shain

Yogurt is also traditional for this, and can be substituted. I use strained buttermilk (leben) which is like yogurt but with a cold fermenting culture. The sauce is stabilized with starch, the garlic is briefly fried, the stuffed zucchini is cooked in the sauce. Finished with olive oil and lemon. Chicken stock is commonly included as well. This kind of sauce can also be served cold. Other than stuffed zucchini it is also common with stir fried zucchini cubes and with chickpeas. Served over rice or bulgur.

Ours died last year, but it was never very impressive to be honest. And while it's quite easy to get some at spring, or buy them pickled, it's quite a bit of work to prepare, so we usually buy them stuffed.

Missed this one First, it works with most bulgur dishes - e.g. majedarah, tabbouleh (of the less traditional, more-grain-than-herbs version). It also has an affinity for sweet-sour fruity flavors and dried fruits. It is common to cook it with chicken thigh, caramelized onion, optional carrots and/or chickpeas, some baharat or cumin and cinnamon, raisins (or other dried fruits), then finish it with olive oil, sumac, toasted nuts, herbs; some yogurt on the side. Or chickpeas, mushrooms, onion, thyme, nuts, silan, some spices. You can use it to stuff eggplants, vine leaves, cabbage, zucchini, etc. Here are some of my recipes, I can share a recipe if someone wishes to: - Freekeh stuffed onions, with nuts, raisins, pomegranate molasses. - Freekeh cooked risotto style with mushrooms and chickpeas. - Freekeh stuffed zucchini in buttermilk and garlic sauce. - Salad of freekeh and carrots, raisins, cinnamon, orange. - Salad of freekeh, apples, walnuts, saint maure cheese, mint. - Salad of freekeh, peas, sirene cheese. - Salad of freekeh and strawberries, tomatoes, feta cheese, mint.

Rice stuffed vine leaves. Labaneh with zaatar. Also fresh figs hales stuffed with toasted walnuts.

This salad is quite intense, it's made to be eaten with the eggs and rice, otherwise it's very aggressive with the onion-chili-fish sauce combo. We love onions, and raw onions are quite popular in the middle east. One of my favorite quick preps is raw onion marinated in leftover olive brine (one made with green bitter olives, whole lemon slices, olive oil, bay, garlic and some colve. Not overly salty). It's eaten as a side to hummus or eggs. Another is onions finely sliced and mixed with sumac and olive oil. A classic with grilled meats, especially kebabs, and also in a pita, with falafel, or a sort of sabich with eggplants and eggs. I like finishing dishes with some nuts, and cashews are a good neutral yet flavorful option. We always have a box of homemade mix in the fridge - cashews, almonds and peanuts are the base. Sometimes we add pecans, walnuts or pistachios; and more rarely hazelnuts or pepitas.

Another lunch. Warm and crisp sandwich. Roasted eggplant slices, sirene cheese, basil, tomatoes, olive oil.

Rigatoni, fire roasted peppers, peas, cream, smoked cheese, smoked salt, briefly cooked tomatoes.

Rice noodles, beetroot, shrimps, some coconut cream, lemon grass, ginger, red curry paste, anise, makrut lime leaves, lime zest and juice, basil, coriander seeds, oyster sauce. Spicy-sweet-sour. Onion salad with chili, scallions, lime juice, zest, fish sauce, basil, mint, sesame, soft eggs. With sticky rice.

Only thing I eat with Nutella is one half of a matzo once every Passover. Indeed, I think that chopped nuts wrapped in chocolaty phyllo can be nice.

It's heavy on the phyllo, all the way through. The inside couldn't really crisp up, which makes it a bit chewy, perhaps a bit too tough-dry. Flavor wise, it's goog cocoa and butter, with a generous pinch of salt - which works well. I think that it has potential, but the structure should be changed. A filling of hazelnuts would work wonders.

That's it everyone! Thanks for following along 😍 It's always fun to go through pictures and share the memories with others. Greece is a short flight away for us, and I'm amazed it's only now that I visit. But it's a varied and beautiful country, with friendly people and great food - so we'll be back. For me, the highlight was definitely Pelion, with its incredible shores and villages. But Meteora is surely an unforgettable sight. Until next time.

And back home 🥺 Brought some stuff with us. "Greek bagels" - pictured are the classic one with sesame, and one with cheese. Not as good as fresh, but still good after a visit to the oven. Cherries, to be made into preserves. Various cookies and crackers (nothing exciting, sadly). Chocolate baklava, and some more chocolates and such to give as gifts. Lukom in various flavors. Here one with nuts and a coconut covering (delicious). Pickles mussels, with bright floral spices, garlic, some sugar. Delicious bread sticks with whole grains and seeds. Some local craft beer. Ouzo and tsipouro.

Lunch before the flight back home. Eggplant salad. Souvlaki. I was told it was very good. Shrimp saganaki. Tasty, but not as good as the one we had before - this had a more reduced sauce (I think with celery in it) which was nice, but didn't work as well as the bright one in the other version. Also a bit light on the cheese. Beer. Complimentary halva (the sesame kind), mastica liquor (yum) and tropical fruit juice to go with it.

One cannot leave Athens without a visit to the market. The produce is aesthetic and fresh. The vendors are friendly and while lively, they are very orderly compared to the chaotic markets here in Israel. The vendors were eager to pose with their catch. The vegetable market and enclosed wet markets are at the center, surrounded by shops selling spices, sweets, cheeses, pickles, cookies, utensils, etc.

Thanks. Yes, it was lighter, more like lightly candied squash than a starchy/creamy pumpkin.

Thanks everyone, it's been a pleasure going through memories and telling the stories. A couple more posts to go. Last breakfast - pies! As you might have noticed, the city have a greater variety of styles than the country which tends to stick to local traditional styles of dough and fillings. However, it seems that Athenians also have a slight preference to puff pastry over phylo, and the later is more often of the thin kind, rather than the tick rustic style (which is style my favorite). A shortcrust style dough is also common, but the few we samples of the style weren't great, being a bit dry, not flaky and very rustic (a bit like baked fresh pasta). I'll mention a couple we tried earlier for having interesting filling - one with onion, oregano and sumac; the other with feta and mint. Interesting, but not particularly tasty So for this last breakfast, we went to a famous shop that sells a huge variety of pies (there are English labels, if you are interested - a few of interest: Hamburger pie, shrimp pastry bags, and "Philadelphia"). We picked a couple of interesting ones, and luckily so. The first is savory pie of feta and leek, the filling was simple and good, the crust a bit quiche crust - very flaky, short, not very crisp. Overall, it reminded me of a homey French leek quiche. The other was a show stopper - A sweet filling of pumpkin and walnuts and/or chestnuts, with a bit of clove, cinnamon, nutmeg perhaps. The pumpkin had a watermelon like taste (a bit like watermelon flavored drinks or candy) which worked incredibly well with the spices. A thin filo crust with the interior layers being a bit dry, but the outside flaky and crisp. it could have been a perfect late autumn dish, but was delicious on a sunny morning as well. If anyone knows what kind of squash yields such flavor, I'd be delighted to know.

Dhokla from chickpea flour, yogurt, spices incl turmeric, curry leaves and hing. My non traditional addition of mozzarella cubes. A finish of spices fried in coconut oil and coconut flakes. Curry of red beans, potato, carrot, blended cashew, a touch of cream, spices including ginger, garlic, turmeric, cumin, chili, coriander seeds, lemon grass. Home made spicy mango chutney with ginger and spices. Yogurt.

Smoothie / blender soft serve of bananas, tahini and date silan. With frozen banana cubes and toasted walnuts.

Ricotta with homemade cherry preserve. A few pieces of grilled bread.

Wanted light dinner, and had lots of basil. So pesto is it. On the cheesy side. I would usually throw in some green beans but not this. Made enough to freeze. Local semi-dry muscat, pairs well. Also some tomatoes and cucumbers on the side.

Last evening in Athens. A couple of local craft beers. And a late night snack. This is an extremely popular bakery bakes koulouri - Greek sesame bagels. Even at around midnight, they still bake fresh one, mostly of the classic sesame covered type, but also some specialties. We opted for a couple of more interesting kinds, both fresh out of the oven, and pleasantly warm on a chill night (chill in Greek standards). One is sesame and raisins, the other with sunflower. Both are slightly chewy, quite sweet as far as bread goes, with a nice nutty flavor from the seeds. Can't think of more perfect post-drink snack. At this late time, they still made Wolt-style deliveries of bagels, as well as preparing larger deliveries for shops. We also got Greek doughnuts, with chili-honey syrup. Crisp and not too sweet. But the sauce was strangely artificial tasting.

It eats a bit like paneer, but much softer, and flavored with herbs.

I grow up with the stuff It's not my favorite sweet, though I do enjoy it, especially in it's strands (aka hairs, fluff) form. My favorite halva is just tahini with honey or date molasses, eaten with toasted bread. Now my real addiction are baklavas 🤩

Yes, I found this similar looking recipe. Spoiler, well get regular sesame halva for the next lunch.

Lunch at an ouzeria in Athens. Turned out to be a bit of a working-men's eatery, so the food was basic but good (and very fairly priced IIRC). Fried shrimps. Rice with clams (too greasy, and a bit stingy). It had tomato, chili, oregano, dill, garlic and onion. Fried calamari and potato balls. They have a bit of a mushy texture inside, but nice flavor and crisp exterior. And everything which is made of fried potatoes goes well with some lemon. More fried balls - this time zucchini and some feta. Great flavor with herbs (mostly dill) and surprisingly fenugreek. Plenty of local lager, refreshing and light. Coffee, and complimentary semolina halva with cinnamon, maybe some orange.