Delicious pumpkin-soup, and a speciality in the interior of Croatia is pumpkinseed oil (Bučino ulje), with its green colour and nut-like flavour. This oil is used on leafy green, potato and bean salads, and a dash of pumpkinseed oil gives a nice colour to the pumpkin soup.
The arrival of autumn is culinary celebrated in Croatia with the week of the restaurant, when several restaurants throughout Croatia offer a 3-course meal and a glass of wine for just 100 kuna (~15 euro)! This is a great opportunity to enjoy the Croatian and international cuisine, as the chefs in Croatia are trying to make delicious meals which are variations on traditional Croatian recipes with local Croatian products. The websites listed below give more information and nice photo’s of the Croatian ‘week of the restaurant’.
- Week of the restaurant – official website (engels)
- Week of the restaurant – facebook website
The chestnuts, Maroni – which is the largest variety, but also the ‘normal’ chestnuts found in all forests throughout Croatia are delicious, baked on an open fire, in the oven or cooked and processed into chestnut purée. I think it is nicest to bake the chestnuts and sit outside with your coat on opening the still warm chestnuts with a couple of friends around and a glass of red wine!
For the truffle lover Istria is the place to be in the autumn, as there is a large supply of white truffle and copmpared to Italy and Frabce at a very agreable price. You get value for your money, a thick layer of grated truffle on your steak, soup, past or fish, and then just enjoy! On the menu you will often find the seperate price of the course without trufle, with summer truffle or with the more exclusive white truffle (only in autumn) .
It is not only great to eat in Croatia in the autumn, but the nature is beautiful this time of the year. The leaves are starting to turn, yellow, orange and brown, they whirl down together with the chestnuts, oak-nuts, and walnuts. Also the lakes of Plitvice and Krka are beautiful with the surrounding forests in autumn colours, just as the interior of Istria where the oak and beech forests turn orange.
In autumn Croatia is the perfect culinary destination of Europe!
Food & Drinks
Ask around which restaurants serve local dishes and let yourself be surprised by the delicious local recipes. From Mediterranean cuisine at the coast to continental dishes with local ingredients and inspired by Turkish and Austrian-Hungarian kitchen. Each region can be proud of their specific local delicious dishes. In the interior try a nice fresh white wine with the well known …
Nature & Wildlife
Croatia is a country of contrast and variety in landscapes. The endless coastline with many islands and a Mediterranean climate contrasts beautifully with an interior offering lush green hills, wild mountains and marshy river delta’s. From all the beautiful nature parks of Croatia, the magnificent blue-green lakes and waterfalls from Plitvice national park are the most famous. It is a …
