PEAR AND APPLE PHYLLO CRISP

A treat that's PERFECT FOR AUTUMN!!! Can be made vegan and/or Lent-friendly! A really nice, crunchy dessert made with phyllo dough and topped with pears, apples and cinnamon. There are some walnuts and sugar in it too. There's also butter, but if vegetable oil is used instead, the dessert becomes one hundred percent vegan and also suitable for Lent! That's one versatile recipe, isn't it? 

Delicately sweet pears and tangy apples are arranged on top of sheets of cinnamony phyllo dough. As the dessert bakes the aromas of cinnamon fill the house: scrumptious! There is no syrup here as there usually is on phyllo desserts. The flavour is unique, and with the absence of syrup, calories are fewer! Syrup does prolong the life of phyllo desserts, therefore, this delicious crisp must be consumed shortly after it's baked. 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans, or a combination of both, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup plain, unseasoned breadcrumbs
• 1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for dusting
• frozen phyllo dough, thawed in the refrigerator; you will be using only ten sheets of phyllo. There are several varieties of phyllo on the market, and some brands of phylo are wider than others. The amount of butter and fruit might have to be adjusted depending on the variety purchased. 
• 1/2 stick (four tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
• 3 Seckel pears, sliced thinly; Seckel pears are perfect as they are naturally small and will look gorgeous here! No need to peel the pears 
• 2 baking apples, peeled and sliced thinly

Directions:

• Place a rack in the top position of your oven.
• Preheat the oven to 350° F. 
• Combine the walnuts, breadcrumbs, sugar and cinnamon.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and top with 1 phyllo sheet. 
• Using a pastry brush, brush the phyllo with butter;  add another phyllo sheet on top. Brush the second sheet with butter. Add a third sheet of phyllo and guess what? Brush it with butter.
• Hint: don't press down with the pastry brush. Use light, airy strokes. The lighter the brushing, the flakier the phyllo layers will turn out.
• In each of the next four phyllo layers, the nut mixture will be used, so go ahead and divide the mixture into four portions. Use one portion for each layer: 
• Add a fourth sheet and brush it with butter. Sprinkle a portion of the nut mixture on top. 
• Repeat another 3 times, buttering each phyllo layer and adding nuts.  
• Finally, top with two phyllo sheets, buttering each one. Top with the last phyllo sheet and go ahead, butter that one as well. 
• Make sure that you brush the edges of the phyllo sheets with butter so that they won't dry up during baking. The original recipe called for a lot more butter but I cut down on the amount. Too much butter is unnecessary and makes for a heavy dessert. Therefore, don't soak the phyllo with butter. If you'd like to cut some of the butter amount even further, you can substitute part or all of it with a good vegetable oil. Do not, however, use olive oil.
• Arrange the pears and apples on top of the phyllo. Brush the fruit with the remaining butter, sprinkle with sugar and dust with cinnamon.
• Bake; rotate the baking sheet halfway through baking. After 25 minutes, when the phyllo is golden brown and the fruit is soft, the dessert is ready to take out of the oven. Let cool and slice into portions.  
• The dessert should be eaten the same day; if kept longer, the phyllo will begin to lose its crispness.

This recipe has been adapted from Martha Stewart. It's a wonderful one, thanks, Martha!

GREEK SALAD or HORIATIKI SALATA with ROASTED CHICKPEAS

Eating a Greek salad is one of the best parts of summer! Simple to make and so very delicious. Just about everyone has their favourite version of Greek salad, and below you'll find the recipe for mine. I make it without lettuce and no, there is absolutely nothing wrong with lettuce! But a traditional Greek salad contains no lettuce chiefly because, unless harvested in a greenhouse or shipped from a colder weather region, lettuces don't grow during the heat of the summer months as do tomatoes and cucumbers. 

This is the rustic, country style version of Greek salad that goes on the table in every Greek household and seaside taverna. The dressing is simply olive oil and lemon, maybe a little vinegar too. There's always some dressing left at the bottom of the bowl and it absorbs the taste of the salad ingredients. In keeping with the rustic nature of this salad, a common practice is to mop up and eat the leftover dressing with pieces of freshly baked bread. This necessitates that one disavows a large measure of savoir-vivre but sometimes, who cares? It's a fun, sharing experience to break bread with one's tablemates in this way. There is even a colloquial term for the morsels dipped in an olive oil dressing: they are called papara ... 

The word "horiatiki" derives from the word "horio," which means village. Horiatiki salata can be translated as rustic style, or country style, or village style salad. Because of its rustic nature, there is no set amount of ingredients to be used. Just make sure the salad looks good! I use the following:


Ingredients:

• 2 or 3 tomatoes, sliced (sometimes I use both red and yellow tomatoes)
• 1 cucumber, peeled, sliced lengthwise then cut up into slices crosswise. Remove the seeds! It's preferable to use the English variety of cucumber because it has fewer seeds and tastes the best 
• 1 green pepper, seeded and sliced (for subtler texture and flavour you can use a sweet Italian frying pepper)
• 1/2 red onion, peeled and sliced into thin rings
• a combination of kalamata and oil-cured olives, pits removed
• feta cheese cut into cubes
• chopped parsley
• black pepper
• a small amount of salt 
• capers, rinsed
• dried oregano
• olive oil
• a bit of lemon juice
• if you are a vinegar fan, a bit of vinegar

optional: one small can of chickpeas or some homemade croutons if you have stale bread that needs to be used! A nice touch would be to roast the chickpeas, allow them to cool, then incorporate them into the salad. Same goes for the croutons. Drizzle with olive oil before placing in the oven and roast at 450°F/200°C for about 15 minutes. Keep checking so that they don't burn.

Directions for the salad:

• Arrange the sliced tomatoes and cucumber on the bottom of a nice sized salad bowl.
• Top with the peppers and capers. 
• Add the onion slices, salt if using, black pepper, oregano, parsley, and olive oil.
• Sprinkle with a bit of lemon juice and the vinegar if using, and mix.
• Once the above ingredients are mixed, add the feta and olives in a decorative pattern. Top with a bit more olive oil and oregano.
• If you made the chickpeas or croutons, make sure they have cooled and throw those on there as well!
• Before the salad is served let it sit in the refrigerator for a while. It will come out tasting refreshing, plus the aromas of the vegetables and olive oil will get a chance to mix together, creating their own unique flavour.

If you try this or any other Greek salad, I hope you really, truly enjoy it!

ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH FALL VEGETABLE SOUP PUREE

With fall around the corner, and with the weather getting a bit chilly, making soup seems just the right thing to do.  Plus, this soup is delicious!

I chopped vegetables, seasoned them and roasted them. Along with the vegetables I used two juicy Bosc pears. That was the best part! 

I purchased the butternut squashed cleaned and pre-cut. It's so much more convenient not to have to clean, trim, and slice the squash. I know that my supermarket has it available freshly pre-cut; it doesn't come into the store covered with preservatives, and that's key! 

The kitchen smelled great as the vegetables were roasting. The herbs that had been combined with them gave off a pleasant aroma. When the vegetables came out of the oven, they looked and tasted wonderful. I pureed them with some vegetable broth and made a very enjoyable chunky-creamy fall soup, one that I will make again and again. 

Ingredients:

1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1½ inch pieces, or approximately 1  1/4 pounds (635 grams) of pre-cut butternut squash. 
2 medium red potatoes, scrubbed well and quartered (leave the skin on)
1 small sweet potato peeled and chopped
2 medium yellow onions, peeled and quartered

3 carrots halved lengthwise and cut into 1½-inch pieces
2 stalks of celery chopped

2 Bosc pears, peeled, cored and quartered. 
6 cloves of garlic left unpeeled

olive oil
salt and pepper to taste (not too much pepper)

sprigs of fresh sage, thyme, and rosemary

1/4 teaspoon of turmeric
4 to 6 cups of vegetable broth

optional: some roasted pine nuts for garnish

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 400° F, 200° C.
• Line two large-rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper (makes for easy clean up) and grease the surface of the paper with olive oil. Place the vegetables on the baking sheets - don't add the pears yet - and toss the vegetables with some olive oil, salt and pepper, the leaves from thyme springs and a few branches of rosemary. 
• Roast until the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown, about 50 minutes.
• Halfway through roasting take the vegetables out of the oven, turn them over so they roast evenly, and mix in the pears. Place the vegetables back in the oven and continue cooking until done.
• In a large saucepan warm four cups of the vegetable broth along with some sage leaves. The rest of the broth can be used if the soup needs to be thinned out. 
• Squeeze the garlic cloves and remove the roasted part. Discard the garlic peels.
• Place the vegetable broth into a large saucepan and add the turmeric along with some sage leaves. 
• Carefully add the vegetables and bring the mixture to a boil. Purée the vegetables with an immersion blender.
• Taste the soup for seasoning and reheat as needed.
• You can always spruce up the soup by garnishing it with some roasted pine nuts. 

Make sure the vegetables are well caramelised.

ZUCCHINI WITH COUSCOUS

Quick, easy and tasty. That's a perfect way to describe this meal. I was very hungry when I came into the house after having spent most of the day pruning, and weeding, and cleaning the garden. There was plenty of zucchini to be found in the refrigerator, and I also had on hand some fennel, scallions and pasta which were begging to be used. So I threw this pasta and zucchini dish together, and it only took twenty minutes. I had dinner and then I headed back outside to finish clearing a spot for planting mums. Satisfaction.

Ingredients:

2 zucchini

1/2 cup couscous or small pasta

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 scallions, chopped

1 tablespoon herbes de Provence

juice of half a lemon

2 tablespoons slivered almonds
1 tablespoon crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, thinly chopped


Directions:

• Wash the zucchini and peel some of their skin off with a vegetable peeler. You should wind up with zucchini that appears striped: white flesh and green skin. Doing this eliminates most of the bitterness that is sometimes given off by the zucchini skin. Slice the zucchini thinly lengthwise, and then chop it crosswise.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and add the zucchini. Cook for two minutes, then add the scallions, herbs de Provence and lemon juice. 
• Season with salt and pepper and saute until the zucchini is soft.
• Meanwhile, cook the couscous according to package directions, and then drain it.
• Heat a small skillet over medium heat and dry-toast the almonds.
• Toss the couscous with the zucchini and the toasted almonds.
• Serve garnished with the parsley and feta cheese.

W

 

I believe that every tourist who visits Greece gets the chance to taste a dish of moussaka. It's a popular Greek summer fare made with layers of eggplant and ground meat which are topped with a fabulous bechamel sauce. 

To the best of my knowledge, in the old days, moussaka was exclusively layered with eggplants and ground beef, and then it was topped with bechamel. Sometime in the mid-twentieth century, chefs started adding potatoes to the layers of moussaka. A bit later, the addition of zucchini started comprising yet another layer. To be honest, I have yet not tried the zucchini addition but it's unavoidable that I will do so sometime in the future, and who knows, I may start adding it to my recipe. 

There are two methods of preparing eggplants for moussaka: One, is the old-fashioned method of frying them. I definitely say no to that. Two, is the wiser method of baking them in the oven: healthier, less messy, and even the flavour is better because the end product doesn't consist of oily eggplant. It's apparent there are variations to cooking moussaka. Here, I include my favourite version.

Moussaka can be prepared in advance and served lukewarm or at room temperature, making it ideal to serve for buffets. 

Ingredients:

3 or 4 medium eggplants

4 medium Yukon gold potatoes

extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 pounds lean ground beef, use a variety of 90% to 10% 

2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon tomato paste

3 bay leaves

a sprig of thyme

a sprig of rosemary

1/2 cup white wine
1 28-ounce can of whole tomatoes plus the juice included in the can.

1 cup of chopped parsley, divided

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1 cup freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese

For the bechamel:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1-quart whole milk, heated
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup ricotta cheese

Directions:

• Wash the eggplant and cut off both ends. With a vegetable peeler remove 1/2-inch strips of skin from the eggplant. The end result will be that your eggplant will have a striped appearance, showing stripes of purple skin and white flesh.
• Slice the eggplants into 3/4-inch rounds. Season with salt and pepper on both sides.
• Bake the eggplants: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush both sides of the eggplant slices with some olive oil and place them on parchment-covered baking sheets. Season lightly with salt and bake until the eggplants are soft. Keep an eye on the eggplant while it's baking. You don't want to overcook it. Baking time depends on the variety of eggplant used. Right away, place the cooked eggplants into a covered container and reserve. The cover will trap any steam they release and make them much softer and better tasting.
• Peel and slice the potatoes. Slice them into 3/4-inch rounds. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Flavour them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and just a touch of oregano. Bake until the potatoes are soft and just beginning to brown. Reserve. 
• Heat about 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a Dutch oven and add the ground beef. Stir occasionally, breaking the ground beef into small pieces. Cook until the ground beef is browned.  
• Add the chopped onions. You may need to add a little more olive oil along with the onions. Cook until the onions are soft.
• Add the garlic along with the bay leaves, thyme, rosemary and tomato paste. Cook for one minute and a half as you keep stirring. 
• Add the wine and deglaze the pot. Keep stirring gently. Let the alcohol in the wine cook off and the wine itself become incorporated into the ground beef. 
• Combine the tomatoes with the parsley. 
• Add the tomato mixture to the pot, season with salt and pepper, and simmer over low heat, stirring often, until all the liquid has evaporated, about 45 minutes to an hour. Alternatively, you can place the pot into the oven and cook at 300 F for about 45 minutes to an hour, until the liquid has evaporated. 
• Remove from the oven and add the tablespoon of oregano. Taste and correct the seasonings if needed. Cook on the stovetop for an additional five minutes.
• While the ground beef is cooking, make the bechamel: In a saucepan, over low heat, melt the butter, add the flour and whisk for about two minutes. Turn up the heat to moderate and add the warm milk in a slow stream, whisking all the while.
• Keep stirring as the sauce simmers. Within about five minutes the mixture should be thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste and remove from the heat.  
• Let cool slightly and stir in the two beaten eggs and the ricotta cheese.  

Begin layering:

• Grease an 11 by 16-inch pan and sprinkle the bottom with breadcrumbs. Arrange all the potatoes over the bread crumbs and top with half the eggplants. Sprinkle with grated Pecorino Romano cheese, breadcrumbs, and parsley. 
• Add half the meat sauce on top of the eggplant layer. Sprinkle with grated Pecorino Romano cheese, breadcrumbs, and parsley. 
• Add the rest of the eggplants. Sprinkle with grated Pecorino Romano cheese, breadcrumbs, and parsley. 
• Add the rest of the meat sauce and sprinkle the top with, well, I guess you've guessed it: grated Pecorino Romano cheese, breadcrumbs, and parsley. 
• Pour the bechamel over the top, sprinkle the top of the bechamel with Pecorino Romano cheese and bake in a preheated 350°F/180°C oven for about 30 minutes to 45 minutes, until the top is golden.
• Let cool for half an hour before slicing. The moussaka will taste even better the following day.

PIEROGI with various fillings: POTATO & CHEESE, CABBAGE & MUSHROOM, FETA CHEESE & SPINACH

I'm making pierogi!!! I love them, as I love any type of dumpling! It's just that I never thought I would be making them. From scratch. Buying them ready to eat has been what I've been used to. But why not try my hand at making them myself? The first step to making pierogi is to find that place in one's house called "the kitchen ..." 

I chose a pierogi dough from Martha Stewart. This dough is a thing of beauty: silky, easy to handle and delicious!  Thank you, Martha. Here's how to make it:


Pierogi Dough Ingredients:

1 large egg, lightly whisked
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup whole milk
1 cup water
4 and 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour, some of it to be used for bench surface and for dusting 

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk the egg. Add the sour cream, and whisk until smooth. Add the milk and 1 cup water, and whisk until combined.
2. Slowly add about 3 cups flour, and stir with a wooden spoon to combine.
3. Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface and work in about 1 cup flour as you knead. Use a plastic scraper to lift the dough as it will stick to the counter before any flour is worked in. Continue kneading for 8 to 10 minutes, working in another 1/2 cup flour. The dough should be elastic in texture and no longer sticky. Be careful not to add too much flour, as this will toughen the dough.
4. Place dough in a lightly floured bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rest while preparing a filling.

Roll out the Dough:

On a floured surface, roll out dough to about 1/8-inch thick. Make sure you are just rolling the dough and not rolling and pressing.

Using a glass or a cookie cutter measuring 2 1/2 inches in diameter, cut out as many circles as possible. Cut the circles close together, trying to save as much space as possible. Gather the dough scraps together, roll them out again, and continue cutting.

Fill the Pierogi:

1. Lay a dry, clean towel on your work surface; set aside.
2. Place about 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling in the centre of each dough circle.
3. Holding a circle in your hand, fold dough over the filling, and pinch the edges, forming a well-sealed crescent; transfer to the towel. Continue this process until all dough circles are filled.

Cook the Pierogi:

1. Fill a large pot with water and bring it to the boil. Drop the pierogi in the boiling water in batches. They will sink to the bottom of the pot and then rise to the top. Once they rise, let them cook for about a minute more.
2. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, cook one stick of butter over medium-high heat until nut-brown in colour, about 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and drizzle the butter onto a serving platter, leaving any burned sediment behind. Remove the pierogi from the pot, and transfer to the buttered platter. By placing the pierogi on a pre-buttered platter you will prevent them from sticking. Serve immediately. You may drizzle some more butter on top.
3. Note: Some pierogi are fried, some are sauteed in butter, some get butter drizzled over them. I don't really like fried foods, nor do I like to smother foods in butter. Drizzling a bit of butter on top is okay, but I served some pierogi coated with olive oil and they were excellent!

I chose to make three types of filling: 

POTATO AND CHEESE FILLING:

• 3 large potatoes, cooked and mashed
• 3/4 cup cheese, a mixture of cream cheese and cheddar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients until well incorporated. Stuff the pierogi when the filling has cooled. 

CABBAGE, CARROT, AND MUSHROOM FILLING:

• 2 cups shredded cabbage
• 1 carrot, grated
• 1 shallot, chopped and sautéed in one tablespoon of vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup finely chopped mushrooms
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook the cabbage and carrot in boiling water until nice and soft. Drain very well and reserve. Sauté the shallot, garlic, ginger and mushrooms in the vegetable oil until they are soft. Add the cabbage mixture and season with salt and pepper. Let cool before filling the pierogi.

Pierogi with Feta cheese and Spinach Filling:

Being of Greek heritage, I love the combination of feta cheese and spinach.  This recipe combines feta, spinach and pierogi dough to make a hybrid Greek-Polish dumpling. One of the best things about it is that it contains no butter! The pierogi are topped with just a bit of olive oil and Parmesan cheese before they are served. Here is the recipe for this filling:

Ingredients:

• 1 box of chopped frozen spinach
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg, well beaten
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 3 tablespoons parsley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon mint, chopped
• 1 tablespoon dill, chopped
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• some olive oil and Parmesan cheese for topping
• salt and pepper to taste

Thaw and chop the spinach into small pieces. Even though it's already chopped you will need to chop it into smaller pieces. Cook it in a bit of boiling salted water until it is soft. Drain it very well. In a medium skillet heat the vegetable oil and add the shallots. Sauté until the shallots are soft. Add the parsley, spinach and mint, and mix well. Cook for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cheeses and egg. Mix well and season with salt and pepper. Let cool before using as stuffing. When the pierogi are cooked, serve topped with some olive oil and Parmesan cheese.