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Κυριακή 30 Νοεμβρίου 2014

GREEK RECIPES: GREEK VERSION OF MEATBALLS



HOME MADE COOKING: KEFTEDES: THE GREEK VERSION OF MEATBALLS

HOME COOKING STEP BY STEP:

Fried meatballs with pork, beef or mix pork and beef or lamb or chicken. A traditional Greek meal you cannot stop eating. Eat them hot, warm or cold no matter. They are  delicious and Yummy.

Most of the people in Greece they dust the balls in flour. 
I don’t!  
When I am making the balls I deep my hands into wine and then roll the mixture into balls. That way the balls taking a better aroma and taste!


INGREDIENTS

1000g minced pork or beef or mix pork and beef or lamb or chicken (in this recipe I used pork)

1 teaspoon oregano 


1 large onion grated, not chopped (about 1 cup or more to taste)


3 tablespoons olive oil


A piece of bread, soaked in water and squeezed as dry as possible, to make 2 cups


1 shot vinegar or 2 tablespoons red wine

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 egg

Oil for frying

INSTRUCTIONS:

Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl 

and leave to rest for half an hour. 

Deep your hands in wine for better aroma and taste and shape into small balls walnut size, 

and fry in very hot oil until golden. 



Enjoy!!!
Questions? Feel free to contact: info@portoclub.gr 

Σάββατο 29 Νοεμβρίου 2014

GREEK RECIPES: PORK WITH CELERY IN EGG AND LEMON SAUCE (AVGOLEMONO)




HOME COOKING STEP BY STEP:


This is a favourite winter dish and one that combines the flavours of braised pork, celery, and the beloved Avgolemono (egg-lemon) sauce.



Pork with celery in egg-lemon sauce. An "explosion of flavours" in your mouth! A classic Cretan favourite very popular dish in Crete and Greece, especially during the winter months, typically served around the Christmas holidays.  

Traditionally we use very young celery root, with stalks and leaves celery which is a small parsley-like herb.



Providing cooking vacations and hands on cooking classes in Crete last 15 years and having guests both Vegetarians and Omnivorous I have worked this beautiful dish to both options! I cooked pork separately and celery separately and Vegetarians 





can enjoy the meat free option and for the meat eaters I just “pantrepsa” (marry) as we say in Crete mixed / combined  meat and celery and the result is the pork with celery in egg and lemon sauce. Just beautiful! Enjoy



PART 1. 
VEGETARIAN: CELERY IN EGG AND LEMON SAUCE
Need:
500g celery stalks and leaves

1 middle size onion chopped

1/2 cup of olive oil 1 cup = 250g)
 Directions:

In a saucepan, heat the oil and sauté the onion 

and then the celery first the stalks 

and a little later the leaves and that because stalks needs a little longer to be cooked 

Add the celery and cook for 30 minutes, 

until the celery is tender and only about 1 cup of liquid remains. 


PART 2. 
PREPARING THE PORK
Need:
500g boneless pork
1/2 cup olive oil
1 middle size chopped onion
salt and pepper
Directions:
Same way as we did before for the celery.
Brown the meat with the onions in the oil. Add water enough to cover the meat and cook until done. (45-50 minutes)

PART 3. 
PORK WITH CELERY IN EGG AND LEMON SAUCE
The "WEDDING" (mixing the 2 casseroles)

Combine both stewed pork and celery in same casserole and  continue cooking on low hit for 10 more minutes.

Make the eggs and lemon sauce
Need 2 eggs and the juice of 1 1/2 lemon. 

Beat the eggs in a bowl. 


Add the lemon juice and beat the mixture well. 


Temper the sauce by slowly adding some of the hot liquid from the meat to the egg-lemon mixture, beating it in thoroughly. 
Pour the egg-lemon mixture over the meat and shake the pan gently. 


When the food is done remove the casserole from heat and pour in the sauce slowly, stiring at the same time.

Serve warm

Enjoy!!
Questions? Feel free to contact: info@portoclub.gr 



Πέμπτη 27 Νοεμβρίου 2014

GREEK RECIPES: BERGAMOT FRUIT TURNED IN SPOON SWEET


Bergamot spoon sweet
Bergamonto, Bergamot, a kind of citrus fruit
Bergamot is a citrus which is orange and looks like a lemon.

Bergamot is about the size of an orange but its shape is between an orange and a big lemon and its colour looks more like an orange except Crete that it’s more like a big thick lemon.

Bergamots can be found in Crete, Greece, and other Mediterranean areas.


Carefully selected fresh bergamots are cooked with the sole addition of sugar, water and lemon juice.    

Need:
2  kg Bergamot orange
2 kg s
2 springs of “amberosa” (aromatic plant) called rose geranium or if you cannot find this plant vanilla
Juice from 1 lemon

Directions:
Wash the fruit and slightly grate them to get rid of the bitter layer of the peel.

With a knife cut through the skin of bergamots in 2 pieces and using a spoon take off the flesh fruit. In this recipe we use only the peel

With a knife cut through each peel of bergamots to smaller in 6-8 places 
















For every kg of peel we need 1 kg sugar, so weigh the peels.
Place the pieces in a pot, Cover them with the sugar and let them stand for 2 hours covered.
Place the pot on the stove, add two cups of water and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat and let them cook for about an hour until the syrup is thick.
Add the amberossa

We add the lemon juice and remove the pot from the stove. Cover the pot with a marquisette and let it cool.

In Crete, spoon sweets are still homemade in small quantities, according to the kind of fruits available during the year as they follow the seasons.


You can follow same procedure using any similar kind of fruits available in your area and enjoy an absolutely healthy sweet as its just the fruit, sugar and water

Questions? Feel free to contact: info@portoclub.gr