Festive rice pilaf "A la Polita" with all ... the trimmings!!!

Serve this delicious rice pilaf as a side dish next to the roast turkey or other meat you might have at your Christmas table! A dish that is very popular in Greece and it is brought to us from the Greeks of Asia Minor. Colourful and full of festive flavours, it will satisfy your guests and family and it is great idea to serve at any formal occasion

Christmas roast turkey with apples and orange

Recipes for roast turkey and especially the Festive period ones are countless! Each country, region, household has its own special version for this (unlucky) bird to cook and enjoy with family and friends! The combination of ingredients regarding the "trimmings" and the stuffing is mainly where things differ and here today we have one more version which could become one of your favourites!

Christmas "Sarmades" - Pickled cabbage rolls stuffed with mince and rice

Another traditional and delicious recipe coming (mainly) from Northern Greece and which in many areas is considered as a classic Christmas meal but it can be found during the Winter-time in general. The main difference between the classic stuffed cabbage rolls and the Sarmades (Sarmas in singular) is that in the latter pickled cabbage is used instead of fresh cabbage. Also, this version rather rarely is served with the customary lemon and egg sauce (avgolemono) like we usually do with the classic cabbage rolls. Today's version can be found in Kastoria region and as you'll see the ingredients are rather few and the most basic for stuffed cabbage rolls. But, regardless the possible differences from region to region, this recipe is a great sample of what we call "comfort food"

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Marinated traditional wild pig "Salmi" served with an aromatic garlicky sauce

Such a tasty way to finish 2013 and hoping for even more delicious recipes in the New Year... Inspired by traditional recipes this is really delicious and fans of game meat will be thrilled with its flavour and tenderness! The marinade ingredients work perfectly keeping the meat juicy and tender but also helping to break down a bit the distinctive, strong taste and smell game meat in general tends to have. It needs its time this recipe and a slow cooking but in the end you will be rewarded with a delicious dish! Silky mashed potatoes or, for a more rustic approach, thick macaroni pasta are two great choices to serve this meat with

All the Best from Our Family to All of You

and Your Beloved Ones 

For A Great New Year,

Full of Health and Happiness!!

---------------

My Special Thanks to All the Followers of this Blog

and Those who Spent some of Their Precious Time for Stopping By Honouring Us with their Visit and Comments

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Festive salad with chicon, radishes, walnuts, blue cheese and apples

A special meal for such a special day it would not be complete without a special side dish and this is what this seasonal salad offers! Belgian endive (or chicon) is probably the best choice for a crispy, refreshing salad that will accompany in the best way various roasted meat and poultry dishes and we actually discovered last year, when we first had this salad, that its subtle bitter/peppery flavour really compliments game meat like the wild pig for example. Chicon, in this salad, works wonderfully with the rest of the ingredients and it comes in a nice balance with the apples and the honey-mustard dressing. It is a great seasonal salad which can also be served as a first dish in other occasions through the Winter months

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Party mini kebabs served with two delicious dips

If you want to give a nice spicy touch to your parties this Festive season try out these delicious mini kebabs, which of course you can also cook any other time! To plan a buffet dinner for family and friends is not so easy after all... So many ideas in our heads for various dishes we could present but when the time comes the whole thing makes our heads spin... So, it's good to plan ahead and prepare some of the dishes the day before or even a few days before the party. For example today's recipe can be prepared the day before and kept in the fridge until cooking time. As for the dips, they can be easily prepared just a while before serving

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Baked rabbit cooked in sweet red wine and mild spices sauce

Rabbit is one of our family's favourite meats and thankfully it is so versatile that we had the chance to try quite a few recipes through the years. It is, also, popular in Greece and in many areas around the country it is the first choice when it comes to Holiday season cooking. The most common dish probably is the luscious "Rabbit stifado" (made with hare too) but so many other recipes exist  in various regions of the country. You can never really fail with rabbit as its meat is always so tasty and tender and, at the same time, so light. Today's recipe has a delicious subtle sweet and sour taste cooked in a richly flavoured sauce thanks to the sweet wine and the full aromas of mild spices, orange and rosemary and they are accompanied by mellow oven baked potatoes

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: The easiest savoury puff pastry biscuits - Ideal for the Holidays and every buffet party!

Today's post I would not count it so much as a recipe but rather as a nice idea.... Christmas is over but the Festive season still goes on (and in Greece won't be over before the 7th of January) which means that there is still plenty of time left for cheerful gatherings with friends and family! These cute pastry biscuits are a great idea to serve at a buffet party among other similar dishes or simply to accompany your drinks. The fact of being so easy to prepare and so versatile makes them so popular for any party occasion really and not only during the Christmas period. You can use your imagination to garnish these biscuits with anything you like or simply to serve them as they are because they are so tasty

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Roasted guinea fowl with quinces cooked in wine and citrus sauce - A bird that deserves our attention

Guinea fowl is not exactly the type of bird you would find on a typical, traditional Greek household table during the festive season although a type of it does exist in Greece (Fragokota in Greek). It has started though becoming more popular and this is nice because it is a tasty bird and also it's there to remind us that there are actually alternatives other than turkey and chicken. Year in year out with the same kind of bird at the Festive table can easily put some people off and guinea fowl gives us the chance to try something different. In this recipe, which is nice and simple, the bird collaborates with quinces. This (ugly, I agree but...) precious Winter time fruit is so versatile since it can so easily be used in various sweet and savoury dishes

Merry Christmas to you all!!!

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Crispy green salad with avocado and pomegranate

So colourful, refreshing, nutritious and tasty salad to serve at this year's Christmas or New Year table! The various vegetables manage to suit each other perfectly and the pomegranate gives this extra freshness with its ruby colour and crunchy texture. The light dressing only compliments the salad which can accompany any Holiday roasted meat and poultry dish

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Christmas crusty layered rice pilaf

A colourful and impressive side dish for any roast meat and poultry to make your Festive table even more enjoyable! Fragrant spices and dried fruits work together perfectly for a delicious stuffing for this unusual dish

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Greek-style Festive stuffed roast chicken

For those who don't like turkey too much (or at all) there is always an alternative and this could be a nice roast chicken for the big day of Christmas! Why don't you try it in one of the ways it is cooked in Greece this year, stuffing the bird with a rich filling full of taste and aromas? If you prefer you can substitute the mushrooms with 200gr. of pickled cabbage cut in thin strips and in that case omit the cinnamon

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Two delicious ideas for the Festive period parties!

Every year this magic season is full of dinners with friends and family but also full of cheerful parties where various colourful and tasteful dishes are served to enjoy along with our drinks. Here today we have two easy, delicious and elegant recipes to include in your parties during the Festive season! Two appetizers which both can proudly sit at your buffet tables next to other savoury and sweet treats! The fluffy choux pastry can be easily replaced by mini vol-au-vent cases or mini tartelettes if you prefer

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Baked baby potatoes flavoured with citrus fruits

A different but delicious version of the classic side dish which can be served next to the Festive turkey or other roasted meat during the Holidays but which, of course, are perfect for every season and occasion!

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Baked quinces with rosemary make a great side dish!

Quinces are already in season and here we have a simple but delicious side dish to accompany various meats. It is an easy recipe to put together and it is a great idea to use it as a side dish for your Holiday roasted meat and poultry meals

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Roasted rack of pork with dried fruits and quinces

Here we have an easy recipe to prepare for the Festive season. It is ideal for those who break into a sweat every time they see complicated recipes to put together for a dinner party for friends, especially in periods like Christmas!... Delicious pork recipe, simple but impressive at the same time, which can be presented intact and cut at the table. You will need about two chops per person, so it is best to get two racks of pork. *** Also it would be wise if you make your order a few days in advance because racks of pork are not always readily available

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Oven-cooked deer with blackberries and red wine sauce

Something different for your Festive table if you are bored of the old classic roast turkey or other poultry. The blackberry sauce is ideal for this kind of game meat and gives extra flavour. Deer is a special kind of meat and it needs a delicate cooking so not to get tough. It's much tastier if it is cooked medium and not well done. *** But, still, if you prefer your meat further cooked it is good to have in mind not to cook it more than 10 extra minutes. A piece of deer (no bone in), for example of 350gr., needs 50 minutes of cooking in the oven at 200°C

FESTIVE SEASON 2013-2014: Edible Holiday gifts for friends and family!

The little gifts made at home by ourselves always enclose the care and the meaning of offering something special to those we love! The difficult times most people have to deal with the last few years make us to be especially careful with our finances... but having to cut off expenses is not always so bad after all since now more than ever we have the opportunity to discover hidden talents which we had not realised that we possessed... So lets start this year's festive season with a few ideas of how we could create tasty, edible little gifts for those we love. I'm sure that most will appreciate the effort and the time we spend on this and they will enjoy these delicacies made at home. Three simple but very tasty recipes, two sweet and one savoury, which you have plenty of time to prepare

Baked fritters with leftover Festive season vegetables

Every year the same story... it's not only the leftover cheeses you have to use up after the Holidays big feast, but plenty of leftover vegetables too waiting for you in the fridge to deal with them... which makes us think that "next year we will not cook so many..." but we make the same mistake year after year:-)) These fritters, for example, are a nice idea to use up the leftover vegetables so to have something light and tasty without feeling guilty that "in these difficult times" you had to throw food away...

Fluffy omelette with herbs and leftover cheeses

I don't know how often it happens to you but in our house every year our fridge has plenty of various leftover cheeses after the Holiday season... How many crackers and how much chutney you can have so to accompany the various cheeses? So, this omelette is a nice idea to use those cheeses up and have a nice and light meal at the same time. The cheeses mentioned are only an indication (just a few of those we usually prefer every Festive season), of course you can use those you have in your fridge. As for the herbs used, don't feel intimidated by the "shepherd's needles" (Myronia in Greek)... if you can't find this herb then again use a different kind