GREEK CUISINE
—From ancient times through to today, the most characteristic elements of Greek cuisine are olive oil and wine. Historical culinary influences include Ottoman cuisine (baklava, gyro, moussaka and dolmades) and Italian cuisine (pasta). Greek cuisine favors oregano, mint, garlic, onion, dill, bay laurel, basil, thyme and fennel seed more than other Mediterranean cuisines. Greek cuisine classics include:
Sides: feta cheese, mizithra cheese, lentil soup, pita, fasolada, loukaniko, avgotaraho, paximadi, horiatiki salad, tzatziki, bottarga, fasolada, dakos, taramasalata, olives.
Main Dishes: souvlaki, gyros, moussaka, pastitsio, grilled octopus, kalamari, dolmades, giouvetsi, mydia.
Desserts: pasteli, spanakopita, baklava, bougatsa, diples, galaktoboureko, melomakarona.
Beverages: Ouzo, commandaria, retsina, tsipouro.
GREEK CUISINE COOKBOOKS
Three Greek Sisters. Three Sisters Around the Greek Table: A Cookbook.
105 recipes with simple, rustic ingredients true to the Mediterranean diet with 12 complete menu suggestions. The book celebrates the joys of Greek cooking and living Greek.
Debbie Matenopoulos. It’s All Greek To Me.
A collection of 120 family recipes that have been passed down through generations of Debbie’s family. These recipes adhere to the Mediterranean diet principles of natural, whole-food ingredients.
St. Paul’s Cathedral Recipe Club. The Complete Book Of Greek Cooking: The Recipe Club of St. Paul’s Orthodox Cathedral.
50 years ago, the St. Paul’s Cathedral Recipe Club published one of the first Greek cookbooks written in English (The Grecian Gourmet). The Complete Book of Greek Cooking is the fourth Greek cookbook published by the group and is a collection of retested and rewritten Greek recipes from their previous books. All earnings from their books go to preserving St. Paul’s Orthodox Cathedral.
Vefa Alexiadou. Vefa’s Kitchen.
Acknowledged as the first comprehensive bible of Greek food in English, Vefa’s Kitchen contains hundreds of simple recipes with information on regional specialties, local ingredients and the historical significance of the dishes.
