There are many recipes for keftedes (plural of kefte). Practically every cook has a unique mixture of ingredients. The following is a combination of recipes from Macedonia and Thrace that I developped for my first book The Foods of Greece . It’s my favorite because the mixture has bulgur and grated zucchini, instead of bread, which make it exceptional. Chef Jim Botsacos of Molyvos restaurant in NYC serves a variation of these keftedes.
Serves 6 (about 35 pieces) (more…)
This is my mother’s lemonato, the best I have tasted. Although this dish is commonly cooked at home all over Greece, it is rarely included in cookbooks. American veal is different from ours, in that comes from free range animals and, although very tasty, is tough and requires a special cooking method. I have adapted my mother’s recipe for the American and European veal. One of my aunts used to cook the meat with no other liquid but lemon juice, and her version was also delicious. But it had very little syrupy sauce—not enough for cooking the potatoes. I think this is a great disadvantage, because the potatoes are the best part oflemonato. In any case, the secret of this dish’s success is to keep the heat very low and to simmer the veal for hours.
Serves 4-6 (more…)
The one-pot meals of the eastern Mediterranean ingeniously combine seasonal vegetables, herbs, and greens with small amounts of meat to create delicious dishes that seem to be designed by a modern nutritionist.
Makes 4 servings
The pie is very easy to whip-up and makes a great warm or room-temperature appetizer. Using a very similar mix, you can make the classic Zucchini or Squash Fritters that everybody enjoys at Greek taverns. Instead of frying, you can bake the patties.
Adapted from Mediterranean Vegetarian Feasts.
GLUTEN FREE
See also the summer ‘naked pie’ we make with zucchini, of which we often have an overwhelming abundance in June, fresh from our garden.
Serves 5 to 6 as a Main Course (or makes 8 to 10 appetizer portions) (more…)
This is a VEGAN and GLUTEN-FREE dish. Here on Kea I always add wild fennel fronds to the herb mix. Serve as main course, with rice pilaf or any grain dish. It is an ideal finger food, cut into bite-size pieces. If you want to make it more substantial, add 2-3 eggs and 2 cups crumbled feta (no longer Vegan). In Metsovo a similar pie has also leeks, and is called pispilita or blatsaria (see Variation).
Read HERE more about greens and herbs in other well-known dishes.
Serves 6 (or 8-12 as part of a meze spread)
