Butter - Vanilla Cookies Topped with Cinnamon Sugar and Almonds

Close up, this doily almost looks like a spider's web. Perfect choice for this time of year, when we are so close to Halloween. I've started going through my cookie recipes, deciding which ones will be featured on this year's winter holiday menus. Here is a favourite: not too many ingredients, and well worth trying! Recommended! 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup powdered sugar (10x)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups flour
Toppings:
Make an egg wash by beating together 1 egg and 2 tablespoons milk
Sliced almonds for topping
A mixture of cinnamon and sugar for topping
Salt and pepper to taste... (Just kidding. No salt or pepper needed)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F/180-degrees Celcius. 
• Sift the flour with the salt.
• Beat the butter with the powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Incorporate the vanilla extract.
• Slowly add the flour. 
• When the dough is mixed, place it in the refrigerator for about an hour; it needs to rest. 
• Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper. 
• Take the dough out of the refrigerator and cut it into small pieces, moulding each into rounds about an inch and a half in diameter.
• Brush the tops of the cookies with the egg wash. 
• Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over them
• Place a few sliced almonds on top of the cinnamon sugar.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the cookies are golden in colour.
• Remove from the oven, let them cool, and enjoy!

This cookie recipe is from Martha Stewart.

Feta Cheese and Yoghurt Hand Pies

These small pies which can comfortably fit in the hands of school children are of Greek origin and are called Tyropitakia, meaning little pies with cheese. They are made with a crumbly yoghurt based dough. Quite simply, there isn't a kid in Greece (or an adult for that matter) who doesn't drool at the idea of eating these treats. Kids especially love them because tyropitakia are often included in their lunch boxes. It's a down-home comfort recipe that perhaps is not easily available to the tourists visiting Greece, and is therefore not so well known. But ask a kid if they want tyropitakia for a snack and you'll never get no for an answer. They are also good for taking along on a picnic, especially a picnic by the beach. 

I hadn't made them in years and years ... But I would think about them often! Tyropitakia are made with feta cheese that's encased by a soft, delicious dough. Very, very easy to make and just irresistable!!!

It took three tries to come up with this recipe; I adjusted the original version which included butter because I wanted a recipe for tyropitakia that were made with oil. In my opinion, this new version is great! Replacing the butter with vegetable oil made the tyropitakia taste moister and lighter.

In this version, the dough wasn't as fluffy, and that's because it wasn't dry enough; I had added an egg to it just for experimentation. But the egg wasn't needed. Incidentally, the name of this dough is kourou, which is a colloquially used term to describe a crumbly type of dough, meaning dough that lacks moisture (unlike bread) The word derives from the Turkish word kuru/dry.   

Ingredients:

for the dough:

250 grams all-purpose flour

4 tablespoons olive oil

200 grams Greek yoghurt (strained yoghurt)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

2 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano cheese

for the filling (make sure ingredients are at room temperature):

2 eggs, beaten

250 grams feta cheese

3 ounces cream cheese 

3 ounces ricotta cheese

fresh chopped dill 

fresh chopped parsley

Additional ingredients:

1 egg beaten for the egg wash

sesame seeds for topping

Directions:

• To make the dough combine the dry ingredients, mixing well
• To the dry ingredients add the vinegar, yoghurt, olive oil and grated Pecorino Romano cheese. 
• Mix by hand just until combined. Do not overmix. 
• Place in the refrigerator and let rest for about an hour.
• Prepare the filling: 
• Crumble up the feta and mix all the filling ingredients until incorporated.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C.
• Dive the dough into three parts and then divide each part into small pieces. 
• Roll each piece into a round. For perfect rounds use a mould such as the mouth of a drinking glass.
• Add one teaspoon of filling at the centre of each round
• Fold the dough over to create a half-moon shape.
• Decorate the edges of the dough with the tines of a fork. This will also help to seal the edges. 
• Place the tyropitakia onto parchment-lined baking trays.
• Brush the tops with egg wash and decorate with sesame seeds.
• Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden. 
• Take them out of the oven, let the tyropitakia cool slightly, and after that, you know what to do, no directions needed.
• These guys can definitely be frozen and thawed as needed. 

or FASOLADA IS GREEK FOR BEAN SOUP!

Fassolatha is the Greek word for bean soup. This traditional, rustic soup is a meal that is simple to make, easy on the budget, and big on deliciousness. A favourite winter food, it definitely warms one up on a cold day! 

Beans are very nutritious. They contain almost no fat, are high in protein, fibre, complex carbohydrates, and are a great source of calcium, potassium, B vitamins, and iron. How perfect is that? Considering beans were one of the first crops to be cultivated by humans, they have played an integral part in the development of civilization. 

Fassolatha is a staple in Greek cuisine. I would call it Greek soul food. I would also call it the Greek national dish. Greeks not only savour a bowl of fassolatha, but they also respect it! Stories of hard times abound in Greece, times when folk would have beans to eat and nothing else. For example, during the World War II years, people would stow away a sack or two of dried beans to make soup with. Cooked with just water and perhaps some dried herbs, those dried beans were used to produce meals that would help folks survive winter. My older relatives would often recount stories of their experience during the brutal nazi occupation of Greece, and they would tell me how they staved off starvation through a steady diet of fassolatha. My father has said that during the war, to have had beans to eat was like being rich with gold! 

Fassolada, a rustic and satisfying soup. There is nothing fancy about it but it's delicious and sustaining.

Of course, during those times the soup was made without any oil; there was no oil available, therefore Greeks used just plain water. My mother told me that she didn't see a single olive for all the years of the nazi occupation, something I find to be an unsettling fact in a nation that produces high amounts of both olives and olive oil. Regrettably, most everything produced by Greeks was appropriated by the nazis. And yet, and yet ... fassolatha kept the Greek population going and resisting. Thyme and oregano grew wild on the hillsides, and the Greeks would pick them, and they would pick whatever other greens grew wild, and along with beans, they would have a war-time feast. 

Unfortunately, famine still exists in the world, and there are people (even in the good old USA), who do not have the means to supply food for their family. Among all the inequities in the world, this is one of the most horrible and painful. 

I always have a certain amount of reverence and love in my heart when I make this soup. It is Greek soul food, and much like American soul food, it has been on the table in good times and in bad, in times of plenty and in times of want.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 olive oil
• 1 large onion chopped
• 3 ribs of celery, leaves included, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped 
• 1 bell pepper, diced 
• optional: a small hot pepper, sliced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 can whole tomatoes: I'll let you decide on the size of the can. 
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 2 teaspoons of dried oregano
• 1 sprig of rosemary
• 1 pound dried beans which have been rinsed, soaked overnight, and drained 
• 6 to 8 cups water, and go ahead, substitute vegetable broth for some of the water, but make sure its salt content is low: beans will taste better when cooked fully before adding salt. 
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• another 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

• In a soup pot heat 1/4 cup of olive oil and add the onions, celery, pepper, and carrots.
• Saute until the onions are translucent. Add the tomatoe paste and stir for about two minutes.
• Add the black pepper, thyme, rosemary, and oregano. 
• Carefully fold in the beans and the canned tomatoes.
• Add the 6 cups of liquid and bring to a boil. As the soup cooks, a certain amount of the liquid will evaporate. If you don't like a thick soup, you may need to thin it out with more liquid. 
• Lower the heat and simmer for about two hours: cook until the beans are soft. 
• It was my mother's idea to start using canned beans. It's faster and convenient she said, plus "if they already soften them for us, why should I bother soaking them overnight?" However, what really prompted her to start experimenting with canned beans was that the dried ones in the US do not have a flavour or substance similar to those in Greece. But somehow, the canned ones fit the bill perfectly. If you will use dried beans check the expiration date: when dried beans have been hanging on the shelf too long, they will never soften no matter how long they are cooked for. 
• About 10 minutes before turning off the heat add the parsley, the other 1/4 cup of olive oil, and salt to taste. Remember that salt always gets added last. 

Sometimes the soup is accompanied with lemon slices. 

Serve with some nice fresh bread and a salad, or ... Today, while the soup was cooking I decided to make some (Greek-style) empanadas for accompaniment. They turned out delicious! 

Greek-Style Feta Cheese Empanadas!

To make these empanadas you will need a package of ready-made empanada disks. A good brand to buy is the one from "Goya Foods," found in your grocer's freezer. There are ten empanada disks per package. Defrost according to instructions. 

Additional ingredients:

• 3/4 cup of crumbled feta cheese
• 1/4 cup of ricotta cheese
• 2 Kalamata olives pitted and diced (optional)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint 
• A little olive oil and some Pecorino Romano cheese
• Some water and a pastry brush

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350-degrees F/180-degrees C. 
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Make a cheese stuffing by mixing all the ingredients.
• Take an empanada disk and using a brush, wet its circumference with a bit of water.
• Place about a tablespoon of the stuffing on one half of the disk.  
• Fold over the other half, joining it to create a half moon shape. 
• The water you've used will make the two layers of dough adhere to themselves. Create a decorative edging using the tines of a fork. 
• Place the empanada on your prepared baking sheet 
• Repeat!
• Brush the tops with some olive oil and sprinkle Pecorino Romano cheese as a topping. 
• Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the dough develops a nice crust. 
• These are not traditional empanadas, but the combination of cheeses and the fact that they are baked and not fried makes them irresistible. They are reminiscent of a Greek tyropita.  

Tomato and Rice Soup: Domatosoupa

Domatosoupa: If you split the word in two you will have domata, or tomato, and soupa, or soup. Hence, tomato soup! It's one of those soups that can be eaten in summer when vine-ripened tomatoes are plentiful. And it's one of those soups that was a favourite of my grandmother's and of a wonderful uncle of mine. 

As for me, I was one of those kids who would think of leaving for parts unknown rather than eat domatosoupa. I liked eating tomatoes in a salad well enough, but there was something about the idea of having to consume liquid tomatoes that made me lose my appetite. No, not for me.   

The worst tasting tomato soup I was forced to eat was the one made by a certain aunt ... I have innumerable blissful memories of spending summers at her home in the country: she'd carefully comb my hair in the mornings, insisting that I stop moving so she could part them down the side in a straight line; I didn't care how my hair was parted if it meant staying indoors one minute longer than I had to. I'd run in the orchards with my cousins, we'd ride horses ... One time we got lost, as clever as we thought we were, we got hopelessly lost, but the horses knew the way back home, thank goodness! I remember feeding chickens, helping to clean the chicken coop, getting chased by the rooster, I remember finding freshly laid eggs and bringing them into the kitchen ... Once there was a huge goose egg mixed in with the chicken ones. Silly goose! 

But I also remember those unfortunate lunches when I had to eat domatosoupa! The problem was that aunt would not peel the tomatoes before throwing them in the pot. During cooking their skins would separate, becoming an extra ingredient. An unnecessary ingredient! I would stare at the pieces of tomato skin floating in my bowl, they would stare back at me ... it was impossible to eat a spoonful without swallowing those evil tomato skins! As they slithered their way towards my pharynx ... Well, I've shared enough personal details. 

Recently, while leafing through the pages of an old Greek cookbook, I came across a recipe for domatosoupa. I wondered if I should make it, just for the memories, just to see if I'll find it appealing as an adult. Guess what? I loved it! However, I cooked it without tomato skins. It's a simple, light soup with a summery taste. I don't know how memories manage to plunge into the recipe, but they do. 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 bunch of scallions chopped
• 3 celery stalks, finely chopped
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 cubanelle pepper, also known as Italian fried pepper, sliced into thin pieces
• 3 pounds ripe tomatoes, PEELED!!! seeded, chopped
• 6 cups vegetable broth
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup rice
• 1/4 cup orzo or other small pasta, but orzo is traditional
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
• some basil
• a sprig of rosemary
• 1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese (optional)

Directions

1. Cook the orzo according to package directions until done "al dente," and reserve.
2. In a large pot, heat the olive oil and saute the scallions, celery, and onion, until the onion is translucent. Add the tomatoes, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook for two minutes, stirring.
3. Add all the broth, the sliced pepper, the rosemary and the basil. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Add the rice and continue simmering for another 20 minutes, or until the rice is tender. 
5. Once the rice is tender, add the cooked pasta and parsley and ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with crumbled feta cheese and serve.

KOULOURAKIA or ... Greek Butter Cookies. Koulourakia Methysmena: Greek Butter Cookies made with brandy!

Six thirty, and dark outside. We've jumped into fall. I've planted some colourful chrysanthemums all around my garden. They look lovely and they blend in well with the changing foliage. I am enjoying the crisp weather with its sudden gusts of wind which make the first crop of fallen leaves swirl and fly on. I think of what's ahead: other holidays are on their way. Soon it will be time to bake and box cookies for gift giving. Koulourakia, my childhood delights! I made some this weekend using my favourite recipe. Come Christmas I'll make them again, and swirl them into pretty shapes.

Sometimes these things happen: 

I was heavy handed with this batch and went overboard with the sesame seeds. No one (that I know of) seemed to mind. 

Ingredients:

• 16 ounces/450 grams unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1cup sugar
• 1egg at room temperature
• 1 egg yolk at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 shot of your favourite cognac
• zest of one large orange
• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 5 cups of flour, sifted
• egg wash: 1 egg beaten with one teaspoon water
• about 3 tablespoons sesame seeds to sprinkle on the cookies (optional)

Directions:

• Mix the baking powder with one cup of the sifted flour. Set aside.
• In the bowl of your mixer cream the butter until it's light and fluffy. 
• Add the sugar and beat about five minutes until it's well incorporated into the butter. 
• Add the egg and the egg yolk and continue beating.
• Stir in the vanilla and orange rind.
• Slowly pour in the orange juice and cognac and mix.  
• Gradually add the flour and baking powder mixture. 
• Begin gradually adding the rest of the sifted flour. As the flour accumulates into the mixture you can begin gently kneading the cookie dough by hand. It will be ready when it's soft and pliable.  
• Line three cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F/180 C.
• Cut off small pieces of the dough and shape them into spheres. 

• On a smooth surface shape the dough spheres into cookies. First, roll a strip ... 

• Then fold it in two, cross one of the ends over ... Then cross the other end. You are basically rolling and twisting. 

This is the classic shape for koulourakia, but there are others which are also popular. Look at the photographs below.

How about a snail shape?

The serpentine rendition! After the traditional twist, this is the second most popular shape.

• Once a cookie is shaped place it on the cookie tray on top of the parchment paper.
• Brush the tops of the cookies with the egg wash. If you like,  sprinkle sesame seeds on top of the egg wash. 
• Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven until the cookies are light golden in colour, about 20 minutes depending on the oven. Don't overbake them because they will come out hard and lose their flavouring notes. 

Enjoy them: not too sweet, and with such a wonderful buttery/fruity flavour! One of the best treats to have with coffee or tea!

PLAY FREE RICE

Click to play Free Rice

Let's think about how prevalent poverty and hunger are in all the corners of the world and also in the US, our land of plenty. We can help make things better by getting involved. Below I've listed three organizations that have made significant and positive changes for those in need.

Feeding America:

Feeding America is an organization whose aim is to help end hunger here in the USA. 

Information From the United Nations:

The World Food Programme

• As the United Nations front line agency in the fight against hunger, WFP is continually responding to emergencies. Lives are saved by getting food to the hungry fast.
• WFP has developed expertise in a range of areas including Food Security Analysis, Nutrition, Food Procurement and Logistics, to ensure the best solutions for the world's hungry.
• WFP operations reach millions of people all over the world with food assistance. 

United States Agency for International Development

• USAID leads international development and humanitarian efforts to save lives, reduce poverty, strengthen democratic governance and help people progress beyond assistance.

   Facts from the USAID website:

• USAID's history goes back to the Marshall Plan reconstruction of Europe after World War Two and the Truman Administration's Point Four Program (which tremendously benefited my country of birth, Greece). In 1961, the Foreign Assistance Act was signed into law and USAID was created by executive order. Since that time, USAID has been the principal U.S. agency to extend assistance to countries recovering from disaster, trying to escape poverty, and engaging in democratic reforms. USAID is an independent federal government agency that receives overall foreign policy guidance from the Secretary of State. USAID work supports long-term and equitable economic growth and advances U.S. foreign policy objectives. 

GIOUVARLAKIA OR... GREEK MEATBALL DUMPLING SOUP

The meatball dumplings are made delicious by the addition of rice.

My Goodness, this soup is delicious! It's a popular Greek recipe that we make often; in fall, winter and early spring we have it once a week. And no one gets tired of it! The little meatballs that go in the soup are traditionally made with ground beef, however, we've gotten used to substituting ground turkey for the beef. This makes the soup healthier and also gives it a lighter flavour. Avgolemono (or egg and lemon sauce), is traditionally incorporated into the soup before serving. We do serve the soup with avgolemono on special occasions but for weekly fare, we omit the egg and lemon sauce and instead use only lemon juice.   

Ingredients:

• 1&1/2 pounds of ground turkey 
• 1 onion very finely chopped
• 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1teaspoon baking powder
• 2 or 3 dashes of soy sauce
• 1/2 cup rice (Carolina brand or Arborio)
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped dill
• 1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves
• flour for dredging meatballs
• another onion finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon farina
• 1 tablespoon rice
• juice of one large lemon
• 2 cups of low sodium chicken broth 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

1. Mix the first 12 ingredients together.
2. Cover a large tray with flour. Form the meatballs: they should be larger than marbles, smaller than golf balls. Can I be more exact? Place each meatball in the flour and roll it around, covering it with flour.  
3. Fill a large pot with 5 cups of water. Add the chicken broth, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, lemon juice, and a couple of dashes of soy sauce.
4. Bring the liquid to a boil. Once it boils add the farina, the rice, and the chopped onion.
5. Drop the meatball dumplings into the liquid. 
6. Once the liquid comes back to the boil lower the heat to simmer and cover the pot.
7. Cook for about half an hour. The broth will thicken because of the addition of farina and rice. It will have a lemony aroma and taste. The rice in the meatball dumplings will have cooked, and you will see it appear soft and puffed up. At this point, the soup is ready to serve. I hope you enjoy it!