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girlA's Homemade Pita Bread

girlA — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:17:04 -0800

Yum, yum, yum! I gotta say, this pita bread was not only easy to make, but even easier to devour! It was more like "pillow bread". The only difference I made to the ingredients, was use all-purpose flour and soy milk. A Kitchen Aid mixer is great for this (but not mandatory) because I could double-fist the yeast mixture and warmed soy milk, adding them at the same time. I didn't encounter the same problem Lauren did with the dough taking a while to form a ball--in fact, it took a whole minute! Plus, the dough wasn't too sticky that I couldn't pull it out of the bowl in one scoop and plop it on a lightly floured surface. I kneaded it for about 3 minutes and then let it rise for an hour. It certainly doubled (if not more) in size and I found it easy to roll out the little pieces of dough--I did use a tad bit of flour, but not much. Rolling also helped get all the air bubbles out. I made about 10 pieces, let them rise the 30 mins and then did them in batches (4, 4, and 2). After the first minute of baking, I brushed the tops with olive oil and then mine actually needed to bake about 71/2-8 mins. It's actually hard to tell when they're done, and every oven is different, so check often. Maybe using regular flour and soy milk made the difference, who knows. I didn't slice them until it came to dinner time. Once you slice them in half, it helps to warm it in the microwave for about 15-20 seconds and which makes them easier to cut open to fill. These came out amazing! In fact, for dinner, I made vegan gyros ( http://the-dairy-free-diva-recipe-exchange.yumsugar.com/Vegan-Gyros-Tzat... ). This was a great challenge because I never would have attempted this before, thinking they'd be hard to make, but nope--they were easy!
More pictures:

An Introduction to Greek Food and Greek Cooking...

darktwilightrose — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 10:06:52 -0700

Greek cooking offers an incredibly rich and diverse array of foods and beverages that are the culmination of literally thousands of years of living, cooking, and eating. While each Greek meal is fresh and inviting, it is also a trip back through Greece's history.

Ingredients

The names of foods, cooking methods, and basic ingredients have changed little over time. Bread, olives (and olive oil), and wine constituted the triptych of the Greek diet for many centuries, just as they do today.
Greece is a nation of small farmers who produce an incredible array of mainly organically produced cheeses, oils, fruits, nuts, grains, legumes, and vegetables, supplemented by an array of greens and herbs that grow in the wild. These are the foods that form the base of the traditional Greek regimen, to which they add both variety and nutrition. Greece's climate is perfect growing for olive and lemon trees, producing two of the most important elements of Greek cooking. Spices, garlic and other herbs such as oregano, basil, mint, and thyme are widely used, as are vegetables such as eggplant and zucchini, and legumes of all types.
With 20 percent of Greece made up of islands - and no part of the Greek mainland more than 90 miles from the sea - fish and seafood are a popular and common part of the Greek diet. Lamb and goat (kid) are the traditional meats of holidays and festivals, and poultry, beef, and pork are also in plentiful supply.
Vineyards cover much of Greece's hilly terrain and the country has become known for its array of fine wines and spirits, most notably ouzo, an anise-flavored liqueur that is the national spirit.

A History of Culinary Influences

While Greek cooking has influenced and been influenced by other cultures, as have the cuisines of most countries, of all of those countries, Greece must be foremost in the ranks of having a "fusion" cuisine which is easily traced back to 350 B.C.

In c.350 B.C., when Alexander the Great extended the Greek Empire's reach from Europe to India, certain northern and eastern influences were absorbed into the Greek cuisine.
In 146 B.C., Greece fell to the Romans which resulted in a blending of a Roman influence into Greek cooking.
In 330 A.D., Emperor Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Constantinople, founding the Byzantine Empire which, in turn, fell to the Turks in 1453 and remained part of the Ottoman Empire for nearly 400 years. During that time, dishes had to be known by Turkish names, names that remain today for many Greek classics.

With each successive invasion and settlement came culinary influences - from the Romans, Venetians, Balkans, Turks, Slavs, and even the English - and many Greek foods have names with origins in those cultures, most notably the Ottoman Empire. Dishes with names like tzatziki (from the Turkish "cacik"), hummus (the Arabic word for chickpea) and dolmades (from the Turkish "dolma"), that can be found in kitchens from Armenia to Egypt, have also found a home in Greek cooking, and been adapted over hundreds of years to local tastes and traditions.
And during those times, the classic elements of Greek cuisine traveled across borders as well, adopted and adapted in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and ... with Alexander the Great, farther east.
Note about hummus: Hummus is a Middle Eastern dish with an association to Greek food only because it appears on the menu in many Greek restaurants around the world... brought there by restaurateurs catering to local tastes.

Did You Know...

The first cookbook was written by the Greek food gourmet, Archestratos, in 330 B.C., which suggests that cooking has always been of importance and significance in Greek society.
Modern chefs owe the tradition of their tall, white chef's hat to the Greeks. In the middle ages, monastic brothers who prepared food in the Greek Orthodox monasteries wore tall white hats to distinguish them in their work from the regular monks, who wore large black hats.
To a large degree, vegetarian cuisine can be traced to foods and recipes which originated in Greece.
Many ingredients used in modern Greek cooking were unknown in the country until the middle ages. These include the potato, tomato, spinach, bananas, and others which came to Greece after the discovery of the Americas – their origin.

Greek food is simple and elegant, with flavors subtle to robust, textures smooth to crunchy, fresh and timeless, nutritious and healthy. Preparing and enjoying Greek food, anywhere in the world, is an adventurous journey into the cradle of civilization and the land of the Gods of Olympus. Discovering, tasting, experiencing Greek food: truly one of the joys we can all share.

Turkey Meatball Pita

justingirl1989 — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 05:28:58 -0700

Preparing the perfect low-calorie meal is easy. Just follow this simple recipe.

Prep time: 8 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp olive-oil
8 Tbsp low-fat tzatziki or yogurt dip*
4 c baby spinach leaves
12 fresh or frozen precooked turkey meatballs (plain or home-style)
1 Tbsp allspice
1 Tbsp oregano
4 whole-wheat pita pockets, cut in half
1 Tbsp mint flakes
Directions:

If needed, arrange meatballs on a plate and microwave about 2 minutes on defrost setting.
Place olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add mint, allspice, and oregano; mix. Break meatballs into small chunks and add to skillet. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
Stuff pita pockets with baby spinach leaves. Spoon turkey mixture into pita and top with a dollop of tzatziki or yogurt dip. (*If you can’t find prepared low-fat tzatziki or yogurt dip, make your own by mixing 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1/4 cup minced cilantro.)
Nutritional Facts:

Makes 4 servings. Per serving: 375 calories, 14.5 g fat (4 g saturated), 650 mg sodium, 39 g carbs, 5 g fiber, 25.5 g protein

source: http://fitceleb.imnotobsessed.com/

Greek in Manhattan

bsugaaa — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 13:17:16 -0700

Petros Restaurant
451 Manhattan Beach Blvd.
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
310.545.4100

I find Greek cuisine as one of the heartiest and healthiest food choices all around. And recently, one of our Greek friends just had her birthday and it was a no-brainer to check out Petros as it was just named "Top New Restaurant" by Zagat (and rightfully so). We made reservations a week ahead of time for a party of 12 but later we find out that there were "reservation discrepancies" and had to wait an hour until they straightened things out. Well, what else can you expect from a popular restaurant on a Saturday night. Anyway, to accomodate us, they served us with a $100 worth of appetizers for free--not bad at all.

For appetizers, we had several Nikos Saganaki (lovely sesame-crusted feta cheese drizzled with honey), Spanakopita (light phyllo stuffed with spinach, feta cheese, dill and green onions with serving of tzatziki* and olives), some dip combo served with grilled pita (the combo includes: Kafteri**, Olivada¹, Tzatziki*, Melitzanosalata² and Fava³) and some fresh Feta Bruschetta salad.

For the main course, I ordered the sauteed Lavrake--sea bass with this tasty sauce (which I think is made from artichoke hearts), artichokes, carrots, green onions, and dill. The fish was cooked just right--soft and juicy with all its flavors preserved. My boyfriend had the Roast Chicken stuffed with feta cheese and I believe some spinach, served with potatoes, romano beans, lemon and oregano. The chicken wasn't dry at all and it was tender with juices gushing out with every slice.

For dessert, I ordered Baklava which was just heavenly! It's sweet phyllo with almonds, walnuts, and pistachio topped with vanilla ice cream. They also have great homemade ice cream.

Overall, all of us enjoyed our food and drinks. Our waitresses were knowledgeable about the choices of wine they had and the atmosphere itself was lively. Its decor is crisp and white--it's just like we were in Greece. Santorini maybe--for one night at least.

* yogurt, cucumber, lemon and garlic
** four greek cheese with hot peppers
¹ greek olive, extra-virgin olive oil, sun-dried tomatoes
² roasted eggplant, garlic, lemon and walnuts
³ yellow split pea puree, extra-virgin olive oil, lemon, tomato and onion

P.S. I gave it 4 1/2 stars only because of the one hour wait. Other than that it's 5 Stars!

Meal Planning Saved My Marriage

3ADay — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 07:53:29 -0700

Written by: Stefania aka CityMama
http://citymama.typepad.com/

In my household, I'm the one who does most of the grocery shopping and all of the cooking. I work from home, so technically I have more free time to shop and cook, although my husband helps with the shopping when he can. As someone who was raised by a mother who made everything from scratch, shunned processed foods, and kept a garden, my core beliefs about food are that it should be good and good for you. I prefer my salad dressings and spaghetti sauces to store-bought and it hardly takes me any time to prepare them. My husband, on the other hand, is the one who manages the budget. His ideas of food mainly relate to how many frozen burritos can one get for $6. His favorite phrase is "buy one, get one free." As you can see, we have very divergent ideas about how to feed our family.

He's right, we need to watch our bottom line, but I want to be right, too. I want to be sure that I am feeding my family wholesome and tasty foods. Would we ever see eye-to-eye on the issue of feeding our family? That's where meal planning comes in.

I started meal planning seriously after the birth of our second child so I wouldn't-amidst all the nursing, diaper changes, and shuttling back and forth to preschool-forget to feed my family. Or, so I'd at least remember to go grocery shopping for actual food and not just diapers and coffee. But I soon discovered that even though meal planning was helping me to organize the three meals per day that I was preparing, it also helped us stick to our budget. Yes, it's nice to always have an answer to the question, "What's for dinner?", but making our wallets happy was the real benefit. I could still shop for the produce I wanted, but I only bought exactly what we needed. A container of plain yogurt was used for a cool, cucumber tzatziki one night and embellished with honey, figs, and granola for breakfast the next day. The five apples and 10 apricots were eaten up in a week. The roast chicken was dinner, then became sandwiches, and eventually, the carcass made into soup. The bag of mesclun lettuce was made into the salads. The milk went into cauliflower soup one night and mashed parsnips the next. Very little was thrown away, and nothing was left to spoil, forgotten in the back of fridge. Because I had planned every meal and knew exactly which ingredients I needed to prepare them, that meant that I was shopping wisely-healthfully, deliciously, and wisely. My husband could definitely support that. Crisis averted.

Easy and delicious walnut and tofu cutlets

EllaBella — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 14:07:49 -0700

This recipe is originally from "The Tofu Cookbook" by Becky Johnson. Those cutlets are very healthy, filling and versatile and they freeze well! I will try to include a picture soon but in the meanwhile here is my healthier version of the recipe:

Serves 4

90g / 3,5oz brown rice
15 ml / 1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion finely chopped
1 garlic clove
200g / 7oz walnuts
small bunch of rosemary or sage
250g/ 9oz firm tofu drained and crumbled
30ml / 2 tbsp soy sauce

1- Preheat oven to 200C / 400F.

2- Cook the brown rice according to the instructions on the packet until tender and drain well.

3- Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the onion and garlic over a low heat stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes until softened and gold.

4- Place the walnuts, tofu, onion, garlic, rice, herbs and soy sauce in a blender or food processor and process until the mixture comes together in a thick paste.

5- Divide the paste into eight equal-size mounds and form each mound into a cutlet shape or square.

6- Arrange on baking sheet and bake for 40-45 min or until firm and slightly brown.

Notes about the recipe:
- Be sure to drain the tofu and rice very well, you don't want soggy cutlets!
- I usually make a big batch of those like 3 or 4 times the recipe and freeze the cutlets after baking them. They freeze well and are a nice and healthy quick fix when you are hungry. Just microwave them a couple of minutes and they are ready!
- In the original recipe you are supposed to fry the cutlets which is not very healthy as they would absorb a lot of oil. The oven baking is my version, it is much healthier but they get a little bit less moist than the fried ones.
- You can use other nuts and herbs combinations: try roasted peanuts with coriander, cashew nuts with parsley, hazelnuts with thyme or sage, almonds with basil... I think most types of nuts work in those cutlets.

Suggestions :
- Eat them beside a nice big green salad.
- Fill a wholewheat pita bread with a cutlet, oven-baked veggies and low fat tzatziki.
- Use them to make a homemade healthy burger
- Those are very versatile just use them besides food you like instead of meat.
- I have loads of those in my freezer and just take one or two in the morning and bring them for my lunch at work together with a wholewheat pita and any low-cal sauce I fancy. The cutlets are thawed when it's time to have lunch and assemble my pita. A very easy, healthy and quick way to fix my lunch!

Fragrant Turkish Beef* Kabobs

GirlC — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 09:44:15 -0700

This weekend I got another chance to use the BBQ! I made this and loved it! Enjoy!

Marinating = 4 hours
Grilling = how cooked you want beef

2 pounds beef (I treated myself and used top sirloin)

Marinade
2 lrg onions
2 lrg lemons**
1 garlic clove crushed
salt and pepper
2 bay leaves crushed
1/2 C olive oil
2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Cut meat into bite sized pieces, set aside.
Grate onion in large bowl (or use processor to puree).
Grate lemon peels and place in same bowl, squeeze in juice.
Add rest of ingredients and mix well.
Add meat mix well so it is covered, cover with plastic. Let sit 4 hours.

Skewer and grill and enjoy!

Serve with pita, Tzatziki, rice, and salad.

*boneless lamb can be substituted
**I used lemon juice, about 2 tbsp.