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Cabbage Salad (λαχανοσαλάτα)

Mar 13th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Cabbage Salad (λαχανοσαλάτα)

Greeks eat according to the seasons. In the summer, Greeks will have the bounty of their garden with tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers to make the world famous Greek salad. Although these vegetables are now also available in the winter, there’s a definite shift in ingredients during the winter months. Taste, cost and a little bit [...]



Steamed Brocccoli

Feb 27th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Steamed Brocccoli

You have to eat your vegetables. One of the most nutritious, affordable and delicious vegetables is broccoli. It’s loaded with vitamins A, C and K, a good source of fiber. It’s a boon to your immune system and and beneficial for the prevention of heart disease. Another positive for broccoli is that it’s available in [...]



Linguine With Clams

Feb 18th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Linguine With Clams

This is one of my favourite pastas dishes and it’s also one of the simplest to prepare. The dish is also versatile as one can substitute ingredients you like or replace with seasonal or local ingredients.
Don’t have fresh clams? Why not try this with mussels? Don’t have access to fresh clams? You could certainly use [...]



Chicken Wings tou Kalofaga (Φτερούγες του καλοφαγά)

Feb 4th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Chicken Wings tou Kalofaga (Φτερούγες του καλοφαγά)

In Greece, festivities are well under way. It’s Carnival time in Greece and one of the biggest days is centered around grilled meats. The period of Carnival in Greece is called “Apokries” and today marks “Tsiknopempti”.
Tsiknopempti is a compound word that describes the smell of grilled meats and Thursday: “Tsikno-pempti”. Tavernas will have lit up [...]



Cod in a Mussel Broth

Jan 28th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Cod in a Mussel Broth

This dish is the creation of Greek chef Sotiris Evangelou. Chef Sotiris is currently in charge of the kitchens of the swank King George hotel in Athens. He was inspired by the cuisine of Thessaloniki, with its diverse, vibrant culinary scene. Thessaloniki has seen many different peoples enter it’s old city walls through time and [...]



Avgotaraho (plus a recipe)

Jan 21st, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Avgotaraho (plus a recipe)

Today, I wish to share a dish that uses an ingredient that’s been harvested, salt-cured and enjoyed since Byzantine times. I find it amusing when some people try to predict food trends and declare a certain ingredient as “passe” when the cuisine and ingredient itself have survived the ages.



Salad of Rocket, Cabbage and Apple

Jan 16th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Salad of Rocket, Cabbage and Apple

This salad has quickly become my favourite winter starter. During the cold months, my diet shifts into including lots of wholesome soups, perfect for warming the belly in the cold Canadian winter but one mustn’t take your eyes off of other ways to eat your vegetables.
I do not eat many salads in the winter but [...]



Pork With Leeks & Celery

Jan 11th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Pork With Leeks & Celery

The traditional Greek diet wasn’t so meat-centered as it is today but meat always was part of the diet.
My parents (both from the the northern Prefecture of Florina) recall when the family pig was slaughtered. Nothing went to waste. The whole pig was used from snout to tail to hoof…everything but the pig’s squeal.
Up until [...]



Sea Bass Baked in Coarse Sea Salt

Jan 6th, 2010 | By Peter Minakis
Sea Bass Baked in Coarse Sea Salt

Recipe update from Feb,01, 2008
This dish isn’t unique to just Greek cuisine. I’ve seen fish baked in coarse sea salt in many countries that hug the Mediterranean basin. Everyone’s in on baking whole fish in a salt crust: Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Greece.  If I haven’t noted your country, do you folks also bake [...]



Loin of Pork Stuffed With Prunes

Dec 28th, 2009 | By Peter Minakis
Loin of Pork Stuffed With Prunes

How was your Christmas? Are you enjoying yourselves? Spending time with family and friends? Having some richer, more indulgent foods? An extra drink? Good, ’cause I am!
The family’s Christmas dinner went splendidly. All the dishes turned out very well, we had some good chuckles and reminisced of Christmases past.  The centerpiece of our Christmas dinner [...]