Greek appetizers
raj
internet and, of course, found a bazillion choices.
So, we probably need to have a stuffed grape leaf thing, there was a
zucchini and pepper one (Giouzlemedes), saw herring mentioned a few times,
and lamb things.
Anyone have better guidance?
Thanks.
Bob
Dimitri
"raj" <Mail...@junk.bin> wrote in message
news:wKaUb.32020$Vp6....@newssvr33.news.prodigy.com...
Spanakopita.
A word about size and pastry. This can be made bite sized (ie a
tablespoonful or so of filling on a square of pastry about 2 1/2" by 2 1/2".
Or it can be made loaf sized by lining a buttered bread tin with pastry so
that plenty hangs over the edges, filling the inside, and bringing the
pastry up over the top and sealing it. Whichever size you do, brush the
pie/s with beaten egg, and bake 45 minutes to an hour or so in a moderate
350 degree oven. You can either use sheets of Greek phyllo dough, separated
and individually buttered ( a pain in the you-know -where, but very good),
or use shortcrust or puff pastry. I usually use a box of frozen puffpastry
(375g) since I cannot make pastry to save my life.
1 kg (2.2lbs) spinach. I use fresh, but frozen and thawed would probably
work.
1 package frozen puff pastry or phyllo pastry
250g (1/2lb) Greek feta cheese
1/2 stick of butter and some olive oil for frying
One onion, as much garlic as you like or not
2-3 eggs (optional. I don't use eggs)
4-5 sprigs fresh dill (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste
What you do:
Combine butter and olive oil in large heavy pan and fry onion and garlic
until soft. Wash and drain spinach and remove thick stalks, then blanch for
a minute or two in boiling water.
Add blanched spinach to onion and garlic mix and cook for further 5 minutes
or so. Spinach should be deep green colour
and stalks should be tender. Add eggs (I use no eggs, but the traditional
receipe calls for them) and dill. Crumble feta into pan and stir well for a
minute or two. Eggs should be cooked by then. Season with salt and pepper.
Butter baking pan. If using phyllo, separate sheets, and brush each sheet
individually with melted butter. Use 15-20 sheets, and overlap them, making
sure that sheets hang well over the edge of the pan. If using short-crust or
puff pastry, roll out a sheet big enough to line pan with plenty hanging
outside. If making bite-sized pies cut squares approximately 2 1/12" square.
Drain spinach mixture by pressing lightly and allowing liquid to drain into
a cup or bowl. The filling should not be too wet or the pastry gets mushy.
It should also not be too dry or the pie is not juicy enough. This buttery,
cheesy, spinachy liquid is lovely, and I am quite capable of drinking it
straight, but you can also use it on mashed potatoes, as a soup base or
anywhere else that seems appropriate.
Put filling into pastry and bring edges up to enclose filling. (Fill each
bite-size square with a spoonfull or so, fold over pastry into a triangle).
Seal by crimping, tucking in, or any means that work. Score the top lightly,
not enough to reach filling, and brush with egg. Bake in moderate oven until
pastry is golden and done. Good hot or cold.
Dimitri
Wayne Boatwright
news:FZaUb.32025$ts6....@newssvr33.news.prodigy.com:
> Subject: Re: Greek appetizers
> From: "Dimitri" <Dimi...@prodigy.net>
> Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
> Reply-To: "Dimitri" <Dimi...@prodigy.netospam>
>
>
> "raj" <Mail...@junk.bin> wrote in message
> news:wKaUb.32020$Vp6....@newssvr33.news.prodigy.com...
>> Going to a Greek themed dinner and we're bringin' appetizers. Looked
>> on
> the
>> internet and, of course, found a bazillion choices.
>>
>> So, we probably need to have a stuffed grape leaf thing, there was a
>> zucchini and pepper one (Giouzlemedes), saw herring mentioned a few
>> times, and lamb things.
>>
>> Anyone have better guidance?
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> Bob
>
> Spanakopita.
I could make a meal on this and stuffed grape leaves with lamp and mint!
Lynn Gifford
> "raj" <Mail...@junk.bin> wrote in message
> news:wKaUb.32020$Vp6....@newssvr33.news.prodigy.com...
> > Going to a Greek themed dinner and we're bringin' appetizers. Looked on
> the
> > internet and, of course, found a bazillion choices.
> >
> > So, we probably need to have a stuffed grape leaf thing, there was a
> > zucchini and pepper one (Giouzlemedes), saw herring mentioned a few times,
> > and lamb things.
> >
> > Anyone have better guidance?
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Bob
>
> Spanakopita.
> Dimitri
======================
I posted this B4 - It's easy, fast & "Greek to Me!"
> Took this to a Potluck "Appetizers & Sweets" Party.
> Read about 12 recipes and made it up as I went along.
> It was good stuff!
>
> 12 oz. unpitted green olives
> 12 oz. Calimata olives
> 1 jar button mushrooms (Green Giant)
> 1 jar (4 oz?) Alessi (brand) Caper Berries
> (these are BIG suckers - almost the size of the olives and they have
> long stems)
> 1 large can artichoke bottoms
> 1/2 cup roasted red peppers in oil
>
> Drain the liquid off everything. Rinse the olives and the capers & pat
> dry. Cut each artichoke bottom in four to six pieces. Julienne the
> peppers. Put everything in a big glass bowl.
>
> Heat:
> 1/2 cup EV olive oil
> 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
> 1/3 cup red wine & garlic vinegar
> 1/4 to 1 tsp red pepper flakes or Tabasco to taste
> Pour over mixture. Refrigerate overnight, stirring occasionally. Serve
> at room temp.
>
Lynn from Fargo
K ACKRMAN
1. Good and interestingly different:
PICKLED SQUID
Serves 6
12 medium squid
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
A few sprigs fresh rosemary
2 cups white vinegar (approx.)
Pickling Spices & Herbs
8 black peppercorns
2 garlic cloves
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh rosemary
Wash and clean the squid, separating the outer sacs from the heads and
tentacles, removing and discarding the translucent cartilage, and small sand
bag and ink. Rub salt on the outer sacs and rinse them inside and out with cold
water. Heads and tentacles should be rinsed thoroughly. Cut the sacs into
1/2-inch wide rounds. Heat the oil in a frying pan and slip in the squid
rounds, heads and tentacles. Cover and simmer until bright pink and tender
(approximately 30 minutes), adding salt and pepper to taste, parsley and
rosemary during the last 15 minutes. Half fill a clean
quart-sized jar with the squid and all the juices remaining in the pan.
Add white vinegar almost to the top, then the pickling spices and herbs. Seal
the jar tightly and shake. Marinate at least one day before serving. Keep in
the refrigerator. To serve, remove from marinade and serve cold, within 10
days.
2. Outstanding:
From the San Francisco Chronicle, May 15, 2002, from a review of Rosemary
Barron's "Meze: Small Bites, Big Flavors from the Greek Table."
SWEET & SOUR SHALLOTS
Gently baked with bay leaves, olive oil, wine, red wine vinegar, currants and
honey, these shallots are meltingly soft and mellow and the sauce thick and
tangy. Small onions, plump green onions, young leeks or tiny carrots may be
substituted for the shallots. .
12 shallots (about 14 ounces)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 bay leaves
1/4 cup red wine vinegar, or 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar mixed with 2
tablespoons water
1/4 cup dried currants or small seedless dark raisins
2 tablespoons Hymettus or other strongly flavored honey (see Notes)
1/4 cup Mavrodaphne, Madeira, or port wine (see Notes)
Coarse sea salt and coarsely ground pepper to taste
Neatly trim off the shallot root ends and remove a very thin slice from each
stem end. In a medium saucepan of boiling water, cook the shallots for 5
minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.
Choose a heavy, shallow baking dish just large enough to hold the shallots in a
single layer. Place in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Remove the
shallot skins with a paring knife. Pour the olive oil into the baking dish. Add
the shallots, turn in the oil to coat, and tuck the bay leaves among them.
Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine the vinegar and currants in a small bowl. Stir the honey
into the currant mixture and add this sauce and the wine to the shallots. Baste
the shallots and continue baking for 40 minutes to 1 hour, or until the sauce
is syrupy. Baste occasionally; if the dish appears dry, add a few tablespoons
of water and lightly cover with aluminum foil.
Transfer the shallots to a serving platter or shallow bowl and pour the sauce
and bay leaves over. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serve at room temperature.
Yields 8 meze or 4 side-dish servings.
NOTES: Hymettus is Greek thyme-blossom honey, and is available in Greek and
Middle Eastern stores. Mavrodaphne is a portlike dessert wine that's produced
near Patras. The name means "black laurel."
PER SERVING (8 servings): 95 calories, 1 g protein, 13 g carbohydrate, 4 g fat
(0 saturated), 0 cholesterol, 6 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.
3. Also outstanding
Greek Stuffed Mushrooms
Serves 8
24 mushrooms, fresh, stemmed
10 ounces spinach, frozen
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
4 ounces Feta cheese -- rinsed, crumbled
1/2 cup chopped green onions -- finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped parsley -- finely chopped
1 dash salt
Top quality olive oil
Cook frozen spinach on HIGH until barely defrosted. Drain in colander, pressing
out moisture.
In mixing bowl, combine spinach, cheeses, onion, parsley and salt to taste. Mix
well. Mound mushroom caps high with spinach mixture. (Spinach mixture may be
formed into balls and frozen to be placed in mushroom caps just before
microwaving.) Drizzle a little olive oil over top, for extra flavor. Arrange
on serving plate and cook on HIGH until steaming - approximately 4 - 6 minutes.
sf
wrote:
> Going to a Greek themed dinner and we're bringin' appetizers. Looked on the
> internet and, of course, found a bazillion choices.
>
> So, we probably need to have a stuffed grape leaf thing,
Be careful... have you made them before? They are trickier
than they appear.
Practice safe eating - always use condiments
Katra
kack...@aol.comblock (K ACKRMAN) wrote:
I'm saving these...
I'm always looking for creative things to do with seafood, and I LOVE
squid and baby Octopus. Baby Ocotpus is usually available at CM and is
reasonably priced.
K.
--
Sprout the Mung Bean to reply...
>,,<Cat's Haven Hobby Farm>,,<Ka...@centurytel.net>,,<
http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewSellersOtherItems&include=0&userid=katra
JimLane
Barry Grau
Meatballs with egg lemon sauce (keftedaki me avgolemono).
Grilled Greek sausage (loukaniko).
Yogurt and cucumber dip (tzatziki).
Fish roe dip (taramosalata).
Eggplant dip (melitzanosalata).
Cold garlicked mashed potato dip (skordalia).
Beetroot salad (batzaria salata).
The dips should all be served with Greek bread (or French or Italian
if Greek is not available).
Here are my URLs for Greek cooking:
//www.carnegielibrary.org/subject/food/greek.html
//www.webexpert.net/vasilios/recipes.htm
//www.geocities.com/NapaValley/7003/cover.htm
//graphics.stanford.edu/~tolis/recipes/index.html
//www.columbia.gr/Recipes/meatindx.htm
//www.eatgreektonight.com/Recipes/index.html
//greece.hispeed.com/recipes.htm
//www.hol.gr/clubs/cookery/
//www.nmt.edu/~shipman/food/recipe/greek
-bwg