The end of an era - moving my blog to Substack

Hello friends! How are you? Long time, no see!

I have a huge announcement to make.

I decided to move all my work (posts and recipes) and mailing list to Substack, a platform that gives me much more freedom and options than my blog could ever give me, and I’m so excited to go on this journey with you.

You who have trusted me all these years by cooking the recipes from my blog and those of you who may have only recently discovered me and want updates on what’s coming.

 

 

Substack is a subscription-based platform that allows writers, content creators, bloggers, journalists etc, to publish newsletters to their audience directly. Readers subscribe to their newsletter (on a free or paid basis) to access their content. 

My Substack newsletter has been in the works for a while now. After writing my food blog for 15 years, I needed a fresh start and a new place to share my recipes, my adventures in the kitchen, my thoughts and ideas about food, cooking and life in general. Substack is the perfect place for that, and I can’t wait to share everything with you.

 

 

There, I’ll be sharing seasonal Greek recipes, both savory and sweet, most of them traditional, others unconventional and/or with a twist, as well as recipes inspired by my travels throughout Europe and beyond and of course by my life here in the Netherlands. All thoroughly tested because there’s nothing more disappointing than recipes that don’t work. Am I right?

So, let’s get to it!

Let’s cook meals for our families and feasts for our friends, let’s bake some delicious cakes and pastries just because we feel like it or for a special occasion. Let’s sort out the busy days with some easy recipes that make sense, to nourish body and soul, let’s cook for our little ones, for our partners and lovers and let’s create memories around the table.

 

 

And if you’re wondering how this works and why subscribe, well, for starters, by subscribing to this newsletter, you get all my new, always tested and exclusive recipes in your email inbox, automatically, without missing a single update.

If you become a free subscriber, you will get 1 brand spanking new recipe per month straight from my kitchen to yours, and a sneak preview of the recipes and posts to come every week.

If you become a paid subscriber (5 euros/month or 48 euros/year — annual subscriptions get a 20% discount, hooray!), apart from my eternal gratitude, you will get 3 additional new recipes each month, plus extra if I can’t wait to share something with you, full access to all my recipes, old and new, no matter when you subscribe, the ability to ask me questions, chat, comment and become part of the community, sneak peeks into my kitchen with voice memos and videos, and the all-important insights into the Greek kitchen pantry, Greek food essentials and ingredients.

Of course, you will also be supporting my work and actively contributing to the making of this newsletter, which would mean the world to me.

So if that all sounds fun to you, please consider becoming a paid subscriber and if you know of anyone else who you think would enjoy this newsletter, please feel free to share and spread the word.

 

I've already share my first recipe there, for Greek melomakarona, so come on over!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

 

The Tyropita

I have no idea how I can successfully catch a cold, which of course develops into a full-fledged flu, the worst possible time when I’m incredibly busy and can’t afford to be sick. Yes, folks, let the complaining begin.

I have the flu, or to be perfectly honest, I’m almost over it because if I were smack in the middle of suffering from it, I wouldn’t be able to write a single word, let alone a whole blog post.

I believe I’m very easy-going when I’m sick. I’m high-maintenance the rest of the time so I give people around me a break when I’m under the weather. Ha! Honestly though, I just sit quietly on the couch, watching my tv shows and films, falling asleep, making my own cup of tea and soup, unlike some other people (let’s not name names) that demand to be waited on hand and foot when they have a plain cold.

But let’s get to the tyropita (τυρόπιτα / pronounciation: tee-roh-pee-tah), the Greek cheese pie, which is the reason I got off my cozy couch. The word tyropita is not a simple word in the Greek language. There’s not a single Greek out there who doesn’t have a very specific image of tyropita in their mind the second they hear the word.

It’s one of the most well-known pies in Greek cuisine (next to spanakopita), a pie that everyone knows how to make and that everyone certainly knows how to devour in record time. And of course everyone has their favorite kind, because yes, there are different kinds of tyropita. Those can either depend on the type of dough used (phyllo, kourou, puff pastry), or the type of cheese(s) used, the most common of course being feta.

My ideal tyropita is one made with puff pastry. That’s the way my mom always made it, and still does. I have no idea why she prefers sfoliata (Greek word for puff pastry) to the traditional Greek phyllo, I’ve never asked her, as I’ve never had any complaints. I greedily ate my piece every single time she prepared tyropita.

Whenever I make my own puff pastry, I always bake a tray of tyropita. I use feta, ricotta (anthotyro when I’m in Greece) and a béchamel sauce all mixed together to create the filling. The result is a salty and slightly sweet cheese pie with that incomparable flavor and texture of puff pastry encasing the cheeses. A flaky, golden-brown and buttery puff pastry that makes my tyropita the best there is.

Find my recipe on my Substack newsletter.  

Here is the link and please subscribe to my Newsletter to get every new post in your email inbox!!

Look forward to seeing you there!!

The Kourabiedes

Since we all managed to survive the Mayan apocalypse and we're still alive, let's enjoy our holidays now, okay?

For me, the holidays officially begin on the day I make the first Christmas cookies. These are of course the traditional Greek kourabiedes and melomakarona.

The moment they go in the oven and my apartment begins to fill with their sweet buttery and spicy aromas, my festive mood kicks in.

I can't believe that after three Christmases writing this blog, I haven't yet posted a traditional Greek Christmas sweet recipe. (Oops, I have!). The time has come though. The time for kourabiedes.

Kourabiedes/κουραμπιέδες (singular: kourabies/κουραμπιές) are shortbread-type cookies that are made with chopped toasted almonds and are covered with lots and lots of icing sugar. This time of year, they're made in every single household around Greece and are greedily eaten by everyone.

As is the case with all traditional Greek recipes, almost every family has their own version of kourabiedes, and in my family they're always made with sheep's milk butter or a combination of goat's and sheep's milk butter. Unfortunately, I can't find it in Holland so I swapped it for cow's milk butter, I made some adjustments to my original recipe since the two butters have different consistencies and my kourabiedes were delicious and buttery and everything a good kourabies should be.

Kourabiedes are generally shaped into crescents or balls, either large or bite-sized ones, and are dusted with copious amounts of icing sugar, which makes them look like little snowy mountains. There's nothing like these Greek cookies to make you feel like Christmas is here. Go on, make them!

Find my recipe on my Substack newsletter.  

Here is the link and please subscribe to my Newsletter to get every new post in your email inbox!!

Look forward to seeing you there!!

 

The Greek Simiti / Koulouri

If you've ever found yourself walking the streets of Athens on an early morning, then you might have happened upon a vendor selling the famous Greek koulouria Thessalonikis otherwise known as simitia.

These small, sesame-crusted bread rings are sold on street corners and bakeries and are the breakfast of choice among the busy Athenians who hurry on their way to work with nothing more than a coffee in their belly. We Greeks are not big on breakfast but when you see these bread rings in front of you, there is no room for resistance.

Before moving to the Netherlands, I have never thought of making simitia myself. There was no point to it since I could go to my neighborhood bakery and get one whenever a craving would hit. Now, things have changed. Now, whenever I crave something from home, I have to make it myself.

Simitia are a common snack and street food for both Greeks and our neighbors, the Turks. They were brought to Greece by Greek refugees from Asia Minor and Constantinople (Istanbul) who settled in Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece, which explains why simiti is also called 'Koulouri Thessalonikis'. Koulouri/κουλούρι (plural: koulouria/κουλούρια) means small round-shaped bread ring.

The Greek word simiti/σιμίτι (plural: simitia/σιμίτια), comes from the Turkish word simit, which comes from the Arabic word semid, which in turn comes from the ancient Greek word semidalis/σεμίδαλις (simigdali/σιμιγδάλι in modern Greek), meaning semolina.

The traditional Greek version of koulouri/simiti is a thin bread ring encrusted with sesame seeds. The one I prefer eating and making is another version, the Politiko simiti (Politiko refers to the type of Greek cuisine I grew up with, of which you can read all about here), one that originates from the Greek bakers of Constantinople. It's a braided, fuller version of a bread ring, that is first coated with a generous amount of petimezi (Greek grape-must syrup/grape molasses) that gives them a light sweetness and then with toasted sesame seeds.

The braiding creates a more intricate texture and thus a more interesting flavor as the delicious petimezi sneaks in the crevices of the braids, creating a light caramelization when the bread ring bakes in the oven. The toasted sesame seeds give the bread a more intense, nutty taste and the addition of eggs and milk in the dough, another difference between the plain Greek simiti and this one, gives it a richer flavor.

Simitia are characteristically crunchy on the outside and soft and slightly chewy on the inside and even though they are a traditional Greek breakfast snack, you can serve them any other time of the day. Let me assure you, no one will complain.

Greek Politiko Simiti / Koulouri (Braided Bread Rings Coated with Grape-Must Syrup and Sesame Seeds)

Simitia/koulouria can be served either with sweet or savory accompaniments. I love cutting them in half crosswise, spreading a generous amount of butter on top, followed by some honey or jam, and having them for breakfast. Served with Kalamata olives and Feta or Graviera cheese they make the perfect light lunch.

You can find grape-must syrup (petimezi) in Greek or Middle-Eastern stores. If you can't find it, simply coat the bread rings with water before covering them with the toasted sesame seeds.

Find my recipe on my Substack newsletter.  

Here is the link and please subscribe to my Newsletter to get every new post in your email inbox!!

Look forward to seeing you there!! 

The Greek octopus

I have always lived near the sea and I can't imagine living anywhere where the sea isn't at walking (or biking) distance. Even if I don't have a view of it from my window, I can still feel its presence and that, in some way, makes me feel free.






It seems that I fell in love with the sea from a very young age. I don't remember exactly when I learned how to swim but I can't remember a time when I wasn't swimming.






We had a summer house by the sea and for three whole months, I'd be at the beach for hours each day either swimming, playing with my friends, or engaging in my other favorite activity; helping my grandfather with his catch of the day.






No, my grandfather wasn't a fisherman, but he loved going diving for mussels and clams, and adored going spearfishing for octopuses. Whenever he'd catch one, he'd emerge from the sea like another Poseidon, trident-type fish spear in one hand, octopus in the other, and my brother and I would go running towards him, eager to see it. It would still be moving and curling its tentacles upwards or inwards, and I just couldn't help but touch his little round suckers.






My grandfather would carefully hand it to one of us and then the real work would begin. We had seen him do it a hundred times and we knew exactly what to do. Under his watchful eye, either I or my brother, would grab the octopus by the head, hold it firmly and start smacking it repeatedly against the seaside rocks. Then we would rub it in a circular motion against those same rocks until it foamed up and changed color, a process called paragouliasma in Greek.






Of course at that age, we had no idea that what we were actually doing was tenderizing the octopus, making it easier for my grandmother to cook it later on the day. What we did know was that we were having loads of fun doing it.






When we'd get home, tentacled trophy in hand, we'd give it to our grandmother who'd prepare it depending on our wishes. She would make htapodi ksidato (marinated octopus in vinegar), htapodi sti shara (barbecued octopus), or htapodi me makaronaki kofto (braised octopus with short pasta).






The latter was always my favorite and it's an all-time classic Greek dish. One that I prepare fairly often in my little expat kitchen. The octopus is first boiled in its own juices, then it is braised in a tomato, red wine and garlic sauce until succulent and finally, the pasta is added to the pan which cooks in the sauce and the octopus' juices.






The marriage of flavors in this rustic dish is purely divine. The sweet, juicy octopus, the smooth yet sharp red wine and tomato sauce and the al dente pasta, combine excellently to create an authentic taste of Greece. This is a culinary peek into my childhood.










Htapodi me Makaronaki Kofto (Greek Braised Octopus with Short Pasta)

People (usually non-Greeks) are intimidated or scared of cooking or eating octopus. They shouldn't. Apart from it being delicious, it is also quite easy to cook. You just need to know how to cook it properly.

The complete recipe and HOW TO PROPERLY CLEAN AND COOK FRESH OCTOPUS is now on my Substack.