Greek Briam ©
Quick and easy, pop it in the oven and a slowly bake and you’re done! Excellent on its own, but also good as an accompaniment to meat, excellent with Greek feta cheese and can be eaten hot or cold.
This is especially for Ella!!!! “Briam.” And all the wonderful group of Irene’s Uni friends, who have just been staying with me. Come again next year !!!!!! We miss you guys!!!
Easy
6 Persons
Oven Temperature 200.C/400.F
Baking Time: 1 hour approximately
Ingredients
2 medium onions thinly sliced
2-3 cloves garlic
4 large tomatoes roughly grated
1 medium sized aubergine, round or the long type, in which case 2-3
3 medium sized courgettes
4 medium sweet peppers
1 chili pepper ( Optional )
3 medium sized potatoes
3-4 tbs chopped Mediterranean parsley
3-4 tbs olive oil
2-3 tsp salt and freshly ground pepper
Method:
Pre-heat Oven.
1. Wash vegetables thoroughly.
2. Top and tail vegetables, peel onions, garlic and potatoes, if using. Cut peppers in half and remove seeds and stalk. Slice vegetables 4 cm thick.
3. Starting with half the onions, spread out over base of baking dish. Continue with alternate layers, salting and peppering as you go, until you have used up all the vegetables and you have reached 1 cm from the top of your baking dish.
4. Grate tomatoes on big holes of grater. Pour over vegetables grated fresh tomatoes and drizzle with olive oil. ( Discard skin and stalk.)
5. Place in pre-heated oven and bake for at least an hour or until all the liquid is evaporated and the vegetables are really soft.
Cook’s Tip : If during the cooking time, you think it needs a little water, add half a glass and cover with a sheet of tin foil if it over browns, but neither of these things should be necessary as the vegetables give out their own liquid.
*** The traditional Greek recipe, always has potatoes in it, but I omit these for a lighter result.
Collect your fresh vegetables from the kitchen garden, or buy from the market. Wash, peel onions and garlic, top and tail courgettes and aubergines. Cut peppers in half and remove seeds and stalks, slice.
Pre-heat oven, 200.C/400.F.
Peel and slice onions and garlic.
Wash, top and tail courgettes and slice 4 cm thick approximately, along with your other vegetables.
Starting from the onions at the bottom of you baking dish, layer up the rest of your vegetables, alternatively salting
and peppering as you go.
Finally pour over your grated tomatoes, which you have grated into a bowl, using the big holes of your grater. (You will be left holding most of the skin of the tomato and the core, which you then discard.)
Drizzle with olive oil and place in pre-heated oven, 200.C/400.F. Bake for one hour, or until all the liquid has evaporated.
Straight out of the oven. Eat hot, warm or cold. Excellent accompaniment, Greek Feta Cheese!
Final result!
Spicy Burgers On The Grill ©
As the summer draws to an end and the light begins to change into those beautiful autumn days, this recipe has been by far the favourite this summer on the barbecue! I make it in the winter too, in a cast iron frying pan, with ridges to have those authentic lines! And it is most excellent, served with “My Guacamole Dip.”
It can be prepared in the morning for the evening and is another quick recipe to add to your summer cooking list.
It is always important to buy the best quality, fat free, mince meat from your reliable butcher and not from the super-market!
Easy
4 persons
Special Equipment : Cast-iron saucepan Or Barbecue
Ingredients
1/2 kilo good quality, fat free mince meat
1 medium onion finely grated
2 cloves garlic finely grated
1 whole egg
1 tbs Boukova /Dried Chilli flakes ( Less if you don’t want it so hot )
OR 1-2 tsp Harissa paste
1tbs Dijon Mustard (Dijon only!)
1 tsp Cumin powder
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 tsp lightly ground whole coriander ( Optional )
3 tbs finely chopped fresh coriander leaves ( essential! ) Or parsley or fennel.
2-3 drops of vinegar
3 tbs Olive oil
1 tsp salt, Freshly ground black pepper
A little extra oil for frying pan or grill.
Juice of two lemons to pour over once fried
Method
1. Place good quality mince meat, which you have bought from your butcher, fat free, in a large bowl.
2. Peel and finely grate onion and garlic and add to mince meat.
3. Add whole egg.
4. Add the rest of your ingredients.
5. After washing your hands thoroughly,(remove any rings you are wearing.) Kneed mince together for two-three minutes, until well mixed. The mince should not stick to your fingers. If it does, add a little more olive oil.
6. Take a heaped tsp of the mixture and shape into small patties, 5 cm in diameter, 1 cm thick and place in ceramic dish, (not metal.) Cover with tin-foil and reserve in refrigerator until ready to cook, if not cooking straight away. Remove from refrigerator, 20 minutes before cooking to allow to come to room temperature. This is important, or your burgers will cook unevenly.
7. Grill on barbecue until browned on each side, about 3-5 minutes each side, depending on the heat given off by your coals. Or fry in frying pan which you have added 3 tbs olive oil. Heat for one minute only over medium heat and add burgers. Cover with flat frying sieve to stop spitting. If you do not have this, wear apron and use long handled spoon and fork for turning! * Always keep a lid near by when frying. If you feel things are getting out of control, just turn down heat or remove frying pan from stove.
8. During the last two minutes of cooking add lemon juice and reduce for one minute, so that the lemon juice cooks, but you are left with a little sauce.
8. Serve hot or cold with ” My Guacamole Dip.” https://whatscookinginjaneskitchen.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/my-guacamole/
***** This Guacamole recipe can be diced up more or less, depending on your taste.
Cook’s Tip! The addition of a little vinegar, tenderises the meat.
Most Greek burger recipes add bread, I have omitted this, for a lighter result.
Be sure to shape into evenly thick patties, about 1 cm thick, so that they cook evenly.
IMPORTANT :
*** Always buy and cook mince meat the same day. If kept in the refrigerator for longer, it is an excellent medium for microbes to multiply!!!! A sign of this is if the mince is no longer red in colour, but has turned brown and no longer smells fresh. Please note, “My New Learning Cooks.”
Place ingredients in large bowl together with finely grated onion and garlic.
Add finely chopped coriander. For those that like fresh coriander this is an essential ingredient, otherwise you can use parsley or fennel.
After washing your hands thoroughly, kneed mince meat together until well mixed
.
If grilling in a heavy cast-iron pan, shape into evenly thick patties and place in lightly oiled pan.
The lines on the base of your cast iron pan will give your burgers the tell-tale grilling lines.
Prepare and light your barbecue half an hour before hand, so that the coals are good and hot. They should be glowing with white ash covering them. Do not hurry this process, if they are still black, or flaming they are not ready!
Trying out my family’s Birthday present!!!! Pretty Cool! ;))) Thank you all :))) !!
An example is the coals in the centre, the rest of the coals are not ready!
Always be sure to be barbecuing some where where the sparks are no danger and ALWAYS have a fire-proof blanket to the ready. This Weber Barbecue has a lid, which makes it a lot safer.
Now these were photographed on our old traditional Greek barbecue, also very efficient, but it was getting a little small for the growing numbers!
Grill until browned on one side, about five minutes and then turn over. You don’t want to over cook them, or they become dry.
Serve with ” My Guacamole Dip.” https://whatscookinginjaneskitchen.wordpress.com/2012/05/29/my-guacamole/
Just delicious!
Final Result …… :))))
Peaches, Honey, Lime And Lemon Verbena ©
There is nothing like peaches in the summer time and this is a very quick and easy recipe which I put together for dinner last night! It is a wonderful combination of flavors and the ripe juicy peaches melt in your mouth!
Henry especially for you!
Easy: Quick Summer Recipes!
2-4 Persons
Ingredients
2-4 Ripe Large Juicy Peaches
2-4 teaspoons of Greek Thyme Honey
1 Juice and fine zest of Lime
3-4 leaves of fresh lemon Verbena finely sliced
Method
1. Wash and peel peaches and slice. (I cut into the central stone and slice round, 1 cm thick pieces.)
2. Place in serving dish and drizzle with honey, depending on how sweet you like your peaches. I add two teaspoons.
3. Just before serving (not before, or the lime juice becomes bitter and the zest browns,) grate lime zest on fine grater and pour over lime juice.
4. Just before serving, slice a few leaves of lemon verbena fresh from the garden and decorate with a small sprig and your delicious dessert is ready.
N.B. This makes a wonderful combination of flavors and if you don’t have Greek thyme honey, other honeys can be used as a second best!
Cook’s tip! If you make this an hour ahead of time, dissolve a little honey and lime juice in a small saucepan and drizzle over, so that peaches do not brown. It is best however, made just before eating!
Collect your ingredients together, before beginning to cook.
Greek Thyme Honey, kept in a beautiful Olive- wood pot, bought up in the Epirus mountains……
Wash, peel and slice peaches into serving bowl. Reserve for up to an hour in refrigerator, not more or peaches will
brown. This is best made just before you eat it.
Drizzle with Greek Thyme Honey according to how sweet you like your peaches. I add two teaspoons. ( Here I am
adding the honey after adding lime and zest, because were eating it straight away.)
A few minutes before serving, finely grate over your peaches, your lime zest.
Pour over lime juice just before serving, not earlier or it goes bitter, like left over orange juice!
Decorate with a sprig of Lemon Verbena.
Final result……just delicious!
What's Cooking In Jane's Kitchen 