Greek Recipes, provided by Georget Photos of St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church in Winter Haven, Fl.
Read about the annual Greek Festival in Winter Haven.
Dolmathes (Stuffed Grape Leaves)
Ingredients:
1 jar of grape leaves or 1 bunch fresh leaves
½ cup rice
½ lb ground beef or lamb
1 tablespoon mint or dill
1 tablespoon parsley
2 onions chopped
½ cup white wine
Beef and Lamb bones, Carrots halved lengthwise or celery stalks
Egg Lemon Sauce of Choice
Leaves:
- Blanch the leaves you are using by dipping them in boiling water for 5 seconds and laying them on a baking sheet to dry. If you are using jar leaves, the leaves need only be rinsed prior to using.
- Lay 3 to 5 leaves on your work space, with the vein side up.
- Snip off the stem with a kitchen shears.
Filling:
- In a large skillet sauté the onions and herbs.
- Add the rice and continue to sauté.
- Add 1 cup water and ½ cup wine when you see the rice turn white and cook until the fluid has been absorbed.
- Add the rice to the meat mixture in a bowl and knead.
Assembly:
- Line the bottom of your pot with either celery or carrots.
- Return to your work space. Place 1 teaspoon of the filling at the stem bottom.
- Bring the two lower side leaves to the center covering the filling slightly.
- Pick up the stem end and roll forward, forming an egg roll shape.
- Place the finished dolma on top of the bedding in the pot. Lay the dolma up against the side of the pan and continue laying the dolmathes side by side working inward, until the first layer is finished.
- Repeat the same distribution on the second layer and so forth until the leaves and filling is used.
- Place a plate over the finished dolmathes.
- Add 2 cup water with the juice of one lemon.
- Simmer for 30 minutes.
Notes:
- Leaves used are usually grape. There have been uses of geranium leaves, leaves from fruit trees like mulberry, orange, etc., and leaves from nut trees like walnuts, pecans, or almonds. Remember that you try the base leaf of the grape vine first to understand the taste, and then experiment with other types of leaves. When in doubt check the source a health source for the leaf you are using. I have used mulberry leaves and found a wonderful variation of the recipe. Mulberry leaves are also beneficial to a diabetic diet.
- Wrapping the rice in the leaves is similar to rolling egg rolls.
- When I say a “pot the size needed” refers to the amount of dolmathes you are making. Depending on the size of each roll you might need a larger pot than anticipated.
- The celery or carrots at the bottom of the pot serves two purposes: first it stops the scorching of the dolma in the event your pot runs dry from fluid; second it seasons the water and subsequently the rice as it is cooking.
- The addition of the plate keeps the rolls together while they are cooking.
Items needed for cooking Dolmathes:
Kitchen shears
Sauce pot
Colander
Skillet
Measuring spoons
Measuring cup
Pot the size needed
Plate to fit into pot
Tiropita Triangles
Ingredients:
½ lb feta
3 whole eggs
½ lb manouri or ricotta
1 lb filo dough
1 stick butter
1 damp towel
Assembly:
1. Crumble the feta into a bowl.
2. Add the manouri and combine.
3. Lightly beat the egg with a fork and add them to the feta combination in the bowl, and knead with your hand.
4. In a small pot melt the butter.
5. Remove the filo from the box and plastic. Keep the filo in the plastic wrap until you have decided the size of your triangles.
6. Divide the filo dough using a knife to score the appropriate width of your triangles. After the scoring has been defined and you have defined equal pieces, cut the filo. The bunches of filo that have not being used should be kept under a damp not wet cloth.
7. Place the filo not being used under the damp towel.
8. The other section of the filo should be unwrapped from the paper and laid out.
9. Depending on the thickness of the filo you may want to use 2 or 3 sheets.
10. In any case brush the butter between each layer of filo, as you lay one layer upon the other.
11. In the lower corner of your strip, as it lies vertically before you, place a teaspoon full of the cheese mixture. If you are making small Tiropita use about a teaspoon full. The larger the triangle will use about 1 tablespoon of filling.
12. Starting from the lower end of the strip containing the cheese, fold the corner over to touch the direct opposite end of the strip forming a small triangle. From this point fold the strip as you would fold a flag. Your finished product will be a triangle.
13. Place the triangle on a greased cookie sheet folded side down. Once the cookie sheet is filled, brush the triangles with butter and bake at 330 °F until golden.
14. They may be enjoyed hot or cold. If you have made too many they may be frozen prior to baking by layering them between parchment sheets.
Notes:
1. The wider the width, the larger the triangle, the more the filling.
2. The cheese mixture must be somewhat loose in this recipe and continually stirred. The looseness of the cheese mixture provides for a fluffier pie or pita.
3. The shortening listed is butter, but margarine or olive oil will do as well.
4. Phylo comes in various forms of thickness from Horiatiko which is the thickest and most resilient to #3 which is the thinnest.
5. The thinness of the phylo determines the number of sheets to be used.
6. When determining the size of the pita consider when and how you will be serving the pie. Then when you remove the phylo dough from the box you can gauge the size or width of your pie. 2” appetizer; 4“side dish; 5-6 lunch, tea or light dinner.
7. This method also helps you determine how much phylo you will need for the filling you have made.
8. If you have the general type of phylo remember to cover the portion you have not used with a damp, NOT WET towel.
Items Needed to Make Tiropita Triangles:
Cookie sheet
Measuring spoons
Measuring cup
Knife
Oven mitt
Bowl
Damp towel
Fork
Basting brush
Small pot for butter
Spanakopita
Ingredients:
¼ lb feta
3 whole eggs
1 lb spinach
½ bunch green onions
1 teaspoon dill or tarragon
1 lb filo dough
1 stick butter
Assembly:
1. Crumble the feta into a bowl.
2. Thinly slice the onions and place them into a skillet with olive oil and the dill, and sauté.
3. Add the spinach and continue to sauté until all the spinach is cooked.
4. Place the sautéed ingredients along with the olive oil into the bowel with the feta.
5. Lightly beat the egg with a fork and add them to the spinach combination in the bowl, and knead with your hand.
6. In a small pot melt the butter.
7. Remove the filo from the box and plastic. Keep the filo in the plastic wrap until you have decided the size of your triangles.
8. Divide the filo dough using a knife to score the appropriate width of your triangles. After the scoring has been defined and you have defined equal pieces, cut the filo. The bunches of filo that have not being used should be kept under a damp not wet cloth.
9. Place the filo not being used under the damp towel.
10. The other section of the filo should be unwrapped from the paper and laid out.
11. Depending on the thickness of the filo you may want to use 3 sheets or 2.
12. In any case butter between each layer of filo, as you lay one layer upon the other.
13. In the lower corner of your strip, as it lies vertically before you, place a teaspoon full of the spinach mixture. If you are making small Tiropita use about a teaspoon full. The larger the triangle will use about 1 tablespoon of filling.
14. Starting from the lower end of the strip containing the mixture, fold the corner over to touch the direct opposite end of the strip forming a small triangle. From this point fold the strip as you would fold a flag. Your finished product will be a triangle.
15. Place the triangle on a greased cookie sheet folded side down. Once the cookie sheet is filled, brush the triangles with butter and bake at 330 °F until golden.
16. They may be enjoyed hot or cold. If you have made too many they may be frozen prior to baking by layering them between parchment sheets.
Notes:
1. The shortening listed is butter, but margarine or olive oil will do as well.
2. Phylo comes in various forms of thickness from Horiatiko which is the thickest and most resilient to #3 which is the thinnest.
3. The thinness of the phylo determines the number of sheets to be used.
4. When determining the size of the pita consider when and how you will be serving the pie. Then when you remove the phylo dough from the box you can gauge the size or width of your pie. 2” appetizer; 4“side dish; 5-6 lunch, tea or light dinner.
5. This method also helps you determine how much phylo you will need for the filling you have made.
6. If you have the general type of phylo remember to cover the portion you have not used with a damp, NOT WET towel.
Items needed to make Spanakopita:
Cookie sheet
Measuring spoons
Measuring cup
Knife
Oven mitt
Bowl
Damp towel
Fork
Basting brush
Small pot for butter
Great Grandmother Irene’s Souvlaki Asia Minor Style
Ingredients:
Lamb, Beef, Pork or Chicken *
Olive oil
Red wine
Thyme & Oregano
Cumin
5-6 Onions large
5 Garlic cloves chopped (to taste add more cloves for a stronger taste)
Bamboo Skewers
Assembly:
1. Cut the meat into cubes about 1” to 1 ½”. Trim some of the fat from the meat.
2. Set the cubes aside.
3. Chop the garlic.
4. Slice the onion. Lay a layer of the onions in a roasting pan that you will marinade the cubes of meat.
5. If you are using wood skewers, they must soak in water prior to use.
6. Place about 5 or 6 pieces of the garlic on the onions; making sure it is distributed evenly in the pan.
7. Now sprinkle the onions with thyme and oregano.
8. Sprinkle the onions with a pinch of cumin.
9. Place a layer of meat over the onions.
10. Pour olive oil over the meat; do the same with the wine; for chicken and seafood use white wine.
11. Repeat steps 4 through 9 until all the meat is used.
12. Place the meat in the refrigerator until you are ready to put it on the grill or roast in the oven.
13. When you are ready to grill or roast, take the meat from the refrigerator and skewer the pieces unto the bamboo skewers. Amount of pieces per skewer is up to you.
14. If you are grilling, baste the souvlakia repeatedly. If you are oven roasting, set the temperature to 375°F. Add a layer of onion slices to the bottom of the roasting pan with a little wine and olive oil. Lay your skewers on the onions. Roast covered for 10 minutes. Remove the cover and continue to roast until brown.
Notes:
1. Lamb, beef, pork, chicken, and even seafood could be used with this recipe. Lamb, beef, and pork can be marinated the longest; up to 5 days. Chicken and seafood can be safely marinated for 24 hours.
2. The wine you use is important. Do not use a wine that is expensive. Inexpensive wine should always be used for a marinade. Your decision is whether the wine should be sweet or rich; in either case it is the alcohol that tenderizes the meat.
3. To keep true to my great grandmother’s recipe, I have not used any other type of alcohol for marinating. Try the recipe in its original form first, then if you wish to experiment with other flavors i.e. vodka, tequila, ouzo, etc., go ahead. The secret to great cooking is to experiment; sometimes you it is positive other times negative. What is important, is that when you make a discovery its yours.
4. DO NOT USE THE MARINADE FOR BASTING. A new bowl of basting should be prepared for that purpose.
5. Pressing the garlic allows for more flavor to be distributed during the marinating.
6. You have probably seen stalks of oregano that are sold, dried in its entirety. It is this dried bundle that my great grandmother uses to baste her souvlakia. The bundle would sit in the bowl with oil and wine, and be used only when the souvlakia seemed dry. In the meantime the neighbors would be overcome by the aroma wafting from the smoke rising.
7. For those of you using the oven technique, consider soaking a wood plank in wine and water for at least 24 hours. For safety sake, place the plank in a roasting pan with some of the fluid. Lay the souvlakia on the plank and roast. This replicates the techniques used on the Island or when people grilled in Greece. Wood was used to for outdoor and sometimes indoor cooking.
Items needed for Souvlaki Asia Minor Style:
Skewers
Roasting pan
Plank
Measuring cup
Measuring spoons
Garlic press