Greek Meatballs or Keftethes

Keftethes are Greek fried meatballs, very similar to the middle eastern kefte (you may have had these in a middle eastern or Lebanese restaurant). Open the windows and get ready to clean your burners! However, the frying is totally worth it for these delicious little balls of heaven. You can serve them as an appetizer or a complete meal with Greek spaghetti or salad. They also taste great with some pita and tzatziki. They are even better the next day cold out of the fridge (if you like cold food...I am a sucker for cold pizza).

keftethes

Ingredients:
4 T olive oil + 1 T olive oil
1/2 lb ground chuck
1/2 lb ground sirloin
1 medium onion, grated (on a grater or food process0r)
1 clove garlic, minced
2 t ground cumin
1 egg
1 piece of french bread, crust removed
1/4 C grated kefalotiri cheese
1/4 C chopped fresh parsley
salt & pepper
1/4 C flour

Directions:
dampen french bread with water, squeeze to release water, and crumble in your hands.
combine the chuck, sirloin, 1 T olive oil, onion, garlic, cumin, egg, bread, cheese, parsley, and salt & pepper in a bowl.
mix with hands until ingredients are blended.
heat 4T olive oil in skillet over medium-high heat.
roll half of mixture into 1 inch balls and dredge in flour.
place in oil and fry until cooked through, turning occasionally (about 7 - 9 minutes).
transfer keftethes to a plate covered with paper towels. 
repeat with remaining meat mixture.

get ready to use your hands and mix!

get ready to roll

coat each meatball in flour

tester ball! 

batch 1

second batch

transfer to a plate with paper towels

yum

tips & extras

"tester" ball - Create a "tester" ball to taste the flavor. Roll one meatball, dredge in flour, and fry. Taste and adjust ingredients as necessary.

salt - The cheese has a lot of salt, so be careful how much you add to the original mixture. I like to create a tester and then see if it needs more salt.

cumin - Depending on the quality of your cumin, you might need more than 2 t. It really creates the flavor in these meatballs, so make sure you have enough (use the tester meatball to check). If you have a spice grinder, grind the cumin on your own and it will be even better!

meat - I combine sirloin & chuck to make it a little lighter. You can use all chuck or all sirloin (all depends on the amount of fat you want).

healthier keftethes - When I don't want to fry and want something healthy, I make these with lean ground turkey and grill them. You need to make the keftethes more into a patty-like shape to hold up on the grill, but they are still really delicious. 

frying - Use a splatter screen for easier cleanup. These don't need to be deep fried, but there has to be enough oil to coat the skillet.

bread - You can skip this step and just use some bread crumbs. 

mixing - Don't overmix the meatballs or they will be mushy.

size - Smaller meatballs (more work) for appetizers, large meatballs for a main course. Serve with toothpicks for apps.

Greek Spaghetti

Greek spaghetti with meat sauce is the ultimate comfort food. I remember going to my Yiayia's growing up and eating plates of spaghetti while soaking up the sauce with heaps of bread. The ingredients are simple, but a tiny bit of cinnamon, parsley, and a bay leaf give it a unique and warming flavor. Perfect for a cool fall day. 

I made this for a family dinner the other night and my Yiayia gave me her stamp of approval. Enjoy!

greek spaghetti with meat sauce

Ingredients:
1 T butter
1 medium onion, shredded (with a grater or food processor)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 C red wine
1/2 lb ground chuck
1/2 lb ground sirloin
1 bay leaf
1/4 C fresh parsley, finely chopped
15 oz can tomato sauce
salt & pepper
1/8 - 1/4 t cinnamon
1/2 package spaghetti
1/4 C grated kefalotiri, mizithra, or parmesan cheese

Directions:
in a large pot or pan, melt the butter over medium-high eat.
add the onion and sauté until it starts to change color (about 5 - 7 minutes).
add the garlic and cook until fragrant (about 1 minute).
add the beef and cook, breaking up with a wooden spoon.
cook the meat until there is no more pink.
add the red wine and continue to cook (about 3 minutes or until alcohol burns off).
add the tomato sauce, bay leaf, parsley, salt & pepper, and cinnamon.
stir and bring to a boil.
lower heat, cover, and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
with 15 minutes left, cook spaghetti according to package.
drain spaghetti and add gradually to meat sauce.
stir to coat spaghetti and disperse meat.
sprinkle with cheese and serve.

shred onions in a mini food processor (great kitchen gadget and pretty cheap)

cook onions in butter with garlic

brown the meat, mix with the onions

boil the mixture - look at all that parsley!

perfect bite

tips & extras

onions - Shredding the onion releases all of its flavor. I use a small food processor, but you can also grate the onions. Grating onions makes me cry like crazy, but it still works. 

cinnamon - Cinnamon is a very powerful spice and can easily overwhelm the sauce. I'd recommend starting with an 1/8 t (or even less) and possibly increasing it to 1/4 t after tasting your sauce. Greeks can't get enough of it, and even sprinkle cinnamon on spaghetti with just butter & cheese (another great quick recipe). 

salt - Watch how much salt you add to the sauce. Add just a bit to start and then taste the sauce while cooking and adjust where necessary. The tomato sauce has quite a bit of salt and so will the cheese.

cooking meat - Be careful not to burn the meat while cooking it. Stir it occasionally and loosen it from the bottom of the pot.

leftovers - You can double (or even triple) this recipe and freeze the sauce. Boil a pot of spaghetti, defrost the sauce, and you have an easy weeknight meal.

meat - Chuck makes this sooo good, but you can use all sirloin or even turkey for a healthier dish.

cheese - If you can't find Greek cheese, serve with parmesan.

wine - No biggie if you don't have this ingredient. The sauce is still delicious (but better with the wine of course).

sauce consistency - If you want a thinner sauce, add water or more tomato sauce. I like it thick and meaty, but you still want to be able to coat the spaghetti. 

Greek Lamb or Beef Stew "Hilopites"

There are a few things we never learn to cook because we love the way someone else makes it. I'm finally making an attempt at my grandmother's hilopites! Hilopites are egg noodles and every Greek family and Greek restaurant has a different recipe for hilopites with some type of meat (beef, lamb, or chicken). 

This recipe uses either beef stew meat or lamb stew meat (if you can find it on the bone, even better). The lamb definitely has more flavor, but it is sometimes difficult to find. 

hilopites with lamb

Ingredients:

1 T olive oil

1 T butter

1 lb beef or lamb stew

1 15-oz can tomato sauce

1 C water + 1 1/2 C water

1 medium onion, diced

1 - 2 garlic cloves, minced

salt & pepper

4 C egg noodles

grated kefalotiri & mizithra or parmesan cheese

Directions:

meat

heat olive oil and butter in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. 

pat meat dry with paper towel.

when butter is melted and starting to sizzle, add meat and brown on both sides (about 3 minutes per side).

remove meat from pot and place on a plate.

with a spoon, skim off and discard any dark-colored fat from top of liquid in pot.

add onion and garlic and sauté until the onions start to brown (about 5 - 7 minutes).

add meat and juices back to pot.

add salt & pepper.

stir meat and cook with onions & garlic for another 5 minutes.

add tomato sauce and water to pot and stir.

cook on high heat until tomato sauce starts to boil.

reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 2 - 5 hours. 

remove meat from pot with a slotted spoon.

turn heat up to medium-high until sauce begins to boil.

noodles

add 1 to 1 1/2 C water to sauce and bring to a boil. 
add noodles to sauce and cook according to package.
salt & pepper to taste.

serve beef over noodles and sprinkle with cheese. 

onions will thicken the sauce and add flavor

use butter & olive oil - best of both worlds

raw meat, pat dry before adding to pot

brown meat in oil & butter on both sides

remove browned meat and transfer to plate

add onions directly to pot after skimming fat

onions will brown and become translucent

add meat back to onion mixture and cook

simmer time! oh boy, it smells good in here 

this is my favorite shape of egg noodle 

sauce is a beautiful vibrant red / orange

tips & extras

cheese - If you can find Greek cheese (kefalotiri or mizithra), use one of those. If not, parmesan is fine. freshly grated cheese is always better.

noodles - Unless you are doing so for health reasons, do not use egg noodles without yolk. The ones with the yolk taste much better and have a nicer texture.

cooking time - The longer you cook the meat, the more tender it will become. For beef, I'd recommend at least 3 hours. Lamb is naturally more tender, so an hour or two is will work, but 5 hours is better.

water - Depending on the amount of sauce, you may need to add more or less than 1 1/2 C water to the sauce before adding the noodles. When the noodles are finished, the remaining sauce will be thick (you don't want it runny, so watch the water).

noodles - You can use any shape of egg noodle you want. Greeks often use mini squares. 

Spanakopita (spinach pie)

It's the day after Christmas, and I am sitting on my couch still full from last night. Christmas menu at my parents' house: lamb, beef tenderloin, greek salad, french bread, feta cheese, kefalotiri cheese, green olives, kalamata olives, greek potatoes, greek style green beans & mushrooms, and my contributions - spanakopita (spinach pie) and pastitsio (greek lasagna). 

I spent almost two days cooking for Christmas. The best part about spanakopita (as a pie) is that it can be made two days in advance and served cold or close to room temperature. 

Ingredients:

5 to 6 10 oz. packages frozen chopped spinach

4 - 5 eggs (4 extra-large or jumbo, 5 normal)

1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped

1 bunch fresh dill, chopped

1 package green onions

1 package phyllo dough

2 large containers cottage cheese, large curd (~ 2 lbs)

1 1/2 pounds feta cheese

1/2 C olive oil plus 1 1/2 C for brushing

1 handful rice (~ 1/4 C)

1 stick butter

2 T water

sesame seeds

salt

pepper

Directions:

Thaw spinach and phyllo in refrigerator overnight. 

Rinse the spinach with water and squeeze it to release almost all water. Place spinach in a large pan. 

Chop the parsley, dill, & green onions. 

Crumble the feta into the spinach.

Mix the herbs into the spinach & feta.

Add the cottage cheese and mix. 

Add 1/2 C olive oil and mix.

Boil 1 stick of butter in water. When butter is half melted, add rice.

Boil butter & rice for a few minutes. 

Add rice mixture to pan and stir. 

While mixing, add salt & pepper to taste. 

Beat eggs. Mix.  

Assembly:

Brush a deep dish pizza pan or medium-height baking pan with olive oil.

Coat bottom with 1 layer of filo. Brush olive oil over top and edges.

Continue until there are 8 layers of filo.

Fill about 1/2 way with the spinach mixture.

Cut the filo around the sides and fold in.

Oil sides.

Continue adding filo layers to top. Brush oil on each layer.
Cut excess filo from sides. 

With a sharp knife, cut spanakopita into squares. Cut strips horizontally, then vertically. 

Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake:

Bake at 375 degrees for about 1 hour or until top is a golden brown. 

Photo of the assembly: I forgot to fold the bottom layer of the phyllo over the spinach mixture

(shown below - the correct way - first time I made spanakopita with my grandmother). 

This is what you are technically supposed to do. Fold the edges over after you put the spinach mixture into the pan. When you add the top layer of phyllo, cut the edges and tuck them in. Still tastes great but looks better without the edges folded on the top.

Tips & Extras:

Phyllo - I sometimes buy two packages. You will occasionally open up a package of phyllo and find that it is torn and difficult to pull apart. It's always good to have an extra roll or two on hand. 

Salt - If you use imported feta, you can go easy on the salt since it is usually saltier. If you use domestic, you definitely want to make sure you add enough salt to the dish. Taste the mixture before you add the eggs.

Spanakopita Triangles - You will also see little triangles of spanakopita. Those are better served warm because the phyllo is crusty and the spinach/cheese mixture is great to bite into. You can use this mixture if you make triangles. 

Pan - This recipe makes a lot of spanakopita. You might have extra for a smaller pan. Sometimes I make a small pan as a gift or freeze it and bake it later. 

Mixing - Although messy, use your hands to mix! This way you get all the flavors in every bite. Make sure you have a large enough pan for mixing. 

Greek Chicken & Rice

Greek chicken & rice is my all time favorite comfort food. It is so flavorful and makes me feel warm & cozy inside. I'm spending Thanksgiving with my husband's family, so I had a mini Thanksgiving with my parents on Sunday. When I told them I was going to make this, they could not have been happier.


My Yiayia Sugar (mom's mom) used to make this for me and my cousins growing up. Her name isn't really Sugar, it's Zacharoula. Zachari in Greek means Sugar, hence her nickname.


The ingredients are very simple, but Yiayia Sugar unfortunately never measured anything (you will see this trend in future blog postings). I tried my best to translate "half a cereal bowl of oil" into cups. Enough background. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 cut up chicken with bones & skin
2/3 C olive oil
1/4 C lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1 T oregano
salt & pepper
1 C long grain white rice
1 T butter


Directions - chicken:
Salt & pepper chicken generously.
Combine olive oil, lemon juice, and oregano.
Beat with a fork until color lightens.
Place the chicken in a bowl and cover with the marinade.
Mix chicken with the marinade so that all pieces are covered.
Cover with saran wrap and place in refrigerator for at least 2 - 3 hours or overnight.
Arrange chicken and juices in a large metal pan.
Cover with aluminum foil.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
Turn heat up to 425 and bake for another hour.
Rotate chicken every 20 minutes while baking.
Broil chicken on each side for 3 - 5 minutes or until it turns a golden color.
Remove pan from oven and place chicken pieces on a serving dish.
Add a few tablespoons of juice to the top of the chicken.
Cover serving dish and chicken with aluminum foil.
Save pan with juices.


Directions - rice:
Skim fat from the top of the chicken juices and add to a saucepan.
Add 1 T butter.
Boil fat from juice with the butter.
When boiling, add rice and mix.
You should here a "tss" sound when the rice hits the oil.
Stir rice for about 5 minutes.
Strain remaining juices and measure.
If you have 2 C of juice, you are done.
If not, rinse pan with water, strain, and add to juice to make 2 C.
Add 2 C of juice to rice and boil.
Add salt & pepper.
Reduce heat to a low simmer, cover rice and cook for 15 - 20 minutes or until done.
Remove any excess fat from top of rice when done cooking.

Tips & Extras:


Pan -  I cover the pan with aluminum foil for easy clean-up. 


Rice - If you don't have enough juice from the chicken, you can use chicken broth. 


Serving suggestions - I serve this meal with greek salad, bread, & feta cheese. 


Oregano - When adding the oregano to the marinade, crush it between your hands. It releases the oils and adds more flavor.