Not without reason Greek pies are becoming more and more popular. They’re not only delicious and rich in taste but they are also easy to make. Amongst the most popular ones is the cheese pie, which we had presented in a previous post, and of course equally popular is the famous spinach pie, a classic Greek favorite.
Savory pies are more than common in Greek cuisine. In fact, they are a staple. The most famous is the cheese pie, the one that we prefer mostly as a street food. Everywhere, at every corner of our cities and towns, you can find a “tiropitádiko”, which is basically a small shop with no tables to sit, and where you can be a cheese pie or other kinds of pie and eat them as a street food. As a matter of fact, many Greeks prefer them as a part of their breakfast on the foot –something that we are very used of.
Melomakárona is the name of our traditional Greek Christmas cookies. They go back in time, in Ancient Greece, when they were usually served after a funeral. But those cookies were made without honey, whereas the ones we eat today are dropped for a few seconds in a syrup made with honey. Thus the first part of the word “melo” deriving from the word “méli” meaning honey in Greek.
The type of meat you’re most likely to find on a Greek table is lamb. Lamb meat dominates the majority of meaty dishes that are considered staples in Greek cuisine. Best known staple is our Sunday roast, a dish that our moms would make at least two Sundays a month! A dish that everyone in the family would relish and appreciate and one that we always love to prepare. It doesn’t need many ingredients, just a few but essential ones, mostly it needs time in order to get the meat roasted perfectly.
One of the most attractive features of Greek cuisine is the fact that it stands somewhere between the eastern cuisine and the western one –eastern meaning mostly that of Asia Minor and the Middle East, western meaning cuisines from different European countries. Geographically speaking Greece stands on a crossroad that connects Europe with Asia. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that our cuisine has been influenced by both sides while on the same time we have kept our culinary idiosyncrasies.
This is the time of the season when apples are at their best. They’re fresh, firm, sweet and juicy, extremely delicious and last but not least they come with a natural waxiness. This is also the time for a wonderful , luscious cake , wrapped in the sweet and with light acidity flavors of our favorite fruit. The extra advantage of this cake is that olive oil is used instead of butter. It has a different texture, it’s healthier and it gets better day by day!
Samos is an island situated in the eastern Aegean Sea, less than 2 Km off the coast of Asia Minor. It is an island well known not only for its exceptional natural beauty, but also for its history that goes back to the ancient times. It is a mountainous island (as most of the Greek islands are) but it also has a rich vegetation due to the abundant rainfalls that shower the island in winter. Therefore it comes as no surprise that in the ancient times the island’s name was ‘’Hydrele’’ meaning ‘’Rich in water’’.
