In Greece they have a lot of dishes that are called “lathara” which basically means with oil…and lots of it. Olive oil is the oil of choice, unless you are making it as a lenten dish then vegetable oil is used.

Eggplant and potatoes in tomato sauce is another one of those easy Greek dishes that has a lot of yummy and healthy olive oil. This vegetarian dish can be eaten as a side or as a meal with a side of feta and olives and some nice crusty bread to slop up those yummy juices.

You can use any type of eggplant but I love Japanese eggplant, it is sweeter. You just cut it into about 2″ by 2″ pieces. OR…this time I found some little Indian eggplants. They are so cute and perfect to just slice in half, long ways, which makes it the perfect size.

You just need:

• 14 Indian eggplants, ends cleaned and sliced in half, long ways (or two globe or 3 Japanese cut into 2″ by 2″ pieces)
• 14 mini/small gold potatoes, cleaned and peeled, if you prefer, and cut in half (or 4 to 5 regular potatoes of any type cut into 2″ by 2″ pieces)
• 1/2 cup any type of oil (canola or olive prefered) for browning potatoes and eggplants
• 1/2 cup olive oil for dish
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 6 garlic cloves, sliced
• 4 Roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped (or 1 1/2 cup of diced canned tomatoes)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2-3 cups vegetable or chicken broth or even water (enough to barely cover ingredients)
• salt and pepper, to taste

Steps:

1. Add 1/4 cup of frying oil in pan and brown the eggplants on both sides, set aside and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
2. Add the other 1/4 of frying oil in pan and brown the potatoes on both sides, set aside and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Heat pot with 1/2 cup of olive oil and throw in onions to saute for a few minutes, then throw in garlic and cook for one minute.
4. Add in fresh chopped tomatoes or canned and cook for a few minutes.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Add in tomato paste, stir well and then the broth/water. Stir well and bring to a boil.
7. Set the potatoes and eggplants into the pot and nestle into the sauce. If you need a little more broth or water to cover, do so now. Bring back to a boil.
8. Cover pot and set heat to low and continue to cook until potatoes and eggplant are done and the sauce has reduced and gotten thicker.
9. Serve with feta cheese and olives and some yummy crusty bread.

Kali Orexi!

If you have heard the word tzatziki then you probably know by now that it’s a Greek cucumber sauce used in pita sandwiches of all sorts or as a dip with pita bread or just to top your wonderfully grilled meats! It’s basically yummy on everything.

Well, today I am planning to make a Greek style roasted pork belly with potatoes for dinner which I will then wrap up in pita bread and add tzatziki on it…BUT, I don’t have any cucumbers and won’t have time to go out and get any before dinner. What to do? Make up a sauce?

Normally, I would also add sliced onions and chopped parsley to this said pita sandwich. So I thought, I can make a sauce that incorporates those flavors, along with the garlic, lemon and olive oil that goes into my regular cucumber tzatziki sauce and make a mock tzatziki with parsley and green onions. So, I came up with this recipe 🙂 .

You will need:

• 7oz container of 2% plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup Italian leaf parsley, chopped
• 1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced (green and white parts)
• 1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 juicy lemon, zested and half juiced
• 1/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Steps:

1. Add yogurt, parsley, green onions, garlic, and lemon zest to bowl and combine.
2. Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper, or to taste. Mix well.
3. Alternately, add half of the olive oil, stir, then half of the half juiced lemon and stir and repeat.
4. Make sure it’s well combined and set in the refrigerator until ready to use. If you can let it sit at least 2 hours before using it that will make it even more flavorful. Serve on your favorite grilled meats, sandwiches or as a dip with homemade pita chips.

Kali Orexi!

Spanakopita is another one of those items that you can practically find in any bakery, cafe or restaurant in Greece. You can also get them from street vendors. It’s a hardy snack, if you just eat one piece, or you can make it a meal by pairing it with a nice Greek horiatiki salata-village salad.

This can be made as a quick and easy dish if you use store bought phyllo and frozen chopped spinach OR if you have a little extra time you can make the phyllo from scratch and prep your spinach from fresh, or you can even substitute some cooked kale for the spinach. I have also used pre-made refrigerated pie dough before and it’s just as good! But my personal FAVORITE is when I use ready made puff pastry. I LOVE that extra flaky buttery taste. I also think it tastes a lot better with frozen chopped spinach. Try it all ways, at different times of course :), and see how you like it!

You can prepare and serve this in one large pan or make individual triangle portions to serve. Eat as a meal, with a Greek salad, or as a side.

You will need:

• 16 oz chopped frozen spinach, defrosted and drained well (or the equivalent of fresh spinach sauteed and drained well). Squeeze out all that extra liquid
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups feta, crumbled
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (a little more if it looks too dry)
• 2 eggs, beaten (optional if making individual portions, i.e. rolls or small triangles)
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, if needed. If your feta is pretty salty you won’t need extra salt.
• 1-16oz package of phyllo dough, puff pastry, or homemade dough.
• 1/4 -1 cup extra virgin olive oil (depending on the type of pastry you are using)

Steps:

1. Make sure spinach is fully defrosted, drained and all excess water squeezed out. You can do this by cupping the spinach in your hands and squeezing or by using a cheesecloth. Set in medium sized bowl.
2. Add chopped green onions and dill, crumbled feta, 1/4 cup olive oil, beaten eggs, and freshly ground black pepper to spinach and combine well. Try not to break up the feta too much more. Add salt at this point, if using, and combine some more. Set aside.
3. If using phyllo dough you will need closer to the full cup of olive oil. Using a pastry brush, grease your pan with olive oil and then lay your first sheet of phyllo in the pan and brush the top with olive oil. Do this 9 more times for a total of 10 pieces of phyllo, while continually brushing olive oil on each sheet before laying the next one. It’s okay if the phyllo comes up on the edges…it’s actually preferable so you get a nice top seal at the end. *
4. Spread the spinach mixture evenly on top of the phyllo. At this point, if you want the top of your pie to look less rustic then tuck the edges in now. If you don’t care then you can do it after you add the top sheets of phyllo.
5. Top with 10 more phyllo sheets, while brushing olive oil between each sheet, as before, and add some extra brushes on top. Push any excess phyllo into the sides of the pan with a butter knife or thin spatula so it’s all swaddled up :).
6. Gently score the top of the phyllo in squares or triangles. You don’t want to cut into it so much that you expose the filling, just the top few layers of phyllo.
7. Give the top a few mist sprays of water, or wet your hands and shake on top of it.
8. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, until phyllo is a golden color.

*Note: You can make individual pieces too by taking one phyllo piece and brushing top with olive oil, bring both ends in and brush with olive oil some more then put 2-3 tablespoons of filling towards the top and fold over one end to make a triangle at the top and then fold over to other side. A couple pictures depicting this below. OR, you can just add filling to top before folding sides in, then fold sides in, brush with olive oil and roll up like a cigar 🙂 .

Kali Orexi!

Here are some pictures of how it looks with other types of dough.

Puff pastry (my fav):

With pie dough:

Making individual triangles out of phyllo: Listen to the crunch test!

Galette/tart style with puff pastry:

An oval and more rustic presentation:

Spanakopita

Spinach and Feta Cheese Pie

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine Greek

Ingredients

  

• 16 oz chopped frozen spinach defrosted and drained well (or the equivalent of fresh spinach sauteed and drained well). Squeeze out all that extra liquid
• 1 bunch green onions chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups feta crumbled
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil a little more if it looks too dry
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt if needed. If your feta is pretty salty you won’t need extra salt.
• 1-16 oz package of phyllo dough puff pastry, or homemade dough.
• 1/4 -1 cup extra virgin olive oil depending on the type of pastry you are using

Instructions

 

• Make sure spinach is fully defrosted, drained and all excess water squeezed out. You can do this by cupping the spinach in your hands and squeezing or by using a cheesecloth. Set in medium sized bowl.
• Add chopped green onions and dill, crumbled feta, 1/4 cup olive oil, beaten eggs, and freshly ground black pepper to spinach and combine well. Try not to break up the feta too much more. Add salt at this point, if using, and combine some more. Set aside.
• If using phyllo dough you will need closer to the full cup of olive oil. Using a pastry brush, grease your pan with olive oil and then lay your first sheet of phyllo in the pan and brush the top with olive oil. Do this 9 more times for a total of 10 pieces of phyllo, while continually brushing olive oil on each sheet before laying the next one. It’s okay if the phyllo comes up on the edges…it’s actually preferable so you get a nice top seal at the end.
• Spread the spinach mixture evenly on top of the phyllo. At this point, if you want the top of your pie to look less rustic then tuck the edges in now. If you don’t care then you can do it after you add the top sheets of phyllo.
• Top with 10 more phyllo sheets, while brushing olive oil between each sheet, as before, and add some extra brushes on top. Push any excess phyllo into the sides of the pan with a butter knife or thin spatula so it’s all swaddled up :).
• Gently score the top of the phyllo in squares or triangles. You don’t want to cut into it so much that you expose the filling, just the top few layers of phyllo.
• Give the top a few mist sprays of water, or wet your hands and shake on top of it.
• Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 30-40 minutes, until phyllo is a golden color.