Greek Dolmades (Stuffed Vine Leaves)

Another "classic" Greek dish. Dolmades can be eaten as a meze with ouzo or as a side dish. It can also be accompanied by Greek strained yoghurt as a tasty little snack on its own. Ideally, the vine leaves you use should be the first tender leaves of spring.

Ingredients

50 vine leaves – approx. 10cm diameter
(best vine leaves to use are the tender ones that are first to come out in spring)
2 large onions grated
½ kg risotto rice
1 bunch chopped fennel
5 fresh mint leaves chopped
Juice from 2 medium lemons
2 cups extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper




Preparation

Wash the leaves in cold water.

Place them in a large pan of boiling water for no longer than a minute – just to soften them.

Remove the protruding edge of the central stem from each leaf.

Place the leaves individually flat in a shallow oven dish and allow to cool.

In a shallow pan, gently fry the onions in 3 tablespoons of oil.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir the mixture just the once before removing from the heat.

Place 1 level teaspoon of the mixture in the centre of each leaf and fold the leaf to make a small rectangular package.

Spread 5 vine leaves at the bottom of a shallow pan and place the dolmades next to each other in the pan with the folded side underneath.

When you have completed one layer, make another layer of dolmades on top of them and then finally a third layer.

Add the rest of the olive oil as well as 1 cup of water.

Place any remaining leaves across the top of the layers and then place a heavy plate on top to cover most of the surface.

Put the lid on the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 30 minutes or until there is only oil and no water.

Remove the plate and add the lemon juice.

You may now remove the dolmades from the pan and serve.


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Eat and Enjoy!

Greek Spanakorizo (Spinach Rice)

This is a simple and nutritious dish, easily prepared. It is best accompanied by slices of fried haloumi cheese (see photo), which is from Cyprus but is available worldwide. It can, however, also be accompanied by any other semi-hard, salty cheese fried.

As I said - simple and nutritious!

Ingredients

1kg fresh spinach
1 bunch fresh spring onions
1 bunch fresh dill
¼ kg pilaf rice
250g haloumi cheese
Juice from 1 ½ lemons
150ml olive oil
Salt

Preparation

Wash the spinach and cut up roughly.

Wash and finely chop the spring onions and dill.

Put the spinach, onions and dill in a pan and boil for 5 minutes.

In a separate pan simmer the rice until it is half boiled, with enough water left to just cover it.

Add the spinach, onion and dill mixture to the rice, stir well and continue to simmer until the rice is boiled.

Add salt to taste.

Mix the juice from 1 lemon with the olive oil, beat well and pour on top of the food.

Turn off the heat without removing the pan.

Slice the cheese and fry in a non-stick pan, turning it over so that it is done on both sides, until it has softened and acquired a light golden brown colour.

Spread the juice from the remaining ½ lemon on top of the cheese.

Serve the spinach rice with the slices of cheese on top.


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Eat and Enjoy!

May 15 - Bloggers Unite for Human Rights

This year marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations and today - May 15 - thousands of bloggers are sharing their unified support for human rights everywhere.

I feel it's tremendous that we can take the medium of blogging and use it to raise awareness on important and basic issues. Human Rights is extremely basic and rests on the foundation of human beings' respect for one another. To respect each other for what we are - humans. We are all different externally and in our character and beliefs, which makes it so wonderful to be part of the human race, but our essence is exactly the same.

Fresh Broad Beans with Artichokes

We used the first broad beans from our garden to make this dish and there's nothing better than eating fresh vegetables picked from your own garden! This dish is ideally served with Greek strained yoghurt (see photo).

Ingredients

1kg fresh, tender broad beans in their pods
6 young, tender artichokes
4 medium potatoes cut into cubes
2 lemons cut in half
1 bunch chopped fennel
6 large leaves of fresh mint chopped
1 bunch spring onions with the leaves removed
1 clove fresh garlic
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

Cut off the ends of the bean pods.

Place the beans in their pods in a large pan of boiling water and allow them to boil for 2 minutes.

Discard the outer leaves of the artichokes and rub the artichokes with the lemons.

Place the artichokes along with the used lemons in a bowl of cold water.

Place the beans and the artichokes along with the other ingredients in a covered, ceramic oven dish and add a cup of water.

Stir them well and bake them with the lid on in a pre-heated moderate oven for 1 hour.

Eat and Enjoy!

Greek Youvarlakia

This is another type of meatball - in actual fact, it's a meatball soup. A nice, light and tasty meal. This is another favourite with the kids, in our experience - in fact, even when they grow up, as we have seen with our two sons who always ask for it when they come home in the holidays!

Ingredients

½ kg minced beef
100g risotto rice
1 whole egg
2 medium onions
1 celery stick
2 tomatoes
2 tender carrots
200g concentrated tomato
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
Salt and pepper

Preparation

Boil 1 ½ litres of salted water in a soup pan.

Add the celery, carrots, tomatoes and 1 onion and bring to the boil.

Finely chop the other onion.

Place the chopped onion and the rest of the ingredients, apart from the oil and the flour, on a large dish.

Mix the ingredients, knead them well and make balls the size of large walnuts.

Sprinkle the balls lightly with the flour.  

Remove the boiled carrots, celery and tomatoes from the pan and set aside.

  Pour the concentrated tomato into the water remaining in the pan and then add the meatballs along with the oil.  

Boil them for 30 minutes – if the water is reduced, then replace it so that it covers the meatballs.  

Serve as a soup, adding the carrots, celery and tomatoes if you wish.


If you've tried this recipe please rate it! 

Eat and Enjoy!

Bloggers Unite for Human Rights

This is not a recipe, but I feel it's something important that all of us who are bloggers can participate in.

Blog Catalog is partnering with Amnesty International for the 2008 Bloggers Unite For Human Rights on May 15th.

Bloggers are asked to post an entry on any Human Rights subject they feel strongly about. See Amnesty International's topic page here for ideas, if required, on what you could write about.

So, if you're a blogger, sign up here today and let the world know how you feel.