Flavors of times past

Anna helps her mum

Family is not as it used to be and food on our table isn't either. In our globalized fusion kitchens we tend to experiment with tastes and flavors from all over the world. Greek cuisine is not an exception since the land itself has been the crossroads and the melting pot of different civilizations and cultures for thousands of years. Modern greek cooks cannot identify themselves with what was served on Plato's "Symposium" nor with the extravaganza of the byzantine times.

However, apart from the elaborated dishes that have ornated the tables of the mighty and rich, what actually remains in the collective subconscious is the simple and often poor food, served on the tables of the humble people, dictated by seasonal ingredients and more often than not by what was affordable or available by foraging.

The women of the house, since cooking was a chore totally assigned to them, had to improvise from what little provisions they had in their pantry and provide a meal to satisfy the hunger of a usually extended family. A household which had stored in its cellar flour, olive oil, cheese and wine, was considered to be well-off and the rest of the staple foods were provided by the kitchen garden for vegetables and herbs and the nearby fields or forest for greens and various nuts.

Areas near the sea were also blessed with an abundance of fish and seafood and the mountainous people relied on hunting, mostly birds and hares. Wild boars have never become extinct even though they were hunted fiercely because they damaged farmer's crops.

Selling fish

Farm animals were mostly raised for their products - milk, eggs, wool- and rarely consumed as meat,

A very popular traditional wedding song says " In my child's joy (=wedding), we slaughtered a rooster"! Imagine a feast, where the whole village was usually invited, with only one chicken as the centerpiece of the celebratory dinner!

This culture of self-sufficiency is gaining ground worldwide, especially in times of economic crisis such as these but I wouldn't imagine myself making an absolute 180⁰ u-turn and start doing everything from scratch. What I'd really like to do is to preserve those unfamiliar and unknown recipes, handed down from our grandmas, and maybe, just a little, taste the original flavors of a difficult but equally fascinating bygone time.

(The pictures for this post were taken from the alphabet book of my childhood)
unless they were very old or on festive days, such as Christmas or Easter. Even then they made the most of them and nothing was wasted.

Lazy Girl's Pasta

Lazy Girl's Pasta

A popular greek saying goes like "a greek mum knows everything except for tonight's dinner" 😂😅, and who am I to disagree?

When it comes to desperation the best solution is pasta and an especially quick version for working (or lazy) girls like me, is this "pastitsio".

I was given the recipe by my late aunt Ifigeneia (I will always remember Robin Williams in "Mrs Doubtfire") when I was very young and just learning how to cook. It was a hit from the very first day!

This is an all-in-one pan recipe. The ingredients are for 6, or 4 very hungry people!!!

We'll need
500 grams of  big tube-like pasta such as rigatonni, raw, not cooked!
300 grams of crumbled feta cheese or similar goats cheese
150 grams of grated hard cheese such as "kefalotiri" or "pecorino"
5 medium size eggs
3.5 glasses of milk (about 1lt)
3.5 glasses of water

The original recipe didn't include it, but you can add 100 grams of chopped salami or bacon.


Preheat your oven at 180C. Put some oil or melted butter in a baking pan and throw inside the pasta, the cheeses, the salami and the water and 2 glasses of milk. Beat the eggs with the rest of the milk and pour it also in the pan. Use a big laddle spoon to mix them all and put it in the oven. Wait for about 45 min to 1 hour until the top is set and it's got a nice golden brown color. Ready!

Enjoy!

Spicy Hot Cheese Dip

Τυροκαυτερή - Spicy Hot Cheese Dip

Spicy hot and cool at the same time, this dip is a perfect company to roast or grilled meat. You can order it at almost any "taverna" around the country and its color or "heat" depends on the chef. Personally I prefer the Northern Greek version made with roasted red Florina peppers. And I use only one of those almighty chillies. 😛

200 grams Feta cheese or some other crumbly goat cheese
100 grams "anthotyro" or ricotta cheese
1 chilli pepper
1 green and one red bell peppers (or two roasted red peppers from a jar)
5 tbs olive oil
1 tbs vinegar

If you use fresh peppers, put them in a bake dish and roast them until they become brown-black. Put them in a bowl, cover with cling-film and let them rest for 20 minutes. This way it will be much easier to peel them and de-seed them.
Put all the ingredients in a food processor, push the button and voila!, stop when you like the texture of the mix. Some people prefer it more crumbly while I prefer it more smooth. Check the salt and the vinegar and put in the fridge at least for 30 minutes before serving.

Enjoy! Kali Orexi!

Spaghetti and tuna sauce

Today is not only the Festive day of Saint Demetrius, but it's also International Pasta Day, so we celebrate it with something delicious but without so many calories.(Therefore less guilt!). Actually in my family we don't need special days, the whole year round is a celebration of pasta. Too bad for my dear husband who is on diet at the moment...

For 3 hungry people  we need a packet of spaghetti, a can of tuna in oil (200 grams), a small carton of concentrated tomato juice (250 grams), one small chopped onion, a teaspoon of dry oregano and a teaspoon of dry basil.You can always use fresh herbs if you have them but then you will need to double the amount. Salt and pepper according to taste, but for this amount I add one teaspoon of salt.

Put the water to the boil and when it's bubbly add a full tablespoon of salt and the spaghetti. Let it boil until it is cooked to the point YOU like it. Others prefer it "al dente", others prefer it well-cooked, just like their Mama used to make it. Meanwhile in a sauce pan, heat the the oil, add the onion and let it sizzle for 3 - 4 minutes. Then add the tomato, the herbs, salt and pepper and half a glass of water. If the sauce is a bit sour, add a teaspoon of sugar. Let it simmer while your pasta is cooking. Before you drain the spaghetti, add the tuna to the sauce, stir until it disolves and take the sause pan off the heat.

Drain your pasta, put it back in the pot and sprinkle with extra-virgin olive oil. Toss the pasta and you are ready to serve. It is a common belief not to combine fish and cheese but we break the rule and add some ground white cheese on top, such as dry mizithra.

Enjoy the dish and the day!

Beef Burgers and Potatoes

The daily nightmare is back What shall I cook today? First glance in the freezer: Only beef minced meat.Now in greek cuisine this may result in many different dishes from the most complicated, such as "mousaka" to the most simple ones such as "spaghetti bolognese". Today I'll go simple and make beef burgers and potatoes roasted in the oven.

- 500 grams of minced beef
- 1 large chopped onion
- 300 grams breadcrumbs*
- 1 cup water
- 1 full tablespoon of each: chopped mint, chopped parsley
- a pinch of thyme leaves and rosemary
- 100 ml olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt and a pinch of black pepper.

* For a gluten-free recipe replace the bread with 8 tablespoons of oats.

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until you have a soft mixture. Add more water if you have to. Put the bowl in the fridge for half an hour so that the flavours develop. Meanwhile, peel the potatoes, cut them into large chunks, add some salt and, if you like, paprika.

In a well-oiled baking tray, form burger patties, place the potatoes around and add 1 glass of water. Sprinkle with olive oil and put in a pre-heated oven at 220C for about an hour.

A glass of wine and greek salad with feta cheese would be the best company.

Enjoy!

Stuffed vine leaves "Dolmadakia"

Stuffed vine leaves with ground beef and rice

It is a different flavor. It is true that not everyone likes them, especially if your first try is with preserved vine leaves which sometimes are very tough and leave the impression that chew a package along with its string!
But the fresh leaves are tender and melt in your mouth. Their sour taste raises the usually indifferent ground beef and make them memorable.
For a few days a year, April and May, when I find fresh leaves in the market, I wash, drain and put them in the freezer. From there directly to scalding and I have fresh leaves for another three months at least. I like to stuff them with a mixture of ground beef and rice but there is also the vegetarian alternative, only with rice.
For 4 people we need:250 grams of grape leaves
1 large onion, chopped1 1/2 cup of olive oil 1 cup of rice300 grams of ground beef1 shot of ouzo (optional)1 cup warm watersalt, pepper, a handful of fresh mint, choppedthe juice of a large lemon
Wash the leaves and add little by little in salted boiling water. Let stand 3 minutes, then put into a bowl with cold water. Once you finish the process put them in a colander until you prepare the filling.
In a small bowl put the minced meat, onion, rice, 1/2 cup oil, mint, salt, pepper and ouzo. Mix to make a mixture soft enough, and if necessary add a little water.
With a spoon take a bit stuffing and place on the base of the leaf. Fold both ends and then wrap them in a 
roll. The truth is that at the beginning it needs a little effort to get down to the point but after the 4th or 5th dolmadaki you'll have no problem.
We throw the remaining oil to the pot and place each dolmadaki in concentric circles from the outside to the center. Depending on our pot we will make one or two layers.
Sprinkle with a little more oil to the surface and cover into the pot with a plate upside down. This will help to keep them firmly in place and not unfold with cooking. Add enough hot water to reach the middle of the dish, cover the pot and simmer for about half an hour.
Once ready, remove from heat and pour the lemon juice. Cover again and leave to cool completely. So it is better to start cooking early.
We can accompany with extra egg-lemon sauce or even with tzatziki.
Good appetite.

You can find the recipe in Greek here.
 

Watermelon rind (traditional Greek spoon-sweet)

Traditionally summer asks for spoon-sweets and cold refreshing water.

Served in a saucer that was built specifically for this, with the brim turned upwards to avoid spilling drops of the syrup. A silver or metal tray and below the crocheted napkin "semedaki" of our Mom. Unfortunately, what once had been a sign of tidiness, today has become to be considered as kitsch.

Times might have been difficult and the greek coffee that came with the spoon-sweet made from roasted chickpeas but the sweets were made from the most fanciful fruit or vegetable the housewife of the era could devise : from the famous small eggplant to small tomatoes or even green olives!

Yet, when you sat at the small table in the courtyard and here came the humble disk balancing the goodies, you felt as the honored guest and the hostess did feel as the lady of the castle. And of course, not a word spoken about "Thanks, I won't have anything, I'm on a diet." Such insult would be unthinkable. You swallowed two mouthfuls of the sweet, you drank  some refreshing water and felt a moment of happiness.

So what to choose? Watermelon rind or fat pumpkin? Since this year we are not going to eat a decent watermelon due to our bad weather, let us at least keep its skin to have something good come out of it.

I'm looking into my small notebook with recipes. By the way, do you keep such a notebook yourselves? One where you have gathered all the wisdom of your mama, grandma, aunt?

Every time I try something new and find I like it, I get my pen and start exercising calligraphy like a good student. Sure, you'll tell me, nowadays when you can find everything you want on the internet, you keep on writing in a notebook with a pen?

Actually, yes. I feel that the time spent writing the recipe and the love I put into this activity will be asorbed by the paper and from there will go to whomever inherits my notebook, just as I find even today scattered slips of paper from my Mom.

Therefore I will share with you the page from my notebook and wish everyone a good summer. (However, I have to give the recipe in English, since the original is in Greek!)

Ingredients:

4 kilos of  watermelon or pumkin rind peeled on the outside
4 kilos of sugar
2 glasses full of water
2 spoonfuls vanilla extract
a small lump of limewash
lemon juice (from 2 lemons)

Cut the watermelon or pumkin rind in small squares (1.5x1.5 inches) and peel them so that you have only the white part. Dilute the limewash carefully in a big pan, add the rind, and let it soak overnight. This procedure will make it crisp on the outside and mellow on the inside. The following morning wash thoroughly changing the water about 10 to 12 times until it comes out crystal clear. Put the rind in a big pot, cover with water and let come to the boiling point. Do this 3 times to ensure that all residue of limewash has gone. Next, prick the pieces with a small fork and put it again in the pot with the sugar and 2 glasses of water. Let it boil until the syrup begins to thicken. Take it off the fire, add the vanilla and the lemon juice and let it cool in the pot overnight so as to absorb the syrup. The following morning it is ready to be put in glass jars.

Μπορείτε να δείτε τη δημοσίευση στα  Ελληνικά εδώ.

Pasta Salad, quick'n'easy

Ok, this might not be a greek authentic recipe, however is one of our family's favourites and it's the best I can do on a busy, hectic day.
I use low fat ingredients as much as I can and I put the bowl in the fridge for those especially hot days, which are not so far away.

So, for two hungry people I need:

- 250 grams of pasta
- 1 small can of tuna in salted water or 150 grams low fat ham (chicken or turkey)
- 1 cup of low fat greek yoghurt (200 gr)
- 2 tablespoons low fat mayonnaise
- 3 tablespoons mustard
- 1 small ripe tomato, diced
- 3-4 fresh leaves of basil or parsley

Boil the pasta in abundant salted water, strain and put in a large salad bowl. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and toss gently. Add all the remaining ingredients and mix gently again.
You can serve it immediately or let it cool in the fridge.
It's also an excellent idea for a buffet dinner.

Enjoy!

It All Tastes Greek To Me | Kourabiedes

A Taste of Greece

Greek comfort food

Makaronia me kima

Everyone and each of us have a favorite primitive memory of his favourite comfort food. Food that consoles, bringing back warm memories of motherly hugs and sweet kisses. Of Sundays around the family table and of the tantalizing smell of a home-cooked meal, wafting in the air at least fifty metres before arriving at the house door.

Although each home has its own specials, there must be a national memory rooted deep inside our genes which characterizes our crave for certain dishes. Those cooked by our mothers or grandmothers and which are registered in our subconscious mind as our safe haven from exterior threats.

Pastitsio

For many years, during the “speaking session” in my classes, I’ve been asking my students the same personal question: “Which is your favourite food?” Seven times out of ten, the answer was “Makaronia me kima”, that is spaghetti with minced meat sauce. The eighth was “pastitsio”, the more elaborated version of the same dish but this time topped with beschamel sauce and gratined. The ninth was either “souvlaki” or”pizza. Finally the tenth was usually the food that their mum used to cook best for the Sunday family reunion, such as roast lamb or chicken and potatoes.

Yemista

But the most interesting of all were the answers I got when I probed them a little more. Sometimes I got answers like “yemista” (stuffed tomatoes) “spanakopita” (spinach pie) or even “lahanodolmades” (cabbage leaves stuffed with meat, rice and herbs).

Patsas Soup

Surprisingly, “chicken soup” was not among them at all. On the other hand some of my students mentioned “patsa” a soup made with the legs and the stomach of an animal (mainly beef or pork) or “trahana”.a soup made with a traditional pasta, consisting of bulgur wheat and milk. The traditional “fasolada” (bean soup) is not so popular though a necessary evil, tolerated during the fasting weekdays (Wednesday and Friday) when

neither meat nor fish is permitted by the Christian Orthodox Church. Many a times when I mentioned it, I found myself confronted with grimacing faces.

So, which is your favourite comfort food? What reminds you of "mum"?

 

"Red" Giouvarlakia

Few tourists in Greece ever get to know the dishes that make us bow to our "mama's" comfort food.
One of these, is "Giouvarlakia", that is meatballs with rice, either in the form of a soup or with a thick egg-lemon (avgolemono) sauce.
Actually I prefer the second version - that's the way my mum used to cook it - so I like to pay homage to her cooking many times during the winter.
However, I'm such a fun of the dish that I experimented with this summer alternative, using fresh tomato instead of the egg-lemon sauce. The result was a fusion between "giouvarlakia" and "soutzoukakia" which made us all clean our plates with big chunks of freshly baked bread.
I thought you would like this version which is much easier, since it doesn't require the tricky "avgolemono".

- 750 grams of beef mince (or any kind of mince)
- 1 cup of rice, the type you usually buy for soups
- 1 thinly chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 of a teaspoon grounded cumin
- 1 crashed garlic clove
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 500 grams finely chopped fresh tomatoes or tomato juice
- 1/2 cup of olive oil
- a pinch of each: grounded pepper, cinnamon, clove
- 1 fresh or dry bay leaf.

In a large bowl, we mix together the minced beef, the rice, the onion, the spices, half the olive oiland the wine. While mixing, add some spoonfuls of water until you have a very soft mixture. Put the bowl in the fridge and let it rest for about 1 hour.
In a large cooking pot we put the rest of the olive oil, 4 cups of water and the tomato and we let come to the boil. Then we add some salt, and the bay leaf and we turn down the temperature to medium. We form small balls with our mixture, the size of a walnut, and we drop them carefully into the simmering sauce.
Cover the pot and let it simmer until the rice is well cooked (about 1 hour). In the meantime you can add some hot water if you thing it is needed.
The final consictency should be that of a thick soup as it will become thicker when it cools. It can be eaten warm or in room temperature, after all that's why I cook it in the summer.
You can also experiment with your favorite spices, either inside the mixture or in the broth.
Finally if you want the original version, don't add tomato in the beginning but when the food is cooked add the "avgolemono" sauce.
You can see my step-by-step tecnique here.

You can also find the recipe on my sister Greek blog here.



Kali orexi!

"Pastitsado" from Corfu

During my many years of "wandering" round Western Greece, I picked up many local recipes which became our favourite Sunday meals.

One of the most appreciated is "Pastitsado", from the island of Corfu. It usually refers to a chicken stew (usually poor old roosters) - "kokoros pastitsado"- served over very large macaroni or penne pasta. However it is also made with veal or beef which do not have to be from the expensive cuts.

There are many recipes in books or on the internet, yet nothing compares to the original flavour at a local house or a taverna. The difference lies on the one hand in the use of local products and on the other hand in the correct balance of herbs and spices. Cloves, allspices and rosemary along with red wine and a bit of vinegar, add to the final distinctive taste.

Today I cooked beef pastitsado but with white rice instead of pasta. It was equally tasty though lighter for our digestive system!

What you need:

- 1 kilo beef meat, in small chunks (If you use a country chicken, have it cut in portions)
- 1/2 cup of olive oil
- 1 full tbsp of butter
- 2 large onions finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 4 medium size ripe tomatoes chopped (or 400 grms tomato juice)
- salt, pepper (optionally 1 small chili pepper)
- 4 whole cloves, 5 whole allspices, a pinch of fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 tbsp wine vinegar (plain or balsamic)

Heat the olive oil and the butter in a deep casserole. Add the chunks of meat and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add the onions, the garlic, salt, pepper and the spices. Fry for a few minutes, pour in the wine and let it evaporate. Finally add the tomatoes and the vinegar, put on the lid and let it simmer for about one hour and a half. Boil some rice or pasta and serve with some grated cheese on the top.

Bon apetit - ΚΑΛΗ ΟΡΕΞΗ!

Marinated Salted Anchovies

I'm doing my best with the last anchovies of the fall, before their price climbs again to unreachable heights.
I pull off  the intestines from the ancovies and the central fishbone. I put the fillets in layers in a shallow bowl and in between I sprinkle salt and vinegar. I let them rest for 24 hours in my fridge, and then put them in a strainer. Finally (in a plastic container) I make beautiful layers of anchovies, olive oil, finely chopped garlic, parsley and chilli pepper.
They keep well in my fridge for about a month.
I usually serve them as a meze for ouzo or tsipouro, bu they also accompany wonderfully winter soups with legumes such as beans (fasolada) or lentils fakes)!

Ηπειρώτικη Χορτόπιτα-Grand Serai, Ιωάννινα

Roasted Eggplants with Feta cheese

Deep purple, ready to perform!
The summer princess (the crown belongs to tomato) is gloriously and invitingly sitting on the market stalls. I can't resist the challenge. Roasted eggplants with tomato sauce and feta cheese. It's the greek answer to eggplant-parmesan without the egg batter.

- 1 kilo of eggplants
- 2 large onions (chopped)
- 2 cloves of garlic (chopped)
- 3 large ripe tomatoes or 500 gr canned tomato juice
- 300 grams feta cheese (grated)
- salt and peper, 1 level teaspoon each of
thyme, oregano and basil
- olive oil, for frying

Wash the eggplants, cut them in 1/2 slices, spinkle with salt and let them drain for 1 hour.
This way the extra (and bitter) liquid will drain out. Pat them dry, and fry them in plenty olive oil. Put them in rows in a baking dish.
Make a simple tomato sauce, with the onion,
the tomato and the herbs. Be careful with the salt. Place the sauce over the eggplants,  cover with the feta cheese and bake in medium oven for 15-20 minutes. Wait until it gets down to
room temperature before you serve!
Enjoy!

Summer rewards

All this digging wasn't for nothing!!!!

Fish "Savoro" (marinated)

Fish "Savoro"

We're half between Easter and the Pentecost,  namely the Mid-Pentecost. Traditionally we eat fish today so here is a favorite dish of mine and quite an easy recipe.

I usually use red mullet or pandora fish (greek λιθρίνια) for this but it can be done with any type of medium size fish.

It is a recipe mainly of the greek islands and the "savoro" sauce was a good way to preserve leftover fried fish for the following day. They are much tastier, I can assure you! Try to make this dish at noon and serve it in the evening supper. Uncomparable!!!!

Get ready for cooking:

- 1 1/2 kilo of fish (ask your fishmonger to clean it, if it's too much touble for you)
- plain flour for the frying and thesauce
- salt, peper
- 250 grams of olive oil (for the frying and the sauce afterwards)
- 1 small glass of wine vinegar
- 300 grams fresh tomato juice
- 2-3 garlic cloves
- 2 sprigs of fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dry leaves
- lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar

Clean, wash and drain your fish, add plenty of salt and drizzle with lemon juice. Let it marinate for some minutes.

Pat it dry with some kitchen paper, flour it and fry it in small batches. Place it in rows on a large plate.

Using a sieve, drain the remaining of the frying oil into a clean sauce pan. Let it heat and the garlic in thin slices. Don't let it burn but add in the saucepan 4 level tablespoons of plain flour. Stir well until it gets a golden brown colour and add the vinegar. Add the rosemary, the tomato juice, the sugar, some salt and pepper and let them simmer until the tomato is cooked and the sauce is thick enough.

Drizzle over the fish and let it cool for at least 30 minutes before you serve so that the fish absorb the sauce.

Kali orexi!

Stuffed vineleaves and zucchini (Dolmadakia kai kolokythakia gemista)

This vegetarian dish originates from the district of Macedonia in Greece and it belongs to the "ladera" category of dishes. That is, food cooked until all the juices have evaporated and there is only some olive oil left in the pot.
"Ladera" compose a whole school of thought in Greek cuisine, being the main solution during our long fasting seasons when even fish is forbidden most of the days. Moreover they play the major role in the Mediterranean diet, making great use of  vegetables, legumes and olive oil.
If we were in Italy, we cood call it "cucina povera" since it needs only some rice and what it can be found in your vegetable garden this season.If you don't have a garden, you can find everything at your greengrocer's or your supermarket. Vineleaves are also sold in jars, preserved in brine.

It can also be tranformed to a more rich dish if you add beef/lamb mince in the rice stuffing and some egg-lemon sauce in the end. But this is only a matter of taste.

As I said the ingredients are mainly found in our garden:

- 350 grams vine leaves (fresh or in a jar)
- 1 kilo of zucchini, big enough to be stuffed (see the picture above)
- 500 grams spring onions, chopped
- 1 dry onion, diced
- 1 bunch of dill, chopped
- 1 tablespoon dry mint or 2-3 sprigs of fresh mint, chopped
- 500 grams of olive oil (2 large water glasses filled)
- 500 grams of rice (risoto type)
- the juice of 5 lemons
- (optionally) some tomato juice, fresh or canned
- salt & pepper

If you have fresh vine leaves, you must wash them thoroughly and blanch them in a pot with some water, salt and the juice of half a lemon. Take them off the boiling water and let them cool on a plate until you prepare the stuffing. If you use leaves from a jar, you must also wash them because they are preserved in brine and this makes them extra salty.

Grate the zucchini from the outside, then cut them in the middle and hollow them (just like toy boats) with a small spoon or the special gadget we also use for fruit salads. Keep the stuff from inside in a bowl.

In a deep frying  pan add the dry onion, the spring onions, the dill and the mint, salt and pepper and half a cup of water. Let them simmer for five minutes and take the pan off the heat. Now add half the olive oil, half the inside of the zucchini finely chopped, the rice, salt and pepper and the juice of the other half of the lemon. Stir well and the stuffing is ready.

Put a layer of vine leaves at the bottom of your cooking pot. Take each zucchini boat and fill it with 3-4 teaspoons of the rice stuffing. Put them in the cooking pot in rows, next to each other.

Lay flat a vine leaf on your kitchen board and put a tablespoon of stuffing in its middle. Fold the sides of the leaf so as to form a small cylinder and the stuffing is secured inside. (You can see how to do it in the sketch).

 Put it in the cooking pot over the stuffed zucchini. Continue until all the leaves are stuffed and in very tight rows in the pot. Try not to leave gaps between them or they will open and the stuffing will pur out.

Add the rest of the olive oil in the pot, the juice of 2 lemons and enough water to cover the food. Take an old dish and put it upside down in the pot over the vineleaves. This will serve as a weight to prevent them from opening. Simmer for about 30 - 45 minutes. During the cooking time we can add the tomato juice and some hot water if the liquid is absorbed.

Let them cool totally and then serve on a plate, putting the zucchini in the middle and the dolmadakia around them. Serve with some plain yoghurt or tzatziki if you like but feta cheese is essential to all lathera dishes.

Kali orexi!

Μπορείτε να δείτε τη συνταγή στα Ελληνικά εδώ.

Red Florina Peppers with feta Cheese

Stuffed Red Florina Peppers

This is one of my favourite appetizers. Roasted red Florina peppers*, stuffed with feta cheese. Drizzle with a little olive oil and grill for a few minutes. You can use peppers ready from a jar or roast fresh ones, if you have the time. Enjoy with freshly baked bread and don't be afraid to dip in the oil.

* Florina red peppers = Grilled or roasted, the famed red peppers of Florina, in Northern Greece, impart a wonderful, sweet fragrance, one of the telltale signs of the rustic cooking of Macedonia. Their robust flavor, ruby-red color, and glossy sheen make them one of the most renowned local products. Whole and grilled, the Piperia Florinis is preserved in Greece's excellent extra-virgin olive oil, flavored with whole peppercorns, bay leaf, basil, and other fresh and dried herbs.