Author Archive for mercina

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Cabbage Sambharo (Warm Spiced Cabbage Salad)

Published on November 8, 2008 in Coleslaw, Dipali and Indian. 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .


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Cabbage Sambharo is a Gujarati side dish similar in look and feel to coleslaw or salad. There are two aspects to this dish which make it quite unique:

  1. In order to stop the salad from becoming soggy, all excess water is removed by adding salt to the mixture and letting it sit for a while.
  2. The “dressing” is far from the traditional combination of vinegar/lemon juice/olive oil. Instead, it is a combination of ingredients such as mustard seeds, sesame seeds and turmeric lightly toasted in oil on the stove top.

Ingredients

Salad:

  • ¼ of a small cabbage, shredded
  • ¼ red pepper, julienned
  • ¼ yellow pepper, julienned
  • ¼ orange pepper, julienned
  • ¼ green pepper, julienned
  • 1 small carrot, shredded
  • 1 tbsp salt

Dressing

  • 1 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1 tsp white sesame seeds
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 green chili finely chopped (or to taste)
  • 1 tsp oil

Garnish

  • Handful of pomegranate
  • Handful of cilantro (Italian parsley)
  • Pinch of sugar
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions

  1. Combined shredded cabbage, julienned peppers and shredded carrot in a bowl.
  2. Add the salt and mix it into the salad thoroughly – Let this sit for about 15 minutes.
  3. Squeeze excess water from the salad. You can do this with your hands. Just take a handful and squeeze, until no more water comes out. Repeat this until you have gotten through all the salad. Place the dehydrated salad in another bowl.
  4. Warm oil in a pot. Add the mustard seeds and allow them to sizzle until you hear them popping.
  5. Add the sesame seeds and allow them to turn golden brown.
  6. Add the turmeric and green chili.
  7. Pour the entire contents of the pot into the bowl of salad which you set aside in step 3.
  8. Add the lemon juice and sugar.
  9. Mix so that the dressing, lemon juice and sugar is evenly distributed.
  10. Garnish with pomegranate and cilantro.

Irene’s Pastitsio

Published on November 2, 2008 in Bechamel, Entree, Greek, Irene and Pasta. 3 Comments Tags: , , .


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Pastitsio is a layered pasta casserole, also known as “Macaronia tou Fournou” (pasta cooked in the oven). It is a very popular dish throughout Greece and is the perfect dish to make for a large family gathering or party, as it yields a large number of pieces. Pastitsio consists of layers of pasta, a layer of ground beef, and a thick béchamel sauce. Traditionally, a dash of ground cinnamon is added to the ground beef, but in this recipe Irene has chosen to omit the cinnamon. Feel free to add a teaspoon of cinnamon to the ground beef if you like.

For the pasta
2 packages of ‘Pastitsio’ pasta, #4
2 egg whites
About ½ a cup of Parmesan cheese

For the ground beef
2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 bulbs of minced garlic
1 small chopped onion
2 pounds of lean ground beef
1 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoons of ground pepper
1 teaspoons of oregano
300 ml of tomato sauce or 2 cups of chopped tomatoes

For the béchamel
5 cups of milk, warmed to room temperature
½ pound of butter
½ cup of all-purpose flour
A dash of salt and pepper
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon of breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon of paprika

Cook the pasta for about 8-9 minutes in a large pot of salted water.

In another large pot, heat the oil over low heat. Over low-medium heat, sauté the garlic and onion for about 1-2 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until the meat has browned. Add the salt, spices and tomato sauce, and continue to stir the meat until it is cooked. Set aside.

Drain the pasta. Once the pasta is back in your pot add 2 egg whites and stir the pasta. Add a sprinkle of parmesan cheese to the pasta.

Brush the bottom of a large pan with olive oil. Place half of your pasta in the large pan. Make sure it is spread out evenly. Add another sprinkle of parmesan cheese to the pasta.

Spread your ground beef sauce over the pasta. Add another layer of pasta and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

To prepare the béchamel, melt the butter in a large pot at low heat. Once the butter is melted, slowly add in the flour while continually stirring. Slowly add in the milk and continue to stir the sauce until it is smooth. Add salt and pepper. Once all lumps have been smoothed out, remove the sauce from the heat and add in 2 egg yolks. Stir well.

Add the béchamel sauce over the pasta. Be sure to spread the sauce out evenly. Sprinkle with remaining parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs. Add a sprinkle of paprika if you like.

Bake for 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Let the pastitsio stand for 10 minutes to cool before you cut into squares.

Enjoy!

Eva’s Classic Moussaka

Published on October 19, 2008 in Bechamel, Entree, Eva and Greek. 8 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .


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Moussaka is a layered casserole made with layers of eggplant, meat, and a béchamel sauce. In this video, Eva shows us her slightly healthier take on this classic Greek dish. Rather than frying the eggplant, Eva broils the sliced eggplant in the oven for 10 minutes on each side. Her recipe also calls for sliced potatoes to serve as the base of the dish along with the eggplant.

For the Base:

  • 9 Indian eggplants
  • 2 potatoes
  • 1 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 1 cup of mozzarella cheese
  • ½ cup of parmesan cheese
  • ½ cup of breadcrumbs

For the Meat:

  • 1 pound of ground beef
  • 1 quarter cup of onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic (minced)
  • 1 quarter cup of freshly chopped parsley
  • 2 fresh tomatoes chopped or the juice of ½ can of tomato juice
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste

For the Béchamel sauce:

  • ½ cup of butter
  • 2/3 cup of flour
  • 3 cups of warmed milk
  • 3 eggs

Slice the potatoes and eggplants into ½- inch slices. Place the slices on an oil pan in the oven for 10 minutes. Flip the eggplant and potatoes and cook the other side for another 10 minutes. Once eggplant is ready, remove from the pan and let them dry on paper towel.

To prepare the meat:

In a large skillet over high heat, add the olive oil, ground beef, onion, and garlic. Next add salt, pepper, and parsley. Once the meat has browned add the tomato juice. Let the meat cook until all the juice is gone. Be sure to stir the meat continuously. Once the meat has cooked, set aside.

To prepare the béchamel sauce:

In a medium pot, heat the butter and mix in the flour. Add 3 cups of milk to the mixture. Stir continuously as the mixture begins to thicken. Once the mixture begins to boil, it will thicken. If you find that your mixture is lumpy, simply strain it. Once the sauce has begun to thicken, remove it from the heat.

Now that you have prepared the vegetables, the meat, and the sauce you can now begin assembling the moussaka.

Preheat the oven at 325 degrees.

Lightly brush a medium size pan with olive oil. Place your potato slices on the bottom of the pan. Next, layer the pan with about half of your sliced eggplants. Next, spread about half of the shredded mozzarella cheese and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

Next, add the cooked ground beef. Spread the mixture evenly onto the cheese.

Place the remaining slices of eggplant over the meat. Spread the remainder of the mozzarella cheese on top of the eggplant.

Before you add your sauce to the moussaka, fold in 3 beaten eggs into your béchamel sauce. Once the eggs are mixed in, pour the sauce evenly over the moussaka. Sprinkle some parmesan cheese and about half a cup of breadcrumbs over the moussaka.

Cook at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

Enjoy!

Moog Dal (Four Lentil Soup)

Published on October 8, 2008 in Dipali, Entree, Indian, Lentils and Soup. 4 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .


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Dipali is our newest chef! Learn more about her here.

Moog dal is a traditional Indian lentil soup. Moog dal is the main ingredient in the soup, hence the name. However, you can add other types of lentils such as, masoor dal, val dal and chora dal, as we do below. In different parts of India, this dal is made differently. In the north, it is made to have a much thicker texture. Today we will be making it Gujarati style, which means it is more like a soup.

  • 1/2 cup Moog dal (Spilt Green Gram)
  • 1/2 cup Masoor dal (Red Lentil)
  • 1 tbsp Val dal (optional)
  • 1 tbsp Chora dal (optional)
  • 7-8 cups warm water
  • 2 chopped tomatoes
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tsp ginger finely chopped – paste would be better
  • 1-2 cloves shredded garlic (optional)
  • 1 tsp mustard seeds (or cumin seeds)
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 1/4 tsp red chili powder
  • 1/4 tsp coriander powder
  • 1/4 tsp cumin powder
  • pinch of asafoedita powder
  • 1/8 cup of jaggery (or 1 tbsp sugar)
  • 1-2 tsp oil
  • 1 tbsp salt added to the lentil mixture

Cooking the lentils:

  1. Sift through all the lentils and remove any stones.
  2. Combine all the lentils in a bowl and wash with warm water.
  3. Transfer the lentils into a pot, and add about 7-8 cups of water, and the salt.
  4. Boil on medium heat for about 45min to 1 hour. All the lentils should break apart. If it still seems like some of the lentils are whole, just run a hand blender through the mixture. You do not want to make it over smooth though; you want the mixture to maintain some texture.
  5. The consistency of the lentil mixture should be soup-like. If you find it is too thick, just add some hot water until it reaches the right consistency.

Making the tomato gravy:

  1. In a small pot heat 1-2 tsp of oil.
  2. Once the oil has heated, add the mustard seeds.
  3. Once the mustard seeds start to pop, add the turmeric and the asafoedita powder.
  4. Add the chopped tomatoes, jaggery, ginger, chili powder, coriander powder and cumin powder. Mix all the ingredients together and allow the gravy to simmer until the tomatoes melt and the consistency is somewhat paste-like.

Finishing off:

  1. Add the tomato gravy into the lentil mixture.
  2. Add lemon juice and optionally add some shredded garlic.
  3. Stir the mixture and allow it to simmer on low heat for another 10-15 minutes.

Garnish with some cilantro.

The Perfect Biscotti

Published on September 29, 2008 in Coffee, Dessert, Eva and Italian. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , .


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Biscotti is an Italian cookie which is twice-baked. It makes a wonderful snack and is a great accompaniment to coffee, tea or wine. It is a light and textured cookie and makes a great alternative to the more sugary cookies available at the local supermarket. With biscotti you can really experiment with the ingredients: you can add chocolate chips, any time of nut, and even dried fruit like cranberries. Here Eva shows us her recipe for biscotti. We’ve tried many different biscotti recipes and found this one to be the best.

  • 2 cups of corn oil
  • 2 cups of sugar
  • 6 eggs
  • 5 1/2 cups of flour
  • 4 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • The zest of 1 orange
  • 1 cup of sliced almonds or sesame seeds (to roll your biscotti logs)

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Lightly brush your large pan with oil.

Using an electric blender, mix together 2 cups of corn oil and 2 cups of sugar. Add the zest of 1 orange and continue mixing. Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla and then add the six eggs. It’s best to crack each egg into a small bowl and then add the eggs to the mixture one by one.

In another bowl add 4 teaspoons of baking powder to 1 cup of flour and mix together, and then add this to the egg mixture. Slowly add in the remaining 4 ½ cups of flour to the mixture. Continue working the dough with your hands.

On your countertop sprinkle some of your almond/sesame seeds in front of you. Take a large handful of the dough mixture and roll it into a log on your countertop, rolling it onto the almonds/sesame seeds. Be sure to oil your hands before handling the dough; the oil makes it much easier to work with the dough and keeps the dough from sticking to your hands. Continue working the dough into logs and place these on your greased pans. Sprinkle any remaining almonds on top of your biscotti logs.

Bake in the oven at 325 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the biscotti logs from the pan and place them on a cutting board. Slice the logs into diagonal pieces and place these pieces sideways on your pan and put it back in the oven at 250 degrees for another 30 minutes to dry them out.

These biscotti are wonderful served with Greek coffee!

How to make Greek Coffee

Published on September 29, 2008 in Coffee, Drink, Eva and Greek. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , .


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Greek coffee is both delicious and mysterious! It is a wonderful drink to serve your house guests, but also provides a window into your past, present and future…well, apparently, but we’re not quite sure. Greek coffee is quite strong and is served with the foam at the top and the grounds at the bottom of the cup. It is made using a small pot, called a briki in Greek, and is sweetened according to taste: bitter, medium, sweet, or very sweet. The coffee is served in demitasse or espresso cups and is always served with a cold glass of water. We bought our coffee in Greece while we were there last summer, but it is also widely available in Greek specialty stores as well as the ethnic section of most grocery stores across North America.

To make Greek coffee you will need:

  • Cold Water (1 demitasse cup per person)
  • Sugar (For medium sweetness use 1 teaspoon per cup, but you can adjust this according to your own preference)
  • Greek coffee (1 teaspoon per cup)
  • A small pot (briki)

Use the demitasse cup to measure out 1 cup of water per person and pour the water in your pot. Once the water is hot but before it begins to boil, add the sugar and then the coffee. For medium sweetness use 1 teaspoon of sugar for each cup you are making. If you would like it sweeter, add 2 teaspoons of sugar for each cup, but if you prefer your coffee bitter then don’t add any sugar at all. For the coffee you will use 1 teaspoon of coffee for each cup you are making. Stir to dissolve the coffee and sugar, but do not stir again. Turn your stove to medium-low heat and wait for the coffee to begin to bubble. As the water begins to boil, the foam will rise to the top. As Eva explains in the video this foam is called kaïmaki in Greek. Once the coffee has begun to foam, it’s ready. Place 1 teaspoon of foam in each cup (this way everyone’s coffee gets a bit of the delicious foam) and then pour the rest of the coffee in the cups. The coffee is now ready to serve. Be sure to give of your guests a tall glass of cold water with the coffee!

If you’ve had the chance to visit Greece you might have see people turning their finished cups of coffee over onto the saucer and then having their fortune read to them, a practice known as tasseography. Let us know your experiences with this!

Eva’s Delicious Dolmathes (Stuffed Grapevine Leaves)

Published on September 21, 2008 in Appetizer, Entree, Eva, Greek and Leaves. 11 Comments Tags: , , , , .

This video along with the last two, were created without the use of a tripod (all 3 were recorded on the same day). We learned our lesson and got a tripod. Sorry for any shaky hands :)
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Dolmathes, also known as stuffed grapevine leaves, are a Greek specialty. There are many different variations of this dish, depending on the region of Greece. Some prepare it with an avgolemono (egg and lemon) sauce, others prefer a tomato sauce. Some Greeks cook the dolmathes in a pan in the oven, while others prefer to cook the dolmathes on the stovetop. In this recipe Eva shows us her unique way of preparing this classic Greek dish.

For the Dolmathes:

  • ½ pound of ground beef
  • 1 medium onion (chopped)
  • ¼ cup of chopped parsley
  • ¼ cup of chopped mint
  • 1/3 cup of chopped dill or anise
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tablespoons of olive oil
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • ½ cup of washed and strained uncooked rice
  • 1 tsp of sea salt
  • 1 tsp of black pepper
  • 20-30 grapevine leaves

For the lemon sauce:

  • 1 tablespoon of flour
  • Juice of half a lemon

To begin you need to blanch your grapevine leaves. Some grocery stores sell jars of preserved grapevine leaves, but if you are using fresh leaves you need to blanch them by placing them in a pot of boiling water for about 2-3 minutes then rise with cold water and pat dry.

In a large bowl mix together the ground beef, onion, parsley, mint, anise, egg, olive oil, lemon juice, rice, and salt and pepper.

Once you have mixed these ingredients well you may begin rolling your dolmathes. Place your grapevine leaves face down (smooth side down) on your countertop. Place a ½ teaspoon of mixture at the top of the leaf and roll the leaf by folding in the sides and rolling downwards. Roll the leaves tightly. Repeat until all the mixture has been used up. After you have finished rolling all of the dolmathes, pour about 1 teaspoon of the olive oil in a medium size pot and place your dolmathes (with the seam side down) in the pot. Put the pot on medium heat and let it cook for 2-3 minutes.

In another small pot, bring 2-3 cups of water to a boil. After the water has come to a boil pour it over your dolmathes. Place a small heat-proof plate over your dolmathes and close the lid. Turn the heat down to a light-to-medium heat and let it cook for about 45 minutes. Once it has cooked, remove the dolmathes from the pot and place on a serving plate. Be sure to keep any remaining juice to make the sauce.

To prepare the lemon sauce, mix 1 tablespoon of flour with half a cup of water. Add the juice of half a lemon to the leftover dolmathes juice. Add the flour mixture to this and whisk the mixture well. Let it come to a boil for 1-2 minutes until it thickens. Strain the mixture as you pour it over the dolmathes. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve!