salmon "plaki"

"Plaki" is a way that in Greece we cook fish in the oven using tomatoes, onions and parlsey. We can use whatever fish we like, but here I am using salmon just because I found nice fresh salmon today that it's the favorite of my husband. It's a recipe that I strongly suggest to try, as it tastes great!








Ingredients

6 slices of salmon
5-6 potatoes
3-4 nice red tomatoes (or canned)
1 onion (optionally)
salt, pepper, olive oil, parsley
1 lemon

Procedure

Wash salmon, and if needed take out the skin. Put in the middle of an oven dish, and fill the space around with peeled potatoes that you have cut in slices.






Cover the salmon with some slices of a tomato, minced parsley and the minced onion (I did not put today). Pour on top of salmon and potatoes the pureed tomatoes, add salt, pepper and olive oil. Pour water to cover half of the potatoes.

Put in the oven (180C/fan) for about 1h30. Watch out for water and not to burn on surface (Mine was on limit today :). Enjoy it as it is really delicious!

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Spaghetti with shrimps

Typical summer dish, spaghetti with shrimps (garidomakaronada) is a popular choice during vacations like in a greek island. It's easy, fast and delicious!










Ingredients

300 gr shrimps
1 onion
1 green pepper
3-4 good red tomatoes or canned
salt, pepper, olive oil, parsley
500 g of spaghetti

Procedure

Boil the spaghetti in a big volume of salty water. Drain them and add some olive oil and mix well.

In a low casserole, add olive oil, the minced onion and the green pepper cut in slices. let them fry for 2-3 min . Add the shrimps that you have washed them before and let fry again for 2-3 min.

Add the pureed tomatoes, the salt, pepper, the parsley and 1 cup of water. Cover and let them cook for about 15min or until the tomato sauce becomes quite thick.



Serve the spaghetti with this tomato-shrimp sauce on top. Bon appetit!

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Chicken soup

Chicken soup (kotosoupa in greek) is the soup that drives crazy my kids especially when their grandmother cook it, using a chicken brought from a friend of her village. It's a soup that warms your heart during cold winter days, when you are ill, or when you are a kid :)
Some friends cook it using also vegetables, but I will give you today the original recipe, the way that my mother is cooking that I consider traditional greek, as she comes from a small village in the middle of Greece.
I won't tell you that it was delicious today, as I was out of table salt and I added "gros sel"/large salt and apparently I added too much... imagine the result!


Ingredients

1 chicken (bio and of good quality)
1 cup of rice (round and also of good quality)
salt, pepper, olive oil (1/2 cup approx.)
some butter
lemon juice
1 eggs

Procedure

Wash and prepare the chicken. Put it in a big casserole and fill with water up to the middle. Add salt, pepper and olive oil.

Cover and boil for about 45 min or 15min in the pressure cooker if you are in a hurry.

Take the chicken out and put it in an oven dish adding some of the chicken broth. Using a brush, cover the chicken with some butter and put it in the oven (200/fan) for about 15min.



TIP: If you do not have a whole chicken, once the meat is boiled cut it in small pieces and put it back in the casserole.
Put the casserole with the chicken broth to boil and add the rice. Leave it to boil slowly for about 15 min.

Get the juice of a lemon and a cup of the chicken broth. Beat an egg well with a fork and continue adding slowly and alternatively some broth and some lemon juice.

When you finish mixing them, add also this lemon-egg mixture to the rice in the casserole, mix well and cook for 5 more minutes. Your soup is ready! Serve it with some fresh ground pepper and the roasted chicken.

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Mosaic

I will give you today, the recipe for one of my favorite summer pastry that drives crazy all kids and the ones young at heart :) It's a pastry that in Greece is made often at summer, and I haven't seen it in other countries, so I would call it again a traditional greek pastry, but maybe I am mistaken, so please give me feedback.
It looks like a mosaic, usually it's in the form of a roll (but not the one I made in the photos) and it's made with biscuits (petit-beurre). It's so easy to make, that you can do it with your kids and you will consume it at no time !


Ingredients

2 boxes of biscuits petit-beurre
250gr of butter
350 gr icy sugar
2 eggs
3 spoonfulls of cocoa powder
1 vanilla
1 spoonfull of brandy
250ml of milk





Procedure 

Break with your hands the biscuits in small pieces (1x1cm). Pour the milk slowly, using your hand to wet all the biscuits.

Beat, using a mixer, first the soften butter with the sugar, continue adding the eggs, the cocoa powder, the brandy.

Finish by adding the biscuits and mix them softly with a spatula.

Prepare a dish that can go in the freezer and has a cover, by covering it with baking paper.

Empty the mixture inside and cover with the remaining paper and close with the cover. Put it in the freezer for at least 4 hours or overnight.

When you want to serve it, take it out of the freezer for 5 minutes and cut it in slices. Once tried it, you will become addicted! Enjoy...    




TIP: Some like to melt some dark chocolate and pour it on top. If you don't mind the extra calories, go for it, it's delicious :)
Improvement: Use a silicone mold like here.

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Father's day!

Father's day today, and my son gave us his presents that made at school for both parents. I have posted here already my daughter's gifts and I promised I would come up with my sons, when I will receive them. It's my way to thank my kids and their teachers for their initiative. We both really loved them, THANKS!
On top, some of you might be inspired for next year :)

You can see in the photos, the two lovely cards that accompanied the gifts. Gifts are key holders that my son decorated in his own unique way. He has drawn a ship in his father's key holder and made a synthesis of beads in mine (he told me that he tried to put all kind of beads that were available to make it very beautiful!). See the details in the photos.

Gifts were wrapped in a nice paper and were glued on the card. Needless to say, that I was proud to read my son's message written so nice!

    

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Spinach rice (spanakoryzo)

Spinach rice is a nice dish that has lots of iron, fibers and if you add next to it some feta cheese and a fried egg, you will have proteins also! It's easy to make it and so tasty :) Here is how...

Ingredients

1 Kg of fresh spinach (or frozen, which is the case here)
1 dry onion
2 fresh green onions
some tomato sauce
1/3 of cup rice (arborio for risotto)
salt, pepper, olive oil, minced dill
some lemon juice

Procedure

Put in a low casserole the olive oil to cover the bottom. Mince the onions and fry them for 2 min. 

Once the onions are soft, add the spinach (the frozen as is, the fresh washed and cut in big pieces).

Continue by adding enough warm water to cover it, the tomato sauce, the dill, the salt and the pepper. Mix well and leave it cooking for about 15 min. Then, make holes in the spinach with a spoon and add portions of the rice.

Cover and leave it for about 20 min to cook the rice. When is done, take it out of the fire and put under the cover some absorbing paper and leave it for about 15min. Food is done!

Pour some lemon juice on top that will give extra taste and add some vitamin C :)))

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