Spicing things up

Swimming in the beautiful, clean waters of the Mediterranean Sea with the sun beaming on your bare shoulders and cheeks, feeling the hot sand between your toes as you run towards the shielding shadow of a seaside taverna, eating freshly caught fish while a cool, summer breeze blows across your face, drying your salty hair—there is nothing that can compare to that. Being on summer vacation on a Greek island is one of the best experiences in the world.

Last summer, my vacation was just like that and it was perhaps the most amazing I've had in my whole adult life. Spent on a Greek island that I fell totally in love with; Kefalonia. This summer though, no Greek island vacation for S and me. We are left reminiscing the wonderful time we had last year. Being in Holland during this summer is all too different. There are no dreamy Aegean or Ionian beaches, light blue seas and island sunsets. No, here we have the not so appealing deep North Sea, crazy summer winds and this year in particular, a peculiarly insane weather.





Holland is notorious for its fickle weather, especially during the summer. The day can begin with a slight chill, followed by lots of sunshine and then, when you least expect it, the rain can pour down on you, soaking you right down to your underwear in a matter of seconds, only to be followed by a reappearing sun. I had to learn to deal with it.





This year though, the Dutch summer has become envious of the Southern European one. The temperatures have risen to unprecedented highs making the heat impossible to bear. Sure, being from Greece I'm used to high temperatures during summertime but when I lived in Athens, my apartment was air-conditioned. Here, I only have a meager fan—I never thought I'd need a bigger or better one—which is very close to producing its last current of air. I believe we've used it to death.





All this heat paired with the awful humidity, had made it impossible for me to spend any time in the kitchen. This I think angers me the most about this blazing hot weather. I, not being able to stay in the kitchen for more than a few minutes, me, not wanting to cook anything; this is preposterous. And just when I was beginning to believe that all hope was lost, a sudden breeze came bursting in. A rejuvenating, refreshing light wind finally began blowing through the wide open windows of my apartment, making its way into the kitchen. That was it. I was back!





What I had missed the most, was grilling. But don't go thinking that I'm referring to an open barbecue grill. I'm living in an apartment with a small balcony that overlooks other people's grills. There is no room for fancy stuff like that here. Just a convenient grill/griddle pan that actually manages to heat up the whole seven square meters of the room I call my kitchen.





We really love burgers in this house and by burgers I mean burger patties, not the traditional American burgers even though, let's be honest, we never say no to one or two (or three) of those. Being Greek, burger patties are automatically associated with souvlaki, where you take a Greek pita, wrap it around a couple of patties, add tomatoes and tzatziki and you're set. But we were not in the mood for a Greek souvlaki. We wanted to change things up a bit. The taste buds need a change from time to time, don't they? Keep them in shape. We were in the mood for a little spice; a little Indian spice.





The general idea here is the same as souvlaki. Pita, burger patties, some chopped vegetables, onions and instead of the Greek tzatziki, raita. Raita is an Indian yoghurt-based condiment, flavored with spices and finely chopped vegetables or even fruit. Indian food is rather spicy so the raita works as a cooling agent. The acidity of the yoghurt cools the mouth down creating a pleasant sensation, taking away the heat of the spices.





Chicken is the meat of choice in this recipe, mixed up with a number of different spices like paprika and cumin. The raita echoes the flavor of the chicken burgers with the addition of roasted cumin seeds and the sultanas, which are golden raisins, give a welcomed sweetness to the whole dish. The grilled pita halves are filled with the reddish-hued chicken burgers—a color rendered to them by the spices—sliced cucumbers, red onion and flat-leaf parsley. They are full of flavor, with the spices waking up your senses. The slathering of a spoonful of raita on top of the burgers adds another level of complexity to the dish and brings your palate to life.





Serve these delicious chicken pita burgers at a grill party—if you're lucky enough to have a yard and a barbecue grill that would be perfect—accompanied by raita and an array of sliced vegetables like cucumber, beefsteak tomatoes and carrots. To wash everything down, have an Indian beer like Kingfisher or an Australian Shiraz red wine. They are the ideal complement to this Indian-spiced dish.











Indian-Spiced Chicken Pita Burgers with a Cumin and Sultana Raita
Chicken burger recipe adapted from Everyday Food

I wouldn't suggest you skip on making the raita since it complements the chicken burgers perfectly. They are not the same without it.

I always prefer chicken breasts for burgers but you can also use thighs.

You can most certainly use coriander leaves instead of flat-leaf parsley.

I used white (they are called white but their color ranges from beige to light brown) mustard seeds for the raita but you can use brown or even black mustard seeds. Keep in mind though that the black and brown seeds are very pungent and spicy.





Yield: 4 main-course servings / 2 cups of raita*

Ingredients

for raita
450 g plain full-fat yoghurt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp cumin seeds
1/4 tsp white mustard seeds
3 Tbsp sultanas (golden raisins)

for chicken burgers
730 g boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into rough chunks
4 green onions, white and pale green parts only, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
2 Tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1 heaped Tbsp paprika
1 ¼ tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper powder
1½ tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Vegetable oil for greasing the grill
4 pitas, around 15 cm in diameter each
1 cucumber (250 g), thinly sliced on the diagonal
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
20 g fresh flat-leaf parsley, thick part of stalks cut off

Special equipment: large food processor, large grill pan (this is the one I use)


Preparation

Make the raita
Place yoghurt in a small bowl and add sugar, salt and cayenne pepper. Mix everything with a spoon, creating a creamy mixture.

Heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat and as soon as the oil starts to shimmer, add cumin and mustard seeds. After a few seconds, when mustard seeds start to pop—it is best to place a splatter screen on top of the skillet to prevent seeds from flying all around your stove top—take skillet off the heat and immediately add the sultanas. Stir once to coat the sultanas with the oil and quickly empty everything over the yoghurt. Stir well with a spoon to combine, cover bowl with cling film and place in the refrigerator.

Make the chicken burgers
In a medium-sized bowl, place chicken pieces, green onions, chopped ginger, lemon juice, paprika, cumin, cardamom, cayenne, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss with a spoon to combine everything. Cover the bowl with cling film and place chicken in the refrigerator for an hour to marinate.


Transfer chicken to a large food processor and, using on/off turns, process mixture until the chicken is roughly chopped. Pulse about 15 times but not more because you don't want the mixture to become pasty.
Using your hands, gently shape mixture into sixteen 2 cm-thick patties with a 5-6 cm diameter (2½ - 3 Tbsp of mixture each).
Remember to always wash your hands well after handling raw chicken.

Grill the chicken burgers
Oil your grill and heat over medium-high heat. Once it gets very hot (in order to check, you can pour a few drops of water on the grill and if they sizzle it is ready) add the chicken burgers. Grill for 8 minutes on one side and 6-7 minutes on the other or until chicken is cooked through. Chicken should always be cooked well done.
Don't press down the patties while grilling because they will lose all their juiciness.


Grill pitas
Cut pitas in half crosswise and as soon as the chicken burgers are done, place pitas on the grill. Cook them for 1-2 minutes per side.

Assemble and serve pita burgers
Place two chicken patties into each pita pocket, 2-3 cucumber slices, sliced red onions and parsley.

Take raita out of the fridge and stir well with a spoon. Spoon raita over the pita burgers or serve it on the side.


*Raita can also be used as a dip for different vegetables.

And now for something completely different

The Greek football team traveled all the way to South Africa and tried their hardest to go through to the next round of the World Cup. Unfortunately, they didn't make it. It all came to a sad end a couple of weeks ago when we lost to Argentina. The Netherlands on the other hand are in the final. Hup Holland Hup! (Go Holland Go!).




Ever since I moved to Holland I don't only support my own country's football team but my adoptive one's as well. I'm becoming quite the fan. I love how these boys play ball. No, I'm not an expert, S. is. When the World Cup started, I had to be reminded all over again what an 'offside' is, who the men wearing those all-black uniforms and using a whistle are and why there is a big dot painted in front of the goal line.





My boyfriend was getting pretty angry with me each time I asked any irrelevant, to him, question during the matches but I did a good job at figuring things out in the end. So, after the first couple of weeks, I was the one looking forward to the next game.






I was cursing at the tv whenever a footballer was being selfish and didn't pass the ball, I shouted at the tv whenever the referee (yes, the one with the all-black uniform and the whistle) gave a yellow card to the wrong guy and I was celebrating by doing the winner's dance (um, you don't want to know what that is) whenever we won. I was also entertaining S., who was constantly laughing while witnessing my complete transformation to a proper football fan.
Well, there is another reason I like watching football. C' mon, what woman wouldn't enjoy watching cute guys running around all sweaty for an hour and a half. Isn't that why women watch sports anyway?






So, Sunday evening. The big match. The Netherlands against Spain. What a match that will be. If Holland wins it's going to be huge, naturally. The Dutch are immensely proud of their football team. All of Holland will be painted orange (the national color), vuvuzelas will be heard all the way to Australia and I will be celebrating along with the Dutch. Wish Holland good luck!





Watching a game of football can be quite a thrill. Especially when it's the final of the World Cup. That is as suspenseful as can get. So, instead of biting your nails or fidgeting in your chair nibble on some of these treats. I know I will.





Spiced mixed nuts with brown sugar and paprika and spicy, sweet popcorn cayenne, cinnamon and hazelnuts. You are going to love these. I assure you. The crunchy almonds, pecans, cashews and hazelnuts are covered in a blanket of spice and heat. This is a deliciously luscious, sticky, crisp, salty, fiery, fragrant snack.





Then comes the popcorn. Though this is no ordinary popcorn; this is popcorn revamped into a flavorsome, piquant, sweet and tangy gift for your taste buds. Dark brown caramel, hazelnuts and freshly popped corn all tossed together creating a crisp combination that tingles your mouth and makes you want more.





Give some to the demanding male population, otherwise known as your boyfriend's/husband's friends who will be flocking to your house to watch the game and these treats will surely keep them satisfied. Add a couple of cold beers to the mix and they'll all be set.





I love munching on these snacks while watching movies and they are perfect served at a party. You can't fill the small serving bowls quickly enough. Wrap them in some nice glossy paper or a cute box and give them as a hostess gift or take them to office. Just make sure you keep them hidden in your desk drawer otherwise everyone will want some.










Spiced Nuts
Adapted from epicurious

I used a mix of four kinds of nuts but you can definitely use only one kind.
In case you don't want pecans you can substitute with walnuts.

(Read this on how to store nuts properly)

Yield: 4 1/2 cups

Ingredients
2 large egg whites
1 1/2 tsp salt
100 g light brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp sweet paprika (preferably Hungarian)
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper powder
60 g unsalted butter
150 g unsalted blanched whole almonds
210 g unsalted blanched whole hazelnuts
120 g unsalted pecan halves
140 g unsalted cashews

Special equipment: hand held mixer


Preparation
In a small saucepan, add the butter and heat over medium heat until it melts. Remove from heat and let it cool completely.

Preheat your oven to 160 degrees Celsius.

In a large bowl, add the egg whites and salt and beat them with a hand held mixer on medium speed until soft and foamy. With the mixer still running, add the sugar in three batches and then add the Worcestershire sauce, the paprika and the cayenne pepper. You don't want the mixture to become too thick. It should have the consistency of lightly beaten cream.

Add the nuts and the melted butter to the mixture and stir well with a rubber spatula, making sure that all the nuts are coated well.

Empty the nuts inside the baking tray (which you don't need to grease or cover with baking paper) and spread them evenly around the tray.


Bake nuts on the middle rack of the oven for 30-40 minutes. Every 10 minutes or so, take tray out of the oven and, using a metal spatula, toss, stir and separate the nuts. Spread them evenly again and place tray back in the oven. Bake nuts until they take on a golden brown color. Be careful not to burn them.

Once ready, toss and stir the nuts and move them to a wire rack lined with baking paper. Spread them evenly and let them cool completely. The nuts will become crisp as they cool. Break up any nut clusters and serve.

You can store the spiced nuts in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 to 1 1/2 weeks.









Spicy Caramel Popcorn
Adapted from Rocco DiSpirito

You can use hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans or even peanuts for this recipe.

For a kid-friendly version just omit the cayenne pepper.






Yield: a big bowl of caramel popcorn

Ingredients
200 g unsalted blanched hazelnuts
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon, ground
2 Tbsp corn oil
220 g popcorn kernels
420 g sugar
Salt

Special equipment: small food processor


Preparation
Put hazelnuts, cayenne pepper and cinnamon in a food processor and chop them finely.

Make the popcorn
In a large, high-sided pot, add the oil and one popcorn kernel and heat over medium heat with the lid closed. When the kernel pops, remove it from the pot and add the rest of the kernels. Put the lid on and shake the pot every minute or so while cooking. When there is no popping sound for a 5-second period then your popcorn is ready. Remove pot from heat and empty popcorn into a large bowl. Sprinkle generously with salt and toss the popcorn.

Line a large baking tray with baking paper.


Make the caramel
Heat a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over high heat for about 3 minutes. Add the sugar and keep stirring continuously with a heatproof rubber spatula until the sugar melts and turns a light brown caramel color. Be very careful not to burn the caramel. Also be extremely careful because the caramel will be very, very hot. Don't try to touch the caramel with your bare hands at any point. Don't try to taste it!

Turn heat off and immediately add the finely chopped hazelnuts to the caramel. Quickly stir to combine. Don't stir too much, just enough to coat the hazelnuts.
Working quickly because you don't want the caramel to cool and harden, yet carefully because the caramel might burn you, add all the popcorn to the caramel. Stir well to completely coat the popcorn, pulling caramel and popcorn up from the bottom of the pan. Be careful not to break the popcorn.

Pour caramel corn onto the lined baking tray, spreading it evenly. Let it cool and sprinkle with a little salt. Break popcorn into bite-sized pieces and serve.

You can store the popcorn in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.

Family ties

My mom says that I got the knack for cooking from my grandfather and that always brings a huge smile to my face. I loved my grandfather tremendously. He was a very important figure in my life and a very talented person. He was a painter, a sculptor and a home cook and whenever he was cooking or working on his art, he was always whistling. Sometimes I can still hear his whistle if I close my eyes and concentrate hard enough...






My grandfather loved to cook. He would stay in the kitchen for hours, preparing marmalades and jams, pies and breads, all kinds of savory dishes and desserts. He liked to experiment with different ingredients and he used to watch French cooking shows on satellite tv, trying to pick up new ideas for dishes and constantly coming up with new recipes. What he also did, was make sure to take the credit for whatever he had cooked, letting everyone know that he was the one responsible for the delicious food on the table and not my grandmother. He was funny that way.






He had a summer house by the sea where my brother and I spent every summer with him and my grandmother. He used to dive and catch mussels, clams and octopuses for us all the time. There is a specific image of him etched in my mind. He, sitting at the veranda with a big plate of raw, freshly caught clams on his lap, prying them open one by one with the help of a huge knife, squeezing a couple of drops of lemon over them and then quickly sucking them down with a loud, slurping sound.






To him, eating was a ritual. He sat at the head of the table, enjoyed every single bite and he demanded that the bread basket and the bottle of ouzo were always situated next to him. He couldn't live without his crusty bread and his shot of ouzo. The practice of sitting at the dinner table and savoring the meal for more than an hour or sometimes hours if having company, nibbling on various mezedes (plural for mezes) and sipping ouzo, is characteristic of all the Greeks from Constantinople (Istanbul). My grandfather was born and raised in Constantinople or 'Poli' as we Greeks call it for short. He lived there until his mid-30s and then moved to Piraeus, Greece with my grandmother- who was originally a Greek from Poli and the city of Smyrna- and their two children; my mom and my uncle.






What they brought with them, as every other Greek from Poli did, was a food culture very much distinguished from the traditional Greek one. A food culture and a type of cooking influenced and shaped by the intermingling of the traditional Greek culinary customs and those of Anatolia (Asia Minor). The extensive use of spices, the utter importance of food in everyday life, the celebratory way of viewing food in general, are elements that are deeply rooted in my family's culinary consciousness. The type of cooking of the Greeks from Poli is called 'Politiki Cuisine'.
You can catch a glimpse of what it means to be a Greek from Constantinople and the importance of food, in the wonderful Greek movie 'A touch of spice' ('Politiki Kouzina').






I was brought up with that kind of cooking. My earliest memories of food include lots of spices and heavy sauces, an array of dishes, the names of which I couldn't even pronounce because of their Turkish origin, and a reverence toward the ritual of eating, especially when we had guests. The abundance of food served at a gathering was, and still is at such occasions, monumental. If just the main meal and a salad are on the table, it is considered shameful by my grandmother and my mom. They need to have at least five or six dishes of mezedes around to call it a proper meal.






Pastourmas (seasoned air-cured beef), soutzouki (a dry and very spicy sausage), dolmadakia (vine leaves stuffed with rice and mint), soutzoukakia (beef patties in a tomato sauce), piazi beans (white bean salad with onions, parsley, olive oil and vinegar), Politiki salad (grated carrot and white cabbage tossed with vinegar and olive oil), eggplant imam baildi (stuffed eggplants with onions and tomato), tas kebab (beef or lamb in a spicy red sauce), hunkiar beyiendi (an eggplant purée with diced meat) are a sample of Politiki Cuisine along with the famous desserts like baklava, ekmek kataifi and a delicious and refreshing drink called airani (yoghurt mixed with water and salt).






I could go on and on with a never-ending list of dishes. I want to dedicate a post to each and every one of them and I will at some point, but as an introduction to Politiki Cuisine I chose one of my favorite dishes in the world; Manti. (Manti is the name of the dish but manti is also the name of each small pouch of filled pasta. The plural is also manti). I am so excited to be sharing this recipe with all of you. Manti are the Greek-Turkish original ravioli or tortellini. I'm sorry to any Italians out there but the Turks came up with this dish first.
Manti is actually a dumpling with a pasta-type dough, filled with ground meat, usually lamb or beef, mixed with spices and it is either boiled, steamed or baked in the oven. It is served with a yoghurt sauce and red pepper and there are versions of it that call for an additional tomato sauce though I find that to be too much.






Making your own dough for the manti is crucial. There are those who use wonton or other ready-made wraps but I prefer the old fashioned way of making my own. It is a fairly easy process of combining flour with water, though you may find that in most Turkish versions of this recipe they tend to add eggs. The Greek version is a bit lighter.
For the filling, I prefer using a mixture of ground beef and pork, bulgur wheat and spices. The pork doubtlessly adds some extra flavor to the manti and the bulgur, which is widely used in Politiki Cuisine, gives a nutty flavor to the overall dish. The filled manti are baked in the oven and once they are almost cooked, they are drenched in beef stock and put again in the oven to soak up all the juices. The dish is served with a sauce of Greek strained yoghurt and mashed garlic and it is topped with ground red hot pepper and sumac.






It is an immensely tasty and aromatic dish and its authenticity and rustic quality makes it unique. The cooked dough is crunchy and browned on top and deliciously moist at the bottom, overflowing with all the scrumptious juices from the meat and melted butter. The nutty flavor of the bulgur is a perfect match for the pungent spices. It has a superb spicy flavor and I have to admit, it is rather heavy. The yoghurt-garlic sauce on top, as well as the red pepper and sumac, add a complexity to the overall dish, giving it a hint of heat, sharpness and acidity, while the yoghurt succeeds in making it a bit lighter.

Delicious, healthy bulgur

Manti is a main dish that will surely fill you up and give you an incomparable tasting experience. It is ideally served with a simple salad of shredded carrot and cabbage dressed with olive oil and red wine vinegar. A carafe of ouzo or a tall glass of beer would be a fitting accompaniment to the dish.






Whenever I make these kind of dishes I feel a sense of accomplishment and a connection to my family's roots. I'm sure that if my grandfather was alive he would be very proud of me.
Do you ever feel the same way? Do you have a specific kind of cuisine that links you to your ancestors? Are there dishes that remind you of loved ones?










Politiko Manti (Greek pasta-type dough filled with minced meat and spices with a yoghurt-garlic sauce)

Manti is the name of the dish but manti is also the name of each small pouch of filled pasta. The plural is also manti.

This dish is truly exceptional but it does take a lot of time to prepare.

The recipe calls for beef stock. You can make your own, you can use canned beef stock or cubes.

In case you don't like pork, you can use just ground beef or a mix of ground beef and veal or lamb. Greeks always choose veal over beef, we don’t particularly enjoy the mature flavor of beef, but you can use either.

The yoghurt-garlic sauce contains 4 garlic cloves which might sound a lot, but that is the point. This is the way the dish is supposed to be. You can of course use less garlic or even more, depending on how much you enjoy it.

If you can't find the spice sumac, you can substitute with a little freshly grated lemon mixed with a pinch of salt.







Yield: about 65 manti / 6-8 servings

Ingredients

for the dough
500 g all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
280-290 ml tap water

for the filling
300 g ground veal or beef
100 g ground pork
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 large onions, grated or finely chopped in the food processor
1/3 cup (65 g) bulgur wheat
2 heaped tsp tomato paste
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

for the yoghurt-garlic sauce
500 g Greek strained yoghurt (preferably full fat)
4 medium-sized garlic cloves

750 ml hot beef stock
30 g unsalted butter at room temperature for greasing the baking dish
45 g plus 30 g melted unsalted butter for brushing the manti
Cayenne pepper, ground (or other red hot pepper such as the Greek boukovo or the Turkish pul biber or aleppo)
Sumac, ground (optional)

Special equipment: small food processor or large grater, large baking dish (the one I used was a 40 x 30 cm ceramic baking dish), garlic press or mortar and pestle, rolling pin


Preparation

Make the dough
In a large bowl, add the flour and salt and mix them with a fork. Make a well in the middle with your hand and add 100 ml of the water. Mix everything with your hands and continue adding water little by little. You might need a little less or a little more water so adding it to the flour a little at a time ensures that you don't end up with a watery and sticky dough.
Continue mixing the water and the flour with your hands until a dough forms. Turn the dough over to a lightly floured surface and knead it for about 8 minutes until you have a tight and firm dough. Place it inside a lightly floured bowl and cover it with a tea towel. Let it rest for 1 - 1 1/2 hours in a cool place (not in the refrigerator).




Make the filling
In a large bowl, add all the ingredients for the filling and mix everything together with your hands for about 5 minutes, until all the ingredients are well blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for half an hour so that the flavors of the filling have a little time to blend.

Make the manti
Lightly dust your work surface, your hands and your rolling pin with flour.
Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces.
Take one piece of dough, roll it in between your hands to make a ball and then roll it out, using the rolling pin, into a large square with a thickness of a little less than 0.5 cm. Then, using a knife, cut the large square into smaller squares (6 x 6 cm). (Make sure the squares are floured enough so that the small manti won't stick together when you place them in the baking dish).

Put a heaped 1/2 tsp of filling at the center of each small square of dough, fold over the dough, creating a rectangle and press all around the edges so that you seal the filling inside the dough. Then take the top two corners of the rectangle and fold them onto one another thus creating a pouch (see the photographs above to get a clear idea of how to make the pouch and what they should look like).

Continue rolling out the rest of the dough pieces, cutting them into 6 x 6 cm squares, filling them and making the small manti.




Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Grease (with 30 g of butter) the bottom and the sides of the baking dish and place each manti (small pouch) inside, arranging the manti one next to the other, and not one on top of the other, until you have filled your baking dish. Also, you must place them in a way that each manti is standing upright, with the filled part of the dough touching the bottom of the baking dish.
When you have filled your baking dish with the manti, brush the tops with 45 g of melted butter and place dish on the lower rack of the oven. Bake the manti for 1 hour until browned.

Note: Once they are ready you must also have ready the hot beef stock.

Take the baking dish out of the oven and turn the heat up to 220 degrees Celsius.
Pour the hot beef stock over the manti, brush the tops again with 30 g of melted butter and place the baking dish back in the oven, on the middle rack. Bake for further 15-20 minutes until the manti have soaked up the beef stock.

Make the yoghurt-garlic sauce
Mash the garlic cloves with a mortar and pestle or using a garlic press. In a medium-sized bowl, add the yoghurt and the mashed garlic and mix with a spoon. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Once manti is ready, take the baking dish out of the oven, and place manti on individual plates. Top with 3 - 4 Tbsp of the yoghurt-garlic sauce and sprinkle with cayenne pepper or other hot red pepper as well as with sumac, if using.

Serve immediately.