Spaghetti with roasted tomatoes sauce and fried eggs

Delicious and very filling, this pasta recipe combines brunch and main meal on the same dish! Kids and adults will really love it! Easy to prepare, it can be cooked any day in the week since it doesn't demand a lot of your time. It is an all-seasons recipe really but I think a great idea during the Summer months 

Healthier marinated chicken nuggets

The whole family will love these and you will not feel guilty at all serving them this kind of "fast food"! Not only healthier than those at the various restaurants since you prepare them at home from scratch but they are oven-baked and not fried and surely this makes things better without lacking any taste! The yoghurt-based marinade keeps the meat moist and gives extra flavour

Caramelised fresh plums with chilled almond cream pudding

The combination of the chilled cream and the caramelised plums is something else! It will close your meal in the best way and it will become one of your favourite Summer desserts!

Summertime meatloaf stuffed with Florina sweet red peppers and Feta cheese

A delicious version of meatloaf, fully in the Greek style! An ideal dish for the Summer months. Serve it with your favourite homemade tomato sauce (a bit spicy would be great) along with fried or oven baked potatoes and a nice green salad

Refreshing Summer rice salad with fruits and crab meat

Tasty, light and refreshing this salad is a great idea during the Summer months! It can be served as a light meal as well and easily packed and taken with you at a picnic, adding the dressing the last moment. If you don't like crab you can replace it with shrimps

Double cooked aubergines stuffed with braised octopus in tomato sauce

Great Summer dish to enjoy two ingredients which are very popular in the Greek cuisine, the aubergines and the octopus. Things get easier since we use tinned octopus saving us plenty of time of preparation. A great idea to serve this recipe as a first dish or even as a main meal along with some crispy green salad

Greek meatballs stuffed with feta cheese and served with a sundried tomatoes and yoghurt dip

One more delicious recipe to make Greek-style meatballs and serve them as a meze dish to share with friends along with some cold beer or chilled wine. The feta cheese and the mustard give extra flavour to the meatballs, while the tomato keeps them moist and fluffy. The sundried tomatoes go perfectly in this chilled yoghurt dip which is so refreshing! Really a great Summer dish for all!

Summertime celeriac and fennel soup with red grapes

You would think "who would ever like to eat a bowl of soup in the middle of the Summer" (and a hot one really where I come from) and I would not disagree with you! But that's not the case with this one not only because it is light and very tasty but also because it is served chilled. So, don't hesitate to serve it to your guests as a first dish on a warm night and you will see how pleased they will be. The celeriac with the fennel work together in harmony and the refreshing crunchy grapes balance the whole thing in the best way!

Fast and easy Summer tart with cherry tomatoes, pesto and two cheeses

Here things are really easy and simple and this is what we need on a hot Summer day. To prepare something without too much trouble and having something tasty and filling on our plates at the same time. Serve this tart as a first dish or light meal along with some crispy green salad. Substitute, if you want, the Kefalotyri cheese with parmesan or pecorino. Both suit the rest of the ingredients very well, each one giving a different taste. You can, also, substitute the Anthotyro cheese with fresh mozzarella. Green or red pesto, again, are suitable depending on your preference. The original recipe demands a type of pastry we have in Greece called "Kourou". The closer to this is the classic shortcrust pastry which doesn't lack taste at all

"Cheesecake" vanilla scented ice cream with cranberries

Easy and delicious this ice cream will remind you somehow of a cheesecake! Great idea for a bit different kind of ice cream to please your guests

Baked lamb bites and cheese wrapped in vine leaves

Inspired by a traditional recipe this is a really great dish! Sooo tasty! Take advantage of the season and use fresh vine leaves now that they are still tender. No problem, though, if you use leaves from a jar as long as they are a good quality. This recipe goes perfectly well with fried potatoes or a white rice pilaf

Marinated shrimps "souvlaki" with lime and honey

Lemony and peppery in taste, this recipe for shrimps is a great idea for your next BBQ session! Not much preparation is needed or fancy ingredients and they can be served as a first dish or as an appetizer to enjoy with family and friends

Penne salad with Summer roast vegetables

Easy, simple, light and delicious salad to enjoy the last of the Summer vegetables to the full! A very filling dish which you can have even as a light meal

Cretan "Dakos" topped with fried egg

The traditional Cretan barley rusks this time with the addition of a fried egg on top to enjoy for breakfast, as a first dish or a light meal. Dakos traditionally is topped with Cretan "Xynomyzithra" cheese which is a European protected designation of origin cheese. It is a traditional, unpasteurized fresh cheese, a sour variant of "Myzithra". It is made with milk and whey from sheep and/or goats. The Xynomyzithra comes in various sizes and its shape is usually a truncated cone or ball. It is soft, snow-white, creamy and moist, with a sour taste

Baked okra and red peppers Summer stew with Feta cheese

Simple Summer ingredients are required for this recipe so to enjoy a really tasteful but also light and nutritious dish! A great idea for the vegetarians but also those who prefer things lighter and simpler during the hot months at the family table. Since they are in season now it is a pity if you don't take advantage to use fresh okra. The truth is that there is a bit of preparation but it is worth your time! You can never beat the freshness and the taste of such vegetables when they are in season with the frozen ones... Follow the simple instructions and you will not regret it but if, again, it seems too much hard work to you, then go with the easier option

Mum's classic recipe for ground meat sauce

This classic ground meat recipe from the Greek cuisine is, in a way, the equivalent of the Italian "bolognese" sauce. There are of course differences between them, as you will see, but the principle is the same. More or less everybody follows the same technique and ingredients with minor differences here and there, mainly regarding the spices or the herbs used in the recipe. This is a rather simplified version of the recipe which my mother follows for years, as her mother did before her. I follow the same recipe but often I enrich the sauce adding mild spices like ground cinnamon and/or allspice to give an extra flavour and a couple of bay leaves. The sauce can be used in so many different recipes, it's not only meant to top your pasta dishes with it. In Greece we use it to fill various vegetables, like aubergines, tomatoes and peppers with it, the same goes for the Moussaka and Pastitsio dishes of course where the meat sauce is one of the main ingredients. Not to mention that when there are any leftovers, another day you can create a whole new dish using up the meat sauce as a base for omelettes, rice pilaf, in various tarts and pies, even in sandwiches for a different version of the luscious "Sloppy Joe" sandwich. So, it is not only a delicious recipe but also very practical so don't hesitate to cook a large quantity and freeze it accordingly

Greek-style cheesecake with barley rusks base and fresh apricots sauce

Have a try with a, somehow, different kind of cheesecake to impress and please your guests after a hot day's BBQ meal! You'll see how these humble barley rusks can become such a crunchy and especially tasty base for your dessert!

Sauté chicken fillets with fresh apricots sauce

A rather unusual combination of ingredients for the Greek cuisine but this is really a delicious dish to enjoy the (often) bland chicken fillets. Light, fragrant and very tasty with the fresh apricots melting in the mouth

"Sfougatto" omelette with courgettes and two cheeses

This is a classic and traditional Summertime dish of the Greek cuisine, which can be found in various areas of the country but surely it is a popular dish in the islands. Simple but tasty ingredients come together perfectly for this kind of omelette which can be served as a brunch or light meal. There are no special tips about it except that the courgettes need to be fresh and tender for better taste and the eggs as fresh as possible. The housewives in Mytilene (in Lesvos island), though, insist that there is a small secret for a successful "sfougatto": to sauté the grated courgettes until they are lightly stuck at the bottom of the pan without getting burned...

Easy homemade tomato paste

Take advantage of the season that now is full of fragrant fresh tomatoes and prepare your own tomato paste at home! I still remember my mother doing this every Summer (and she continues...) so to have her homemade tomato paste in hand for later on... So useful for all those Winter-time recipes and knowing that it is made by yourself out of just a few ingredients

Easy three-cheeses penne gratin with spinach

This is a quick and delicious recipe to serve as a first dish or even as a main light meal any day of the week and it is a nice idea to persuade the kids to eat some spinach...

Summer fully herbed chickpeas salad

Light, simple, nutritious and delicious recipe to cook the chickpeas and enjoy as a salad during the warm days of Summer! They can easily become a light meal or to accompany any BBQ-ed or roasted meat and fish dishes

Single-crust pie with sausages, Anthotyro cheese and tomatoes

Easy to prepare and very tasty this pie can be served as a first dish or as main meal when the weather is quite warm along with a crispy salad and some chilled wine

Strawberries and meringues for a different kind of Charlotte

Delicious and easy dessert to serve in any occasion to satisfy your guests after a rich meal. The Anthotyro cheese makes the creamy filling really light in taste. Store bought meringues will save you a lot of time but if you have a favourite recipe you'd like to follow then go with it!

Pork chops with special BBQ sauce

Cooked in the oven or finished up on the BBQ these luscious pork chops get even more delicious served with this special sauce to enjoy with family and friends at a Summer Sunday dinner!

Triangle spinach pies with sundried tomatoes and olives

The famous "spanakopitakia" triangles with the addition of sundried tomatoes which give a special sweeter taste to the classic recipe and they become a great first dish or snack for a Summer evening along with a cold glass of beer

Greek-style pesto with spearmint and almonds

Spearmint is very popular in Greece and it is used in many dishes as a herb. In some cases spearmint is the ingredient which makes all the difference in the dish. The aroma and the taste are so refreshing, always giving an extra flavour to the recipe. Here we have a nice alternative for pesto which you can use in various dishes

Apricots sauté with yoghurt sauce

A simple but nice idea to transform this popular Summer fruit to a light dessert! Especially when the apricots often taste rather bland nowadays. If the dessert is only for adults and if you'd like an extra kick you can add some spirit or liqueur when the apricots are still in the pan caramelised

Vegetarian "yiouvetsi" with orzo pasta and mixed mushrooms

A delicious, light and easy vegetarian pasta dish to enjoy when the weather is warm and you are not up to too much cooking! Don't worry about the type of the orzo, use the one it's easier for you to find

Courgettes Fritters

"Kolokythokeftedes" is one of the most favourite Summer mezedes in Greece. There are various versions of the recipe which mainly are related to the different herbs and cheese that are used. Still, all are simply delicious and along with tzatziki and a glass of ouzo you have the best combination

Tasty muffins with peaches

Small and cute these muffins will become a very tasty Summer sweet treat for everybody!