In case you guys want to host your own Greek Dinner Party, here are the recipes for the dishes:
- 1 egg yolks
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 3 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 anchovy fillets, mashed
- Scant 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large romaine lettuce
- Grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 cups crouton
Directions
1. Mash together anchovy. Garlic and a pinch of kosher salt
2. Whisk in egg yolk, lemon juice, Worcestershire, pepper flakes, mustard and 3 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
3. Slowly whisk in oils to emulsify and season with salt and pepper
4. Place the lettuce in a large bowl, sprinkle with parmesan and black pepper
5. Drizzle with desired amount of dressing and toss well
6. Sprinkle top with croutons then serve
Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder
From researching different ways to marinade and roast lamb, I chose those ingredients that I found appealing and came up with this recipe.
Lamb Marinade
- 1 large handful of mint
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp cumin
- 50ml garlic olive oil
Lamb
- 1 large bunch fresh rosemary
- 1.5 kg shoulder of lamb
- 6 anchovies, tinned or fresh
- 300 ml white wine
- 300 ml stock
- Garlic infused olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- 2 red onions quartered
- 1 bulb garlic, unpeeled and broken into cloves and crushed
Directions
1. In a blender, blitz the marinade ingredients
2. Rub the lamb with salt and pepper then make incisions
3. Add the mint marinade to the lamb shoulder and leave it overnight
4. Preheat oven to 450F or full whack
5. Place the shoulder in a baking tray and insert sprigs of rosemary into the incisions
6. Nestle the onions and garlic around the lamb and drizzle over plenty of olive oil
7. Place leftover rosemary under the shoulder and on top
8. Roast for 20 minutes then remove from oven
9. Tightly cover the tray with tinfoil and place back in the oven
10. Turn down the heat immediately to 325F and cook for 4 hours
11. It is done if you can pull the meat apart easily with a fork
12. Serve with mint jelly
Moussaka
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| I super love this dish but it is time consuming to make and assemble and somewhat reminds me of lasagna without the pasta sheets |
Lamb
- 1/8 cup raisins/currants
- 1/8 cup greek evoo
- 250 grams ground lamb
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/8 tsp ground all spice
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper
- 1 small onion, halved & thinly sliced
- 1 small red bell pepper, stemmed, cored, and thinly sliced
- 1 sinigang chili, finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 1/2 (28 ounce can) plum tomatoes, pureed until smooth
- ¼ cup (7g.) chopped fresh flat leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- honey, if needed
Eggplant
- 1 ½ cup canola oil
- 375 grams eggplant, cut crosswise into 14-thick slices
Béchamel Sauce
- 45 grams unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 1/4 cup milk
- 1 medium sized bay leaf
- 1/8 tsp nutmeg
- 2 egg yolks
- 56g soft goat cheese (chevre)
- 60g grated mozzarella/ Romano
- 1/2 lemon, zested
Directions
Lamb
1. Soak the currants in warm water for 30 minutes. Drain.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a sauce pan over high heat
3. Add the lamb, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cayenne and salt and pepper and cook, stirring to break up the meat until browned
4. Transfer the lamb to a large strainer ser over a bowl and drain
5. Discard any liquid left in the pan and Return the pan to the heat
6. Add the remaining 3 tbsp evoo and heat until it begins to simmer
7. Add the onions and bell pepper and cook until soft, about 5 minutes
8. Add the Serrano and garlic and cook for 1 minute
9. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute
10. Return the lamb to the pan, add the wine and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost completely evaporated
11. Add the tomato puree and currant and bring to a boil
12. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes.
13. Stir in parsley and oregano and season with salt and pepper and honey, if needed
Eggplant
1. Heat the canola oil
2. Season the egg plant slices on both sides with salt and pepper
3. Fry until tender and lightly golden brown on both sides
4. Transfer eggplant slices to paper towels
Béchamel
1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat
2. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until pale and smooth, 2 minutes.
3. Still whisking constantly, add the milk and bay leaf and cook until thickened
4. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and discard the bay leaf
5. Let the sauce cool for 5 minutes
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, goat cheese and lemon zest and whisk into the béchamel sauce until smooth
To Assemble
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Butter a 3 quart baking dish or casserole dish
3. Put half the eggplant slices in the dish and cover with half the meat sauce
4. Tip the sauce with the remaining eggplant slices and then the remaining meat sauce
5. Pour the béchamel over the top of the meat sauce and spread evenly with a rubber spatula
6. Sprinkle cheese over the top, place the dish on a baking sheet and bake until browned and bubbly, 45 to 50 minutes
7. Top with more chopped parsley, if desired
8. Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving
Spaghetti with arugula & hazelnut pesto
Adapted from the Cooking School Italian by Love Food that I have in my shelf.
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| I tried using wheat pasta to make it healthier but then it didn’t taste quite as good. Better to use Barilla Spaghetti No. 5 or try Quinoa Pasta that can be bought in Healthy Options for a gluten-free alternative |
Ingredients
- 2 cloves garlic
- 117 grams roasted and skinned hazelnut
- 30 grams arugula, coarse stalk removed
- 1 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 6 tbsp EVOO
- 112 grams mascarpone cheese
- 400 grams dried spaghettini
- salt and pepper, to taste
Directions
1. Put the garlic and hazelnut in a food processor and process until finely chopped
2. Add the arugula, Parmesan and Olive oil and process until smooth and thoroughly combined
3. Scrape the pesto into a serving dish, season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in the mascarpone
4. Cook the pasta
5. Stir ½ to 2/3 cup of the pasta cooking water into the pesto, mixing well until thoroughly combined
6. Drain the pasta, add to the bowl with the pesto, tossing well to coat
7. Sprinkle with extra parmesan and serve immediately
Mascarpone cheese could cost around 500 bucks for a 250gram tub. If you want to save some bucks for other recipes, try this substitute recipe that I found in food.com
Mascarpone substitute for pasta
- 95 grams cream cheese
- 1/8 cup nestle cream
- 1 tbsp sour cream
Directions
1. Place everything in a food processor
2. Blitz away and use as required
Milopita
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| My first attempt at Milopita can be considered as a failure because it was too dry and the batter overflowed inside the oven. I had to do further research and came across these two blogs Amandascookin and greekgourmand and finally came up with the recipe which tastes better than the first one. |
Ingredients
- 1¾ cup flour + 1¾ tsp baking powder (self-rising flour)
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 4 apples, peeled and cored
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ¼ cup butter
- 1/3 cup coco sugar
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp. brandy
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch of salt
- 4 large eggs, separated
- ¾ cup milk + ¾ tsp vinegar
- ½ cup raisins
- ½ cup coarsely chopped walnuts (or pecans)
Direction
1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Slice 3 of the apples into sixteenths wedges and set them aside in a bowl of water with some lemon juice to prevent them from browning
3. Dice the remaining apple into cubes then sprinkle with brandy and some cinnamon
4. Sift flour, baking powder and a pinch of salt
5. Cream ½ cup of the butter with the sugar until smooth
6. Add in egg yolks alternately with 1 tablespoon of flour to achieve a smooth and creamy consistency
7. Alternately add in the flour and the milk
8. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites into stiff peaks and then fold them into the batter
9. Mix in the chopped pecans, raisins and diced apples
10. Butter the sides of the cheesecake pan and pour in the finish batter
11. Arrange the apple slices in a perpendicular fashion overtop of the batter in a circular patter to form an outer ring and fill the center with the remaining slices
12. Melt the coco sugar for 5 minutes then add in the ¼ cup of butter, mix in the cinnamon
13. Pour the mixture over the apple slices, making sure to distribute it evenly
14. Bake for approximately 60 minutes
15. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving
Chicago Cheesecake
From the Bake Day with Q for Valentine's Day
For the Crust
