Greek Recipes

      Visináda (βυσσινάδα) is one of the favorite beverages in Greece. It is made with the juice of sour cherries and sugar, cooked until it’s concentrated into a thick, deep purple syrup. Though sour cherries are not usually eaten raw, they taste just wonderful when cooked with sugar.  In my little village we have only wild sour cherry trees; I never found out who first cultivated them here but they must have loved this place. And even if you plant only one tree, in a few years you end up with a small wild sour cherry forest because they tend to expand like crazy. Though you need to pit twice the amount of the wild fruit for a recipe compared to cultivated sour cherries, the wild variety has a superb taste. Sour cherries can be found in farmer’s markets at the end of June and early July in Greece; in July and even August in more northern countries. To enjoy visináda, pour in a glass, one part of syrup and four parts of ice cold water or club soda and fill with ...

Rediscovering Florence after a few years between visits was a pleasure full of surprises. If you are a regular reader of Mulberry and Pomegranate, it would come as no surprise to you that I revelled in rediscovering Florence in the cooler months of autumn. Florentine food just screams autumn and winter. After hours of walking, rugged up, around the streets, galleries and architectural masterpieces of Florence, you crave the kind of food to warm you from head to toe and make you feel full - preferably consumed next to a roaring fireplace with a glass of Brunello in hand.  In this post, I thought I would share with you a few favourite old classics and new discoveries from the stunning city of Florence. Bar Deanna  - for cafe, cornetti and aperitivos I fell in love with this very retro bar on my first trip to Florence. It might have been the love hearts the barrista created on my early morning latte, but more likely it is my penchant for vintage. I've been told quite frequently t...

I am so excited to share with you my Mexican Meatloaf with Garlic Mashed Potatoes! First, I haven't posted in the last few days because we're in the process of moving our blog to a new home. Secondly, we're switching from blogger to WordPress. Same site, same great recipes! This move should take place in the next couple of days. Third, don't worry, the old website will automatically direct you to the new site. Now, back to the meatloaf. I wanted to create a meatloaf that didn't require me chopping and sauteing a whole bunch of veggies. This left me with the idea to use salsa to take the place of the veggies. I used roasted red salsa and green salsa to add tons of flavor to my meatloaf. I also boiled my potatoes with loads of garlic cloves that becomes nice and tender just like the potatoes. Lastly, I mashed them babies up with lots of butter, milk, and spices for the ultimate potato experience. This meatloaf is beyond delicious! I loved the flavor the salsa added to...

Greek Easter and regular Easter fell on the same date this year and I felt just a little bit spoilt to have both Mr K's family and my parents, gathered together at one table for Easter Sunday lunch. We celebrated at my parent in-law's house and the sun literally shone on us all this year. I knew that we were going to enjoy a really special day, because the first thing I saw in our own garden at home on Easter Sunday morning was one single, rich, red, velvety bloom from my newly planted Dublin Bay rose. The weather was spectacular, more like spring than autumn and we started the celebrations with a chilled glass of french champagne in my father in law's lush green garden, underneath the lime and mulberry trees. As always, the menu for Easter Sunday lunch was truly impressive. My mother in law had slow-cooked a small baby goat with lots of lemon, olive oil and rigani - it simply melted off the bone. There were also tender baby potatoes, cooked in the juices of the goat, along...

I recently spoke with you about my collaboration with CookingPlanit and Formaggio Cheese .   Well folks, today is the big day. The official start of the CookingPlanit Formaggio Cheese Challenge (entry information below).   After spending days giving my loyal followers the opportunity to vote on which cheesylicious CookingPlanit recipe I should cook using the tasty Formaggio cheese, the winner is... Smoked Mozzarella Chicken Pasta Bake ! Formaggio Smoked Mozzarella Cheese is beyond delicious and it really turned this recipe into something special. I adapted the recipe by using store bought roasted chicken breast. This dish goes together fairly quickly and believe me it will be a new family favorite. The Cheesylicious dish is all done and ready to eat.  Now it's time for you to start cooking using CookingPlanit! But before you start cooking, let's do a brief recap on the genius of CookingPlanit! What is CookingPlanit?  Designed to be a recipe source as well as a helpi...