Simple grilled with Olive Oil, Greek Specialty

"Tsiknopempti" dinner is all about barbeque! Try grilled pork chops with Oregano flavored Extra Virgin Olive Oil!

4 pork chops, 3/4-inch thick
2 tbsp Elea Creta Oregano Extra Virgin Olive Oil http://trofos.com/pagesall/productfinal.aspx?pid=81
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice 
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. Brush both sides of pork with oregano olive oil and lemon juice, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2. Prepare a medium-hot fire in grill. Brush the grate clean and oil the grate. Grill chops, over direct heat, turning once, to medium rare doneness, 5 to 6 minutes per side, or until desired degree of doneness.



Have a nice try, this post from www.trofos.com

Mousaka -Greek Food

Well the recipe is almost similar with my last posting; 

http://dinkdonk-cook.blogspot.gr/2012/06/pastitcio-greek-baked-pasta-with-ground.html

Except the pasta base replaced with potatoes and eggplant slices.

For a 25 X 35 X 6 cm Baking dish size; 

• Need 2-3 pieces eggplants in medium size 
• 3 pcs medium size potatoes.

Directions before mixing all ingredients together in baking dish.

• Wash clean the eggplants and slice it around 0,8 - 1 cm thick and bake in the oven around 180C, for 15-20 minutes until brown with olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. 
• Peel off the potatoes skin and slice around 0,8-1 cm thick and arrange it on the bottom of the baking dish, try to cover all the base without bake/fried it,  just add few drop olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. 
• After the eggplants ready from oven, arrange it on the baking dish on top of the potatoes. 
• Then the 3rd layer minced beef with tomato sauce
• The top the cream with cheese on top

After all ready, baked in the oven in 200C heat around 35-40 minutes, then removed from oven. Cool it around 15 minutes, if not it will really soft and liquid, a bit difficult to cut it.
Better serve after cooling down but not too cold, just until a bit hard; around 10-15 mnts.

Have a nice try, if having difficulty in the process don't hesitate to contact me!

Pastitcio - Greek Baked Pasta with ground beef

A baked pasta from Greece. Creamy pasta with ground beef, tomato sauce and cheese. A bit fatty but it nice and delicious and almost everyone from around the world enjoyed this.(I think)

The first thing You must do is boiling the pasta, in Greece we can search the special pasta for this as Pasticio Pasta but if you cannot find it just grab penne it will be similar.

Ingredients:

250 grams pasta (half 500 grams pack)

The Cream:
1 cup all purpose flour
1,5 liter milk
salt & pepper
50 grams butter
1 egg (big)

The filling;
500 grams minced ground beef (lamb optional)
1-2 pcs minced fresh tomatoes or
1 pack 100 grams tomato sauce/juice classic (pummaro brand i prefer)
1 pcs red onions
1-2 pcs cloves garlic (optional)
1/2 cup red wine (the sweet red wine will be nice)
salt & pepper
olive oil
a pinch of oregano (optional)

1/4 cup of parmesan cheese or in Greece can find Kefalotiri for optional cheese

Baking dish size; 25 X 35 X 6 cm

The Preparations:

First thing first is boiling the pasta until it soft (as you like) ; soft like the Italian or softer then that. then dry it (i mean really dry, try not to left any water as during the baking it will have more liquid at the bottom)

Chop onion & garlic.

Cook the meat using pan in medium heat, fried the meats with olive oil and stir it until soft then start fill in the onions & garlic until it turns transparent and then throw the wine and let it evaporated.
After that start fill in the tomato and stir until all mix and ready.

For the cream, melt the butter in the medium saucepan with low heat then fill in the milk after whisk it with the eggs and flour then stir it in saucepan until no lump and starting boiled.

For the baking dish; brush it with olive oil then transfer the pasta for the first layer, the second layer the meat mixture then the last is the cream and some cheese on top to cover the cream (optional).

Baked in 200C heat around 35-40 minutes, removed from oven. Cool it around 15 minutes, if not it will really soft and liquid, a bit difficult to cut it.

Better serve after cooling down but not too cold, just until a bit hard; around 10-15 mnts.

Hope this recipe clear enough for you, if you have any questions you can contact me.

Happy baking.

LOUKOUMADES - GREEK DONUTS

This is one of my favorite sweet from Greek traditional sweets. Easy to make and nice to eat while its hot.
In Greece, you can find it somewhere in pastry shops or coffee shop with sweets for breakfast or all day long to accompany your coffee.
But if you want, you can make it on your own, as to have more healthy food with fresh fried oil instead at the shop, that mostly use the oil for many times.
It's taste almost like donuts, but this are more crispy at the outside and soft in the inside.

The ingredients:

For the Dough
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 pkg. (1/4 oz) dry yeast
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. whiskey or brandy
1-1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/2 cup lukewarm water

2 cups canola or corn oil for frying

Ground cinnamon and walnuts for serving

For the Syrup: just honey i prefer.
But if you like to have it more liquids, you can try this;

2 cups sugar
1 stick cinnamon
1-cup water
1/2 cup honey

The preparations:


Boil the water if you don't have lukewarm water ready.
Dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup lukewarm water and set aside.
In a medium to large mixing bowl, add all the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt. Mix well to combine.
Add the dissolved yeast, whiskey, and 1-1/2 cups luke warm water to the dry ingredients.

Either Using an electric mixer or by hands just make sure that there are no lumps in the batter. Using the electric mixer, mix the batter for 3 minutes on medium high speed . 
Cover the batter with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place for about two hours to raise.

For the liquid syrup; Add the sugar, cinnamon stick, water and honey to a saucepan. Boil for 5 minutes until the sugar is completely dissolved. Keep warm, otherwise just use honey directly.

When the batter is about double in size, heat the 2 cups oil in a saucepan or deep frying pan until very hot but not smoky.

Using two spoons, carefully drop about a teaspoon full of batter for each puff into the hot oil. Turn the puffs using a slotted spoon and fry until golden brown on each side. Remove the puffs to a plate lined with paper toweling to absorb excess oil.

Dip the hot puffs in the syrup and then sprinkle with cinnamon, ground walnuts or even with confectioners sugar. Serve immediately.

*40 pcs with table spoon or around 60 pcs with teaspoon (depends on how you wanted to be)

Nice for breakfast accompany with hot tea or coffee, also at tea time in afternoon.

Enjoy and have fun to try, leave a comment for feedback.

Mελιτζάνες Tηγανητές (melitzana tiganites) Fried eggplant/aubergine

My husband like the eggplant/aubergine in bake, fried or grilled. For me; I don’t really like it but the fried with batter it’s almost the same like mix fried veggies; the Indonesian fried snack (bala-bala/ba’wan).

Also this receipt is easier then other eggplant recipes.

And this type of food is suitable for Asian and Mediterranean cuisines. For my Indonesian friend you can try this too; the preparations only take around 15-20 minutes, here are the ingredients;

1. 1 medium size eggplant or aubergine

2. 1 cup all purpose use flour

3. Salt & pepper

4. 1 cup water (the more liquids, the more crispy the batter)

5. Corn oil /veggie oil for frying

6. Vinegar

7. 1 teaspoon Olive oil

The Batter:

Mix the flour with water, salt, pepper, vinegar and olive oil until well mixture with fork or the mixer.

 

The Preparations:

- Cut the eggplant and aubergine in thin slices (if you like crispy then make the slice thinner) 

- Mix well and cover all the slices into batter 

- Heat the oil in pan for deep fried

- After the oil enough hot, insert the slices with batter 

- Cool down into paper towel

- Serve with chilly sauce, mayonnaise or garlic crush with olive oil (in Greece serve with this)

 

Then it’s ready to serve. Try the different sauce; the chilly, mayonnaise or garlic; anyway you like it.

Enjoy, give feed back after you try this; thx & GBU

Greek Beefteki (meatball/burger patty) for Christmas

Xmas beeftekia

normal beefteki served with buttery rice and veggies

beefteki served with french fries

This food was the first time I eat it at my parents in law house, at lunch.

I like it, it’s really nice. Some people make it like meat ball can be fried or boil it with tomato soup or just make it as burger; baked or grilled. Here in Greece, they always serve it with potato and lemon; most people here eat everything with lemon; meat, veggies or even soup. It’s also good though for health and rich vitamin C.

I will show you the normal beefteki but also I will show you how to make it for Christmas theme too. Well my husband always surprise with the way I serve food and this time when I make it in Christmas three, snowman and stars shape using shaping for cookies.

It’s just crazy and creative thinking of mine that sometimes I put it on food, you know designer. Ok stop the chase, here are the ingredients so you can try it yourself for your families.

Ingredients:

300 grams beef and minced from butcher

1 pieces big bread or just uses the left over bread 1.5 – 2 times the meat

1 teaspoon Olive oil

1 teaspoon oregano

1-2 teaspoon Salt & pepper (as you like)

Celery (as you like)

1-2 pieces eggs

1 pieces Green Pepper (as your prefer)

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

1 sprig parsley, finely chopped

1 pieces lemon

the bread soak and squezzed

minced ground beef

Celery and Parsley

Preparations:

Cut the bread into small pieces and soak into water until it soft and moisture after squeezed until dry for mixed ( the bread need to be really dry if you like the patty more crispy and dry then moisture inside). Mixed it all together with your hands until well mix, after start to shape it rounded like normal burger or using shaping cookies to shape it as Christmas three, stars etc. then ready for baked, grilled or fried. For baked, put at the oven around 180-200C for about 45 minutes- 1hour until it brown, the same with grilled then served it with French fries, salads or buttery rice don’t forget the lemon juice.

before and after xmas beeftekia

Have a nice time to try this, and don’t forget to live a comment after. GBU

Baked Chicken Mozzarella

If you a working mom or wife, a busy person, don't have much time to cook, but love to eat homemade fresh meal, I think this is the right meal for you A quick and delicious chicken recipe, with boneless chicken breasts and cheese. The flavor from the wine adds extra flavor. baked with mushrooms, sliced tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. oh..heaven!

Ingredients:

1. 4 Boneless skinless Chicken breast, cut in half then pound until evenly thinned out.
2. Garlic powder salt and pepper.
3. 2 Tbsp butter
4. 1 Tbsp Olive oil
5. 8-10 fresh sliced mushroom
6. 2 Tbsp marsala wine or white wine
7. 2 tomatoes, slice
8. sliced mozzarella cheese

• Sprinkle pounded chicken with salt, pepper and garlic powder, using frying pan or skillet, heat 1 tbsp butter and olive oil, Add chicken, cook in medium heat for 3-4 minutes each side. Place chicken into baking dish/Pyrex side by side, set aside.
• Place skillet back into medium heat, add 1 tbsp butter, wine and mushroom, saute the mushroom until tender or soft, pour mushroom marsala sauce into chicken, top with sliced tomatoes, then cheese. Bake at 325°/165°C for 25 minutes. Voila.