Greek Food?

[sweetgoddess]

Does anyone have any raw Greek recipes or ideas? I would so appreciate any ideas for a greek themed meal.
Thank you and bless!

[Dawn39]

Fava bean salad

2 lbs shelled fava beans (soak in warm h20 w/ celtic sea )
4 tblsp olive oil
6 oz tomatoe ( halve or quarter)
4 cloves garlic crushed
3 tblsp fresh dill
12 large black olives
salt /pepper to taste

( the non raw called for FETA i use pinenuts)

drain beans and mix


Orange/Avacado/Nut salad
2 oranges ( cut in thick circles)
1 red onion sliced in ringlets
2 tomatoes (diced)
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tblsp lemon juice
1 tblsp fresh parsley
1/4 cup sprouted nuts ( your choice) the orig called for almonds
black & green olives to garnish

arrange oranges on plate topped w/ onion ringlets
combine the rest of ingredients and arrange on top the oranges

iced oranges and lemons
sugar subs that will = 2/3 cp sugar ( agave/honey)
juice 1 lg lemon
14 medium oranges
8 fresh bayleaves

mix lemon juice w/ agave honey etc
slice tops off 8 orangesto make hat
scoop out the orange fruit ( hollow out the orange)
put shells & hats in freezer on a tray
grate zest of the remaining oranges and add to syrup
juice the fruit flesh and remaining oranges should be 3 cups add 6 tblsp of water and mix w/ juice and syrup.
put in freezer container for 3 hours
when ready take out and break it up w/ a spoon and add it to the shells top with the reserved caps attach the bay leaf to each

Hope this was what you were looking for :)

Dawn

[Doe]

§ 2 c saved almond pulp
§ ¼ cup light miso
§ 4 sprigs fresh parsley
§ 6 fresh basil leaves
§ 3 T fresh oregano
§ 4 T fresh thyme
§ 3 T fresh white sage
§ ¼ c olive oil
§ 1 tsp white pepper
§ 2 tsp salt
§ 2 green onions

Combine and blenderize until very creamy. Pour into mesh bag. Squeeze liquid out of bag until no more will come out.

Put pulp crumbles on teflex sheet and dehydrate at 105 degrees for 6 hours or until completely dry. Keep in refrigerator in sealed glass jar.

Freeze liquid into ice cubes and use to season soups or gravy.

Don't know where it came from. Seems like it was one of the European raw people. Hope you enjoy.
Teri S

[rawpriestess]

As per my Greek cookbooks, and Greek cooking classes that I took and graduated from, with cooks from Greece (added to prove that I DO know what I am talking about)

The three main spices in greek cooking are lemon and cinnamon and oregano, so if you make a neatloaf using these spices, it will taste more like greek, also they have a creamy lemon soup that is served cold, that is excellent, can't remember the name off the top of my hat.

also stuffed grapeleaves (you need to pick the grape leaves in the spring, but they are delicious also) they stuff with and herbed rice mixture, but you could use cauliflower or anything to stuff and add some spices.

salad with green pepper white onion, calamata olives, spicy green peppers (pepperccinis) and olive oil with lemon juice as dressing, a dash of oregano and mint leaves makes an excellent salad.

Hope this helps.

[starry-eyed-doe]

those recipes sound great! :)

[meganthevegan]

rawpriestess, can you eat grapeleaves right off the tree, any kind?

[rawpriestess]

Yes, you can eat grapeleaves right off the vine, most leaves of edible plants can be eaten except rubarb and night shade plants like tomato, potatoe, peppers and eggplant, other than that the leaves are good.

Such as radish, carrot etc.

Grapeleaves are cured in a brine of vinegar and salt to make them softer, darker and have that cool mysteriously tangy flavor, but I imagine they would be ok plain, haven't tried them myself.

Again, ONLY fresh spring ones are used in dolmathes, as they are more tasty and young.

I used to love Greek cooked food, now I love Greek raw food, almost the same, ethnic raw food is soooooo easy.

[RawTruth]

Megan - I can answer that since I do. But, you need to pick the young, new leaves. My grapevine continues to pop out new leaves, so I can ... and have ... picked them and made wraps with them (stuffed with pine nuts and rice-substitute stuff and soaked in a tomato-lemon sauce). Since you're just a mile from me, if you'd like to try some, let me know and we can meet up.

I am Greek and I have two small comments about the previous posts -- First, while the orange/avocado salad sounds yummy, it is not Greek nor Mediterranean (even though it may have been posted somewhere as such), but sounds very Californian! Secondly, cinnamon is not a main ingredient in Greek food, though it is predominant in moussaka. Other than that, it is little used, though it's used in savory dishes more than we're used to ... a lot in Middle Eastern cuisines. Lemon and oregano are. Pine nuts are used a lot, too. The lemon-egg-chicken soup is avgolemono and is served hot with the frothy consistency coming from lemon juice and egg white beaten together and stirred back into the hot broth. Some Americans and/or American-Greek restaurants have adapted it to serve it chilled, but it is uncommon.

The simplest Greek item to make would be a Greek salad. Greek salads in Greece are not served with lettuce as they are here. They are simply cucumbers chunks, tomatoes chunks, and green peppers (which I omit). Most tavernas serve feta cheese and kalamata olives with it, too. Squeeze lemon over it, sprinkle on some oregano, and there you have it. This is the perfect season for this dish since it's only authentic with ripe, off-the-vine tomatoes. Using hard, supermarket, picked unripe tomatoes is bland and unappetizing. Anyway, if you do the raw version of feta above (or in some uncookbooks), use some raw olives, and the freshest cucumbers and tomatoes.

Have fun, Sweetgoddess, whatever you're making this for!! :D

[Dawn39]

" First, while the orange/avocado salad sounds yummy, it is not Greek nor Mediterranean (even though it may have been posted somewhere as such), but sounds very Californian" Rawtruth

It was published somewhere as such:

The recipes come from "Mediterranean a taste of the sun in over 150 recipes" published in London, it not only has recipes but talks about the areas and regions, cultures etc. Bought it for Homeschool ( Sociology & Home Ec.)
it has Greek,Spainish, italian, Moroccan,Middle East etc it does not break all the recipes down
the qoute by the avacado recipe is that "the Mediterranean is not particularly known for avacados,but the climate is perfect for them and they are grown in many parts of the region"

I added what I thought could easily be transfered to Raw from that book.Because honestly I think of Gyro's, squid, olives, and cheese "Feta" when I think of Greek food.
God bless & have a great day

[rawpriestess]

Please note that I did not say that cinnamon was a MAIN ingredient in Greek food, I said it was one of the MAIN SPICES, so if you want something to taste Greek, you can add cinnamon oregano or lemon to it.

Also, I was not referring to the lemon, egg, chicken hot soup, I was referring to a creamy lemon soup that is served cold, it may even be a cucumber soup, I simply can't remember, all I know is that the recipe was in my Greek cooking class, and was delicious and it was lemon and served cold.

According to my instructor, the BEST grape leaves are the early spring leaves, as the ones that grow later are more bitter, it has to do with the cold nights and the hot days, that one gets in the spring. Much like any type of green, they are the sweetest and most tender after a bright chilly night.

[sweetgoddess]

Thank you to all of you for the yummy ideas. I really appreciate it! :)

[Doe]

Would it not be reasonable that food is different in various regions of Greece the same as they are in the USA. For instance the food in Louisiana, Florida, New York, and California are seasoned differently and use different main ingredients than each other.

Teri S

[Rawkinlocs]

Yes, that is definitely reasonable. Just like, when I lived in Detroit, Chinese food was different than what I experienced here in Washington. For example, fried rice there was dark with LOTS of whatever sauce they use, the only veggies in it were green onions and bean sprouts and all meals are served with saltine crackers. We moved here to WA (first time around in '91), bought some Chinese food and were like, "What the heck is THIS?!?" because it was very light in color, almost as though it were white rice with just a hint of soy sauce, there were PEAS AND CARROTS in it but no bean sprouts and when we asked for crackers, they looked at us like we were crazy! LOL!

So, yes, I can definitely see things being done differently.

Did some searching online because I have no clue about Greek food...some (non-dessert) recipes did call for cinnamon and some did not and I'll be willing to bet that if I did a search for a particular recipe, there would be some that called for it (and other ingredients) and some that do not.

Even within our raw foods...one person may say (based on their observation) that a dehydrator is a key piece of equipment in a raw lifestyle while the Natural Hygienist would definnitely disagree as they don't use one.

I know I'm reaching a bit far here, but just wanted to show that it's really not a matter of right or wrong...only perception.

Okay, sorry Sweetgoddess!

More raw Greek food recipes anyone?

[Sweet lips]

Let me enteratin you, let me make you smile and you were gracious S.G. even though we sometimes have tit for tat! I found a few recipes that I modified for raw - this was so much fun. I also posted some earlier, so as for Greek - they are supposed to be and they are all from different regions.

There is one staple Hummus and if you need a recipe -I'll send you one.

BABY OKRA IN TOMATO SAUCE
(Serves 4)

This dish is best served slightly warm, not overheated.

1 pound fresh baby okra (no longer than 1-1/2 inches long)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 peeled and chopped garlic clove
2 seeded, peeled, and diced tomatoes
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Pinch of salt and black pepper

Trim the okra by cutting the stem off close to the top. Wash them very well in cold water, and dry them off completely. Marinate separately

Marinate chopped onion and garlic in the oil for a few hours in the dehydrator at 105. Add the diced tomatoes, lemon juice, salt and ground pepper and stir together until mixed. Dehydrate for another.

Place a spoonful of the sauce on the bottom of a serving dish. Place the okra on the sauce, and cover with the remaining sauce before serving.



Cucumber With Raw Feta Cheese and Mint

1 large cucumber, half-peeled in lengthwise strips to give striped appearance
1 cup crumbled raw feta cheese (recipe below)
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
6 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

SERVES 4

Wash and dry the cucumber and cut it into very thin crosswise slices. Place the slices in a salad bowl, sprinkling with the feta cheese and mint. In a small bowl whisk the oil and lemon juice with the salt and pepper to make ladolemono (a vinaigrette made with lemon juice). Pour over the salad and toss thoroughly. Serve immediately.

Almond Feta Cheese
by Karen Parker

• 1½ cups almonds, soaked for 12 hours
• 1 cup cashews, soaked for 12 hours
• ¼ cup light miso (such as chickpea or 'golden' miso)
• ¾ cup water
• ¼ cup fresh parsley, minced
• ¼ cup basil
• 3 tablespoons fresh oregano, minced
• 4 tablespoons fresh thyme, minced
• 3 tablespoons fresh white sage, minced
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon white pepper
• 2 teaspoons Celtic sea salt
• ¼ cup leeks, minced

Homogenize almonds in Green Life or Champion juicer (if you don't have a juicer, mix 2 cups water with almonds in high-speed blender until creamy. Then strain through fine-mesh bag (save almond liquid for use in Chocolate Mylk recipe, right)). Keep almond pulp in mesh bag.

In blender, combine miso, water, herbs, oil, salt, white pepper and leeks until very creamy. It should taste too salty. Pour miso mixture into mesh bag, catching all liquid that comes out (liquid will be used in Holiday Gravy recipe opposite). Continue to squeeze liquid out of bag until no more will come out.

Spoon almond pulp onto a teflex sheet on a dehydrator tray. Keep pulp in crumbled form; do not break chunks up. Dehydrate at 90 degrees for 8 hours or until completely dry. Keeps in sealed glass jar in cooler for up to 4 weeks.


Eggplant Caviar
MELINTZANOSALATA

A classic, simple, and delicious Greek spread, Melintzanosalata can also be used as a sauce for steamed potatoes and other vegetables. Alas, the version tourists taste in the tavernas is a mixture of mayonnaise with a little eggplant mixed in- it has very little to do with the real thing. I'm not exaggerating by saying that every Greek cook has his or her own version of Melintzanosalata. The best is found in the small ouzeries in Northern Greece. It often contains nothing more than eggplant, a little oil and some vinegar. In Sotiris's ouzo bar in Thessalonica the egg plant skin is scorched over a charcoal fire, then the flesh is carefully removed with a spoon and made into the Melintzanosalata, which is then returned to the boatlike eggplant skin and served. You can make Melintzanosalata in a food processor, but I prefer the coarse texture it has when made with a food mill. Prepare it several hours or a day in advance and keep it in the refrigerator. It tastes better the day after it is made.

3 medium eggplants (about 2 pounds total)
1 red bell pepper, roasted and peeled
1/2 cup olive oil
3-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/3 -1/2 teaspoon minced fresh chili pepper, or freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Sea salt

MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS

You can modify just about any cooked/roasted eggplant recipe with chopped, salted eggplant. The ratio of eggplant to salt is about 2 large eggplants to 1 teaspoon of celtic sea salt. Peel and chop your eggplant (the finer you chop it, the sooner it will be ready) and toss with salt. Place salted eggplant in a colander either in a sink or over a bowl to catch the bitter juices that will exude. After a 1/2 hour or so, (depending on how fresh the eggplant is and how finely chopped), squeeze the excess juices out. You can rinse the eggplant or not according to your taste. Then use in whatever recipe you need it
for.

Chop the flesh, or pass it through the coarse disk of a food mill. Chop the pepper finely and mix with the eggplant. In a medium bowl beat the eggplant and pepper with a wooden spoon, adding the oil and vinegar a little at a time. Add the garlic, chili pepper, and parsley while continuing to beat. Season with salt. Taste, and add more vinegar if needed.

Note: If you want to serve Melintzanosalata as a sauce with veggies, add 1 more garlic clove and 1 cup Greek-style yogurt just before serving

Baba Gannouj

2 eggplants, prepared as above
1-2 cloves garlic
1/2 c. lemon juice 1-2 T tahini
1/2 t celtic salt ( if you rinse the eggplant. If not, you
may not need it. )
2T chopped parsley 9opt.)
1-2T olive oil

* blend in a food processor to desired consistency.
I like to chop the garlic alone first to ensure even
distribution. An optional garnish is 1/4 c. sour
pomegranate seeds, or that parsley from the recipe if
it didn't get processed in.

At the risk of being redundant, falafel recipe adapted from Rose Lee Calabro

1 1/2 c. chickpeas, soaked and sprouted for 8 hrs.
1 c. sunflower seeds, soaked 8 hrs. and rinsed
*process until smooth mix in by hand:
1 med onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 c. finely chopped parsley
2 T lemon juice
1/4 c. olive oil
2T ground coriander
3T ground cumin
ground cayenne to taste
1 t celtic sea salt
*scoop out rounded tablespoonfuls, form into
patties and dehydrate 10-12 hrs. at 105 degrees F Dip
into sauce made with:

2T tahini
2 cloves pressed garlic
2 T lemon juice
water to prferred consistency(i use about 1/2 c.)
salt to taste


Here is another Rawlafels that doesn't need dehydration from Zakhah

1/2 pound Almonds, ground
2 tbs coriander
2 tbs kelp
11/2 tbs garlic powder
1 tbs cumin
1 tbs nutrional yeast flakes
1 tbs paprika
1 tbs dried onion
1-2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Add pirified water until mixture has a dough like consistency. From into balls. Serve on nori sheets or even our ever present onion bread with tahinin dressing and diced cucumbers and tomatoes

Olive Pate

12 oz of raw olives
1.2 small red onion, finely chopped
2 tbs Capers ( now I do not know if these are raw)
2 tbs fresh lemon juice
1.2 tsp thyme

Blend all together and enjoy

Vegetable Kabobs -marinade for such

1.2 cup tamari or nama shoyu
1/4 cup agave nectur
1/4 cup cold pressed sesame oil
1 tbs fresh lemon juice
1 tbs garlic granuales

the longer you marinate the veggie - the stronger the flavor

Yellow Split Peas With Garlic (Fava Skordalia)
This is a delicious meze (appetizer) made with yellow split peas (or lentils). Santorini is the island that is known to grow the best yellow peas in Greece - and this recipe derives from there.

2 cups yellow split peas, or lentils sprouted
2 bay leaves
2 teaspoons salt
4-6 garlic cloves
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3-4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3-4 tablespoons dry white wine
2 tablespoons dried oregano, crumbled, plus more for garnish
fresh ground black pepper
All or a few of the following toppings
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2-3 tablespoons pitted and chopped kalamata olives
4-5 sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, drained and coarsely chopped
1 medium tomato, cored, peeled, seeded, diced and drained
2-3 spring onions, thinly sliced (white plus most of the green parts)
3 sprigs arugula, coarsely chopped
3 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped
extra-virgin olive oil

Puree the peas with a little water, in the blender, or transfer to a food processor and puree. It will thicken considerably.

In a large mortar, grind the garlic with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt into a smooth paste. Add 2 cups or so of the puree and continue grinding to incorporate the garlic. Or use a blender or a small food processor.
In a large bowl, combine the garlic mixture, the remaining pea puree, the oil, 3 tablespoons each vinegar and wine, the oregano and pepper to taste, stirring vigorously to incorporate. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
If the skordalia seems too thick, add a little vinegar, wine or water to thin. Spread on a large plate, sprinkle with oregano, garnish with toppings of your choice and serve.


Hope this helps

[rawpriestess]

Rawkinlocs, you are so right.

I learn Northern Italian Cuisine and it is soooo different that Souther Italian, which is what American's are used to.

So, I am sure that the Greek class I took was probably different than other's information, How kind of you to mention this.

So, now I feel better. Hope others do too.

[Sweet lips]

Lathera (translates to THE OILY DISH)
Ingredients (use vegan versions):
4-5 medium size zuccini, cut in 1/4 in. disks
1-2 medium onions, sliced in thick rings
1-2 medium tomatoes, sliced in 1/4 in. disks
6-7 cloves garlic, peeled and whole
1/2 cup olive oil (or any other oil)
1/2 cup chopped parsley
salt and pepper
2 tblspoons oregano (save for the end!)
Directions:

arrange in loose layers in the baking tray. try and keep the onion rings at the bottom of the pan, and the tomatoes go at the top of the assembly, to let the juices drain down onto the veggoes dehydrate for about 24 hours, at medium oven the oregano should be added a few minutes before taking the tray out of the oven-

Greek Vinaigrette
Ingredients (use vegan versions):
1 cup light olive oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
3 tablespoon Greek oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:

Rub the oregano between your palms before adding the the remaining ingredients as this will help release its flavor. Now whisk all ingredients together. Let dressing stand for at least an hour before using, and the longer the better.

Briami
Ingredients (use vegan versions):
5-6 large zuccini, cut in 1 in. cubes
2 eggplants (the purple, zuccini look-alike) cut in cubes
5 sun dried tomatoes
3-4 cloves garlic crushed
1 onion , cut in large chunks
a couple of bay-leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
a dash of nutmeg, thyme
salt and pepper

Directions:

arrange (really throw in!) all the ingredients in your dish, and give them a good mix (another name for this dish is TOURLOU, i.e. mix-mix) and place in the dehydrate for about 24 hour serve with a generous amount of oil and juices and with some onion bread to clean up the plate!

[sweetgoddess]

WOW, JACKPOT! Thank you SO SO much everyone. I am going to make one Greek lady very happy. I really appreciate the time you took to share with me.
yummyiness! These recipes and ideas look fantastic.

Blessings to all~ :)

[RawTruth]

SweetLips, you came up with so many recipes that sound like they'll be close to the real thing. I've cut and pasted a few and will try a few on my dad sometime as he's the hold-out when it comes to raw & living foods.

Doe, I grew up eating avgolemono and it is exquisite. My mom could never make enough. The same "sauce" that's stirred into the hot broth is also frequently spooned over dolmades. I managed to get somwhat close to that particular taste with my raw dolmades attempt using my own grape leaves and marinating the rolled & filled dolmades in lemon juice. Though the lemon completed the flavor, I was delighted to taste the leaves raw since they added a purer, stronger taste than when cured and then cooked.

The cuisines of Greece vary by region. The northern moutainous and inland sections are quite different in climate, custom, and food from the warmer, southern areas that protrude into the sea. One relies more on goats, olives, and beans while the other uses lots of seafood. Both use eggplant, garlic, tomatoes, cucumbers and other fresh veggies when in season. Both eat yogurt (from goat milk, of course, like the feta). It is not a hospitable land for agriculture, being rocky and mostly hills, so the people have relied on what can survive in that terrain: primarily olive trees and goats with smaller amounts of grape vines and fig, citrus & pistachio trees. The main industry is tourism because there's no real industry and thus, not much to export.

Athens, which now has a larger population than the entire rest of the country due to the deaths of most villages, is a cosmopolitan, crowded, busy city with many restaurants of all cultures, and sort of blended national dishes. On my first visit there many years ago, I was surprised to find moussaka being sold by the piece by sidewalk vendors, much like hotdogs or slices of pizza are sold here. It's considered common, peasant food there whereas many Americans view it in a different light based on its place on Greek menus here.

I haven't been back since I've been raw, but I'm considering spending part of next summer there. That way, I'll be assured that there'll be plenty of fresh veggies and fruit whereas winter could be quite a challenge!

Just for general information -- 1) you'd be hard pressed to find hummus and falafels in Greece since they're Middle Eastern; 2) most Greek-American dads don't believe Windex solves everything (that was unique to her family), but 3) Greek-American dads definitely do believe Greece was the greatest civilization ever and let no opportunity pass to comment on the origins of words, customs, and democracy itself. (At least, my dad did!)

[Doe]

That's very interesting Raw Truth. I knew nothing about Greek culture and only the foods I had eaten here or seen in recipes. Thank you for the brief info. I wonder if a raw soup could be made with the same taste and consistency.

That's funny about the Windex. I saw the movie and thought it was the man. Did anyone actually believe that was a Greek custom? Is that brand of cleaner even sold there? Hmmm, never thought about it.

Yea, Sweet lips became our very own little Greek Recipe source. Thank you Sweet lips.

Teri S

[RawTruth]

That's funny about the Windex. I saw the movie and thought it was the man. Did anyone actually believe that was a Greek custom? Is that brand of cleaner even sold there? Hmmm, never thought about it.I've had people ask me if my Dad thought Windex was the answer to everything. It was definitely an American product that he took to (in the movie). Kinda funny, though, is that I helped a friend get her too-tight toe ring off using Windex. It's the best thing to use for that -- just in case anyone's toe ring is too tight!!
:D