Greek Recipes

Oysters. You either love them or hate them. As I am a new fan – and Mr K is a long-standing, dedicated fan, we headed to the NSW mid-South coast to explore the ‘oyster trail’ and discover where, the oysters we love, come from. Following the "fresh from the farm gate is best" principle, we visited a number of oyster famers, who were 3rd or 4th generation growers. There are eight major oyster-producing estuaries on the NSW South Coast: the Shoalhaven, Clyde, Tuross, Wagonga, Wapengo, Pambula, Merimbula and Wonboyn. On this trip, we visited the oyster farmers in the Shoalhaven and Clyde areas. Our first stop was at the Clyde River, just near Bateman’s Bay. The river was incredibly clear and looked very pure in the Autumn sunshine. We drove down a little dirt track next to the bank of the river to arrive at the "Oyster Shed on Wray Street". This little aqua shed had no pretentions and you could enjoy your oysters on the spot, at a little table looking out over the beaut...

ANZAC biscuits were probably one of the very first recipes I made with my mum, when I was very little. My mum had learnt the recipe from her mother who had, in turn, learnt the recipe from her mother. During World War I, my great grandmother made these biscuits and sent them to her brothers who served overseas with the Australian Army during World War I, like so many other Australian mothers, wives, girlfriends and sisters. My paternal grandmother also used to make them regularly too - ever since the 1940s when she would prepare the biscuits and send them to my grandfather, while he was serving overseas in the Australian Army during World War II. The recipes from either side of my family are fairly similar, the only difference bring the addition of some desiccated coconut by my Grandmother. My grandfather who served in the Australian Army during WWII For me, this is a recipe for remembrance. Remembrance of my great uncles who fought and died in the fields of France during World War I...

I often wonder what could be characterized as a typical Greek flavor in pastry; and I usually come to the conclusion that yogurt and honey make a pair that many could consider as a classically Greek. So if I make a panna cotta with Greek yogurt and honey, would people think that this Italian dessert has a Greek twist? I can’t judge but it definitely tasted good. Since I have started this ‘alchemy’ of turning famous desserts into Greek with the addition of yogurt and honey, I have discovered that French macarons lend themselves to the treatment! The first time I ever saw macaron was five or six years ago when I started reading food blogs and came across the blog Tartelette . I remember how beautiful they looked in the pictures. Then I tried them in a pastry shop in Athens and was sure I should try making them myself. My research on the internet showed that macarons are more or less the ‘’Holy Grail’’ of every avid food blogger and I decided I needed one more cooking book, this time one ...

The end of Lent calls for a little dairy indulgence. This Greek style cheesecake called a 'myzithropita' (μυζηθρόπιτα) is the perfect way to indulge after abstaing from dairy and eggs for over 40 days. Best of all, it contains very little added sugar and is not overly sweet - so it doesn't leave you feeling too guilty if you happen to have a second slice! Myzithra (μυζήθρα) is a Greek cheese which comes in two forms: fresh and soft, and aged and sharp. The aged version is most often used for grating and adding to simple pasta dishes. This recipe calls for fresh, soft unsalted myzithra - which is very similar to a good full fat ricotta. If you can't find fresh myzithra - you can make it yourself, or mix a little ricotta with fresh cream or mascarpone, which will give you a similar tasting and textured cheese. I use a traditional myzithra that is made from a mix of sheep and goat milk, which is buttery and fragrant. This recipe also calls for one of my favourite a Greek i...

Easter is the most important celebration for my Greek family. It just inches ahead of Christmas and it holds a very special place in my heart. I love the traditions of colourful dyed eggs, tsoureki, the Easter biscuits - Koulourakia, spit-roast of lamb and the "lambathes" decorated candles. The Easter rituals of the Orthodox Church are rich and spiritual. Even though it falls during the start of Autumn in Australia, there is still that feeling of energy and renewal that often comes with the start of spring. As in years past, since I married Mr K, Holy Thursday marked the start of my Easter preparations. Traditionally it is the day when the eggs are dyed red and the day when the Easter bread, called tsoureki and Easter biscuits, called Koulourakia are made. This year I made two Tsoureki - one modern version which is filled with plenty of orange zest, dark chocolate and almond ( find the recipe here ) that has become a favourite in our house and a more traditional version scent...

Καλό μήνα lovely readers and welcome to April!! If you are wondering what Καλό μήνα (Kalo Mina) means - it literally means "good month" and it is a Greek greeting given every first day of each month. It is the Greek way of wishing friends and family a good month ahead of them - a way of wishing you, lovely reader, well. This April is certainly shaping up to be a good month in my kitchen, where I will be celebrating not only one but two Easters. We embrace both family traditions in our home and this weekend we celebrated Easter with my family. Next weekend, we will celebrate with our Greek family and friends. In my kitchen this month... There are my mother in law's home-cured olives, picked from the olive trees that grow in my in law's little piece of Greek paradise - their garden - in the middle of Sydney's inner west. The olives are kept in a big barrel in a corner of her kitchen and Ma uses a ladle to scoop them out into generous portions for us to take home. Th...

When I first got married, I was fascinated by the way my mother in law expertly cleaned calamari. Nearly five years on, nothing has changed. Where Ma may use a toothbrush to painstakingly clean fish for her family, she often uses a knitting needle to ensure the inside of the calamari tube is immaculately clean. Having grown up on a Greek island, her skill in cooking all types of seafood and her knowledge of how it should be treated and used is truly impressive. Ma's "salty" island blood and passion for seafood has been passed on to her children - certainly my Mr K, so it was early in my marriage that I got to grips with cleaning calamari and octopus - and selecting it at the market.  In the same way that I am fascinated by Ma's skill, I am equally fascinated at how many different types of molluscs there are - particularly when it comes to squid, calamari and cuttlefish. Frustratingly, some fishmongers and certainly many restaurants just use one label for them all - sq...