Tzatziki with a twist

Tzatziki (and not "tSatSiki" as I often see and hear people pronouncing it abroad...) is a well known dip around the globe and with many big fans as far as I know:-)! Here the classic recipe gets an alternative form thanks to the addition of the carrot and the parsley. With these two ingredients the recipe gets a slightly sweeter flavour but without losing its authenticity

Recipe of Dimitris Andreou,
from "Cook Book" magazine of "ETHNOS" newspaper

Ingredients (for 6 people):
500gr. of Greek strained yoghurt
1 cucumber, grated
1 carrot, grated
3 cloves of garlic, mashed
5 sprigs of flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
5 sprigs of fresh dill, snipped
5 sprigs of fresh spearmint, finely chopped (or 1 ½ tsp of dried)
½ tsp of salt
5 tbsp of olive oil
pepper

Method:
Put the yoghurt in a piece of cheese cloth and leave it hanging from the water tap in the sink in order to strain for about 1 hour.

Lightly season with salt the grated cucumber and leave it to strain in a fine sieve for about 1 hour. When ready, squeeze as hard as you can between the palms of your hands to discard even more liquid. Put the cucumber in a large bowl.

Add into the bowl the yoghurt, the mashed garlic and the rest of the ingredients and stir very well until you have a well combined creamy mixture. Taste for salt and pepper and add some if neccessary.

Cover the tzatziki with a piece of cling film if you are going to serve soon and chill in the fridge. Otherwise, store in an airtight container and leave in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.