A cautionary tale and the best meatballs you'll ever have

Yesterday afternoon, after S and I exercised our right to vote, we decided to go out to dinner. You may notice I use the word afternoon rather than evening referring to dinner, because that's the way things are here in The Netherlands. Most restaurants close their kitchens at around ten o'clock and well, they're empty by nine-thirty anyway. When I first realized this, I was stunned and thought I had moved to a geriatric community rather than an international European city. In Athens, Greece restaurants don't open until nine in the evening. You go out to dinner and you don't come home until one o'clock in the morning. Here though is a different story. The Dutch eat at six o'clock and they are in bed by eleven. How boring, and yet another thing I had to get used to living here.

We were in the mood for Italian so we picked a restaurant not far from our apartment that we haven't been to before, but that we heard through the grapevine that it does great food. I checked out their site and looked elegant and modern, and their menu had a good selection of pasta dishes and entrées. I was kind of excited.
When we got there though, we had another thing coming. First off, I didn't like the ambience of the place. Can't really put my finger on it, perhaps the lighting, the way they'd arranged their tables, it just didn't feel comfortable. Or maybe it was the fact that we were seated at the worst possible table in the restaurant, even though we'd made a reservation. A table right in front of the entrance door, where everyone was bumping onto us and we kept freezing to death by the constant opening and closing of that door.






Moving on, we ordered antipasti for starters that were fairly good, although I don't enjoy seafood like octopus and shrimp on the same plate as prosciutto and mortadella, but that's just me. The wine we had was an overpriced 2007 Chianti that was really nice, right amount of tannins there. Then the main course came, with a delay of 55 minutes! The restaurant had around twelve tables and eight or nine of them had two people sitting at them. How difficult is it to prepare main dishes for that amount of people? We didn't all come at the same time for God's sake! The poor waiter kept apologizing but that actually doesn't matter when you're hungry, does it?






Anyway, I got the veal scallopini with porcini sauce, roast potatoes and braised endive, and S got the pasta with prawns and arugula. Besides the fact that I found a plastic strand in my food that God knows where it came from, the veal was cooked well, the sauce was adequate, but I couldn't find any porcini mushrooms on my plate no matter how hard I looked. The potatoes were bland and not cooked enough, and the endive, even though it was cooked well, it seemed to have been braised in a tomato sauce which has nothing to do with a creamy porcini sauce. Two types of sauces on one plate? C'mon! The pasta dish was nothing special, as S proclaimed. The arugula was too tough, how can that be I have no idea but he kept spitting it into his napkin so that definitely wasn't good.






I have to admit the dessert was satisfactory, but I had a mocha ice cream and ice cream is always satisfactory. S had a créme brulée which I tasted and thought was fine, but he said he have had better. I believed him.
Oh, the highlight of the evening was the complimentary homemade limoncello drinks that were fantastic, but by then it was just too little too late. Our dinner experience was a big disappointment. I gotta tell you, I'm extremely surprised that this restaurant was full and that they were actually turning people away. I'm not gonna name (restaurant) names but I'm also not going there again. I know I'd probably make a rather harsh food critic but hey, I just tell it like it is.






We should've stayed home instead and enjoyed this great food! Greek meatballs (called "keftedakia" in Greek) with fennel seeds and a yoghurt sauce with fresh mint and lemon zest. Does that sound great or what? I assure you it not only sounds great it tastes great as well.





This is another Greek mezes that is a classic. We love meatballs in Greece and there are innumerable combinations for their preparation. The use of different kinds of minced meat like lamb, beef, veal or pork gives different taste and character to the meatballs. The addition of various herbs like mint, parsley or thyme, or the use of spices like cinnamon, allspice and cumin makes meatballs unique and adventurous. They can be eaten on their own, paired with roast or fried potatoes -which is one of my favorite meals-, they can be fried and then cooked in a rich tomato sauce, or served with a simple dipping sauce.






The ones I'm sharing with you here are made with both beef and pork meat which is a perfect combination. The addition of crushed fennel seeds and spices like cinnamon, cloves, ground coriander and cayenne pepper make these meatballs highly aromatic and pungent. They are accompanied by a Greek yoghurt dipping sauce which is both refreshing and luscious, bursting with the fragrance of the fresh mint and the lemon zest, complementing the rich flavors of the meatballs.






This mezes is perfect with ouzo as its aniseed flavor brings out the taste of the fennel seeds in the meatballs. You can also accompany them with white wine like a lovely bottle of Riesling. They're perfect for a dinner party, served as starters, or as part of a buffet, or prepared with a side of French fries and a tomato salad for a family lunch.











Keftedakia me Marathosporous kai Saltsa Giaourtiou-Dyosmou (Greek Spiced Meatballs with Fennel Seeds and a Yoghurt-Mint Dipping Sauce)
Adapted from Myrsini Lambraki

Greeks always choose veal over beef, we don’t particularly enjoy the mature flavor of beef, but you can use either.

Frying these delicious meatballs will fill your house with the smells of Greece. I used olive oil to fry my meatballs but you can substitute with another vegetable oil like sunflower seed oil or corn oil if you want them to be a little lighter.
It's also important that you don't use very fatty meat because the meatballs will be heavy and greasy.





Yield: 40-45 small meatballs / 2 cups yoghurt-mint sauce

Ingredients

for meatballs
250 g minced pork
250 g minced beef or veal
1 large onion, grated
1 medium-sized egg
1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup very fine cornmeal
1 Tbsp olive oil plus 1 cup olive oil for frying

for yoghurt-mint sauce
2 cups Greek strained yoghurt like Total
2 Tbsp fresh mint leaves, chopped
1 tsp lemon zest, grated
1 Tbsp olive oil

Preparation

for meatballs
Using a mortar and pestle crush the fennel seeds until they become almost powder.

In a large bowl, place minced beef and pork meat, egg, grated onion, crushed fennel seeds, ground coriander, cinnamon, cloves, cayenne pepper, salt and 1 Tbsp of olive oil. Mix well with your hands for about 10 minutes, until all the ingredients are well blended. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour so that the flavors "blend" and the mixture "matures".

Place the cornmeal in a bowl.

Using your hands, shape into small meatballs and roll them in the cornmeal. Put them in a sieve and shake them around, letting excess cornmeal escape through the sieve and into the bowl.

Heat 1 cup of olive oil in a large skillet on high heat until oil is really hot and put meatballs inside. Immediately turn the heat down to medium and let meatballs fry, turning them over once with tongs, for about 10 minutes or until cooked through and until they have taken a nice golden brown color on the outside.
Remove them from skillet with a slotted spoon and place them on paper towels to drain off excessive fat.

Place the meatballs in a bowl and serve immediately.

for yoghurt-mint sauce
In a bowl, mix yoghurt, chopped mint leaves, grated lemon peel, olive oil and salt with a spoon until the mixture is well blended. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate. You can prepare the sauce one day ahead.
Before serving just stir again with a spoon.

To serve, place meatballs and yogurt sauce in clean bowls. Meatballs must be warm when you serve them. They should be served straight from the frying pan.

Bread for the masses

I live in The Hague, the international city of peace and justice, for almost three years now. I know I've been complaining about the weather, the fact that I have no family or close friends here, about missing my own country, but I have to admit, this is a city I'm proud to live in.

On March 3rd we have municipal elections here and expats are allowed to vote. Yesterday evening I attended the first ever political debate in The Netherlands and probably the first one in Europe that was held for expats in the English language. I was amazed that such a debate was taking place. The fact that the Dutch were acknowledging the fact that I too live here, that I too have rights and demands and responsibilities, that I too would like to know what the different parties stand for and what are their views on the issues that concern me, was a gesture of respect and acceptance.






Having lived in Greece for most of my life, this notion of a debate for expats seems incomprehensible. I could not imagine such a debate ever taking place in Greece, the land that had actually given birth to democracy, but still the land that its current democracy leads people to despair and uncertainty as a result of the government's- both past and present- horrible economic and social management. It saddens me that my country is so far from the European ideal in many issues, let alone the issues facing expats living in Greece.
Don't get me wrong, I do love my country and I'm not suggesting that my adoptive country is a perfect one, but I'm happy that it is liberal and democratic, forward and supportive of its new members. Because, after all, it's such a great feeling to be included and to feel welcome in the city or country you choose to live in.






I am a political and social being but I don't want to confuse you, this is still a food blog. And what better time than now to be sharing a recipe adapted from a Dutch chef. A very accomplished and highly respected Dutch chef, Rudolph Van Veen. The recipe is a simple bread roll, a quick bread roll to be exact. When I saw the recipe I thought "this is for me!". We're always out of bread around here and what a better way to tackle that than by making my own and in no time. I know I've promised you a particular bread recipe on a previous post but first things first. Let's begin with an easy one.






Now, don't expect this bread to be the classic soft, chewy bread. These qualities are given by the addition of yeast and this recipe does not contain any. What it does contain is whole-wheat flour for good health, baking powder which gives it its lift and a good amount of mascarpone cheese which gives it its unique flavor.






This bread roll, which is almost like a scone, is dense and a little bit crumbly with a beautiful golden brown crust. The slightly tangy flavor from the flour and the hint of sweetness from the mascarpone give an original taste to these bread rolls. You can eat them for breakfast with lots of butter and jam, for lunch with some goat's cheese and cold cuts of chicken or turkey, for a snack with salami and a couple of lettuce leaves and of course you can choose them to accompany your dinner.











Quick-and-Easy Whole-Wheat Bread Rolls
Adapted from Rudolph Van Veen

The original recipe calls for créme fraiche but I opted for something more luscious than that, mascarpone. You can also use cream cheese instead.







Yield: 10 bread rolls

Ingredients
450 g whole-wheat flour
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
150 g mascarpone cheese
250 ml lukewarm water

1 egg, beaten, for coating

Preparation
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Choose the air circulation setting.

Using a large bowl or a smooth surface in your kitchen to work on , mix the flour, salt and baking powder until well blended. You can use your hands or a wooden spoon to do this. I prefer using my hands.
Create a hole in the middle of the flour mixture, pour the lukewarm water in it and add the mascarpone.
Begin mixing the ingredients by hand by bringing the flour slowly towards the mascarpone and water, mixing the ingredients, incorporating them and creating a dough.
Knead until you have a firm dough. This whole procedure does not take more than 3-4 minutes.
Roll the dough out into a French baguette-style loaf, 5-6 cm in diameter and cut it into two large, equal pieces with a knife. Then take each large piece and cut it into five small equal pieces. Take each little piece and roll it into a ball. The size should be a little smaller than a tennis ball.




Line a baking sheet with baking paper or a non-stick mat and place the bread rolls on it.
Beat one whole egg and brush the top of each bread roll. Cut the top of each roll with a knife, making a cross, and put baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven. Bake for 15 minutes and then lower the oven to 190 degrees Celsius and bake for another 7-8 minutes. They should be golden brown on top and cooked all the way through.
Remove from the oven and place bread rolls on a wire rack to cool.

They're best eaten the same day but they're also delicious the next.

Beetroot pick-me-up

I don't know which part of the world you're living in, dear reader, what your images are when you look outside your window, what are the aromas you breathe or the sounds you hear when you open your front door in the morning on your way to work. My images, for the last couple of days, are of gloomy dark skies, my aromas are those of damp wet grass, my sounds are those of rain trickling down my windows. I'm in need of some serious lifting up.

I tried battling my blues by playing my favorite music as loud as possible (that has always been my go-to trick) thus ignoring my neighbors, but that only works temporarily. I tried watching some early episodes of Seinfeld to have a good laugh, but as soon as I turned the TV off, my blues came back to creep up on me. I tried talking on the phone with my favorite people (on the phone and not in person because all but one of my favorite people are in Greece and not in Holland), but that had no effect either.






Now, if you expect me to tell you that I miraculously cheered up by cooking something that blew me away and took my sense of taste to another level, then you're mistaken. You're mistaken in that I miraculously cheered up, though not about the "blew me away" part. Because yes my friends, I might love and appreciate food, but unfortunately it's not enough to change my mood (S. knows this well). And, ok, I might exaggerate a bit about my sense of taste taken to another higher level after savoring this but... truth be told, I got a little excited. Correction, I got really excited. That's why I want to share this recipe. A recipe good enough to excite me when I'm in this state is definitely good enough to excite anyone!






Looking through my magazine clippings for recipes, needing something different to cook, it was color that jumped out at me not a recipe. The color was so bright I was immediately tempted to read on, and it wasn't all looks, this baby had substance. It was a purée but not a common, boring milk-and-potato purée that you serve to those you loathe rather than lust, it was a beetroot purée. Beetroot, yes! I was smiling, because now the beetroot is in season. Lucky me! So, I got on with it. Bought the beets from my greengrocer (organic of course), stopped by the super market to buy the rest of the ingredients, which were less than four and then straight home to try it.




A couple of hours later, dinner was served. Beetroot purée with potatoes, walnuts, garlic and olive oil, and a nice pan-seared fillet of tilapia. Drooling yet? If this vibrant color, reminiscent of mediterranean summer sunsets, doesn't stir you up then I don't know what will.

Well, if you think you're getting a mushy bowl of beetroots and potatoes then look again. Go ahead, look at the photographs. Does that look mushy to you? No. Some may say "but that's what I want from a purée" and I could have agreed if I hadn't known the existence of this purée. It is light and mousse-like in texture and at the same time it has this crunch from the walnuts that pleasantly surprises you. There's a little kick from the garlic and sweetness from the beetroot that marry so well with the starchiness of the potato and the richness of the olive oil, making this, one incredible side dish.






You can pair it with any white meat but I prefer fish, which I actually think is the perfect pairing. You can use tuna, or monkfish, or sea bass, or the humble tilapia like I did, or whatever fish you fancy, though I wouldn't recommend the salmon. It's too oily for this purée. Whichever fish you eventually use, make sure to top it with lemon or even lime juice. Believe me, the combination will be heavenly.
If you want a salad to accompany your dish, then a green leafy salad with a splash of white wine vinegar and olive oil would be the best.
And if you want some wine to go with that, then why don't you pick a nice fruity Chardonnay with high acidity, served chilled. That would be my choice. Although we didn't have any, because my boyfriend is on medication for this terrible flu he's been fighting for the last ten days and I hate to drink alone. But you go ahead! Enjoy!







By the way, one thing that always cheers me up is seeing your comments. It encourages me to go on rambling about my life and writing about my food.
So thank you!







Poures Pantzariou me Patates kai Karydia (Greek Beetroot Purée with Potatoes and Walnuts)
Adapted from the Greek magazine "K"

This recipe is so easy and delicious and most of the ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen cabinets.
You just need a little time for the vegetables to roast and the help of a food processor or a good old-fashioned vegetable mill.






Yield: 4-6 side-dish servings

Ingredients
6 medium-sized beetroots
6 medium-sized floury potatoes
1 medium-sized garlic clove
100 g walnuts, ground
1/2 cup olive oil plus extra for pouring over vegetables before roasting
Salt
Freshly ground white pepper
3 Tbsp chives, finely chopped (optional)

Special equipment: food processor or vegetable mill

Preparation
Preheat your oven to 190 degrees Celsius.
Wash beetroots and potatoes well under cold water. Place them in a large baking pan, spaced apart, sprinkle them with salt and pour a little olive oil on top. Roast them on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The beetroots are ready when you can insert a toothpick in the middle.

In the meantime, place walnuts in the food processor and grind them. Not too finely, you don't want them to become pasty or too oily.

When beetroots and potatoes are cooked, leave them to cool slightly and then peel them. It's better to use a pair of gloves to do this.

Cut beetroots in medium-sized pieces and place them in the food processor (or vegetable mill) along with the garlic clove, and chop them finely. Pour 1/4 cup of the olive oil in the processor and blend well until the mixture is smooth. Put ground walnuts in the processor and blend well with the beetroot.

It is best to use a vegetable mill or potato masher or even a plain old fork for mashing the potatoes. If you put potatoes in a food processor they tend to "release" their starch and become gluey. We don't want that consistency in this purée.

In a large bowl combine the processed beetroot, walnuts and garlic with the mashed potatoes, the rest 1/4 cup of olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix very well with a spoon until all ingredients are well blended and you have a smooth purée (the texture of course will be slightly grainy from the walnuts).

Garnish your purée with the chopped chives (optional) and serve immediately.

You can also serve this purée when it has completely cooled. It is equally delicious.