Give us today our daily bread (Rūdolfs and Irma Grava)

The Liepāja handicrafts teacher Rudolfs Fridrihs Grava made this bread platter in 1929 as a wedding anniversary gift for his wife, Irma Grava (née Mindenbergs). Irma and Rudolfs took this platter with them when they fled with their four youngest children during the Second World War, leaving Liepāja aboard an evacuation ship. Later, they packed the platter among their belongings when moving from a refugee camp in Germany to their new country of residence, the United States. After arriving in Baltimore, USA, the bread platter proved useful—it is believed that for many years it served in the Grava family’s large household both as a bread platter and as a cherished reminder of their wedding in their homeland. The plate was donated to the “Latvians Abroad” museum by Rūdolfs and Irma’s children, Artūrs Grava and Edīte Zariņa.

Whenever my mother baked bread, the entire house smelled wonderful (Mārīte Krūze)

Mārite Krūze (USA) tells the story of her mother, Valentīne Upats (née Macāns, born in Rēzekne in 1924), and her bread baking.

My mother, Valentīne Upats, recalled how she began baking rye bread during her retirement years. Her bread became very popular in our New Jersey congregation. She baked with great joy and generously shared her bread with others.

The well-known Visvaldis Dzenis even wanted to purchase a special mixing machine to make kneading easier and to be able to produce a larger quantity of bread, but my mother refused. It was important to her to knead the dough herself—to do it properly and to feel the dough with her own fingers. She also had a bit of arthritis in her fingers, and this activity served as good exercise for them.

My mother believed she had received the recipe from a relative in Latvia, and later adapted it to suit herself and the ingredients available in the United States.

Whenever my mother baked bread, the entire house smelled wonderful for two days! I remember that once the loaves were finally baked, my mother and father would sit down at the table and immediately enjoy the fresh, warm bread. My father always received the first loaf. His task was to slice the bread evenly so that delicious buttered sandwiches could be prepared for the church luncheon table. For this purpose, he had purchased a special slicing device.

It was always important to my mother to find high-quality rye flour. She became acquainted with a baker who milled his own rye. My mother spent an entire day with him, discussing the sourdough starter, the dough composition, and other details. Her bread was baked in a wood-fired oven—and this was the loaf she was most proud of. The baker honored her by selling “Valija’s Latvian Rye Bread” at the market that summer.

We tried baking rye bread together, but it seems I never quite acquired the skill… Perhaps one day I will try again to bake this delicious bread, though I already know it will never receive the same admiration as my mother’s bread.

A proper country loaf (Kristaps and Zinaida Jaunzemis)

In a letter held in the collection of the museum Latvians Abroad, Kristaps Jaunzemis writes from Latvia to his wife Zinaīda in Nebraska on July 18, 1959:

It may sound strange, but what if during my leave in the countryside I could get hold of one “proper” country loaf of bread—dried and sent to you? It seems so hard to believe that for a full fifteen years you haven’t been able to taste rye bread! I think I myself would have become quite weak if I had had to live on white bread alone!

The family was separated during the Second World War. Legionnaire Kristaps Jaunzemis, after deportation to Siberia, returned to Latvia, where Latvian rye bread was readily available to him. Meanwhile, Kristaps’s wife Zinaīda and their children had fled Latvia as refugees during the war and ended up in the United States. Although contact between husband and wife was re-established through correspondence, they never met again in their lifetime.

Alma’s kneading trough (Alma Upesleja)

This kneading trough was made by Kārlis Upesleja (1902–1989) for his wife Alma (1906–2002) after their arrival in the United States, so that she could continue baking Latvian bread even while living in exile. Alma baked rye bread for her family and also for the Latvian community in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Their daughter Anna Vējiņa (1932–2015) inherited the trough and continued her mother’s role—baking rye bread. In memory of Anna, the Milwaukee congregation’s newsletter states: “We thank God for Anna’s service both on the parish council, in the Daugavas Vanagi, at the Latvian House, and in the Credit Association. The bread she baked brought blessings to countless Latvians!”
The linen towel, with the monogram AU (Alma Upesleja), was most likely brought from Latvia on her refugee journey. The towel was used to cover the dough while it was rising. Alma also used a wooden paddle for baking, to mix the starter with water and flour.
The kneading trough, towel and paddle were donated to the “Latvians Abroad” museum by Vita Kākulis.

Thai style “frikadeļu” soup (Inese Grava-Gubiņa)

Fragment from Inese Grava-Gubiņa’s interview with Latvieši pasaulē curator Marianna Auliciema, November 28, 2025.

Around 2006, 2007, and 2008—that was the time when we began teaching the first Latvian cooking classes at the Gaŗezers Summer High School. After that, a year passed, and I returned again—this time for the second time—to teach.

We worked with teenagers—young people aged 14–17. In the first year, I think Latvian cuisine as a class hadn’t been offered for some time, or only very minimally, and I don’t really know how it went back then. But in the year when I started, the group consisted only of girls. I remember how we laughed and joked, saying that those silly boys preferred to go play volleyball on the beach in the heat. They could have come into a cool room, cooked food together, and eaten. And besides—all those beautiful girls they could have gotten to know better!

In the second year, I had boys! Somehow they figured out that it wasn’t so bad to be in the kitchen and work together making food. It was very interesting… there were no problems in either year, but the dynamic completely changed once the boys showed up.

We already made soup in the first year—”frikadeļu” soup, though not exactly the usual kind. I wanted something more interesting, so I had brought along some special Thai-style spices from home. Around Gaŗezers there aren’t many exotic shops where you can get everything. I had brought (I don’t know what it’s called in Latvian) lemongrass—citronzāle—and something called galangal (I don’t know the Latvian name either)—a root that looks like ginger but has a different taste and aroma. And kaffir lime leaves—those things I brought with me from Canada. And then coconut milk.

So we made the “frikadeļu” soup the way it’s usually made—add whatever you want! I think I even made it with chicken or turkey, which I found at a big grocery store, because I had to make a very large amount—such a quantity! We made the meatballs and cooked the soup. Then we added the galangal, lemongrass, and kaffir lime leaves. And I also added—because I had them—dried hot peppers. I grow them in my garden and then simply dry them. In winter, if I need a little bit of heat, I throw one dried pepper into the pot, let it cook there, and then pull it out. It gives just a little kick, not so much that your tongue is on fire.

That’s how we made the soup, and then—right before it was ready—we poured in a few cans of coconut milk. And there you have it: Thai-style “frikadeļu” soup!

I already knew it would be a hit, because these young people… Well, there were some things they really liked, but other things they ate rather reluctantly. This soup—they went back for a first, second, third bowl, and I think some of them would have eaten even more if they hadn’t had to go to their next classes. They absolutely loved it! It’s “frikadeļu” soup, but with a different flavor.

Her recipe relied on memory (Recipe – Modris Pukulis)

Modris Pukulis writes:
“The recipe for this bread comes from watching my mother making it – stopping her at times to measure what amount of ingredients were in hand. My mother was a great cook of her native Latvian food which we all ate while living at home (for me that was until I left for college at age 17). We all spoke Latvian as that was our first language learned at home and one that we were required to speak by and to our parents.
Not sure of the year but it was some time before I left for college that I decided that I wanted to learn how to make this bread – I had eaten other versions of this bread as made by Latvian friends of my parents but none were as good as hers.
I watched my mother through the whole two-day process, measuring ingredients as she went along, and taking notes (my memory not as good as hers). To my knowledge she never had a recipe but recalled everything from memory, though each time she made it, it tasted the same. We would eat it for breakfast with a slice of cheese or salami on top, and eat it for dinner with any soup she made. Though my favorite was the bread with my father’s smoked eel on top.
I similarly watched her make my favorite soup (biešu zupa – beet soup) and still make it whenever I make saldskābmaize (sourdough bread).
One thing I don’t know how to make,though I will try some day is speķu rauši.
Moe (or Mod as my sisters call me) Pukulis”