Long Beach Grecian Festival by the Sea Cookbook

Photo by Dr. Sina Bacol Spinach-filled Phyllo Triangles   (Spanakopites) Bake: 20 min Prep: 45 min Makes: about 40-50 pieces Bake: 20 min Prep: 45 min Makes: about 40-50 pieces Athens® brand of thin phyllo, 9 by 14-inches (size 4) is used in this recipe. In a one-pound box, two 9 by 14-inch rolls of phyllo are included. Use one roll and freeze the other in the original packaging. May brush phyllo with butter, olive oil or a combination of both. Check out the URL for pictures and video showing phyllo wrapping techniques. Best if phyllo is brushed in melted butter or oil or a combination of both. 1/2 pound phyllo 1 bunch dill, chopped 10-ounce box frozen chopped spinach 3 tablespoons olive oil for sautéing 1 bunch green onions, chopped 3/4 cup olive oil, divided 2 cups Greek feta, crumbled 3 eggs, whisked     Bring o...

Htipiti  (Roasted Red Pepper Dip) Htipiti (Roasted Red Pepper Tapenade) A new version of the roasted red pepper dip made as a tapenade was discovered by Rachel Korkor. No blending required. Rachel found roasted peppers continue to release moisture after chopping and advises leaving the chopped peppers for a while to drain away some of the liquid before mixing with other ingredients.   Htipiti (Roasted Red Pepper Dip) Bake: 60 minutes Prep: 20 minutes Serves: 6   Blend to desired dip consistency or skip the blending and serve as a tapenade. For convenience, you may buy peppers already roasted in a jar. 3 large red bell peppers Salt and pepper, to taste 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided 1 cup Greek feta, coarsely crumbled 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 small onion, minced 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme 1 garlic clove,...

Kalamata olive dip with cream cheese and mayo Kalamata olive dip with yogurt I found a recipe for Kalamata Olive Spread by The Pampered Chef that I played with this week.  The original recipe called for cream cheese, mayonnaise and 1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives.  I used Greek yogurt and 1 cup of chopped kalamata olives.  I took both versions of the recipe to a small gathering and asked everyone to sample both and give me their input.  The majority favored the recipe with the Greek yogurt but said there wasn't that much difference in the flavor.  I used the 5% Fage yogurt.  I strained it overnight in a coffee filter.   Here is the recipe. 1 cup chopped Kalamata olives 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley 8 oz Fage yogurt 1 small garlic clove, pressed Finely diced red bell pepper Spread on crackers or use as a dip

 Hi everyone,   I just updated my profile to include a picture showing taken on a Vespa taken at a Christmas party hosted by a very nice friend.  It reminds me of one of my most favorite cooking shows on television- "Extra Virgin" with Debbie Mazar and her husband Gabriele Corcos driving around Tuscany on their Vespa before they cook their favorites Italian favorites, Cookbook Introduction Introduction & Acknowledgements Why We Updated our Church Cookbook Fundraising is most often the reason for developing a community cookbook, a practice dating back to 1864 in the United States when Maria J. Moss published and sold A Poetical Cookbook to raise money to help subsidize medical costs for Union soldiers.  Almost all households have a community cookbook passed down by family members, as I do. Mine is Grecian Festival by the Sea , a church cookbook that my mother edited and collated from recipes contributed by church members. M.F.K. Fisher, the exquisite writer ...

Stuffed Grape Leaves - Appetizer Style   (D olmad á kia ) Cook time: 1 hour Prep: 1 hour Makes: 75- 85 pieces   Dolmath á kia with the “akia” on the end of the word means “small one”. These stuffed grape leaves are made on the smaller side to be served as an appetizer hot or cold with a squeeze of lemon juice. Instead of using dried onion soup, you may use chopped onions, bunches of fresh mint and dill in the meat mixture. Check out the URL for a video and pictures of grape leave rolling techniques. The rice will not explode when cooked this way as long as you roll your grape leaves tightly around the meat mixture.     3 pounds 73% lean ground beef* Salt and pepper to taste 1 cup long grain white rice Water, about 1/4-1/2 cup 2 packages dried onion soup mix 1 16-ounce jar grape leaves 2 tablespoons dried mint 1 lemon, juiced ...

 I'm sorry, but I just had to post again.   I am so impressed with Alexis and her bread making skills.  Evidently,  the poke test is a foolproof way to determine if the bread is ready to go into the oven.   The proof is in picture.     The most recent picture of Alex's beautiful Tsoureki. 

I was a little surprised when my mom Penny asked me to help her test out recipes for the Long Beach  cookbook, but it turns out hardly anyone in my family bakes and she knew that I started making bread last year. I will not talk about how one can come from a family that does not bake because I would like them to keep giving me good recipes from all the yiayiades.  My favorite bread to make is challah because it makes such nice French toast, so mom and Maria asked if I would be willing to test out some tsoureki recipes, since they are both so similar. Since I know just enough to get into trouble in the kitchen, they figured it would be a good way to make sure the recipes make sense for experts and novices alike. The first thing I noticed about the recipe is that it uses a LOT of yeast. Like twice as much as I am used to. I was not sure what to think, but I dove right in and did just what it said. My second surprise was after kneading, when I turned the dough into a buttered di...