Fire vodka and cold borscht, flying pigs and Pontius Pilate

It was May 30, 2009. The book was Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, my all-time favorite. There was a warm breeze, and it was still light; as we settled into chairs on the porch, Nick handed me a drink. "Krupnik," he said. Fire Vodka. 

The drink is a lot like the book. Seductive, surprising, at once smooth and fiery, with a complex blend of flavors - and packs a real kick. (recipe below) It goes down very easily, and I kept going back for more. Such was also the case with this book, which I first read in a Russian literature class in college with "Madame Bogo" as we called her - because she said her full name  -- Marianna von Ungern-Sternberg Bogojavlensky --- was too hard to pronounce. I've now read the book at least eight times.

The book's main ingredients: the kind of magical realism most closely associated with Gabriel Garcia Marquez; two plot lines, one set in Communist Moscow, the other in Jerusalem at the time of Christ. And a cast of characters that includes, in the latter plot line, Pontius Pilate, his dog, and Jesus Christ; and, in the former, an ensemble that includes a poet; a novelist; a maid; a number of unimaginative party functionaries; some ordinary Muscovites; the Devil; a flying pig; and Behemoth - a human-sized, gun-toting black cat that walks on its hind legs, travels by street car and swills vodka.

Bulgakov began writing the book in 1928, less than a decade after the Communist government of the Soviet Union was established in the wake of revolution and civil war. He finished it in 1939, but it was suppressed by the Russian government and was not published until 1966. An English translation came out the following year, and Madame Bogo added it to her syllabus in 1971.

In it, Bulgakov skewers the government six ways from Sunday. The Devil comes to Moscow and is MOST displeased; if religion has been abolished, and no one believes in God where does that leave him? Temptation arrives in the form of a marvelous circus with a magic act that grants everyone's wishes, and exposes their avarice - and a lot more. The creative bankruptcy of the "literary elite" and Soviet realism, the insidious culture of informing on neighbors, and the carving up of apartments and fight for living space are all targets of his incisive wit. Glorious, uproarious, laugh-out-loud funny and devastating all at once.  

Some of our book selections lend themselves to culinary coordination, and this one really did. 

Our menu:Fire VodkaHerring appetizers 

Borscht

Beef Stroganoff

Black Russians and Black Forest Cake 

The recipe for Fire Vodka (Krupnik)

1 1/2 cups honey
2/3 cup water1 tsp vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean1/4 tsp nutmeg8 sticks cinnamon2 whole cloves3 strips lemon peel1 bottle vodkaCombine honey, water, vanilla, spices and lemon peel in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add vodka, and serve hot or cold.