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Greek Recipes from
Dr. Foster’s Kitchen
Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus ::::
Baklava ::::
This recipe was shared with me by Nikolina Parusheva from Bulgaria. She and
her husband, Parush Parushev, were students at Southern for several years. The
Bulgarians are decedents of the Thracians. This recipe is found all over the
Middleast. When I was in Israel, I ate it made with pistachio nuts. It was very
good. The Parushevs insist that it be made with real butter. They also said
that the amount of nuts that you put in your Baklava is a reflection of your
wealth and generosity. I like to reduce the amount of water to about 3/4 c. and
then add a ½ c. of honey. I suggested this to the Parushevs and they didn't
like me playing with the traditional recipe.
8 oz. Chopped Walnuts (or more)
1 pkg. Phyllo Dough (found in the freezer section of the Grocery usually
beside the pie shells)
1 c. Water
3 c. Sugar
2 T. Lemon juice
Melt the butter (You may not need all four stick so just melt 2-3). Using a
pastry brush coat the bottom of a 9x13 pan with butter. Cut the Phyllo dough in
half and place one sheet of it in the pan. Butter the top of phyllo dough and
then put another sheet of dough on top of it. Continue this layering until you
have 15 layers of dough. [Note: Place half the dough under a damp towel while
you work so that it doesn't dry out.]
Place half of the chopped walnuts on top of these 15 layers and then start
layering again. After another 15 layers, place the rest of the walnuts in the
dish. Then layer on the rest of the phyllo dough.
Before baking, cut the Baklava into desired portions. It will be impossible
to cut after baking.
Bake in a 400 degree oven until the butter begins to boil then turn the oven
down to 325 degrees and bake until the baklava is golden brown and begins to
pull away from the sides.
While the Baklava is baking, bring the water and sugar (and honey) to a boil
in a sauce pan. Turn the heat off and add the lemon juice to the solution.
When the baklava is done, drizzle the sugar mixture over the hot baklava.
Allow it to cool to room temperature. It is best if keep in the fridge for a
day or two and then brought back to room temperature and eaten.
For a true Epicurean experience, Baklava should be served with Greek Coffee,
Turkish Coffee, Armenian Coffee, Espresso, or some other strong coffee.
GoTo :::: Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus
Tabouli ::::
Coming soon
GoTo :::: Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus
Halvah ::::
From Jeff Smith, The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Three Ancient Cuisines.
"This cake is unusual in that it has no flour in it at all. The farina
soaks up the syrup that is poured on after baking and the result is very close
to the sweet moist cakes that you find in the street cafés in Athens. This is
truly a wonderful dessert."
[This is what the Frug says about this cake. -RBRT]
Batter:
1 c sugar
2 sticks butter
2 c regular cream of wheat cereal
1/2 c coarsely chopped almonds
6 beaten eggs
1 t baking powder
1 t cinnamon
1/2 c whole pine nuts
Syrup:
2 c sugar
3 c water
1 whole clove (I used 3-4)
2 oz Brandy (I omitted this. duh!)
Juice of two lemons Using and electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar.
Add the remaining ingredients, except the pine nuts, and blend to form a smooth
batter. Spread the batter evenly in a greased 9 X 13-inch pan. Sprinkle the
pinenuts on top of the batter. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 to 35
minutes.
In a small pan heat all of the ingredients for the syrup. Boil the syrup
until it begins to thicken a bit, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and
cool until just very warm to touch. Hold a saucer over the cake and drizzle the
warm syrup onto the saucer and thus onto the cake. This will prevent your
marring the surface of the cake.
Cover the cake pan with plastic wrap and allow the cake to sit for 2 hours so that the syrup will be absorbed.
GoTo :::: Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus
Chickpea Salad ::::
15 ounce can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ red onion, sliced
2 small tomatoes, seeded and diced
Dressing:
2 T olive oil
2 T cider vinegar
1 t salt
½ t pepper
1 T dried mint
1 T parsley
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
In a large bowl, mix up the ingredients for the dressings. Add chickpeas, onion, and tomatoes to the same bowl and toss. Chill and serve.
GoTo :::: Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus
Humus ::::
15 ounce can of Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
¾ cup water
3 T Tahini (sesame seed paste, found in health food section)
juice of one lemon
4 cloves of garlic
3 T of olive oil
½ t pepper
3 T fresh, chopped parsley
Blend all ingredients (except parsley) in a blender until smooth. Refrigerate over night and then add parsley before serving. Garnish with more olive oil and paprika.
Serve with pita bread and kalamata olives.
GoTo :::: Baklava :::: Tabouli :::: Halvah :::: Chickpea Salad :::: Humus
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This page maintained by Robert
Lee Foster, rfoster@wbcoll.edu
Last revised: January 24, 2005