Baked feta with honey and sesame is a Greek appetizer or “mezze” that perfectly combines the flavors of savory feta, buttery phyllo, sweet honey, and crunchy sesame seeds. If you want to add a little extra flair to your presentation, use black and white sesame seeds. You can also serve…
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Continue ReadingThis syrup drenched sweet semolina cake is traditionally topped with a light dusting of confectioner’s sugar or a sprinkle of crushed pistachios. Being chocoholics, our family is partial to this ganache topped version. Add some candied orange slices and specs of gold leaf to jazz things up, making this simple…
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Continue ReadingGreek Easter bread or “tsoureki” shares the same shape and texture as Challah bread. However, it is slightly more aromatic due to the addition of mahleb, a spice derived from sour cherry seeds, and mastic, a dried resin gathered from mastic trees. Given that neither of these ingredients are traditionally…
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Continue ReadingThe best celebrations are those commemorated with food — barbecue on the 4th of July, turkey at Thanksgiving, lamb for Easter. It wasn’t until marrying into a Greek family that I discovered the fun of cake on new year’s. The festive part of Greece’s Vasilopita, named after “Agios Vasilis” or…
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Continue ReadingBougatsa or sweet semolina pie is one of my favorite specialties found at Greek bakeries. With its warm vanilla flavored semolina custard filling, flaky buttery crust, and sprinkles of confectioners sugar and cinnamon, it’s comforting yet delicate and makes for a great dish to enjoy with family and friends over…
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Continue ReadingWith the exception of fresh slices soaked in Grand Marnier, that my mother would serve at dinner parties and I would covet as leftovers, orange flavored desserts were never my favorite. Greek orange cake, featured in cookbooks and displayed on bakery shelves, never captured my fancy… until this summer. While…
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Continue ReadingOf the many food memories from my childhood summers, few are as pronounced as French fruit tarts. Layered on a thin butter crust, apples, apricots, pears, or cherries, are baked and glazed into a beautifully delicate slice of summer sweetness. The glossy apricot tarts displayed in the window of the…
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Continue ReadingGreek koulouri are found in bakeries throughout Greece and are emblematic of Greek stall foods. The city of Thessaloniki, in northern Greece, is the epicenter for the koulouri, where street vendors delight both big and small with their freshly baked goodies. Following our return from Greece, we found ourselves longing…
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Continue ReadingThis Greek jam tart is as tasty as it is beautiful. It resembles German Linzer Tortes and is a perfect accompaniment for afternoon tea or coffee. Apricot, peach, and red berry are all popular fillings but there are no hard rules as to what does or doesn’t work. Pecan pie filling comes…
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Continue ReadingThis skillet feta cornbread is a merger of two dishes: my mother-in-law’s doughless Greek feta cheese pie and my mother’s Appalachian skillet cornbread. Using the Greek recipe as the basis for the ingredients, I added white corn meal to the flour. The bread is then baked in a cast-iron skillet…