Zohos - Sow-thistle

Zohos or Sow-thistle (Sonchus oleraceus)

It is a well-known weed in every field and garden in Europe and N. America. Dioscourides mentions it as an esculent and Pliny records that the hospitable Hecate regaled Theseus before his battle with the bull of Marathon with a dish of sow-thistles.

Sonchus is derived from the Greek word for hollow, and bears allusion to the hollow nature of the succulent stems.

The Latin name of the species, oleraceus, refers to the use to which this weed has been put as an esculent vegetable.

Though in many parts of the world it is considered to be the best food for rabbits, in Greece it is highly estimated in boiled salads with extra virgin olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

It was an excellent accompaniment to fried meat-balls we had for lunch a few days ago.

Zohos can be combined with lamb in casserole dishes (fricassé) or with other plants in pies (hortopita, kalitsounia).

Pecan Pie with Vanilla icecream

Pecan Pie with Vanilla Ice Cream

By Lidia Nefrou

B’ Class

Ingredients

20 eggs

400 grams sugar

300 grams flour

200 grams honey

200 grams chopped pecans or walnuts

200 grams cocoa

For the syrup: 1 Kilo of sugar, 1 lit water, 150 grams glucose, 2 slices of lemon, 1 tube vanilla powder.

Method

We separate the whites from the egg yolks. We whisk in the mixer bowl the egg whites with the sugar for about 20 minutes. In another bowl we mix the flour, the cocoa, the honey, the walnuts and the egg yolks. We mix carefully the two mixtures. We butter a baking tray and pour in the mixture. We bake at 200C for about 30 minutes. We let the pie cool down in the tray.

We boil the syrup for 25 minutes. We pour the warm syrup over the cold pie. We can decorate with whipped cream and walnuts. We serve with vanilla ice cream.

Good Luck!

Sweet Milk Pie

Sweet Milk Pie

By Nick Tsirkas

A’ Class          

Ingredients

1 lit milk

1 tall glass fine semolina flour

1 tall glass of sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

1 vanilla tube

4 eggs

1 packet of fyllo pastry or puff pastry

Method

Put the milk and the semolina flour in a deep pan on low heat and stir until it thickens. We take it off the heat, add the sugar, the baking powder and the vanilla and stir again. Let it cool down for a while and then add the eggs lightly whipped. Stir again and the filling for the pie is ready. We spread some olive oil or melted butter on a baking tin and cover with two layers of fyllo pastry or one of puff pastry, up to the rim.

Pour in the mixture and cover with fyllo pastry again. Drizzle the surface with some olive oil or melted butter and bake in a preheated oven at 180C for 45 minutes. Cut in square pieces and if you like it you can dust the surface with some icing sugar and cinnamon powder.

Small Cheese Pies

My adventures with dough continue.
This time I made a big batch and I divided it in four. I used the one part for my finger-tiny cheese pies and put the rest in the freezer. I can use it some other time as a base for a tart or to make more small pies with different fillings (spinach, sausage, potato mash or even pastrami). Each part makes about 20 pieces, depending on the size you want them to be. You can eat them hot, straight from the oven, serve them in a party as finger food or they are perfect for a lunch box.


For the dough, I need:

- 500 gr all purpose flour
- 50 gr butter ( you can also use olive oil)
- 20 gr fresh yeast or 1 sachet dry yeast
- 3 eggs
- 1 full teaspoon salt
- 2 full teaspoons sugar
- 200 ml milk, slightly warm (around 35C)
- 100 gr yogurt
- 1 extra egg yolk diluted in a tablespoon of water

I disolve the yeast and the sugar in the milk. I put the flour in a basin (you can use your food processor) and I add all the ingredients. I mix and kneed the dough until it becomes soft, that is after 10 minutes. If it is sticky I add some flour. I divide it immediately and keep the quantity that I need in a bowl covered with a plastic bag, for at least half an hour. The rest goes in the freezer.

Meanwhile I prepare the filling : I mix about 200 gr crumbled feta cheese (you can use any kind of cheese you like), one chillie pepper finely chopped, 1 tablespoon each of finely chopped parsley and dill, and a bit of olive oil.

On a floured surface I roll out the dough and I cut small discs, about 5 cm in diameter. I put 1 tsp of filling in the center, fold them an press the rim with a fork. I let them rest for about 15 minutes. I brush the surface with the egg yolk and bake them in medium heat oven (180C) for about 20 minutes, until golden.

Enjoy!!!!

Yummy Spinach Pie.

Lately I became obsessed with all types of pastry. This is my favorite. Spinach and Feta cheese pie(aka Spanakopitta in Greek). I make the fyllo pastry myself. It crumbles like a soft cookie and the spinach filling is mellow. Good Greek virgin olive oil in generous quantities is a must!
I add different vegetables such as leeks, chard and spring onions but also herbs such as parsley, dill, and mint. It depends on what there is in season or in the market. My mother used to add the green leaves of wild poppies (we had a ball after that, lol), my mother-in-law adds alfalfa, and my aunt adds cabbage or lettuce leaves.
I need for the fyllo pastry:

- 4 cups of plain flour
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of olive oil
- 2 tablespoons of vinegar (this make it extra crumbly)
- 1 full teaspoon of salt

If the mixture is sticky I add a handful of flour. If it is very tough I add a little water. I kneed the dough until it becomes very soft, like a soft sponge. I put the dough in a container and then in a plastic bag to let it rest. After all this kneeding it really needs it!
I prepare the filling. For this I usually need:

- 500 gr spinach
- 1 or 2 leeks (the white part only)
- 3 spring onions
- a hand full of any herb you like (parsley, dill, mint)
- 250 gr feta cheese in crumbles
- salt, pepper, olive oil

Wash the greens, chop them in a big bowl, add the cheese, some olive oil and a handful of flour. Mix them well/
Divide your dough in four and use a rolling pin to make four sheets of fyllo pastry. Put some olive oil in a baking tray, add two layers of your fyllo, sprinkle with olive oil and put half the spinach mixture. Put on another layer of fyllo pastry, the rest of the mixture and cover with the forth layer of fyllo. Trim the pastry at the rim of your baking tray and make a nice border.Sprinkle with olive oil again and with a sharp knife carve diagonally the surface of your pie. Bake in medium heat, 180C.

You'll never taste the same pie twice, even by the same cook. So make this recipe according to your taste and enjoy it.