Greek Week Recipes

Spanakopita

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds spinach, rinsed and chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
8 sheets phyllo dough
1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Lightly oil a 9x9 inch square baking pan.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over
medium heat. Saute onion, green onions and garlic,
until soft and lightly browned. Stir in spinach and
parsley, and continue to saute until spinach is limp,
about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside
to cool.
In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, and
feta. Stir in spinach mixture. Lay 1 sheet of phyllo
dough in prepared baking pan, and brush lightly
with olive oil. Lay another sheet of phyllo dough on
top, brush with olive oil, and repeat process with
two more sheets of phyllo. The sheets will overlap
the pan. Spread spinach and cheese mixture into
pan and fold overhanging dough over filling. Brush
with oil, then layer remaining 4 sheets of phyllo
dough, brushing each with oil. Tuck overhanging
dough into pan to seal filling.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown. Cut into squares and serve while hot.





Souvlaki

2 1/2 pounds of pork shoulder, cut in 3/4 inch cubes
1 teaspoon of ground Greek oregano (rigani)
1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon of sea salt
2 tablespoons of red wine (or good red wine vinegar)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
In a bowl, pour wine (or vinegar) and oil over the pork and toss to coat. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and oregano, and toss again. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.Note: If using vinegar, do not marinate longer than 2 hours or the meat can absorb too strong a vinegar taste. If using wine, the meat can be marinated for up to 2 days as long as salt is also used.
Using 8 inch skewers, thread approximately 6 pieces of meat on each. This should make about 12 skewers.
Grill the meat turning until well browned, about 15 minutes. Serve on the skewers with a squeeze of lemon.

Tzatziki Sauce (Pictured above with Souvlaki)
16 ounces plain yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped Pinch kosher salt 4 cloves garlic, finely minced 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
Place the yogurt in a tea towel, gather up the edges, suspend over a bowl, and drain for 2 hours in the refrigerator.
Place the chopped cucumber in a tea towel and squeeze to remove the liquid; discard liquid. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the drained yogurt, cucumber, salt, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, and mint. Serve as a sauce for gyros. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.

Moussaka
3 eggplants, peeled and cut lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick slices
salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound lean ground beef or sausage
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
2 onions, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon fines herbs
2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1 egg, beaten

4 cups milk
1/2 cup butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
salt to taste
ground white pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Lay the slices of eggplant on paper towels, sprinkle lightly with salt, and set aside for 30 minutes to draw out the moisture. Then in a skillet over high heat, heat the olive oil. Quickly fry the eggplant until browned. Set aside on paper towels to drain. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter and add the ground beef, salt and pepper to taste, onions, and garlic. After the beef is browned, sprinkle in the cinnamon, nutmeg, fines herbs and parsley. Pour in the tomato sauce and wine, and mix well. Simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, and then stir in beaten egg.

To make the bechamel sauce, begin by scalding the milk in a saucepan. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Lower heat; gradually pour in the hot milk, whisking constantly until it thickens. Season with salt, and white pepper. Arrange a layer of eggplant in a greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover eggplant with all of the meat mixture, and then sprinkle 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese over the meat. Cover with remaining eggplant, and sprinkle another 1/2 cup of cheese on top. Pour the bechamel sauce over the top, and sprinkle with the nutmeg. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Bake for 1 hour at 350

Baklava

1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
10 ounces chopped nuts
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to
fit pan. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to
keep from drying out as you work. Place two
sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat
until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3
tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two
sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go.
The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square
shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You
may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts.
Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden
and crisp.

Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar
and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and
honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up.

Greek Rice

2 cups white rice
4 cups water
2T Olive Oil
1 T Italian Seasoning
2 t oregano
1 cube chicken boullion

Cook or steam rice according to package directions.

Greek Meatballs

½ pound Sweet Italian Sausage (this comes in links--remove from casings)
½ pound lean ground beef
1 egg
½ cup Greek Rice (or leftover white rice)
2 T brown mustard
1 T minced garlic
¼ c parmesan cheese
3 t Italian seasoning
2 t oregano
2 t garlic salt
1 t cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
2 t red wine vinegar
2 t balsalmic vinegar

Mix all ingredients well (I just use my hands). Form into 1 inch balls and place in 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with garlic salt and Italian seasoning. Cook for 45 minutes at 350 or until browned. Makes 20 meatballs. Eat with rice or serve in pitas for Greek Meatball Pita Sandwiches.

Greek Artichoke Salad

½ cup grape tomatoes (cherry would work too)
1 small bottle marinated artichokes, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/3 cup pitted kalamata olives
4 oz feta cut into small cubes

Put all ingredients in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Add Italian seasoning and oregano. Toss. (This would work well as a pasta salad. Just toss with farfalla or penne pasta)

Fruit Kebabs with Yogurt Dip

Strawberries, hulled and halved
Grapes, rinsed
Cantelope, cut into chunks
Pineapple chunks (fresh or canned)

Place fruit on skewers in desired order and enjoy!



Yogurt Dip
2 cups raspberry yogurt (I like the Mountainland brand because it isn’t too sweet)
1 cup light cool whip or whipped cream
1 t vanilla
1 t lemon juice

Mix all ingredients well and serve with fruit kebabs or fruit salad.


Hummus

1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup olive oil (plus more to achieve desired consistency)
1 t minced garlic
1 t cumin
1 t oregano
1 t nutmeg (optional)
¼ t cayenne pepper (optional)

Put all ingredients except olive oil in food processor. Turn on processor and slowly pour in olive oil until you get the consistency you like. Serve wth pita bread or vegetables.

Greek Fries

1 package frozen steak fries
2 t Italian seasoning
2 t garlic salt
2 T olive oil

Place fries on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle seasoning over fries and toss to coat. Cook at 350 for 18-22 minutes or until browned and crispy. Serve with hummus for dipping.


Greek Meatball Pita Sandwiches

Greek Meatballs, cut in half
Feta cheese
Hummus
Spinach
Kalamata olives
Grape tomatoes
Tzatziki sauce

Place damp towel over pitas and cook for one minute (this helps to keep them soft) right before eating. Cut pitas in half. Fill open pita halves with desired ingredients and sat up!

Simple Greek Salad

Layer sliced cucumbers and sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Add crumbled feta to top. Drizzle with olive oil and balsalmic vinegar. 100 percent healthy and 100 percent delicious.