Because I like to keep to my heritage (and because my boyfriend, Nick and I like to cook together), I decided to heck with college food!! Tonight we dine like Greeks!
And no. Not in Hell like 300 would have you believe...
Unfortunately (for Nicholas) I am a vegetarian (or pescatarian, rather as I will very occasionally eat fish) and despite popular Greek belief, lamb is NOT a vegetable.
Thanks to Dad, we had some taramosalata in the fridge. For those of you who think I just sneezed, let me explain (and be prepared for more tongue-twisters). It's pronounced exactly as the spelling would have you think. As with any foreign word, be confident and it will probably come out sounding better. Taramosalata is basically the Greek equivalent of caviar. You take olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, potato, and fish roe - mix 'em up and dip other Greek things in it.
If there is one thing my Yiayia (grandmother) has taught me, it's always to more than enough food... Like enough to feed all the orcs in Mordor. So I decided to make it a meze (basically appetizers) night.
spanakopita, dolmades, and tzatziki for dinner
and a rather untraditional baklava for dessert
Spanakopita:
- preheat oven to 375 degrees F
- boil 3-4 bags of spinach
- drain and mix with 1/2 cup ricotta, 3 cloves garlic (minced), 1/4 cup EVOO, salt/pepper/herbs
- line oiled pie pan (or a springform pan) with puff pastry
- spread spinach mix into pan
- cover with more puff pastry
- use an egg (beat it), olive oil, or butter to wash the top
- cut a few openings for ventilation...
- cook for 25 - 30 minutes or until top is golden brown and fork comes out clean
Dolmades:
Honestly I got this recipe from a video of my grandmother... I'll have to get her to help me write down a more thorough instructional. BUT the video is ADORABLE and EDUCATIONAL... so watch it :]
Yiayia's Dolmades 1, Yiayia's Dolmades 2
I would like to take a moment to thank my wonderful boyfriend for learning to roll dolmades just to help me! He did a fantastic job!
Tzatziki (cucumber, yogurt dip):
Unfortunately, I do not have a photograph of my delicious tzatziki sauce but here's the recipe:
- 500g whole milk GREEK yogurt (others will be more watery)
- 1 cucumber (not a huge one though...)
- 1-3 gloves minced garlic (depending on how much you like garlic)
- 1 tsp dried dill
- 1/2 tsp dried mint
- 1/4 cup EVOO
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
- dash of salt and dried basil
place yogurt in mixing bowl and grate the whole cucumber on top, mix in everything but EVOO - save that for last! When everything (including EVOO) is mixed together, serve immediately or chill for later.
Baklava:
preheat oven to 350 degrees F
put the following in a blender/food processor:
- 1 cup pistachios
- 1 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
when blended, drizzle with honey until mixture is slightly sticky but not goopy...
spoon into phyllo shells (freezer section of any grocery store), drizzle each with more honey and a bit of lemon juice.
bake for 20 minutes or until phyllo is golden-brown and serve hot or chilled!
(the triangular ones below were made from leftover puff-pastry from the spanakopita)
At the end of the evening, Nick and I were stuffed... and we had food for the next week. But our endeavors prevailed and I got to be stereotypically Greek :D
Can I get a bravo?
And no. Not in Hell like 300 would have you believe...
Unfortunately (for Nicholas) I am a vegetarian (or pescatarian, rather as I will very occasionally eat fish) and despite popular Greek belief, lamb is NOT a vegetable.
Thanks to Dad, we had some taramosalata in the fridge. For those of you who think I just sneezed, let me explain (and be prepared for more tongue-twisters). It's pronounced exactly as the spelling would have you think. As with any foreign word, be confident and it will probably come out sounding better. Taramosalata is basically the Greek equivalent of caviar. You take olive oil, lemon juice, vinegar, potato, and fish roe - mix 'em up and dip other Greek things in it.
If there is one thing my Yiayia (grandmother) has taught me, it's always to more than enough food... Like enough to feed all the orcs in Mordor. So I decided to make it a meze (basically appetizers) night.
spanakopita, dolmades, and tzatziki for dinner
and a rather untraditional baklava for dessert
Spanakopita:
- preheat oven to 375 degrees F
- boil 3-4 bags of spinach
- drain and mix with 1/2 cup ricotta, 3 cloves garlic (minced), 1/4 cup EVOO, salt/pepper/herbs
- line oiled pie pan (or a springform pan) with puff pastry
- spread spinach mix into pan
- cover with more puff pastry
- use an egg (beat it), olive oil, or butter to wash the top
- cut a few openings for ventilation...
- cook for 25 - 30 minutes or until top is golden brown and fork comes out clean
Dolmades:
Honestly I got this recipe from a video of my grandmother... I'll have to get her to help me write down a more thorough instructional. BUT the video is ADORABLE and EDUCATIONAL... so watch it :]
Yiayia's Dolmades 1, Yiayia's Dolmades 2
I would like to take a moment to thank my wonderful boyfriend for learning to roll dolmades just to help me! He did a fantastic job!
Tzatziki (cucumber, yogurt dip):
Unfortunately, I do not have a photograph of my delicious tzatziki sauce but here's the recipe:
- 500g whole milk GREEK yogurt (others will be more watery)
- 1 cucumber (not a huge one though...)
- 1-3 gloves minced garlic (depending on how much you like garlic)
- 1 tsp dried dill
- 1/2 tsp dried mint
- 1/4 cup EVOO
- 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
- dash of salt and dried basil
place yogurt in mixing bowl and grate the whole cucumber on top, mix in everything but EVOO - save that for last! When everything (including EVOO) is mixed together, serve immediately or chill for later.
Baklava:
preheat oven to 350 degrees F
put the following in a blender/food processor:
- 1 cup pistachios
- 1 cup walnuts
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 tsp cinnamon
when blended, drizzle with honey until mixture is slightly sticky but not goopy...
spoon into phyllo shells (freezer section of any grocery store), drizzle each with more honey and a bit of lemon juice.
bake for 20 minutes or until phyllo is golden-brown and serve hot or chilled!
(the triangular ones below were made from leftover puff-pastry from the spanakopita)
At the end of the evening, Nick and I were stuffed... and we had food for the next week. But our endeavors prevailed and I got to be stereotypically Greek :D
Can I get a bravo?
