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RECIPES
Greek Christmas
The holiday season
in Greece extends over a twelve day period, starting with Christmas Eve and
ending on January 6, with the Theophania. Celebrations incorporate strong
religious traditions and those dating back to ancient times.
The holidays officially start on Christmas Eve day, when children stroll the
streets singing a traditional carol (kalanta) announcing the impending birth of
Christ. The carolers are warmly welcomed by neighbors and shop owners and are
given coins or a special holiday sweet, such as melomakarona , diples or
kourabiethes , as a reward for bringing the "good news".
Christmas Eve also brings mythical troll-like creatures, the kallikanjari, who
emerge from middle Earth, attracted by the merriment of the season. The
kallikanjari are bent on indulging in stolen holiday goodies and making mischief
for unsuspecting humans.
Christmas Day is celebrated quietly in churches and among family and close
friends. At the Christmas dinner table, Christ's bread, or Christopsomo, is
served along with stuffed turkey and other seasonal foods. (You have the
opportunity to taste turkey salad , meat-pie , fried pork , spinach-pie and
fried aubergines with cheese ).
Homes are decorated with greenery, and the Christmas tree has been adopted
recently as a modern holiday custom. In the past, however, in many homes in this
sea-faring nation, a toy boat was decorated.
New Year's Eve day once again brings merry carolers singing the kalanta, this
time announcing the upcoming arrival of Aghios Vassilis, the Greek equivalent of
Santa Claus. Later at midnight, amid much merriment, the New Year is rung in. A
large New Year's cake or vassilopita is cut. All search eagerly for the hidden
coin baked in the cake, hopping that receiving the token will ensure good luck
in the coming year.
The twelve days of Christmas end with the Theophania, on January 6, when priests
bless the waters of Greece and everyone's homes. The kallikanjari are then
obliged to leave the surface of the earth and go underground for another year.
Vegetarian Kebabs
By
Vefa Alexiadou
Serves 4-5
Preparation time 2 hours. cooking time 15 minutes.
4 medium zucchini. 3 long thin eggplants
1 LB (500 g) portabello mushrooms
2 large red bell peppers. 2 large onions
For Spaghetti
10 oz (300 g) noodles or thin spaghetti
2 table spoons sesame oil (optional)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grafted fresh ginger
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 table spoon sesame seeds
1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons of water.
For Marinade
2 table spoons honey
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
2teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 clove garlic minced, salt and pepper
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Shake the ingredients for the marinade in a well-sealed jar until well-blended.
Slice the eggplants and zucchini into thick pieces, sprinkle with salt, and set aside to
drain for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, cut the bell pepper sand the onions into large square pieces. Rinse the
mushrooms and cut into bite-size pieces.
Rinse the zucchini and eggplants slices, drain, and squeeze out excess water with your
hands or pat dry paper towels.
Toss the prepared vegetables in the marinade and set aside for about 2 hours.
Thread the marinade vegetables on metal or wooden skewers and grill for about 8-10
minutes, brushing 2 or 3 times with the marinade and turning so all sides are cooked.
meanwhile, cook the spaghetti al dente in boiling salted water.
Heat the sesame oil in a frying pan and sauté the garlic, ginger, green onions, and
sesame seeds.
Pour in the remaining marinade and the cornstarch dissolved in water.
Stir until the sauce is thick and clear. Drain the pasta, add to the sauces, toss, and
remove from the heat.
Serve the pasta accompanied by the kebabs sprinkled with chopped green onions.
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ASSORTED STUFFED VEGETABLES
Serves 6
Preparation time 1 hour Cooking time 2 hours
3 large tomatoes
1 each, green, red, and yellow bell peppers
1 large onion
2 large potatoes
1 1/2 cup of olive oil
1 1/4 cup short grain rice
1/2 cup fine chopped fresh mint
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon ketchup
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup tomato juice |
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Rinse all vegetables and wipe dry. Slice off the tops from
the tomatoes and peppers and reserve.
Scoop out the pulp from the tomatoes with a spoon, de seed the peppers, and set aside.
Cut the eggplant and the zucchini in half lengthwise, and scoop out most of the pulp to
form 4 shells.
Peel the onions, slice off the tops and set aside. Scoop out most of the center portion to
form two shells.
Finely chop the onion centers and set aside.
Parboil the eggplant, zucchini, and onion shells in boiling water for 5 minutes and
drain..
Arrange all the vegetables shells in a baking dish.
Heat half of the olive oil in a pan on high heat and lightly sauté the chopped onion.
Fine chop the pulp from the tomatoes, the eggplants and the zucchini.
Add to the sauté onions and cook, stirring on high heat for 10 minutes.
Remove from the heat, stir in the rice, mint, tomato paste, ketchup, salt, pepper, and
allspice.
Fill the empty shells 3/4 full with stuffing and replace caps on tomatoes, peppers and
onions.
If there is any stuffing left over, use to stuff the zucchini blossoms.
Peel and cut the potatoes into wedges and place between the stuffed vegetables.
Pour the tomato juice on top and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper.
Spoon the remaining olive oil over the potatoes and the stuffed vegetables.
Bake in a 360F (180K) oven for about 2 hours or until lightly browned.
If the tops begin to brown too quickly, cover loosely with a piece of foil.
It may be necessary to add some water during the baking to prevent sticking.
Serve hot. |
Baked Red Snapper (spetses)
By
Vefa Alexiadou
Serves 5-6
Preparation time 1 hour 30 minutes. Cooking time 1 hour.
3 LB (1 1/8 Kg) red snapper or white fish
salt and pepper
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1 cup of olive oil
2 tablespoons flour
1 onion, sliced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
14 oz (400 g) tomato juice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
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Instructions
Clean fish, leaving head and tail intact.
Rinse the belly cavity thoroughly to remove all traces of blood.
Make 3 or 4 parallel slashes on both sides of the fish with sharp knife to ensure it cooks
throughout.
put fish in a baking dish and rub all surfaces with lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
Pour half the oil on top, sprinkle with little flour, and set aside for 1 hour.
Heat the remaining oil in a saucepan on high heat, and lightly sauté the onion and
garlic.
add the tomato pulp, wine, and parsley, cover, and simmer until thick.
Pour the sauce over the fish and bake in a 350F (175 C) oven for about 1 hour,
occasionally basting with the pan juices.
Serve accompanied by cooked greens, broccoli, or asparagus. |
Tsoureki Greek Easter Bread
(Makes 2 Loaves)
Ingredients:
2-7 gram Packets Active Dry Yeast
2 cups Warm Milk
9 to 10 cups All-purpose Flour
1 1/2 cups Granulated Sugar
2 tsp. Makhlepi (Optional)
8 Tbs. Butter; Melted and Cooled
6 Eggs; 1 Lightly Beaten
1 tsp. Salt
1 Tbs. Grated Orange Rind (Zest)
1 Tbs. Grated Lemon Rind (Zest)
2 Hard-Cooked Red-Dyed Eggs (Optional)
2 Tbs. Black Cumin Seeds (Optional)
In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warmed milk. Stir in 1 cup flour and
1/2 cup sugar, cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 1-hour. Steep makhlepi (if
utilizing) in 1/2 cup simmering water for about 5-minutes. Strain mixture and discard
seeds. Set remaining liquid aside to cool.
Stir 1/2 cup water or makhlepi-scented liquid into the yeast mixture. Add
butter and 5 eggs and thoroughly combine.
Sift in 8 cups of flour, salt and remaining
sugar into bread mixture. Add salt, orange and lemon zest, and mix thoroughly with a large
wooden spoon. Turn out dough onto a floured surface. Knead, adding more flour if
necessary, until smooth, approximately 10-minutes. Form the dough into a ball and place in
a lightly greased bowl. Cover the dough with a clean dish towel and set aside to raise for
about 2-hours.
Return dough to the floured surface. Divide the dough into 6-equal parts
and roll into ropes about 15-inches long.
For each loaf, loosely braid 3 ropes, turn under
ends and press 1 dyed egg (optional) near one end of each braid.
Set bread aside to rise
again for at least 1-hour on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Pre-heat oven to 350-F degrees. Brush bread with remaining beaten egg and
sprinkle with black cumin seeds(optional). Bake until golden, approximately 40 to
50-minutes. Store cooled bread in an airtight container or serve warm.
Tips:
Take the time to carefully prepare the orange and lemon zest. Make sure you remove nearly
all of the white pith from the rind of the fruits or your bread may turn out bitter. Peal
the fruit and utilize a small, sharp, non-serrated knife to remove any remaining pith from
the rind. Then mince, food process or grind the zest into tiny bits before using in this
recipe.
KOULOURAKIA (Greek Easter Cookies)
2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature,
1 1/2 c. sugar, 8 egg yolks,
1/2tsp. vanilla powder,
4 tsp. baking ammonia,
1/2 c.milk lukewarm,
1 tsp. lemon juice,
1 tsp.baking soda,
1 2lb. box cake flour sifted,
1 egg yolk,
1 tsp. water.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Grease 3 cookie sheets. Beat butter and sugar for 20 min. in larger mixer bowl.
Add egg yolks and vanilla. Beat 10 min. longer until creamy and fluffy.
Add baking ammonia, dissolved in lemon juice.
Remove from mixer and gradually blend enough flour to make soft dough.
Cover and set aside for 1 hour.
Cut small pieces of dough and shape cookies into & shapes.
Place on prepared pans. Blend 1 egg yolk and 1 tsp. water and lightly brush on top surface
of each cookie.
Bake for 15 min. or until lightly golden.
Greek Easter eggs
Traditionally, Greek Easter eggs are colored red (a dozen eggs)
Place the eggs in a pot in lukewarm water. When the water starts to boil, lower
temperature and simmer for about 10 minutes.
In the meantime, prepare red dye, according to the directions of the package (dye for
Easter eggs can be purchased at any Greek shop or local supermarket.)
Place boiled eggs one at a time into the dye.
Simmer for another 5 minutes or so.
Remove the egg from the dye and allow to drain.
Rub eggs with soft cloth, dipped in some olive oil, to make them shine.
Wipe off the excess olive oil with paper towels.
Place eggs in any shaped platter and decorate center of dining room table.
"Traditionally, we crack the eggs with family and friends.
A family member will say 'Christos anesti', ('Christ has risen') to which one replies
'Alithos anesti' ('Truly He has risen').
The person with the stronger egg enjoys good luck."
TZATZIKI(Makes
about 4 servings)
Ingredients:
1 large cucumber, unpeeled grated and drained
2 cups plain yogurt (500 ml)
3 garlic cloves, crushed through a press,
Very little salt.
Dill (optional)
Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a glass bowl.
Mix well and refrigerate. Serve cold.
Note:Strain the yogurt in cheese cloth.
By Elias {Troy's
Restaurant}
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