Smoked salmon, Greek yogurt and cream cheese Pitas

littlecookingtips — Wed, 25 Dec 2013 17:25:28 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

298

Servings:

6 slices/pieces

Cooking Time:

20 minutes

This time we will suggest an appetizer that is quite different. Perhaps you have tasted the Russian blinis.

Blinis are traditional Russian pancakes/crepes (depending on the size and thickness of the dough), that are served mostly with caviar or smoked salmon and sour cream. They are considered (and they are indeed) a great festive delicacy.

So, inspired by this, we thought of transforming the Russian recipe to a Greek; Instead of using blini as the base for the appetizer, for us it was very easy to just use a nicely grilled Greek pita/pitta bread. We selected a small sized pita which was a bit larger than blinis, but suitable for our purpose. There are packs with 6 or 12 small pitas (about 10cm/3 inches in diameter), but if you can't find them don't worry. Just buy some regular pitas and cut them in four, forming four nice triangles. The Greek pitas are pocketless pitas, so do not choose the ones which that can be sliced open. You need the plain fluffy pocketless rustic pitas.

We took those pitas, brushed them with good quality extra virgin olive oil and grilled them using a grill pan. You can also grill them in the oven using the broiler and a wire rack. If you don't care that much about the nice grill marks on the pita, you can also cook ("grill") them on a simple fry pan as well. When nice and ready (grill marks developed), they smell so good you almost want to have them without any topping. But we didn't do that. Instead, we decided to add a beautiful fresh layer of Greek yogurt mixed with lemon juice and cream cheese. We skipped the sour cream, as we wanted a different (perhaps richer) taste to combine with the pocketless pita. On top, we added some pieces of good quality smoked salmon (cut in very thin slices) and some dill. You can add as much dill as you prefer; We also tried this recipe adding dill in the yogurt-cheese mix, and it was also really good!

The pitas are served right away, as -depending on the dough of the pita- they may start to harden a bit after an hour. So it's a make & serve appetizer; a festive appetizer that's very quick and very easy; you just prepare the pitas, mix the yogurt-cheese condiment and assemble them. Try to have just one, as they 're delicious but they 're also filling! Kali oreksi!

Ingredients:

- 6 Greek pita breads, small size (pocketless)
- 200g (7oz) smoked salmon, cut into pieces
- 200g (7oz) good quality Greek yogurt
- 200g (7oz) cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) extra virgin olive oil (for the pitas)
- 2 tablespoon (30ml) lemon juice
- dill for the topping
- salt and pepper

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Preparation

Brush the pita breads with the olive oil (both sides).

Grill the pita breads on a grill pan, on medium to high heat, for about 3 minutes. Flip them and continue grilling for another 1-2 minutes.
Remove the pita breads from heat and place them on kitchen paper to absorb any excess oil. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

While the pitas are cooling down, add the yogurt, the cream cheese and the lemon juice in a bowl and mix well until blended. Add salt and pepper.

Place 1 tablespoon of the Greek yogurt-cheese mix on each pita bread and spread it on the surface using a butter knife.
Add 2-3 slices of smoked salmon on top. Sprinkle with dill and serve. Kali oreksi!

Tips:

1. You can add finely chopped dill in the yogurt-cheese mix, for a stronger dill taste. You can also add some lemon zest if you prefer.
2. As mentioned, if you don't have a grill pan don't worry. Just use your oven broiler and a wire rack or just a fry pan to grill the pitas.

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Fast&Easy

Fluffy creamy lemon pie

littlecookingtips — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 19:05:10 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou

Calories (per serving):

599

Servings:

6 slices/pieces

Preparation Time:

10 minutes

Cooking Time:

30 minutes

A lemon pie is always great as a dessert or while having your coffee or tea. It's quick and easy to make, it's light and fluffy and you 'll taste the lemon in every sweet bite!

Ingredients:

- 1 puff pastry sheet, thawed
- 4 tablespoons of lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
- 3 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 250ml (1 cup), milk, evaporated (preferably)
- 200ml (4/5 cup) cream (full fat)
- 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla (powder or extract)
- 100gr (5 tablespoons), brown sugar
- butter or margerine to grease the pan
For the frosting:
- 80gr (4 tablespoons) of sugar (preferably brown)

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Preparation: Use some butter to grease a medium sized pan (preferably pyrex). Spread the pastry sheet and using a fork, pierce the sheet throughout its surface. Put some baking paper over the pastry sheet, and then place a metal small pot or skillet on top, to press down the pastry. Put the pan (with the pot/skillet) in the oven (middle rack) and bake for 10-12 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit). When you remove it from the oven, remove the paper and the pot and let the pastry sheet in the pan to cool down.

Whisk the eggs and the sugar in a large bowl. When the mixture becomes fluffy add the cream, then the milk, the zest and finally the lemon juice. Whisk until the mixture is smooth.
Pour the mixture in the pan with the pastry, and put it in the oven (middle rack) at 180 degrees Celsius(350 Fahrenheit) for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the sugar (kept for frosting), and put it back in the oven for another 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it cool down, to room temperature, before slicing and serving.
Serve with a cup of coffee or tea.

Tips:

1. You can serve with some fresh whipped cream on top.
2. You can omit the vanilla powder if you don't have any. You can also replace it with mastic powder, having a diffent -but amazing- result.
3. You can use shortcrust dought (for tarts/pies). You must also bake it a bit before adding the cream filling. The result is quite different, but amazing nevertheless.
4. If you like a creamier result, you can double the quantity of the filling.
5. Be carefull; only use a metal pot/skillet to press down the pastry. Make sure it doesnt have any plastic handles.

Meal:

Method:

Cuisine:

Season:

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Special Characteristics:

Fast&Easy

Low Cost

Little Cooking Tips - 6 slices/pieces

Smoked salmon, Greek yogurt and cream cheese Pitas

Fluffy creamy lemon pie