Amygdalopita - Traditional almond pie with syrup

This is a traditional syrupy dessert which can be found in various areas of Greece with more or less the same ingredients and name. In some regions instead of the famous classic Ravani or the mastic flavoured Ravani they make this pie and it is considered as a dessert for treating the guests. It is one of the easiest "oven-pan desserts" (as we call them) and normally it should be served lukewarm along with some vanilla or pistachio ice cream or even plain

Fluffy meatballs in sweet and sour sauce with beer

Beer is an amazing ingredient to cook with. It can totally transform a plain recipe, add a kick to various sauces, give a richer taste in braised foods. It is so versatile since we can marinade meat like pork or beef with it, to cook sea food in, to use in a batter for fried vegetables and fish. It goes perfectly well in bread dough, in cakes, pastry, crepes, even in ice cream!!! It is better to cook with a type of beer that you normally like to drink! The taste of beer stays with us after cooking, so choose one depending on the flavour you'd prefer your food to have: a light,  fruity, strong or bitter flavour

Lamb and chickpeas stew

Chickpeas with meat! One of the most hearty and popular Winter time combinations which you can find around the country with minor differences from region to region. A simple, classic, every day, tasty and nutritious dish. You definitely have to try it out

Orange flavoured Marbré Cake with cream cheese (or how another childhood cooking illusion was shattered...)

This recipe is not Greek at all of course but it seems that it is with us since..... forever!!! Loooong before the average housewives started to discover all the fancy cooking magazines and books or cooking TV programmes or (even more) the Internet, in Greece this was one of the most popular type of cake!!! In a way, I think, responsible for this (and for other recipes that they are not native to Greece but still made mine and previous generations initially to believe they were), is a gentleman who was one of the first who published a complete cooking book in the country. Nikos Tselementes (1878-1958), born in Sifnos island, was French and Vienna-educated chef. When he returned in Greece he started becoming known through a cooking magazine of the time (1910) called "Cooking Guide". Later he left Greece for higher level of studies in cooking (he also worked as a chef in the most glamourous Hotels of the time) and he came back in 1932 where he opened a small cooking and baking school and it was then when he published his book which had, after the first printing, another 15 official reprints during the decades that followed!!! Obviously, influenced by the French cooking, he was the one who first introduced to the Greek housewives what "Béchamel Sauce" means or how the "Piroshki" are related to the Greeks or why a "Bouillabaisse" is "a must" instead of the humble traditional Greek fish soup... Still nowadays there are those who "swear on his name" and are loyal fans of his guidelines and recipes (my mother still has one of the reprints at home, it must be an antique by now...), but there are also those who accuse him for the "distortion of the Greek cuisine with unnecessary European influences"... and with this happening it took us afterwards a few decades to recover and "go back to basics and into the traditional way"... Imagine the impact his work had that in cooking books of the '30s, '50s and even '60s when referred to the "Moussaka" without the béchamel sauce, but sprinkled on top with fine breadcrumbs or beaten eggs with grated cheese, it was mentioned as a "Moussakas Imitation"!!! Well, I will agree with both sides because I can not deny that Tselementes tried his best and introduced us to a great amount of guidelines and knowledge and recipes which, maybe, could not find their way to our tables if things were different. And, between us, I'm not sure that I would prefer my "Moussaka", "Pastitsio" or "Aubergines Papoutsakia" without a luscious béchamel sauce on top:-)).... As for the "Marbré Cake" we have a different version of it here today with the addition of cream cheese which makes it fluffier and more moist. You could also use Mascarpone cheese for a richer taste and texture or the Greek unsalted Anthotyro cheese for a lighter and slightly sour taste

Cauliflower Stifado

A delicious and hearty vegetarian Winter time recipe to enjoy with your family. Cauliflower gets better than ever with the addition of the small shallots in a nice sweetish tomato sauce

Fresh cod soup with vegetables and flavoured with saffron

Winter is coming and soups will become an essential part of our diet for a few months. Always warm, hearty and nutritious. This fish soup has a rich texture and is full of aromas thanks to the various vegetables. Accompany with a glass of chilled white dry aged wine and don't forget to have plenty of country style bread next to you so to enjoy this dish even more

Chicken with Swiss chard served with potato and Spring onions mash

A delicious recipe with a vegetable that in Greece is mainly used as a part of a pie filling or as a plain vegetable for salad. But lately more and more often it is used in other dishes and because of it's distinctive taste swiss chard is becoming quite popular

Warm orange cake with hazelnuts

A delicious cake for Winter time, easy to make and with a great orangy flavour! Normally it is served warm (along with some vanilla ice cream if you want) which makes it so luscious... It can be served, though, cold as well and if you accompany it with some glazed orange slices it will be even better

Home made bread kneaded with beer

This is a delicious bread thanks to the beer! We substitute the water with beer and we have a fluffy and moist bread inside with a nice crust on the outside. Definitely the beer makes the difference for such a home made bread

Mixed cabbage salad with raisins, pomegranate and pine nuts

A quick, tasty and nutritious Winter time salad to accompany your main dishes. Cabbage is a very popular vegetable in Greece and is used in so many different recipes as an ingredient for salads or cooked. This recipe is inspired from the classic "Cabbage salad à la Polita" and the different flavours balance together very well. Consider it as a nice alternative idea for the Christmas dinner table

Easy olive oil and chocolate cake

A tasty and fluffy cake for every occasion and so easy to put together. Enjoy a slice (or two...) with your tea or coffee or as a snack at work or at school

Smoked pork chops with Haloumi cheese and potatoes in the skillet

Greek cuisine is one of those that loves to use cheeses in many different cooking ways. In the pot, in the skillet or in the oven cheese can be the main star of a dish, always enriching the recipe. We do love cheese in Greece and we appreciate the special identity that it gives in numerous dishes. Like this one today where we use Haloumi, the famous Cypriot cheese. As important feta cheese is for the Greeks equally important is the Haloumi for the Cypriots. Try out this special recipe as a meze to share

 Recipe of Makis Georgiadis

Monthly "BHMA GOURMET" magazine of "TO BHMA" newspaper

Fried chicken bites in the skillet with dried fruits

A hearty and delicious traditional dish which will satisfy you and enrich your Winter time table with its savoury and sweet taste. The chicken bites stay soft and moist and the dried fruits add a nice extra flavour to the whole dish

Individual potato pies with puff pastry - Great for vegetarians too

A delicious idea for savoury pies which they can be served as a snack, a first dish or to pack up and take with you to a picnic. Herbs and vegetables in these pies are the key ingredients giving such a great taste

Braised rabbit with potatoes in white sauce

It is a delicious dish and something different in taste and aroma than the common recipes with rabbit. You can also use wild rabbit or hare. Chicken is a good substitute but then the final taste will not be the same

Panna Cotta with pomegranate jelly

This is not a traditional Greek dessert of course.... but since pomegranate is quite popular and involved in the Greek culture and cuisine since... forever, I thought to give you this delicate recipe for something different to enjoy during the Winter months but also to keep it in mind as an idea for a special Christmas dessert

Velvety chickpeas soup

Soups are always welcomed during the Winter months and chickpeas soup was always a popular one in Greece. This version today has a bit of a different approach to the classic one but the velvety texture of it makes the difference worth it

Winter lamb leg with garlic sauce, fresh herbs and vegetables

Lamb is not only for Easter time... we can enjoy it all year through and in this case is a perfect recipe for a Sunday dinner thanks to the Winter vegetables which give a delicious taste to the final result. Baking the lamb in this way is not traditionally Greek but various Greek chefs the last few years have started introducing this more modern (for the Greeks) approach to a classic dish which gains more and more friends

Potato pie "a la Polita"

A delicious pie which you can serve as a first dish or even as a main along with a fresh green salad. Not the usual method for this pie since some of the phyllo sheets are blind-baked before they get into the pie. This though makes the pie even more delicious and special

Baked whole apples wrapped in puff pastry

A delicious, simple but impressive dessert to finish a nice dinner. Apples are in season now and they are so versatile to allow you to create the most tasty and beautiful desserts

Yiouvarlakia soup with swiss chard

Beside the classic recipe of the Yiouvarlakia or the one with tomato sauce here we have another version which is more in the form of a warm, hearty soup. The addition of swiss chard and various herbs makes a delicious dish which will satisfy the fans of soups a lot.

Squids braised in tomato sauce with leeks

A colourful and delicious seafood dish for Winter time which you can serve as it is or along with a nice rice pilaf. The sweetness of the leeks balances nicely with the squids and the tomato sauce