Klara Cvitanovich, the co-owner of Drago's Seafood Restaurant in New Orleans and Metairie, La., is from Dubrovnik, Croatia, and she thinks her beloved fritule just might have been the inspiration for the Crescent City tradition of beignets and coffee.

More than 100 years ago, beignets were made famous by the Croatian Jurisich family at the Morning Call coffee stand formerly in the French Market and now in Jefferson parish.

"The Jurisches may have begun serving up a simplified version of the traditional Croatian fritule, and given it the French name of beignet," Cvitanovich says.

Some might dispute this, but my advice is not to overthink it and just get down to enjoying beignets OR fritule, especially at Christmastime when they are traditional.

Other traditional Croatian Christmas recipes include Klara's Krostule recipe, Apple Strudel recipe, Sarma recipe, and Squid Salad recipe.

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Pumpkins are popular throughout Eastern Europe and they show up in soups, vegetables, desserts and, yes, Virginia, even pierogi.

If your family loves dumplings, try Pumpkin Pierogi with White Wine Cream Sauce. They would be a great addition to Thanksgiving dinner as an appetizer or side dish. Either way, serve them in bowls to catch every bit of that wonderful sauce. You can even turn them into dessert by leaving off the cream sauce and drizzling them with melted butter, and sprinkling on toasted pecans and granulated or confectioners' sugar.

Pierogi or filled dumplings are easier to make than you might think. Check out these easy how to make pierogi instructions.

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Edward Cullen isn't the only one to like the taste of blood. Drinking blood has been done since mankind first started butchering animals for food. Waste not, want not, and all of that. It was also believed drinking an enemy's blood would make one invincible.

Cooking with blood exists in every culture, but as fresh blood becomes increasingly hard to find, blood puddings, soups and sauces are now relegated to restaurants and specialty stores, and considered delicacies. If you can find fresh or frozen duck, goose or pig blood from a reputable source, try throwing a party to coincide with the release of "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" with these Eastern European recipes.

• Polish Blood Sausage or Kiszka Recipe
• Polish Czarnina Recipe
• Blind Czarnina Recipe

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Eastern Europeans are pork-lovers extraordinaire and the low piggy prices in grocers these days are a dream come true. For the past two weeks, boneless loin of pork has been $1.49 a pound in my neck of the woods. You can bet I've stocked up on this cut that has very little waste. Not only does it make a terrific Sunday dinner or party entrée but, at these prices, a wonderful weekday supper.

I divided a large pork loin into two pieces, cutting off 1-inch slices from one half to make boneless chops, and stuffing the other half with a link of Serbian dry sausage known as banijska kobasica (a dry-cured garlic pork sausage), and slow roasting it. Stuffing food in other food is a technique Eastern Europeans love and this spin turned out great. In addition to bread dressings, I've also stuffed pork loins with chopped prunes and apricots, and dried cranberries and raisins. Dried fruit and pork go so well together, something not lost on Eastern Europeans!

It's never been a better time to experiment with Eastern European pork recipes like Roast Pork Loin Stuffed with Sausage Recipe. I served it with kopytka or "little hooves" dumplings and, to continue with the "stuffed" theme, offered Hungarian stuffed pears for dessert!

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