Crispy fresh anchovies fritters

A delicious recipe out of the numerous similar dishes the Greek cuisine has to offer! A great meze dish to enjoy along with a chilled glass of ouzo! If served with seasonal wild greens it becomes a more full meal. Try the same recipe with smelt or whitebait, both are delicious and they are the type of fish that don't need any preparation because they can be eaten whole

Refreshing shrimps cocktail - A retro dish that never fails!

For years it used to be the star, the "must", the "trendy" appetizer in restaurants and households when some more formal dinner parties occurred but then it became old-fashioned (because some "big shot" chefs decided so...) and people forgot all about it... Lately, though, I notice that more and more often this delicious appetizer appears again in restaurant menus but also at buffet parties at home and I'm pleased because it is worth its fame! Retro dishes like this should never disappear because they don't lack at all in taste or looks and they can easily compete with other "gourmet" dishes which some try to convince us that we should have at our tables... 

Lemony oven-baked crunchy chicken nuggets

Delicious chicken nuggets on the lighter and healthier side since they are prepared in the oven instead of frying them. Chicken nuggets are popular not only among the children but the adults as well since they can be served as an appetizer along with various dips or as a main meal along with a mixed salad

Mushrooms and goat's cheese saganaki in fresh tomato sauce

A delicious and very easy appetizer dish to enjoy along with some chilled wine. One of those dishes which are meant to be shared with others in a friendly gathering but which you hope you could not share at all!:-) Simple but full of flavoursome and aromatic ingredients in another version of the popular "saganaki" dish

Easy spicy potato and crab croquettes appetizer

Family and friends gatherings and parties I think its one of the best things happening during the Summer months! Chilled drinks and cocktails and various delicious dishes pass around making our Summer evenings even more joyful! The recipes of this type are countless and in Greece we are full of them! Such a nice, tasty and easy recipe are these crab croquettes which you can have them ready in no time to treat your guests without losing too much time in the kitchen

Easy and fast Greek yoghurt-based aubergine salad-dip

In Greece recipes like this we often call them "salads" but what most of them actually are is a dish closer to the consistency of a dip or a spread. Aubergine salad is very popular and it can be found in various versions. Others are more chunky and others more like a smooth spread. They are served all year round either as a side dish to various meat and poultry dishes or as an appetizer. But aubergine salad is especially popular during the warm months and a great dish to serve next to ouzo or chilled wine. Today's recipe differs a bit than the customary version thanks to the precious Greek yoghurt which makes the recipe even creamier and more refreshing. Best served along with grissini, crispy toasted bread drizzled with olive oil or crispy pitta bread wedges

Cretan cuisine inspired shallow-fried fennel handpies with homemade pastry, served with fluffy tarama mousse

Fennel is a really favourite vegetable of mine and especially the green fronds, I use them very often in various recipes like pies for example. I love the distinctive aroma and taste of it and I think it only compliments the various cheese and vegetable pies we do in Greece. Since I first tasted feta cheese pies years ago with finely snipped fennel fronds in the filling I really loved this herb and I don't neglect to add it into my pies. Today's recipe is inspired by the Cretan cuisine and I don't really need to say much because this island has offered us great culinary miracles through the years! The version of these fried pies is a vegetarian one but if you'd like you could add cheese like Feta or Manouri or fresh Cretan Myzithra crumbled. The recipe can be served as an appetizer along with this different but really tasty mousse but the pies can be served alone as a snack, appetizer or packed for a picnic. Don't reject the idea of preparing your own pastry for these pies because thanks to the Tsikoudia (Cretan raki) the phyllo gets a special taste. The recipe can be easily adjusted to treat more persons

Greek-style Easter eggs salad with capers and vinegar mustard dressing

Every year, in most households I believe, the amount of eggs dyed for the Easter weekend are far more than enough! And, believe me, they never get wasted because they have more than one use! What I mean is that beside the traditional game we have with the red eggs (click here to find out about this interesting tradition of ours) and which some of them are consumed there and then, the rest will be used in various salads, pies and as an appetizer or side dish either the same night or during the big feast of Easter Sunday but also during the following days. This recipe here is one of many versions of Easter eggs salad we make in Greece and it is really very tasty. Just a few ingredients are enough to transform the ordinary boiled eggs (in this case Easter ones) to a delicious dish! We have tried this recipe already using it as a meze dish to accompany our ouzo (with ordinary boiled eggs) but I'm looking forward to having it again on Sunday since the Easter eggs I find that, in a mysterious way, always are tastier:-))  

Traditional Roumeli-style Gardoumbes - A "must" Greek Easter delicacy

What can I say about "Gardoumbes" and how, really, to describe not only what they are but also how significant to the Greek Easter feast and a staple recipe they have become in various regions of Greece! A traditional dish which can be found in various areas and under different names ("Gardoumia" is another one) and which are a speciality, usually, cooked during the Easter either as a main dish or, more often, as a meze dish. Some of the most famous Gardoumbes recipes come from areas in Central Greece (commonly known as "Roumeli") and from this region comes the today's recipe. For me this version was something quite different than the one I was used to since I was a kid and I had to try it out. My mother comes from Evritania (an area in Central Greece) and every year, beside the rest of the delicacies she was cooking, Gardoumbes were always a must at our Easter table. Gardoumbes were (and still are) one of my mother's special dishes but although she follows a traditional recipe of her mother's it is different than the one I'm presenting you today. The idea is the same but more greens and fresh herbs are used in this one and they are cooked in the oven. Gardoumbes, though, can also be cooked in the pot but they are delicious either way. As I said, the idea is the same and the main ingredients, again, are the lamb's or goat kid's offal and intestines. In our family, usually,they were served along with the Mageiritsa soup on Saturday night and then on Easter Sunday as a meze dish along with others while waiting for the lamb or the kid to roast on the spit during the times we were spending Easter away from Athens. What my mother does, and I believe that most home cooks do, is to prepare the ingredients for the Gardoumbes and after cutting the offal into thin strips what small bites are left go to the pot to become the Mageiritsa soup

Mini savoury tiganites (pancakes) with beetroot dip and served with soft cheese dip

This is really a fun recipe! Ideal to serve it as a first dish, an appetizer or on a buffet table along with other finger-food dishes and it is suitable for all seasons. The original recipe asks for the special Greek white cheese "Katiki" from Domokos area in Central Greece. It is a soft (spreadable) white cheese made of goat and/or goat and ewe milk. It is popular because of its low levels in salt and fat and it is suitable to use it on salads, various dips, in savoury and sweet cheese fillings for pies etc. ** The best option to replace Katiki cheese is to use very soft, in texture, Feta mixed with a bit of yoghurt and beat until creamy or to use softened goat's cheese mixed with some milk

Feta cheese "saganaki" wrapped in crispy phyllo pastry, drizzled with beer & honey syrup

The traditional and famous Greek fried cheese appetizer this time all dressed up in phyllo pastry for extra crispiness! A delicious first or meze dish to enjoy any time of the year! The slightly thick beer and honey syrup gives extra flavour to the wrapped cheese and that semi-sweet taste. Good quality of Feta cheese is the secret here which though you can replace with Manouri cheese

Classic Taramosalata - Tarama Salad for Clean Monday's feast

Not actually a salad. It is rather a dip or a spread that you can have on your bread and as a great appetizer for your ouzo. It comes from carp or cod roe and there are varieties of it. The best quality is the white tarama, with no additives. The smoked cod roe is whitish in colour, while the carp roe can be found in light to dark pink colour. You can make it using stale bread or boiled potatoes. The taste is similar but the texture totally different. This is a great appetizer which it can be found all year through but it is a staple during the various fasting periods in Greece and especially on "Clean Monday" when the Greek Orthodox Lent period starts

Crunchy sausage rolls with beer and three-cheeses creamy sauce - A Greek-style Fondue to share!

This is the kind of recipe that brings people together. A recipe to share with friends and family which is something we (the Greeks) love to do, hence the soooo large variety of meze dishes... It is one of my favourite "fun foods" because there are so many elements in it that suit my palate in the best way! It's the sausages I prefer for such recipes and then we have the creamy sauce which I love regardless the type of cheese used! Sausage rolls (or pies as we call them) in Greece are different than those they make in the UK. Large or the cocktail size of Frankfurt sausages (as they are commonly known in Greece) are used and not sausage meat, which makes me hesitant about them since I often find that the sausage meat is too greasy for my taste. To be fair, because of the type of the recipe today, sausage meat would not be the right choice anyway. Try out this recipe next time you have friends invited and see that you'll enjoy their company even more! *** You can always replace the bread with puff pastry and if you like them with an extra kick then lightly brush the sausages with a bit of mustard before wrapping

Spicy fried green olives stuffed with herbs and Feta cheese - Great, all-season appetizer!

You'll definitely need large green olives for this recipe and my suggestion are those coming from the Halkidiki region which are well known abroad as well. I have even discovered them recently in a very nice rural farmers shop not faraway from Worcester, believe it or not!! It is a great idea to serve this recipe as an appetizer or first dish but also, as most of this kind of Greek food, at a buffet table. It is always better if you buy the olives whole and not pitted and do it then at home but I do appreciate the difficulty of doing this so it's up to you. *** No salt at all is needed in this recipe because both the olives and the cheeses have more than enough!

Greek-style fried pumpkin balls with herbs - Great seasonal appetizer

Simple, easy and delicious recipe which you can serve as a first dish or along with other savoury bite-sized treats at a buffet table. Feta cheese is an option that goes well with the rest of the ingredients but even if you stick to the original version you'll end up with a very tasty dish to treat your guests

Oven-cooked Greek meatballs

A different version for light and delicious "keftedes" which you can enjoy hot or cold. A quick recipe without too much preparation, which can be served any time as a main meal along with salad and fries but also it can be a very tasty appetizer or a dish for a buffet party!

PUMPKIN SEASON: Baked pumpkin with walnuts, garlic and cheese crumble

Another savoury recipe using pumpkin to enjoy a very tasty appetizer dish. The original recipe demands the use of a very special Greek cheese called "Batzo". It is a cheese mainly coming from the Central and Western province of Makedonia (up North Greece). It is very tasty, strong but without being as sharp as, for example, is the Kefalotyri cheese. It's made of sheep or goat's milk, quite firm in texture and resembles a sponge since there are holes in the inside. Being firm it makes it the ideal cheese for frying because it can hold its shape. Again, I don't expect you to find Batzo abroad but you can easily substitute with Greek mildly salted Kefalotyri, Kefalograviera, Kasseri or Haloumi cheese

PUMPKIN SEASON: Kolokoudi - Traditional savoury pumpkin fritters with tomato, cheese and sage

Another version of savoury pumpkin fritters which are a great idea to serve as an appetizer or even as a light meal along with a crispy salad. This recipe can be found in various Aegean islands with minor differences from place to place. For example, instead of sage you can use fresh spearmint. The few ingredients involved in this recipe work together very well and they become a really delicious seasonal dish

Fried "horn" green peppers in vinegar, lemon and oregano sauce

Sweet, green "horn" peppers are quite popular in Greek cuisine because they can be cooked with various ways and become a very tasty main or meze dish for everybody! Here we have another version of these peppers cooked as an appetizer (meze) and which can be served all year round. Again, just a few ingredients are enough and the result is delicious thanks to the sauce served along with the peppers

Classic potato fritters with cheese

One of many different versions for Greek potato fritters or croquettes. Quite simple ingredients and easy to put together but the taste is very nice! Another cute meze dish for your Summer (but not only) buffet table