Potato minced meat

June 12th, 2013 § 0

Things have been busy and I haven’t been around…

  • 250 gr beef mince
  • 2 onions(finely diced)
  • 1 garlic (diced)
  • 100 gr tomato paste
  • 3 tomatoes
  • 2 banana peppers (cut into slices)
  • 1 T parsley (diced)
  • salt
  • black pepper flakes
    Sauté the onions and garlic in extra virgin olive oil.Add minced beef and banana peppers and stir.

    Cook for 10 minutes at high temperature.

    Add tomato paste, salt and pepper flakes to taste.
    Simmer for another 10 minutes.

    Peel and slice the potatoes.

    Oil a casserole and layer the bottom with sliced potatoes.

    Place the minced beef mixture over the potatoes.

    Top with the remaining potatoes.

    Add 1/2 cup water to the casserole.

    Cook in 200° C preheated oven until the potatoes are tender for about half and hour.

    • Rolls with poppy seed paste

    May 31st, 2013 § 0

    A delicious sweet in 30 minutes with ready made pastry specially for baklava.

  • 3 sheets filo pastry for baklava
  • 80 gr butter

    • Melt butter in a low heat.

    For the filling:

  • 1 cup almonds (coarsely cut or chopped)
  • 1 T. cinnamon
  • 6 T. brown sugar
  • 1 cup poppy seed paste

    • Mix the filling ingredients.

    Brush each sheet of filo pastry with melted butter, layer by layer.

    Once 2 sheets of filo are pressed together, sprinkle the filling mixture over the sheet.

    Roll tight lengthwise until the end. Brush the cylinder with melted butter.

    Cut the long cylinder into approximately 10 cm pieces.

    Place into an oven tray.

    Bake in 200° C pre heated oven for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

    For the syrup:

  • 1  cup sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 T lemon juice

    • Put the water and sugar in a pot. Bring to a boil for 10 minutes, first stirring constantly. Simmer for 20 minutes and add lemon juice.

    Dip your first finger into the syrup, if it sticks to your thumb finger it means that the syrup is ready!

    Remove the baklava rolls from the tray and dip in the hot syrup.

    Ice cream with chocolate and black pepper

    May 13th, 2013 § 0

    An ice cream with an intense aroma of the black pepper.

  • 1 1/2 cup milk
  • 5 T salep
  • 150 gr milk chocolate
  • 50 gr dark chocolate (broken)
  • 110 gr sugar
  • 1 T ground black pepper
  • pistachio (crushed)
    • Melt the milk chocolate in bain-marie method. Set aside to warm.
    Put the milk into a large, heavy bottom saucepan. Add salep and sugar.
    Salep is a flour made from the root of the Early Purple Orchid, that makes the ice cream thick and sticky.
    Bring to boil by stirring it constantly until the mixture turns thick.
    Pour gently the melted chocolate to the mixture and stir until it is smooth.
    Add the black peppers and broken dark chocolate pieces.
    Spoon it into ice molds and let it cool in the freezer. To prevent it from crystallization, take it out of the freezer after 2 hours and beat it well with a mixer. Then chill thoroughly.
    If you have an ice cream machine, freeze it according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
    Drizzle the crushed pistachios over the ice cream before serving.

    To Mükü & Niki

    May 12th, 2013 § 0

    Pastry with olive oil filled with white cheese ~ Kourou (κουρού)

    May 5th, 2013 § 0

    Kourou (κουρού) is one of the savoury pie, that is sold in individual portions at every corner in Greece.

    The name comes from Turkish kuru literally meaning dry.

    In Turkey the dry poğaça (kuru poğaça) generally filled with white cheese and parsley and smaller sized than the kourou in Greece.

    The Greek version of kuru poğaça , with rich dough and white cheese crumbles in the mouth.

    for the dough:

  • 3/4 cup yogurt

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

  • 1 egg (optional)

  • 1 T baking powder
  • 3 1/2 cup flour
  • a pinch of salt

    • In a bowl put olive oil and yogurt.  Add egg and whisk until thoroughly amalgamated.

    Gradually add the flour, salt with baking powder.

    Begin kneading the dough with your hands. Dough becomes firmer as you knead.

    Your dough should be smooth.

    Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes.

    You can prepare it immediately if you are in hurry.

    for the filling:

  • 100 gr white cheese (grated)
  • 100 gr fresh myzitra (or Ricotta cheese) (grated)
  • 50 gr Graviera (Gruyere) cheese (grated)
  • a pinch of black pepper flakes

    • In a bowl, stir all the ingredients with a fork.

    Make each dumpling by pinching off about an egg size piece of dough.  Roll into a ball and flatten into a thick disc.

    Put some filling in the middle of the dough. Bring the edges of the circle together over the filling and pinch them together.

    Set each dumpling onto a greased baking tray.

    for topping:

  • 1 egg yolk

    • Beat egg yolk in a small bowl.

    Brush each kourou with egg yolk.

    Bake in 180° C pre-heat oven for 30 minutes until golden brown.

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