35 posts tagged “greek”
Leftover tourlou tourlou? Make a frittata.
Tom was working late the other day and his work provided dinner for him, so I was on my own. I was too lazy to make a full meal, so I took the last of the tourlou tourlou, added 2 beaten eggs and a splash of milk and made a mini frittata. Then I sprinkled it with some feta cheese and stuck it under the broiler. A delicious Greek twist on this Italian classic.
Also, this is not particularly related to this post, but I thought I would share anyway, seeing as my commentary about the frittata was a little shortish and, well, dull (not that I am promising riveting commentary below). I love Greek yogurt. I think it's one of the best things on the planet. It's so tart and creamy. It's just unmatched by any other yogurt. Even the fat free variety is totally indulgent. But the thing about it is, it's expensive. And with prices on pretty much everything continuing to rise, I can't always justify buying the yogurt that costs 3 times as much as the other yogurt.
So, I've been trying to alternate between Greek and regular. Now, I normally only strain yogurt if I am making something like tzatziki but I decided to strain my plain yogurt this time because the texture of regular fat free yogurt when you are used to Greek is more than a little offputting. And by offputting, I mean, pretty nasty.
So I strained the yogurt overnight (that's a strainer lined with a cheesecloth, over a bowl)...
and the next morning, this is what I found in the bowl.
Ick. No wonder I can't get behind this stuff. Mind you, this was after I already poured off the liquid at the top and had already eaten a serving earlier in the day. Anyway now that it's strained, it's much better. It's still not Greek yogurt, but it's better than the runny tasteless mess I had the day before.
Tourlou tourlou is a funny name for a seriously tasty dish. The tou is pronounced like "too" (not like tour). Can you roll your Rs? I sure hope so because my high school Spanish teacher claimed that if you couldn't roll your Rs, you were a mutant. She was a special lady. But if you have issues with R-rolling, it's more authentic sounding to make a D sound. So it's like toodloo toodloo. Got it? You are most welcome for your Greek Lesson of the Day (:::Elly cues "The More You Know" backdrop. "Da da da daaaaa!":::)
Moving on, tourlou tourlou is basically a medley of vegetables roasted over a long period of time. It's essentially the same thing as briam, which you may have seen on the menu at your local Greek place. The vegetables vary frequently, but I would argue that potatoes and zucchini are usually staples. You can use anything I've used, plus green beans, okra...whatever you want. Except cauliflower. Don't use cauliflower because cauliflower is the debil. :P
So, big deal right? Roasted vegetables. Been there, done that. Not like this you haven't. By roasting the vegetables for a really long time, all of their natural sweetness comes out and makes this dish super delicious. So delicious, in fact, that my husband told me when he was reheating his leftovers at work, a virtual stranger stuck his face in front of the microwave to see what smelled so good.
This main dish is especially popular during times when Greeks don't eat meat, but it can also be a side dish for some type of protein. We ate this with some Greek-seasoned chicken breast. As I mentioned, the vegetables can vary as can the herbs. I've used dill and parsley in mine. There is something I just love about dill with certain vegetables, and especially with anything tomato-based.
(Mysteriously absent from photo: garlic)
Tourlou Tourlou
Serves 6-8 as a side
1 eggplant, sliced into about 1/2" slices (peeled or unpeeled, your call)
2 large zucchini, sliced
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 large yellow or vidalia onion, cut in half and then sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 lbs. potatoes, peeled and sliced or cut into chunks
1 green bell pepper, sliced or cut into 1" bites
1/2 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
fresh dill..oh, about 3T or so?
1/2 cup olive oil (you could probably get away with 1/3 but since everything else here is so healthy, it's ok to splurge)
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 375. Toss all the vegetables, salt (use a healthy amount, it's a lot of vegetables!) and pepper, and the herbs with the olive oil in a large pan. Mix the crushed tomatoes with 1/2 cup of water and then pour the mixture over the whole pan.
It will look something like this:
Place the pan in the oven and bake for about 1.5 hours. Then it will look something like this. Oh sure, it's not the prettiest thing, but who cares? It tastes awesome.
Nutritional Information for 1/8 of the casserole: Calories: 231 / Fat: 13.9g / Saturated Fat: 1.9g / Carbs: 25.7g / Fiber: 5.5g / Protein: 4.3g
If you've followed this blog, you know of my deep-seated hatred for mayonnaise. I literally have to look away when I find myself at a place like Subway and the person in front of me orders mayo on their sub. Sometimes, the sandwich preparer will automatically pick up the squeeze bottle of mayonnaise when it's my turn to pick out my condiments and I get a look of panic on my face, hands flying up into stop signs. Nooooooo! No mayo, please!
So, it's safe to say that I am not a huge fan of the traditional summer salads, like chicken, potato and pasta. And it's sometimes a shame because these things are everywhere, to the point where I often find myself side dish-less at summer parties and barbecues.
When I was about 9 years old, my stepmom (then just my dad's girlfriend) asked if I would like some potato salad with my meal. I debated. Do I try this just to be polite since this could be my future stepmother? Certainly writhing in fear and disgust was not an appropriate reaction. But then, I peeked into the bowl she was pointing to. Hmm. It sure didn't look like mayonnaise. It looked pretty good, really. So, I scooped some onto my plate.
And, I fell in love. This Greek-style potato salad quickly became one of my favorite side dishes. I don't know that you can really refer to it as a "salad" but why not? My stepmother is also a first-generation Greek, but I had never seen this particular dish before growing up because of the differences in Greek regional cuisine. It has the same flavors, though, as those roasted potatoes everyone loves: lemon, olive oil, oregano. A trifecta of awesomeness.
This dish is best served at room temperature or just slightly warm, making it perfect for picnics, potlucks, and barbecues. It's incredibly easy to throw together and it's so, so tasty. This is one of the few dishes where I really enjoy raw onion (I love them cooked, but I have never been big on them raw). I do use a milder red onion, though. My stepmom doesn't add parsley to this, and whether I add it or not depends on my laziness, but I do find it's a good addition to sprinkle just a little on top for more freshness. I like lemon quite a bit so if you want a more muted flavor, just reduce the lemon juice by a little and add more olive oil.
Greek-Style Potato Salad
2 lbs. russet potatoes, cut into uniform pieces
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. dried oregano
1/2 red onion, finely diced
salt and pepper to taste
parsley for garnish (optional)
Put your potatoes into a pot and add cold water. Bring the water to a boil, add some salt and then cook until the potatoes are just fork tender.
Meanwhile, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, and oregano and set aside. Allow the potatoes to cool just a bit (not too much as the dressing will be more absorbed when they are still warm). Mash the potatoes slightly and stir in the onions and salt and pepper. Add the dressing while stirring the potatoes, to be sure it gets everywhere. Adjust seasonings and serve at room temperature. Top with chopped parsley if desired.
I can't believe my blog has gone on this long without mention of keftedes. It's just unacceptable! Keftedes are the ever-so-famous Greek meatballs that often grace the typical Greek's table at any hour of day. They can be appetizers, sides, snacks, or a main dish. A bigger version of a kefteda is often called a bifteki - that's about the size of a hamburger, but not as flat.
Now, you know I'm all about making things healthy whenever possible right? I'm all over reducing the amount of oil and butter in a recipe, swapping out certain ingredients, etc. I'd even suggest baking meatballs instead of pan frying them when you are making something like spaghetti and meatballs. So you'll just have to trust me when I say - you are going to want to pan fry these babies. It's just the right thing to do, ok? Do not let me catch you baking a Greek kefteda!
When I was young, keftedes and homemade French fries were one of my absolute favorite meals. When I was young, I was a fat kid. :)
The other day, I paired the keftedes with a relatively lighter Greek-style potato salad (coming to a future Vox post near you) and green salad. So now that your sides are nice and healthy, you are going to feel just fine about the pan frying.
Keftedes (Greek Meatballs)
1 slice of bread
milk
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 an onion, finely diced or grated
2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed
1 heaping tsp. dried oregano
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 tsp. salt
freshly ground pepper
flour, for dredging
olive oil, for pan frying
Put your slice of bread into a bowl and then pour milk into the bowl. Allow the bread to soak up the milk as you are prepping your other ingredients. Squeeze the bread to get rid of some of the milk, and then discard the remaining milk, keeping just the soggy bread.
Add the beef, egg, onion, garlic, oregano, parsley, salt & pepper to the bread. Mix everything together (with your hands - what Ina calls "a cook's best tools") but don't overmix. Then, shape into meatballs--any size you want.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add some olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Dredge the meatballs in flour, shaking off the excess. I find the easiest way to do this is to put some flour in your hands and then bat the meatball back and forth. When the oil is hot, add your meatballs and pan fry them until they are cooked through (working in batches, if necessary).
Sometimes, you don't really know what lurks in the depths of your freezer. I admit I'm a bit of a list-maker (read: crazy person) so I have a list of all the meats and quantities magnetized to my freezer door. But, I don't write down the random things in there, like pesto "cubes," walnuts, tortillas, phyllo cups, or in this case...artichoke hearts.
Tom and I have been out of town a decent amount, and we're going out of town again Saturday through Wednesday (which, as you may have guessed, translates to no blogging for me). So, rather than buying tons of groceries like I usually do, I've been trying to use up what's in the freezer and my cabinets, buying some fresh produce when necessary. When I saw the artichokes, I knew they needed to be used up soon.
This Greek dish is most commonly made with lamb. And, of course it's better with lamb because lamb is better than chicken. Duh. But "lamb" was not on my magnetized freezer list, so chicken it had to be. But no worries--this is a really tasty meal with chicken, too. It's sort of like eating an avgolemono stew, rather than a soup, with artichokes in it. I personally prefer using a dark meat chicken for this because 1) it tastes better and 2) it holds up better to poaching/braising/etc. without drying out. We had this with a salad, and some rice to soak up all the egg-lemony goodness.
Have a great weekend and early week, all!
Chicken with Artichokes and Egg Lemon Sauce (Kota Me Aginares Kai Avgolemono)
Serves 2
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 pieces bone-in chicken (thighs, leg quarters, etc. I skin them because to me, skin is worthless if it's not crispy from roasting!)
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1.5 cups chicken broth
Dill, to taste
1 cup artichoke hearts
1 egg
1 lemon, juiced
a little cornstarch
salt and pepper
Heat a pan over medium heat and add the olive oil. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and then brown in the hot oil. Remove the chicken, and add the diced onions to the pan, cooking until translucent. Stir in the garlic until fragrant. Add the chicken broth, being sure to scrape up all the browned bits as you deglaze, and bring to a boil. Add the dill, chicken, and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
Add the artichoke hearts and continue to cook, this time uncovered, for about 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the artichokes are tender. Season to taste if necessary.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, lemon juice and a little cornstarch. Slowly add a couple ladels full of the broth from the pan (I find it easier to plate the chicken first, so you don't have to maneuver around that) to the egg-lemon mixture, whisking constantly so your eggs don't scramble. Then, slowly add that mixture back into the pan, again whisking constantly. Stir until thickened. Pour the avgolemono sauce over the chicken and artichokes (and rice!)
I really wanted to participate in Danielle and Robin's Recipe Remix this time around, since I didn't get a chance to the first time. I think this is such a great idea because really, what do most creative cooks do but remix some sort of existing dish to make it more appealing, more delicious and more personal to them. The theme this time around was breakfast.
I wanted to do something Greek-inspired and I started thinking that pretty much every Greek desert has some sort of simple syrup-based liquid in it, which makes it perfect for breakfast. You already have your syrup! I decided to go with what is probably the most famous Greek desssert--baklava--and make a baklava French....I mean, Greek....toast. French toast is probably my favorite breakfast item.
I made the typical baklava filling and sandwiched that in some tsoureki (Greek Easter bread). This is a loaf I got from my grandma but if you want to make your own, there are several Greek bloggers who have made it. Then, I made the baklava syrup which is essentially honey, sugar, and water. You can add some lemon rind or a cinnamon stick, too, if you'd like.
I wish I could make this look as good as it tasted. Unfortunately, my loaf of tsoureki was not really French toast material. It was a loaf my grandma made me over Easter, which I then I froze (I had eaten too much tsoureki in a 3 day period!), but it was a very small loaf. You couldn't make normal slices from it (because it was only a couple inches high) so I had to slice it the long way which made for some interesting slices and some falling apart. Oh well!
There isn't much of a recipe because the only things I truly measured were the syrup ingredients but the process is below.
Baklava French Toast
Crush some walnuts in a food processor and stir in some cinnamon and cloves to taste.
In a small saucepan, bring equal parts sugar, water and honey to a boil (and lemon rind/cinnamon stick if you want). Thicken it by simmering for a bit.
Slice your bread (challah or brioche would also be great here) and spoon the walnut mixture over half the slices. Place the remaining slices on top of the ones with the walnut mixture, basically making walnut sandwiches.
Make your standard French toast mixture, including a beaten eggs and some milk or cream. You can add some vanilla and cinnamon, too, if you'd like. Pour the mixture into a dish big enough to hold your sandwiches and layer them in there. Let them soak for a couple minutes before flipping (carefully...I lost some of my mixture here due to poor bread cutting and flipping) and soaking them on the other side.
Melt some butter in a nonstick skillet or griddle. Add the Greek toast and cook for a couple minutes per side, until golden.
Top with the syrup and some cinnamon, if you'd like.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: I am SO not going there. ;)
Or, a fancy schmancy Greek way of saying spinach-'n-rice. In Greek, "spanaki" is spinach and "rizi" is rice. I hope you're paying attention to some of the Greek tidbits you're learning from my blog because you never know when you may need them. Maybe your next Cranium question is going to ask what a spanakophobe is, and of course you're going to know right away that, obviously, it's someone who fears spinach.
[Okay, I just did about 20 seconds of googling and was not able to confirm that a person who is scared of spinach is called a spanakophobe or anything remotely close to that. So let's not use that example, but it could come into play somewhere, I promise. Maybe not with spanakophobe or rizophile, but some time.]
At any rate, spanakorizo is a very common Greek side dish. The flavors are very typical of other Greek dishes and they taste great when combined. The bonus is that this can double as your vegetable and your starch side. Normally, I am not one to do that (veggies are important and most veggies incorporated into starches tend to be in very small quantities), but here I am giving you the go ahead. About 1.5-2 lbs. of spinach are put into this rice, and the amount of rice you eat is actually less than the serving (how often can you say that about a starch?) but don't worry, the portion is still plenty.
Traditionally, spanakorizo has quite a bit more olive oil to start, but I like to make a healthier version. I suppose using brown rice would make it even healthier but for some things, even I just say no to brown rice. Some Greeks add tomato paste or fresh tomatoes to their spanakorizo but I am not one of them. I don't believe that there's anything wrong with that, but I like the combo of the dill, spinach and lemon as it stands.
In case you're wondering, we had this with a very Greek-flavored pork tenderloin that I quick marinated in fresh lemon juice, garlic, olive oil and oregano and then seared and roasted.
Spanakorizo
Serves 4
1.5 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2/3 cup long grain white rice
1-1/3 cup water
Juice of 1 large lemon
2 bunches or about 1.5-2 lbs. fresh spinach, chopped (and remove any stems that don't seem very tender)
1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped (or about 1 T dried)
salt and pepper
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil. Once heated, add the onions and saute until tender. Add the rice and stir to coat it in the olive oil, "toasting" it for a minute or two. Add the water and lemon juice and bring to a boil.
Add the spinach, dill and some salt and pepper to taste. Bring the mixture down to a simmer. Cover tightly and simmer about 15 minutes or until rice is cooked.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 205 / Fat: 6g / Carbs: 33g / Fiber: 4.5g / Protein: 7.3g
Well, we're back. We had a great time visiting family in Michigan and I ate my weight in Greek desserts (and lamb and potatoes and tzatziki and bread and...). Calorically speaking, the last 5 days didn't happen ;)
As a result of being out of town, we came home to a pretty empty kitchen. We won't be getting groceries until later tonight so in the meantime, I had to make due with what I had around. Frozen shrimp is one of the greatest things for those kinds of nights. You can cook it from frozen or just thaw it under some cold water for a few minutes. And there you go, you have a lean protein that is great in pasta or rice, grilled, in tacos, whatever you want.
A while back I came across two recipes for shrimp baked with feta and below is my version of this dish, made a little more Greek with the use of hilopites. Normally, I would make this with fresh basil and parsley but we didn't have any around. I did have the chopped/frozen basil from Trader Joe's, though, so I actually used a couple cubes of that.
This is a really simple, delicious and healthy dish. Hey, it won't erase the diples from the past weekend, but it will still make you feel great.
Baked Shrimp and Feta Pasta
Serves 2
1/2 lb. raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 cup hilopites (or orzo)
2 tsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. dried basil (I used 2 of the fresh/frozen TJ's cubes)
1/4 cup white wine
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup feta, crumbled
salt and pepper
Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook hilopites until just al dente (won't take long at all for such a small pasta). Drain.
Meanwhile, in a skillet or a small dutch oven, heat the olive oil until shimmering and then add the onions and cook until transulent. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant. Then, add the white wine and reduce by half. Stir in the tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, basil, and salt and pepper. Simmer for a few minutes to combine the flavors.
Off the heat, stir in the shrimp and the hilopites. Move the mixture to a small baking dish (unless you are using a dutch oven; if so just keep it like that) and top with the feta. Bake about 10-12 minutes or until the shrimp has cooked through.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Calories: 422 / Fat: 11g / Carbs: 46g / Protein: 28g
A few weeks ago, I went to Greektown with my friend for dinner. I was meeting her there and was a little early, so I decided to duck into the Greek market. I hardly ever go there because it's really out of the way and it always seems to be closed when I'm in the area. Whenever I go, I tend to stock up on...well, cheese, primarily. (And, shh, don't tell but I prefer the Bulgarian feta to the Greek kind).
At any rate, when I was browsing the aisles for long, tubular noodles for making pastitsio, I came across hilopites and just about ran up to the clerk to hug him. I had never seen them there before, and I have been wanting (and searching for) hilopites for a while now. Hilopites are small, square egg noodles. When I was young, about 90% of my diet consisted of things with hilopites and soups made with fithe (or is it fide? Or...I can never type Greek words in English. But, it's similar to vermicelli.)
Hilopites are just one of those things that are so nostalgic for me. To be honest, more than anything, they bring back memories of what a picky eater I was. I remember visiting Greece and begging my great aunt to make me plain broth with fide or hilopites every day I was there. I probably haven't eaten them in a good 15 years. So maybe now you understand why I was SO excited to find them!
This recipe is really nothing new. It's similar to my manestra but with a little added spice. I make something like this very often, both with beef and with chicken (dark meat). Sometimes I just serve the sauce over spaghetti instead of cooking pasta along with the meat. Sometimes I use allspice and bay instead of cinnamon and cloves. But I always top it with myzithra :)
You'll have to excuse the monotone picture, here. I forgot to put the extra parsley on before photographing!
Beef with Hilopites
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. beef, cut into 1" pieces
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried or about 3 Tbsp. fresh parsley
3 Tbsp. tomato paste
3 cups water
1/4 heaping tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 lb. hilopites
salt and pepper
Heat olive oil in a deep saute pan. Season the beef with salt and pepper and then add to the oil to brown, in batches if necessary. Remove with a slotted spoon.
Add the onion to the pan and cook until translucent. Stir in the garlic and parsley (if you are using dried) and saute an additional minute before adding the tomato paste. Cook off the tomato paste for about 30 seconds, and then add the water. Be sure to scrape all the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the cinnamon, cloves, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and then add the beef back in. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about an hour or really as long as you'd like (the longer you simmer, the more tender the beef gets).
Add the hilopites and simmer, uncovered, until done, stirring occasionally. If you are using fresh parsley add it around the same time as you add the hilopites.
So, four months later and I have finally made the plasto my yiayia taught me how to make. Although it's one of my favorite things to eat, I am constantly just running across new things I want to try every week, so it keeps getting pushed back. Plus, I very recently made spanakopitas which are extremely similar.
Plasto is a regional Greek dish that is essentially a greens pie with a cornmeal crust. You can really use any greens you want, though spinach usually tends to make up the bulk of the filling (at least for my grandma's version). Chard, dandelion greens, mustard greens, etc. will all work. It's totally up to you.
This took a little trial and error (I had originally thought I could get away with a cup of cornmeal but ended up adding an additional half cup). And, though the recipe below is more recipe-like than the one I started with, it will still vary a little based on what type of pan you use. I was debating on using an 11x7 baking dish or a 9" springform and ultimately went for the springform since I prefer baking with metal (my 11x7 is glass), it would be easier to get out, and it fits more so I could have a higher filling-to-crust ratio. If you go the route of a regular cake pan (or 9x9 or 11x7) you will need to reduce the filling below. And honestly, I am not 100% sure about the filling amounts, anyway. I didn't *really* measure 7 cups of greens but to me, that's what it looked like. If you're not sure, just build your filling in your baking dish and dump it into a bowl before adding the feta, to make sure you don't have too much or too lilttle. Remember, of course, that they will "shrink" as they cook.
Plasto
5 cups fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
2 cups swiss chard, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup fresh dill or about 1 Tbsp. dried
1 leek, sliced (white and green parts only)
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
2 Tbsp. softened butter or margarine, divided
2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1.5 cups cornmeal
1/3 cup + about 1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 400.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together your spinach, chard, dill, leek, feta and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
Spread 1 Tbsp. each of the softened butter and olive oil on the bottom of your pan. In a medium bowl, add the cornmeal, a pinch of salt, and 1/3 cup of milk. You may use a little more or less milk but you are going for a crumbly mixture that you can press into a crust. Place half the mixture over the oiled/buttered pan and press down to form a crust.
Place your greens on top of the bottom crust. To the remainder of your cornmeal mixture, add the milk slowly, mixing with a fork, until you get a consistency that is wet and spreadable, but not too liquidy. You should be able to spoon the mixture over the greens, but it should not pour out of the bowl. Dollop the mixture over the greens and form a top crust by spreading it around. Top the pie with dollops of the remaining tablespoon of butter, and the olive oil. Bake for about 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
The following nutritional information is with using real butter and 2% milk (which I accidentally bought instead of skim. D'oh!). You could make it lighter with skim and using less butter or using margarine, a butter flavor spray, etc. This is for 1/6 of the pie.
Calories: 278 / Fat: 14g / Carbs: 31.4g / Protein: 8.8g
