Little Cooking Tips - Dessert

Traditional Fried Greek Pastry with Honey and Nuts (Diples)

littlecookingtips — Sun, 17 Dec 2017 16:44:10 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

Servings:

Preparation Time:

Cooking Time:

And before we even realize it, it’s almost Christmas! We have been trying to publish this post for days; we prepared the photos, tested the recipe to make the proper measurements and adjustments, wrote most of the text and then….we had to pause: the workload at the office, for both of us, was immense. Instead of getting in the mood for the Holiday Season, we had to deal with various urgent (they’re always urgent aren’t they?) issues. Moreover, we got a bit sick from flu! So, we are posting this right before Christmas, instead of 10 days before. Hopefully, though, you’ll be able to try this recipe in the Holiday Season. If not, it’s still a popular recipe all year round.

Diples: a delicious recipe for sweet fried dough

The recipe we are posting this Holiday Season is the one for Diples. Diples (pronounced thee-ples) is a traditional, festive dessert, that’s mostly served at the Peloponnese but is also popular thought Greece. A similar variation in Crete is called Kserotigana (meaning fried until dry). The word diples literally means “folds”, because one folds a thin sheet of dough while it’s being fried in a pan. Diples are very popular during Christmas but are also served at weddings, baptisms or other celebrations.

We got the idea for posting a recipe for diples, a couple of weeks back. You see, we had a one-day excursion to the Greek country, in the area of the Peloponnese (in Arcadia). It was a winter’s day, and we enjoyed watching the landscape changing colors, to darker shades and the weather getting colder and colder. We stopped by a local bakery, and saw a tray filled with golden diples, dipped in honey and sprinkled with lots of cinnamon and crushed walnuts. Of course we bought a few and immediately told each other that we should share our version on the blog! :)

Our Diples version

Our version for diples is the easiest one. We’ll show you how to make the dough and how to fry them in simple, rectangle-shaped strips. We won’t mess with actually folding the strips in the pan, as this takes quite a bit of practice and it would be hard for someone who never tried diples before to understand how to make them through a blog post.

So, this is the simplest version. The dough is the same –of course- we use in the folded diples as well; the only difference is that we won’t fold them. We’ll make delicious, crusty sheets of fried dough, scented with cinnamon and orange. In our version diples look a bit like Mexican Buñuelos. Only they are rectangle-shaped and not round. The process for making them is also similar to Buñuelos, so if you tried them before, you ‘ll easily follow the instructions in this recipe.

We won’t use ouzo, which is a liquor often used in diples. We want this recipe to be alcohol-free so that your children can enjoy it as well. We remember ourselves as kids, running to the countertop to get some of the diples that had been just prepared by our moms.

Little cooking tips for making great diples

The key to making perfect diples is to roll the dough out, really thin. The thickness should be 2 mm – 1/16in or less. This way, when we fry our little strips of dough, they’ll become crispy and stay this way in the next days (if you manage not to eat them all in the same day– for us at least it’s hard LOL).

Another important factor for making great crispy diples is the syrup. The syrup should be a bit thick and is always scented with cinnamon and quite often with orange zest as well. You must not dip the fried diples in the syrup for too long though. They are usually dipped in the syrup, after they cool down, for just one second. Keep in mind that the fried dough should be cooled down to room temperature and the syrup should always be hot.

If you plan to serve them on the next day, then you can fry the dough, and keep the diples strips in an open container. On the next day, you can make the syrup, dip them in it while hot, and then serve them, drizzling with lots of honey and crushed walnuts. If you don’t have enough time, then you can also make the syrup a day ahead, and warm it up in order to dip the diples in it, before you serve them.

Please never keep the diples in your fridge. They will become soggy. Diples are kept in a humid-free place of your house, uncovered. If you want to cover them, then use a simple cheesecloth or tulle; something that allows the air to circulate.

What we love about them

One of the best things about diples, is that they really easy to make. They are also really affordable, a peasants dessert, made with inexpensive materials: flour, eggs, sugar, honey, and cinnamon are the main ingredients.

Another thing we love about them is that you can easily make them a day ahead, and make some syrup (or warm up a ready one) and serve them on the next day. This makes them perfect for celebrations when you have a ton of things to do.

Moreover: who doesn’t like fried dough?!:) From churros (Mexico) to loukoumades (Greece), from beignets (France) to doughnuts (USA) and from rosettes (Sweden) to banh ran (Vietnam), it seems that sweet fried dough is a universal favorite. Diples are delicious thin sheets of fried dough, with a thin layer of cinnamon and orange-scented syrup: could you resist that? The honey and the crushed walnuts add extra texture and aroma. So when your teeth crack through the crispy dough, you get all these flavors in a single bite, the honey fills your mouth, and you can’t wait to get to the next bite and devour as many diples as you can:)

Along with melomakarona, kourabiedes and Vasilopita, diples is one the most desired desserts during the Holiday Season in Greek households. That is why we included them on our list of Greek comfort foods.

So let’s see how to make these amazing festive treats!

Ingredients:

For the dough:

- 250g / 9oz / 0.55lb (2 cups), all-purpose flour, sifted
- 15g / 0.5oz (1 tablespoon) granulated sugar
- 2g / 0.08oz (1/2 teaspoon) baking powder
- 1.5g salt / 0.05oz (1/4 teaspoon) salt
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 30ml (2 tablespoons) fresh orange juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4-5g / 0.15oz (about 1 tablespoon) orange zest
- vegetable oil for frying (sunflower seed, corn, soybean or canola oil)
- coarsely ground walnuts, ground cinnamon, and honey for serving

For the syrup:

- 280g / 10oz (1 1/3 cup) granulated sugar
- 250ml (1 cup) water
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4-5g / 0.15oz (about 1 tablespoon) orange zest
- 45ml (3 tablespoons) fresh orange juice (about half an orange, juiced)
- 112g / 4oz (1/3 cup) honey

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Preparation:

For the dough:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add all the dry ingredients (pic. 1): the flour, the sugar, the baking powder and the salt. Mix well with a spoon.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, just add the dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Add the beaten eggs to the dry ingredients (pic. 2).

Add the orange juice (pic. 3) and the vanilla extract (pic. 4).

Add the orange zest (pic. 5). Start your mixer at a low speed (1/3) and let it incorporate everything and knead the dough for about 4 minutes (pic. 6). The dough is ready once it has come together and holds its shape, without sticking to the bowl. If you don’t have a stand mixer, then mix everything together by hand and knead for 5-6 minutes until you get a smooth and only slightly-sticking result.
Note: Depending on the flour you used and the volume of the eggs, the dough may be a bit sticky. If it’s too sticky, to the point that you can’t work with it (e.g. it sticks all over your floured hands), add a tablespoon or two of flour and knead for a few seconds.

Shape into a ball, and cover with plastic (pic. 7). Let it rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour (we recommend 4-6 or overnight for better results). After the dough has rested, place on lightly floured surface. Lightly dust the dough with flour as well (pic. 8).

Divide it into two or four balls (pic. 9) with a dough scraper. Roll a ball out thin (with flour-dusted rolling pin). Try to shape into a rectangle (pic. 10). The thickness of the rolled out dough must be 2mm or less (about 1/16in).
Note: You can also use a pasta maker to roll the dough into thin sheets.

Using a pasta/dough cutter, cut the excess dough, in order to give your sheet a rectangular shape. Then cut the sheet into 10-15cm X 5-7cm / 4-5in X 2-3in rectangle strips (pic.11, pic. 12).

Place each strip on a damp towel (pic. 13), to keep it moist and prevent it from sticking. Continue with rolling out the next ball of dough. Repeat the process until all the dough is cut into strips. Put a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Pour in 4-5cm/2in of oil. To check if the oil is hot enough, you can use a small piece of dough (pic. 14).

If it rises to the surface and starts bubbling gently (pic. 15), then the oil is hot enough to fry the diples strips. Gently place a few strips (never more than 2 or 3) in the pan (pic. 16). Fry for about 1 minute, flipping once halfway through, using two forks, until golden. Depending on the oil used and how hot it is, you may even need less than a minute, so keep an eye to check if they’re crispy and golden.

Transfer each fried strip (dipla) to paper towel-lined plates to drain the excess oil (pic. 17). You might need more than one because you should not stack them on top of each other but rather next to each other. Let them cool completely. Place all of them on a plate (pic. 18).

For the syrup:

Start making the syrup: Add the sugar, the water, the cinnamon stick, the orange zest and the orange juice in a small or medium pot/saucepan (pic. 19). Place over medium-high heat, uncovered. Once it starts simmering, lower the heat to low and let it simmer for 5-6 minutes, stirring gently from time to time. Remove from heat and add the honey (pic. 20). Stir to dissolve.

Using tongs (pic. 21), dip each fried dipla strip into the hot syrup for just 1 second (pic. 22). You just want them to get coated in syrup, so don’t let them stay in it for long or they’ll become soft and mushy (which is the opposite of the desired consistency for diples).

Place in a large plate, in layers, adding ground walnuts, cinnamon and honey in each layer, according to your liking.

Kali oreksi!

Tips:

1. If you don’t plan to serve immediately, it’s better to keep the syrup aside or in the fridge and not dip the diples in it. Then, right before serving the, you can warm it up and dip the diples strips in it. This way, they’ll stay more crispy.
2. Do not store diples in the fridge or they’ll become mushy.
3. Keep prepared diples in a plate or an open container and cover with cheesecloth if you have to (we often store them in the oven before serving them ourselves). High humidity is their worst enemy.
4. You can make the dough a day ahead and the syrup as well, and simply warm the syrup up, for dipping the diples, before serving them. Do not store either in the fridge before this (or after!).
5. We find that the best way to make diples is to make the dough and fry the diples first and then prepare the syrup. This way, the syrup is still hot when the fried diples have cooled down.
6. You can also serve diples sprinkling with a little powdered sugar along with ground cinnamon.
7. Keep the excess dough you cut when giving the sheet a rectangular shape. Knead all the scraps into a ball and make a few more strips in the end.

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Traditional Greek Easter Bread (Tsoureki)

littlecookingtips — Mon, 03 Apr 2017 13:43:27 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

312

Servings:

12+ slices/pieces

Preparation Time:

4 hours

Cooking Time:

45 minutes

Easter is almost here! For all us Greeks, Easter (called Pascha in Greek) is the greatest religious holiday of the year. Celebrating Easter in Greece, is a beautiful event, even for the non-believers. The mysticism surrounding the days right before the Resurrection (which is celebrated on Holy Saturday, at midnight) is truly unique. Easter is a huge deal; a great social event, rich in traditions.

After the Great Lent, which starts 40 days before Easter (on Clean Monday), is the Holy Week, the week before Easter. This is a time when most Greeks, even the most secular ones, are fasting, abstaining from meat and dairy consumption. Churches are packed with people every night; the priests read the gospels that tell the story of Jesus’s last days and His path to the cross and the Resurrection. These days have a great sense of community, as everyone awaits Jesus’ redemption.

After all, Easter is always on spring, so there’s a great relation between Jesus’s resurrection and nature’s rebirth as well, after the long period of winter. Celebrating Easter in Greece is filled with the smells of flower blossoms, like jasmine and lilac. Most people celebrate Pascha in the country, in their villages of origin, so they’re getting in touch with their roots, meeting friends and relatives in a huge (and loud!) Greek celebration:)

Holy Week's Traditions

Some of the most popular Easter culinary traditions begin on Holy Thursday. This is the day of the beginning of The Passion, so eggs are dyed red, to symbolize the blood of our Lord. Most people dye hard boiled eggs at home; but they’re also available (already boiled and dyed) in super markets and grocery stores.

Another Holy Thursday tradition, is baking the Easter bread “Tsoureki”, which is very similar to Challah. It’s a braided sweet bread, that’s served after the Resurrection. Placing a red dyed egg in the middle of the Tsoureki is also common. The aroma of this sweet bread is truly unique; it’s a combination of ground Chios mastic (a natural resin) and ground mahleb (also called mahlab or mahlepi, it’s ground wild cherry pits). This is the recipe we’ll be sharing with all of you this Easter. As for getting those two ingredients, don’t worry; you can easily order them online and get them delivered to your doorstep; they are widely available:)

Many people are also baking Easter cookies, called koulourakia on Holy Thursday. They’re butter based, braided and glazed, and are usually served on Easter Sunday.
Both koulourakia cookies and the sweet Tsoureki bread are also eaten all year round, as they’re very popular with coffee and tea.

As the Passion progresses on Good Friday, the day commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus, the fasting is much stricter. On this day, most people will abstain from any type of protein and fat (like olive oil). Most people eat simple salads, dried or fresh fruits, bread and nuts. It’s a day of mourning; the image of Jesus is put on a funeral bier and the bells toll solemnly throughout the day. The bier is called Epitafios (or Epitaphios/Epitaph), and it’s decorated by young girls with spring flowers. During this day, almost everyone will visit a church, after midday (when the decoration is over) to pay his or her respects to this symbolic Jesus’ bier, usually throwing some flower pedals on it, like you would do for a close person or a relative who has passed away.

In the evening, there’s the Perifora of the Epitaph. In every town or village, the Epitafios is carried on the shoulders of the worshippers, in a symbolic funeral procession which takes place in the main streets. The people carrying the Epitafios are constantly changing in this process, as it is a great honor to carry Jesus on one’s shoulders. The people following the bier are holding lit funeral candles, and chanting one of the most wonderful Orthodox hymns: "Ω γλυκύ μου έαρ" (O glyki mou e-ar), which literally means “My Sweet Spring”, mourning the death of Jesus on this most beautiful of seasons. Here’s the hymn:

On Holy Saturday, people are beginning the preparations for the dinner that follows the midnight service and the next day’s (Easter Sunday) feast. In this day, most people will prepare the Magiritsa soup. Magiritsa is a soup with dill or fennel, greens and lamb’s liver and/or other offal, in egg-lemon sauce (avgolemono). When we prepare this dish ourselves we only use liver, as we find that it tastes much better; but if you’re not into offal, don’t worry: there’s a vegetarian version as well, made with mushrooms that’s equally delicious!

At the same day, people prepare two of the main dishes for Easter Sunday: the lamb or goat, that’s usually whole spit-roasted, is prepared with spices and it’s put on a spit to drain. The other dish is the kokoretsi, that’s truly not for the faint-hearted:) Kokoretsi is lamb’s (or goat’s) offal, usually liver and lung, chopped in small pieces and placed in a spit, heavily seasoned and tightly tied together with the lamb’s small intestine (that’s thoroughly cleaned at least a day before). The reason for this, is leaving nothing to go to waste, but we do realize that it’s a tough sight for any non-Greek to see:)

On Holy Saturday evening, most people will visit a church before midnight, for the last Mass. This is a huge community event; everywhere you look, around midnight you’ll see families walking towards a church with lambades on their hands. Lambades are the celebratory candles (white or decorated ones), that will be lit with the Holy Fire just a few minutes before Easter. The children’s lambades are usually given to them by their godparents or their grandparents (if the godparents weren’t available).

The Holy Fire is miraculously lit during Mass on Jerusalem, on the actual site of Jesus’ tomb on Holy Saturday and it’s then flown to Greece and distributed to all the churches, a few hours before midnight (when Easter will be celebrated).

So, when the priest reads the gospel with the story of the Angel discovering that Jesus was resurrected, the Holy Fire is distributed to the people observing the Mass. The flame of the Holy fire is passed from person to person and all the lambades are lit and any other lights are turned off. It’s truly a mystical moment, that wins even the hearts of the most devoted atheists:) People you don’t even know (and probably won’t see again) light your candle and you exchange wishes with them (and then pass the flame, lighting the candle of the people next to you).

On midnight, the priest is chanting “Χριστός Ανέστη!” (Christos Anesti! – Christ is Risen!) and the Easter frenzy begins! :) First, you kiss and hug every relative that is with you in the Church. Second, you kiss and hug any neighbor or other familiar person from your town or village you see on the church as well:) The bells toll madly and joyously, in the ports the ships sound their horns, fireworks go off everywhere, in the villages people fire their hunting shotguns(!)…you get the picture :)

And then the people start walking back to their homes with the lit lambabes on hand. It’s a wonderful sight to see, with all the smiling faces eager to start their dinner.
When people arrive at home, the tradition is to make the sign of the cross with the smoke of the Holy Fire on the door sill. At least one candle with the Holy Fire is then placed at the center of the dinner table.

The two main items on Holy Saturday’s dinner are the magiritsa soup and the hard-boiled red dyed eggs. The reason for not serving something like grilled meat (since the Lent is over after the midnight service), is to prepare one, after having abstained from meat for so long, with something lighter. So, the protein from the soup and the eggs is perfect; after all, this dinner is served very late at night.

But you don’t simply crack the eggs open and eat them; nope! :) Where’s the fun in that? On Easter, there’s a sort of “competition” at the dinner table. Here’s the deal: everyone selects a red dyed egg. Then, in pairs, people tap each other’s egg, intending to break the other’s without breaking one’s own. The last person with his or her egg intact, is the lucky person of the night:) When one taps the egg of another, one says “Christos Anesti – Christ is Risen” and the other answers “Alithos Anesti – It’s true that he is Risen”. Isn’t this wonderful?

And then, before you know it, it’s Easter Sunday morning! Early in this day, the men in the family prepare the fire and start roasting the kokoretsi and the lamb. This is traditionally a men’s work. The women prepare different small plates with meze, like eggs, dips and other goodies. These are the appetizers served before the big feast, that will follow when the lamb is ready. Most people try to eat less of those, and drink less wine and beer as well, to enjoy the roasted lamb when the table is set for the Easter Lunch.

When the lamb is ready, roasted to the point that the meat is falling off the bone, it is transferred to a table and carved into portions. The Easter table is then prepared, again with eggs, dips and other meze, salads and breads and A LOT of wine and beer. People stuff their faces with lamb, tell jokes and stories, and everything that you’d expect from a loud Greek family gathering. :)

Did we mention the music? Traditional Greek country music is played through speakers all over the country, throughout the day. This is the day when the distant uncle you’ve never seen before, is pulling your hand to stand up and dance with the rest of the family, as a courtesy to him:) Happy times, right? :)

When the feast (and the dancing) is over, which can easily take up to 12 hours (oh yes), there’s time for more: club sodas and dessert are finally served. Yes, there’s dessert as well! It all starts with the sweet tsoureki bread and continue with syrup-drenched sweets like baklava, kataifi, galaktoboureko and many more (even the non-traditional ice cream!).It’s not rare to see strange combinations at this point (perhaps the drinking has contributed to this!), like ice cream on baklava, ice cream on tsoureki, ice cream in your coffee etc.

The Tsoureki Easter Bread

But let’s get back to the wonderful sweet Easter bread: Tsoureki. As mentioned before, this is the recipe we’d like to share in this post (besides the traditions you just read). It’s a fantastic, fluffy bread, made with butter, milk, eggs and flour. The aromas from the Chios mastic, the mahleb and the orange zest however, are what make this truly unique (and delicious!).

Like we mentioned above, tsoureki is very popular and is also eaten throughout the year; you can easily get it at any bakery or pastry shop. People also bake tsoureki at home and serve it as a snack or with coffee or tea. Our favorite combination though is with chocolate-hazelnut spreads like Merenda or Nutella. You really don’t know what you’re missing if you never tried a slice of tsoureki with such spread! Please do try it.

If you never tried Tsoureki or Challah (that’s similar) before, making one might sound a bit challenging. Please don’t be intimidated though; with our step by step instructions, we’re confident you’ll bake a magnificent Tsoureki at your first attempt. Feel free to drop as an email or comment below, if you have any questions; we’re happy to help.

The secret for a really great Tsoureki is choosing a high-protein bread flour. You should check the package, with the nutritional info. The protein percentage should be at least 13% and the higher it is, the better. We usually buy a 14-16% protein flour ourselves. Also, don’t ever bake Tsoureki in a hurry. You should give the dough the proper time to rise if you want a fluffy and chewy texture.

So, let’s see the recipe for the authentic, traditional Greek tsoureki!

Ingredients:

- 500g / 17.5oz / 1lb bread flour*
- 200g / 7oz granulated sugar
- 115g / 4oz (1 stick) butter
- 125ml (1/2 cup) milk, lukewarm
- 12g / 0.4oz (1 1/2 sachet) dry yeast
- 3 eggs for the dough
- 1 egg, beaten for brushing the loaf before baking
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground Chios mastic**
- 1 teaspoon ground mahleb/mahlab**
- zest from a medium sized orange***

* Choose the bread flour with the highest protein content; the more the better. We buy 14%-16% protein flour. The minimum for this recipe is 13%. Check the package to verify this.
** Don’t worry about finding these. If they aren’t available at your local supermarket you can easily get them online and have them delivered to your doorstep.
*** Take off only the rind of the orange's skin. Be careful not to take the white pith as well, as it is bitter.

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Preparation

Grind the mastic into powder, with a mortar and pestle. You can use 1 teaspoon (or 2) of the sugar to make this easier, as mastic tends to be sticky when ground (pic. 1-3).

Add the yeast (pic. 4) and 1/4 of the flour –that’s 125g / 4.5oz- (pic.5) to the lukewarm milk.
Mix well (pic. 6) and cover with film or a kitchen towel. Set aside, away from drafts. Let it rest for about 30minutes to 1 hour until it doubles in size. Melt the butter on low heat. Set aside to cool.

Use a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer and beat the 3 eggs, for a few seconds. Add the sugar (pic. 7) and whisk, on medium speed, for about a minute (pic. 8).

Add the salt, the mahleb (pic. 9) and the mastic (pic. 10),

the orange zest (pic. 11) and the melted butter (pic. 12). Whisk for a few more seconds.

Add the prepared yeast mixture (pic. 13). Replace the whisk attachment with the dough hook (pic. 14). If you don’t have one, you’ll have to mix well with a spatula.

Gradually add the flour, one tablespoon at a time (pic. 15), while mixing continuously. Knead with the hook for 10 minutes (pic. 16), on low speed. If you don’t have a dough hook, knead by hand for 15 minutes.

The dough must be firm, smooth and a bit elastic. Place in a bowl (pic. 17), cover with film or a kitchen towel and set aside for 2 – 3 hours to double in size.

Punch down to deflate the dough. Empty it on a working surface (pic. 18). You can also dust the surface with very little flour. Be careful though; too much flour will have an impact on your tsoureki. If the dough isn’t sticking much, don’t flour the surface at all.

Divide the dough in 3 pieces (pic. 19). Roll each piece to form a loaf-like shape. Hold the ends and stretch it a bit more, to form a rope-like strand (like the ones in the beginning, in pic. 20). When the 3 pieces are formed into strands, pinch their ends together at one end (again, like in the beginning of pic. 20).

Braid the strands, the way that is shown in the animated picture (pic. 20):
1. Take the right strand and bring it over the middle strand. Set this next to the left strand.
2. Take the strand that’s now on the right, and move it slightly further to the right.
3. Take the left strand and bring it over the middle strand next to the right strand.
4. Take the right strand and bring it over the middle strand. Set it next to the left strand.
5. Take the left strand and bring it over the middle strand next to the right strand.
6. Continue the process (left to the right-then right to the left), depending on how long your strands are.
7. Tuck the ends underneath the braided loaf.

Don’t worry if the above is confusing to you! Here’s an amazing video from Titli Nihaan that can make braiding super easy to anyone.

Repeat as many times necessary to get the idea (that’s what we did a few years back!)

Carefully transfer the braided loaf on a -lined with parchment- baking sheet. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and set aside. Let it rise, for 1 1/2 – 2 hours. Brush generously with the egg that’s left (pic. 21).

Bake in preheated oven at 190C/370F (in convection oven - fan assisted baking) for 35-40 minutes, until browned. Allow it to cool completely before cutting it.

Kalo Pascha! (Happy Easter!)

Tips:

1. You really must try a slice of tsoureki with some fruit preserves or Nutella. The combination is divine!

2. Always wrap the tsoureki in film after cutting the slices you want to serve, in order to keep it moist, as it tends to dry out.

3. In case that’s rare!- there’s some tsoureki left after a couple of days, you can broil or toast it and make rusks. Those are perfect with your coffee or tea.

4. Choose a high-protein bread flour for this recipe. The more protein, the better.

5. If you liked tsoureki, and you like authentic bread recipes, you should also check out Karen Kerr’s amazing blog “Karen's Kitchen Stories”. Her food blog is one of our favorites and we often visit it to learn techniques and discover tips; especially those related to baking, as she's one of the top bakers out there. Take a look at this beautiful Challah for instance. Isn’t it wonderful?

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Greek New Year's lucky cake (Vasilopita)

littlecookingtips — Sun, 25 Dec 2016 16:41:01 +0000

Photo and text by Mirella Kaloglou and Panos Diotis.

Calories (per serving):

291

Servings:

Preparation Time:

Cooking Time:

It’s been very chilly in Athens this December. Usually, the first month of the winter is mild here in southern Greece, with lots of sunshine and nice temperatures, up to 19C/66F. This year though things are different; freezing temperatures and cold winds are the key characteristics of the weather. Most mornings and nights, everything is covered in frost.

This wouldn’t stop us of course from enjoying a walk in nature and the warmth the sun has to offer. Even in winter however, there’s a lot of produce to look forward to. We harvested the last of the olives in the last month and the last of the pomegranates. Now it’s the lemon and orange trees’ turn to offer their gifts. In fact they are so many that we have to pick them almost every day or so. Of course since there are a lot of them, we share them with friends and family and use them in countless recipes.

The recipe we’re posting here is one of them. Scented with orange zest, it’s the cake we bake every holiday season for the New Year’s eve: Vasilopita (Saint Basil’s pie). Every family in Greece celebrates the arrival of the New Year by serving this right after midnight. A few seconds before the clock strikes twelve, it is also the custom to turn the lights off in the house to let go of the old year in darkness, and celebrate the arrival of the new one at twelve by turning the lights back on! At this point everyone wishes “Happy New Year, with lots of Health” to everyone (yes; everyone has to wish “happy new year” to everyone who’s present in the household at the moment). It’s a wonderful tradition and perhaps the most popular one here.

The tradition of cutting the Vasilopita cake is not the only popular one though; there’s a lot more customs, some of which are centuries old: the smashing of the pomegranate, the hanging of the squill bulb (a large onion) on the door and the podariko (the lucky first entrance into the household). Since all of these are quite interesting, and very popular, we’d love to share a few details about them.

First, the smashing of the pomegranate: since ancient times, pomegranates are symbolizing prosperity and fertility, because each fruit contains a lot of seeds. So after midnight, when the New Year has arrived, each household has to “sacrifice” a pomegranate by smashing it right in front of the main entrance of the house. After the “Happy New Year” wishes, all the guests and the family members are stepping out of the house for this custom. It’s a great honor for a family member or a guest to smash the pomegranate, as the one who smashes it, has the “responsibility” to scatter as many seeds as possible in order to bring good fortune for the household.

Hanging a large wild onion (squill bulb) on the front door: this custom is truly thousands of years old. Since Pythagoras, back in the 6th century BC, onions have been hanging on Greek front doors, for good luck, health and prosperity. Why is that? Well, onions have the ability to sprout and rebirth, even though they are uprooted. It’s a symbol of strength and resilience and therefore this custom survived to this day. Of course after the New Year, the onion is removed from the door and it’s placed somewhere inside (usually a warehouse) to keep for good luck.

The podariko: the custom of the First Footer. Right after midnight, the first person to enter the house is supposed to bring good or bad fortune. So usually if a year turns out to be bad, this person will not be selected for the custom again:) If the year turns out to be a good one, this person will become the most popular in for this tradition, and will be selected again and again to perform the First Footer custom. It’s supposed to be all about the positive energy and the generous feelings this person brings into the household. That’s why it’s quite often to select a child to enter the house first, as children are pure, innocent and good hearted. It’s very important to enter the house with the right foot first. The right side is supposed to be the blessed side. So everyone shouts “me to deksi!” (Meaning with the right one) to remind the person performing the custom that he must not forget to enter with the right foot.

However, the custom that everyone is waiting for with excitement, is the cutting of the Vasilopita cake, which is a Lucky New Year’s cake. Why is it called lucky? Because there’s a coin hidden inside it. Whoever gets the coin in their slice, is the person receiving the best luck for the New Year. There’s a ritual in cutting the cake:) The eldest member of the family or the host of the New Year’s Eve party is cutting the cake and serving the slices. First, he makes the sign of the cross on top of the cake. Then, there are a number of slices that are reserved. These may vary, according to local customs or family tradition.

Usually, the first slice is cut for Jesus, the next one for the household and the next one for Saint Basil. Some people also cut a slice for Virgin Mary or the Poor. These slices are reserved but not thrown away. They are simply eaten last, by family members the next days. The next slices are all cut and distributed among the family members first and then the rest of the guests. Whoever gets the coin in his or her slice, is the person who receives the best of luck for the New Year. It’s not uncommon to give money are a gift to this person as well. If the coin is inside one of the first, reserved slices though, the luck is supposed to be equally divided among the people present. Isn’t that a lot of fun?

The pie is named “Vasilopita” after Saint Basil of Caesarea. The Greek “Santa Claus” is Saint Basil, called Agios Vasilis. Saint Basil was a very generous bishop and a great philanthropist who lived in Minor Asia (modern day Turkey). He was a thin, kind hearted man, who helped everyone in need, especially the poor. St. Basil was very compassionate and also established the first orphanage ever recorded in history. Since he was so generous, he is associated with joy and happiness, that’s why a blessed New Year is related to his story and the New Year’s lucky cake is named after him.

The Vasilopita lucky cake has many different versions. The oldest one is a sweet bread, scented with various spices, like anise. The most common one nowadays, is a spongy, fluffy cake, usually scented with orange or lemon zest. Some people also like to add liquor, like brandy or bitter almond liqueur (amaretto). Others add mahleb or Chios mastic for extra flavor. There are versions with ground almonds or ground walnuts as well. The topping may be flaked almonds, powdered sugar or a classic glaze.

The recipe we are sharing here is Panos’ mom Eleni (Helen), which is very old and is basically a wonderful orange flavored fluffy cake, topped with lots and lots of powdered sugar. The photo with the old notepad has the actual hand writing of his mom back from when she was in her teens. It’s a fool proof recipe which we’re using ourselves to this day and has never failed us. It makes for an aromatic large cake, to serve up to 20 people.

The best part of this cake is that’s also great as a snack in the next days. We love to serve this with coffee or tea. Also try to spread some Nutella on a slice; it’s a combination made in heaven!

So let’s see how to make this Greek New Year’s Lucky Cake: Vasilopita! Wishing you all a happy, prosperous, healthy and inspiring New Year!

Ingredients:

- 500g / 17.6oz / 1.1lb (4 cups) all purpose flour, sifted
- 250g / 9oz (2 sticks and 1/4) butter, cut in cubes and softened (room temperature)
- 450g / 15.8oz / 1lb (2 1/4 cups) granulated sugar
- 6 medium sized eggs, yolks separated from whites, in room temperature
- 9g / 0.3oz (3 teaspoons) baking powder
- 5g / 0.17oz (2 teaspoons) orange zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
- 250ml (1 cup) milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- powdered sugar, for dusting the cake

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Preparation:

Butter and flour the bottom and sides of a 25x6cm/10x2.5in spring form pan.

Divide the eggs into yolks and whites (pic. 1). In a large bowl, beat the butter and the sugar (pic.2) for 8-10 minutes, using a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer, on medium-high speed.

You may need to stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl at least once, to make sure everything is being well mixed (pic.3). Once creamy and fluffy (pic. 4), the butter mix is ready.

Add the zest and the orange juice (pic. 5). Continue mixing for a few seconds to incorporate. While the mixer is on, slowly add the yolks. Allow each yolk to be incorporated before adding the next one (pic. 6).

Once everything is nicely combined (pic. 7) stop and empty the mixture into another large bowl. Clean the original mixer bowl and beaters thoroughly. They are needed again later on. Pat everything dry. In another bowl, mix the flour with the salt and the baking powder (pic. 8).

Add half of the flour mixture into the butter-sugar-eggs mixture (pic. 9). Mix well with a rubber spatula until everything is combined. Add the milk (pic. 10), and again, mix well with the rubber spatula until everything it's incorporated.

Add the rest of the flour (pic. 11) and mix well to combine (pic. 12). Preheat the oven at 170C / 340F (convection oven - fan assisted baking).

Whisk the egg whites at high speed until stiff peaks are formed (pic. 13). Take half of this meringue and add it to the bowl with the cake mixture (pic. 14). Fold into the mixture, but don't overmix. Once incorporated, add the rest of the meringue and again, fold into the mixture.

Empty the bowl into the prepared pan (pic. 15). Take a washed, clean coin and wrap it in aluminum foil (pic. 16).

Place into the mixture (pic. 17).

Bake in the middle oven rack for 1 hour, or more; until baked through. Check if ready by inserting a knife into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it's ready.

Top the cake by sprinkling lots of powdered sugar.

Tips:

1. Use a small grater and take off only the rind of the orange's skin. Be careful not to take the white pith as well, as it is bitter.
2. Remove the butter from the fridge at least a couple of hours before using it. This will allow it to soften. Cutting it into cubes helps as well.
3. One of the most important tips for meringue: The bowl you will use to beat the egg whites must be very clean. To achieve this, wipe it with a paper towel dipped in vinegar, to eliminate any fat residue.
4. Depending on the oven (how even the temperature is inside it) some people may get domed cakes. To avoid a domed cake you can also try to bake at a slightly lower temperature, 160C/325F. It will take a bit more to bake, but you will reduce the risk for crackings and a dome in the middle of the cake. Tapping the batter on the counter to release trapped bubbles before baking may also help. If you still get a dome in the middle of your cake, don't worry! Use a serrated knife and cut it off, horizontally. Then cover the top with lots of icing sugar (or your preferred frosting) :)

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Greek Christmas Butter Cookies: Kourabiedes

littlecookingtips — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 18:36:03 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

206

Servings:

12+ slices/pieces

Preparation Time:

30 minutes

Cooking Time:

20 minutes

Up until the last couple of weeks the weather was very kind to us here in Greece; lots of sunshine and warm temperatures, allowed for long walks and enjoying the scenery.

If the leaves hadn’t already fallen off the trees, one may had the impression it was spring and not autumn! This changed a few days ago and it seems now that the winter is finally here. The first snow has fallen up in the mountains, especially in the north, helping us to get into a festive mood, which is after all, appropriate for Christmas and the New Year celebration!

Of course, the winter was already here, at least according to the calendar, providing us with lots of yummy fruits and veggies. We especially enjoyed the quinces, made quince spoon sweet (you can read more about spoon sweets here) and cooked a wonderful ancient Greek recipe with roasted pork and quinces, which Panos learned from his grandfather (who also learned it from his own grandfather before). It’s a very old recipe and of course we’ll share it in the blog at some point).

Fresh carrots are also amazing this time of year, and are very versatile. We used them in soups (especially in the fasolada bean soup), in coleslaw, made carrot cakes, and so on and so forth:)

Another delicious sweet fruit you can enjoy this time of year is the persimmon. If you haven’t tried persimmons before, you’re missing out. They usually have a mild aroma and are very juicy and sweet. They’re packed with vitamins and are full of antioxidants. You should’ve seen us devouring those like kids eating candy, all smiling and making a mess.

Do you remember the green oranges back in the summer (in this post)? Check them out in their photo we are sharing now! Ripe and sweet, this year’s oranges are perhaps the best we had for a long time. And for some strange reason the trees in Evia were very generous, we got much more than we could eat and then turned some into jams, preserves etc. So we started sharing them with friends, like an Orange Santa, passing by on a weekly basis.

Speaking of Santa, we’re so excited that the Christmas season is here! Greek Christmas food is delicious and full of memories of times passed. Just like everywhere around the world, wherever people celebrate this season, the food this time is special, and it's shared among family and friends. It’s this loving setting that sears these memories in our hearts and makes them so unique.

The main ingredient of the season here, is pork. Back in the day people didn’t consume much meat, but they raised a pig which was slaughtered around Christmas and then shared in a large table with family and friends. Some of the parts were also used in sausages, while others were put in salt or were smoked, in order to preserve some of the meat for the next weeks (or months). By the way, if you’ve never tried Greek sausages, called Horiatiko Loukaniko, you should try them at least once!

Another popular recipe this time of year is chicken avgolemono (egg-lemon) soup. It’s a creamy delicious soup, usually including starchy rice, which is served with lots of fresh ground pepper and artisan old-school crusty bread. Even as we type those lines and remember all about it, we’re drooling all over the keyboard :)

A big part of the Greek Christmas tradition, is of course enjoying the local sweet treats: Melomakarona, kourabiedes and diples. Melomakarona and kourabiedes are the most popular ones, and if you’re in Greece around Christmas you’re bound to fall in love with them. You will find them in every household, any pastry shop, even in super markets and grocery stores. When you’re a guest, you know you’ll be treated a melomakarono (singular for melomakarona) or a kourabies (singular for kourabiedes). And even though you most certainly will have tasted many of them already, you will again devour another one with excitement :)

Melomakarona and kourabiedes are traditionally homemade. When we were kids ourselves, singing carols, many neighbors were giving us kourabiedes or melomakarona as a holiday treat. Back at home of course, we also had our own families’ versions.

They’re pronounced “koo-ra-bee-ye-thes”, and yes, it’s not that easy for a non-Greek speaking person to pronounce the word! But, if you only say “kourab-yeh” to any Greek, he will immediately understand what you’re asking for, and will give you the proper cookie. With a big smile on his/her face.

Those traditional, shortbread butter cookies include almonds, lots of powdered sugar, vanilla and usually rosewater or another flower water.
Edible rosewater (or flower water), adds an amazing scent to these cookies. But we know it may be difficult to find it in some places (it’s available online though). If you do buy it, you'll be able to make the traditional kourabiedes with their exceptional and unique aroma. If you’re thinking that rosewater is something you’ll buy once and then it’ll stay on your pantry gathering dust, that’s not the case.

There are many recipes which call for rosewater, plus you can try it in cookies, cakes and other desserts you're already baking and create something different and delicious! Try substituting vanilla with flower water in some recipes and you’ll get the idea:)
People who may not like the aroma of rosewater or flower water may also try adding some bitter almond liqueur (Amaretto) which also makes for wonderful kourabiedes.

The main ingredient for kourabiedes is of course, butter. You want to use the best quality butter you can afford, for this recipe. It will define the texture and the taste of the cookies. The traditional way to make kourabiedes is with sheep’s or goat’s butter. The flavor is a bit intense for any non-Greek though, plus it’s a bit hard to find such butter abroad. That’s why we used regular cow’s butter in this recipe. Feel free to use any type of butter you prefer, or even a mix of butters (like half sheep’s butter and half cow’s butter). If you can get the famous –in Greece- Corfu butter give it a try; it’s a pure, excellent quality butter.

Regarding the shape of those cookies, some people may be confused, due to their variety. There are 3 main shapes for kourabiedes: thick round cookies, crescents and balls. We think the easiest and nicest are the thick round cookies, as their shape helps us stacking them up in layers. This is the way they’re traditionally served.
As for the size of the cookies, they may be large (about 40gr/1.5oz of dough per cookie), or smaller, bite-sized. The ones sold in pastry shops are usually bite-sized, and the homemade ones are usually larger.

So go ahead and give them a try! You won’t regret baking those; your home will be filled with the aroma of the butter and the rosewater, and you’ll enjoy dusting them with lots and lots of icing sugar. They’re both pretty and delicious! So follow the recipe below and make some festive Greek cookies!

Ingredients:

- 500g / 17.5oz / 1.1 lb (4 cups) all purpose flour
- 250g / 9oz butter (2 sticks and 1/4), softened (room temperature, see preparation)
- 150g / 5.5oz (1 1/4 cups) powdered sugar, and more for dusting the cookies
- 150g / 5.5oz (about 1 cup) almonds, unsalted and toasted
- 1 egg yolk (from a large egg)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla essence
- edible rosewater or other flower water

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Preparation:

Remove the butter from the fridge at least a couple of hours before using it. This will allow it to soften. Cutting it into pieces also helps.

If using raw almonds, place them in a single layer on a lined baking sheet/pan and bake them for 10-15 minutes at 180C/350F (in preheated oven) (pic. 1). Grind the toasted almonds into coarse pieces, using a food processor. Do not grind them completely into powder.

Making the cookies

In a large bowl, beat the butter (pic.2) for 8-10 minutes, using a stand mixer or an electric hand mixer on medium-high speed (until soft and fluffy, pic.3).

Add the powdered sugar (pic.4) and beat for 10 more minutes until you get a "whipped cream" -like result (pic. 5).

Add baking powder and vanilla (pic. 6) and mix with a rubber spatula. Add the egg yolk (pic. 7) and mix until it's incorporated.

Add 1 tablespoon of rosewater or flower water and mix (pic. 8). Start adding the flour (pic. 9), a couple of tablespoons at a time. Mix with the spatula each time you add some.

When you've added half of the flour, you'll get a fluffy, almost rubbery dough (pic. 10).
At this point add all the remaining flour, wear single-use gloves and start incorporating the flour into the dough, with your hands (pic. 11). Do not overmix. Once the flour is incorporated,stop.
Important: USE gloves in the recipe. It will help insulating the warmth of your hands (to avoid melting the butter while handling the dough).

Add the ground almonds (pic. 12) and fold them into the dough. Shape the cookies (pic. 13). If using 40gr/1.5oz of dough per cookie, you'll make about 25 cookies.

Place the cookies in a lined baking dish/pan (pic. 14) and bake for 15-18 minutes in the middle oven rack (use the oven fan, in preheated oven).
When ready, remove from the oven, let them cool for 2-3 minutes, and then place them on a wire rack to cool completely out (pic. 15).

When cool, spray them with rosewater or flower water (pic. 16) and then dust them with powdered sugar (pic. 17), using a strainer. Be generous with both rosewater and sugar.

Your yummy treats are ready, place them in cookie box or in a cake stand, in layers (and place a lid on).

Kala Christougenna and Kali Chronia!

Tips:

1. You can use sheep, goat or cow butter or mixed butters. In any case, choose high quality butter for this recipe.
2. You can shape the kourabiedes in thick round cookies (like we did here), crescents or balls.
3. Leave a little space between the cookies before you bake them, as they will expand a little during baking.
4. If you want to make more cookies, feel free to double the ingredients above. The result is exactly the same.
5. If you don’t like rosewater or flower water (or can’t find any), add some vanilla powder in the icing sugar when you dust the cookies at the end of the recipe. And add a little almond liqueur (Amaretto) in the dough.
6. Always wear single-use gloves when you handle the dough and shape the cookies, to insulate the heat from your hands.

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Easy homemade cinnamon cookies

littlecookingtips — Thu, 12 Nov 2015 17:25:08 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou

Calories (per serving):

Servings:

12+ slices/pieces

Cooking Time:

1 hour

One of the things we've learned this autumn is that sometimes the harder you search for something, the less likely you'll find it, especially in this economy. As you may know from our previous post, we're looking for a new place to move into, but nothing good came up so far.

So, it seems we'll be staying at the same apartment for the winter (after all, who wants to move in the winter, during the Holiday season!). We won't let this bring us down of course! :)

We will keep cooking and doing all the things that make us happy! As a couple, we always try to have a positive attitude and see the good side of things. Well, one of the good sides of staying at the same place is that we'll continue to live close to a wonderful grove where we often take long walks. As you may see from the photos in this post, the place has pines, sycamores and even a small vineyard!

While walking you can listen to the birds singing, enjoy the smell of the trees and see all the wonderful colors of the autumn in the leaves. You may stumble upon a turtle here and there, mushrooms popping up from the ground, bushes of wild thyme with tireless bees around them... This is really a place to relax and get in touch in nature while staying within the city limits.

The autumn always make us crave for comfort food and one of the things we love is baking cinnamon cookies. Greece has its own versions of cookies which are called koulourakia. There are many variations of those, but all of them are crispy, with the exception of moustokouloura (yes we know; how the heck is any non-Greek supposed to pronounce that!), which are made with grape must and may also be soft and chewy.

So, we grew up with crispy cookies ourselves and aren’t big fans of chewy soft cookies. Don't worry if you like them this way though, there's a trick; if you keep the time suggested in this recipe, your cookies will be crispy, but if you prefer them softer, simply reduce the baking time by 5 to 6 minutes (depending on your oven of course).

This is actually an older, easy cinnamon cookie recipe, which is perfect for those who aren't used to baking and want to make their first batch of cookies. We posted this recipe a couple of years ago and it was very popular, but both the text and the photo were…well…let’s just say we weren’t very proud of them. It was of the posts we had on our list for a redo. So this time we'll show you how to make cinnamon cookies from scratch, with clear, easy to follow, instructions, so you won't have to worry about a thing.

These are cinnamon cookies without eggs and only contain the essential ingredients of the basic cookie dough: butter, sugar, flour and baking powder. To those we added cinnamon (we LOVE this spice, plus it's good for your body) and a little brandy. Almost all the alcohol will be vanished while baking. Feel free to leave it out though, if you want to share those cookies with your kids and add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract instead. We don't have any children (yet) ourselves, so we added the brandy with a big smile on our faces :)

You can also make those cookies with brown sugar; it won't mix with the butter very well, but you don't have to worry, as the sugar will melt during baking.

Make sure to refrigerate this dough for 20 minutes before using it. It will make it easier to handle and you'll be able to cut the cookies without any issues. As for rolling it out, you can either do that with your hands, by pressing with your palms in an outward direction from the center of the dough, or use a -dusted with flour- rolling pin. Do not press the pin hard on the dough; roll it gently over to spread it. Then, you can use a cookie cutter or even a glass to cut the cookies and place them on a lined with parchment baking pan/tray. Make sure to leave some space around each cookie (about an inch) as they'll expand while baking.

This recipe is for 25-30 cookies (depending on how large you cut them), so you'll either bake those in the same pan/tray in two sequential batches, or you'll bake them at the same time in two pans/trays (in this case switch them over halfway through).

Your home will smell amazing while those are baking; the cinnamon aroma will make it very hard to wait, but don't open the oven door often, you know this isn't right! Right? :) And the -even hardest- part is waiting for a few minutes after you remove them from the oven, while they cool in a rack. But after part is also over...pure heaven! Yummy goodness in each bite! We love dunking those cookies in hot coffee of warm milk; they soak it up and become even more amazing!

So let’s finally see how to make these wonderful cookies!

Ingredients:

- 200gr/7oz (1 cup) granulated sugar

- 170gr/6oz butter or margarine (1 1/2 stick or 3/4 cup), in room temperature

- 250gr/9oz (2 cups) all-purpose flour

- 60ml (1/4 cup) brandy

- 1 tablespoon cinnamon powder

- 6gr/0.4oz (2 teaspoons) baking powder

- 1 tablespoon caster sugar (for serving, optional)

- a little flour to dust the surface and handle the dough

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Preparation:

Add the sugar and the butter in a large bowl (pic. 1) and whisk using a handheld or kitchen stand mixer. It's better to leave the butter out of the fridge for half an hour before using it, to allow it to soften. Always start the mixer at a low speed and gradually increase it. Use circular motions to combine the materials easier. Whisk for 8-10 minutes. The end result should be a soft, smooth mixture (pic. 2).

At this point, lower the speed and add the brandy, the baking powder and the cinnamon (pic. 3). Whisk at low speed for a few seconds, until they are incorporated into the mixture. Start adding the flour, one tablespoon at a time (pic. 4).

Once you have added half the flour, remove the mixer. Continue adding the rest of the flour, mixing with a spatula, until all of it is incorporated into the dough (pic. 5). Cover with film and put it in the fridge for 20-30 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on a clean, flat surface, also put some on your hands; empty the bowl with the dough on the surface (pic. 6).

Using an -also sprinkled with flour- rolling pin (or your palms) flatten the dough to about 1cm/0.5in thickness (pic. 7). Don’t press the pin hard on the dough. Gently roll it over. Using a 5cm/2in diameter cookie cutter -or even a glass of the same diameter- cut the cookies from the dough (pic. 8).

Start placing them on a lined with parchment baking tray/pan (pic. 9). When you cut the first 15 cookies, mold the remaining dough into a ball and roll it flat (on surface dusted with flour again) to cut the rest of the cookies from it.

You’ll make two batches, in order to leave enough space between the cookies (about 15 cookies will be placed on each sheet). Don’t overcrowd the pan/tray, and make sure there’s at least 3-4cm/1 inch of space between them. As mentioned in the beginning of the post, you'll either bake those in the same pan/tray in two sequential batches, or you'll bake them at the same time in two pans/trays (in this case switch them over halfway through, to allow them to bake evenly).

Bake on preheated oven, in 180 C/360 F, for 18 minutes, using the fan setting. Remove (pic. 10) them and let them cool for at least 5 minutes on a rack (pic. 11) before serving them. You can also dust them with some caster sugar.

Kali oreksi!

Tips:

1. You can also use brown sugar instead of granulated. Don’t worry if it doesn’t combine perfectly with the butter, it will melt during baking.
2. In order to sprinkle some caster sugar, you can use a small strainer.
3. Keep them in an airtight container or a cookie box/jar, lined with parchment. They will keep for 5 days, but you probably won’t be able to let them in the box for that long! :)

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No bake sour cherry cheesecake in a glass

littlecookingtips — Tue, 16 Jun 2015 08:53:18 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou

Calories (per serving):

627

Servings:

serves 4

Cooking Time:

20 minutes

This is one of the oldest recipes we shared through our blog: No bake sour cherry cheesecake in a glass! Checking our site’s stats, we‘ve noticed that this recipe has always been popular.

The photo was taken by an old inexpensive camera, wasn’t one of our best shots and the text was one of the first ones typed in English in the blog. We like to think that our blogging abilities have improved since then, so we decided to take some fresh photos, take another look at the text and share the recipe again!

So, how did we get the inspiration for this recipe? Cheesecake in a glass was a relatively new thing here in Greece back in 2011 when we tried it. We always like new ideas and this approach seemed to be quite handy, as you have ready-made cheesecake servings for any of your guests in individual portions in the fridge.

Why sour cherries? Well, sour cherry spoon sweet is one of the most popular Greek spoon sweets. What the heck are those spoon sweets you might ask? Well, they're similar to canned fruits in syrup, only the syrup is much thicker and it’s also flavored with some herb, usually marjoram. And since they’re very sweet, the quantity served is always just a tablespoon.

Back in the old era, people wanted to preserve the ripe, seasonal fruits for the next months, and one of the methods used was turning them to sweets and preserving them in jars. Those spoon sweets are served usually as a dessert or as a side for your afternoon coffee. It’s the traditional homemade sweet that all grandmas served for decades. We both grew up with our yayades (grandmas) serving us quinces, sour cherries, grapes, bitter oranges and many more fruits as a treat. Fortunately, in the last few years this dessert made a comeback and now many villages are collectively producing those again. And by the way, they’re among the best toppings for Greek yogurt!

But enough with the daydreaming; let’s get back to our cheesecake now! We tried this recipe with sour cherries spoon sweets and they were delicious. But since this isn’t a sweet that’s always easy to find, especially for the people abroad, we decided to alter this a little. So, instead of spoon sweet sour cherries, we used canned sour cherries in syrup! Those are available on all supermarkets here in Greece AND abroad, so this seemed to be the way to go.

The result was a fluffy lemony creamy cheesecake, with cookie crumbs as the base and a sweet cherry topping! We don’t add melted butter in the crumbs, and here’s why: we always like to make a mess while eating this, meaning that we dive the spoon in and mix the cookie crumbs with the cream, picking also a couple of cherries, before landing the spoon in the mouth. :)

So the glass/jar stops being as presentable as it is here in the photos, but we really don’t care since it’s so delightful! But you can go ahead and add a little butter in the crumbs if you like a thicker base for the cheesecake.

One of the benefits of this recipe is that you can make this cheesecake ahead of time so it’ll be ready for serving in some party/family gathering in the next day. Keep in mind though that the result is much fluffier if you serve this in the same day.

Another advantage is that they are very nice to look at, as you can see the layers of sweetness through the glass.

You can also use another canned fruit in syrup if you don’t like sour cherries, or if want to try something else, making this a very versatile recipe.

And did we tell you that they’re super easy to put together? And you only need a few minutes of your time? Well, it’s true. If you never tried cheesecake in a glass before, this is one of the first recipes you should try. You’ll see for yourself how quick and easy it is.

Now regarding the term; some people are calling this dessert “cheesecake in glass” while other prefer the term “cheesecake in a jar”. Our opinion? Use jars, glasses, whatever you find handy and beautiful. We sometimes served those in glasses, sometimes in jars. For this post, we took pictures with glass and we also filled up a small jar so you can see the difference for yourself.

You can make a single layer of cookie crumbs, a layer of cream and add the cherries on top, or you can add multiple layers of cookies and cream. Ourselves, we usually do that, adding two layers of cookies and cream and top it with the cherries. But feel free to express yourself :)

So enough with our rumbling; let’s see how we can make this easy, delicious dessert!

Ingredients:

- 300gr/10.5oz cream cheese

- 200gr/7oz (2/3 cup) sweetened condensed milk

- 2 teaspoons lemon zest

- 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

- 125gr/4.5oz digestive biscuits/graham crackers, in crumbs (see preparation)

- 200gr/7oz drained sour cherries in syrup (canned) *

* you can also use regular pitted cherries in syrup for a different equally delicious result

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Preparation:

To make crumbs from the biscuits, pulse in a food processor (or use a blender) until they're finely ground (pic. 1, pic. 2).

Put the cream cheese and the sweetened milk in a large bowl (pic.3). Using an electric hand mixer (or a stand mixer) beat until you get a smooth and fluffy result (about 2 minutes). Start at a lower speed and turn it up as the cream thickens (pic.4). Add the zest and the lemon juice and continue to mix for half a minute (pic.5).

In a short glass or jar add 2 tablespoons of crushed biscuits (pic.6), then 2 tablespoons of cream (pic.7).

Repeat the process (pic.8) and garnish with 2 tablespoons of sour cherries (pic.9).

Do the same in 3 more glasses and put them all in the fridge at least for 20 minutes.

As simple as that! Enjoy!

Tips:

1. The more you leave these cheesecakes in the fridge the thicker they get. So keep that in mind and serve according to your preferences.

2. You can choose any canned fruit (in syrup) you prefer for garnishing.

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Fast&Easy

Chocolate Mousse with Baileys

littlecookingtips — Sun, 01 Mar 2015 11:14:20 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

504

Servings:

serves 4

Cooking Time:

20 minutes

This recipe is a must-try for any chocolate addict: a decadent, rich, thick chocolate mousse! We took our classic, traditional chocolate mousse recipe and enhanced it with one of our favorite liquors: Baileys Irish Cream.

The result is an irresistible, divine chocolate dessert. It's the perfect finish to your dinner in any special occasion, like anniversaries, Valentine's or Holidays!

Chocolate mousse is one of those easy desserts you can make if you're new around the kitchen. It's simple and easy to follow, with very few ingredients: dark chocolate, butter, eggs and caster sugar.
Some people also like to add cream to their chocolate mousse but we prefer the old school approach which only uses eggs.

In this recipe we used dark chocolate (minimum 60% cocoa). You should consider buying the best quality dark chocolate your budget can afford as this will define the final result. Prefer a chocolate with higher cocoa content.

Consider also buying top quality, fresh, free range eggs. The eggs are not cooked in a chocolate mousse, but do not be alarmed. For thousands of years humans have been consuming raw eggs in numerous ways. You probably already eat raw eggs and don't even realize it (like in mayonnaise). If you're a bit worried though, you can use a cloth soaked in water and vinegar to clean the shells before cracking the eggs, or buy pasteurized eggs. Feel free to consult any expert (doctor, dietitian) on the subject, of course.

But let's get back to this chocolate delight. Adding Baileys cream takes this classic treat to a whole new level. If you never tried adding Baileys in your desserts before, this is a great way to taste how good this stuff is. Now; that being said, if you have kids, and want to try this recipe, then omit the liquor and add some vanilla extract instead. But if you're planning -let's say- a Valentine's/anniversary dinner, then by all means do add the Baileys!

You need to refrigerate this for a couple of hours before serving it. The intoxicating aroma of the Irish cream is still dominant when you take it out of the fridge and it does make all the difference.

With this recipe you won't get the foamy result of using store-bought mousse mixes. The texture is rich and thick, making this a sumptuous finger-licking chocolate dessert.

The way this mousse looks is extremely appetizing: it's served in short glasses with white chocolate curls/shavings and cocoa powder. You can use a vegetable peeler to create the curls (scrape a thick white chocolate bar lengthwise) and use a sieve to dust some cocoa powder on top. Of course you can also add a dollop of Chantilly cream as well, if you prefer.

You will really enjoy making this dessert. If you're planning to omit the Bailys and add vanilla, then you should also hand the apron over to your kids and make this together, as a family. Your little ones will love it and you'll make some wonderful memories in the process.

Did we also mention that this is a fantastic make ahead dessert? If it stays in the fridge overnight, it will allow the flavors to develop and become richer.

So let's see how to make this thick, decadent chocolate mousse!

Disclaimer: This article is not sponsored by Baileys. It's not a paid advertisement or part of any affiliate marketing program. Meaning: We really enjoy the product ourselves and are writing our personal honest opinion about it.

Ingredients:

- 250g / 9oz dark chocolate (60% cocoa minimum), chopped

- 25g / 0.9oz (2 tablespoons) butter

- 3 medium sized eggs (or 2 large ones), yolks separated from whites, in room temperature

- 30g / 1oz (4 tablespoons) caster sugar

- 60ml (1/4 cup) Baileys Irish Cream

- a little white chocolate and cocoa powder, to garnish (optional)

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Preparation:

Add water (one third full) in a small pot/saucepan and place over high heat. Once the water starts simmering (pic.1) turn of the heat and remove from the burner.

Set a medium sized metallic bowl over the pot/saucepan (make sure it doesn’t touch the water) and add the chocolate in it (pic. 2).

Stir slowly until it melts (pic.3). This will take a few minutes, you don’t have to stir continuously. When the chocolate has melted, remove from the pot/saucepan and add the butter (pic.4). Stir until it’s incorporated.

Add half (2 tablespoons) of the caster sugar (pic. 5), and stir. At this point let the mixture cool down, for a couple of minutes. Then add the egg yolks (pic. 6) and stir until they’re incorporated.

Add the Baileys (pic.7) and again, stir until it’s incorporated. Set the bowl aside.
In another clean, metallic bowl whisk the egg whites using an electric hand mixer or your stand mixer (pic. 8).

When the egg whites start to thicken (looking like foam), add the rest of the caster sugar (pic. 9), one tablespoon at a time. Whisk until stiff peaks are formed (pic. 10, until you make a meringue).

Take a third of the meringue and add it to the bowl with the chocolate mix (pic. 11). Fold the meringue into the chocolate (pic. 12). Add the rest of it and fold again. Don't worry if it doesn't look completely incorporated though; it actually tastes much better if there are small lumps of egg whites in the mousse. Overmixing is not recommended.

If you never folded meringue into chocolate or any other batter (like cakes) don't worry. It's very easy; you don’t stir in the meringue. You use a rubber spatula and you scrape the chocolate from the bottom of the bowl and lift it over the meringue. Keep folding and rotating the bowl a little at a time, counterclockwise, until the meringue is almost half-way incorporated into the chocolate. At this point add some more meringue and keep folding and roating the bowl. Stop when the meringue is almost fully incorporated (as mentioned, you don’t have to incorporate it 100%, don’t overmix).

Divide into 4 short glasses and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours before serving. Kali Oreksi!

Tips:

1. You can use some vanilla extract (or any flavor) instead of Baileys if serving this to kids.

2. One of the most important tips for meringue:The bowl you will use to beat the egg whites must be very very clean. To achieve this, wipe it with a paper towel soaked in vinegar to eliminate and fat residue.

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Fast&Easy

Step by Step Traditional Homemade Apple Pie

littlecookingtips — Thu, 20 Nov 2014 20:55:18 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

641

Servings:

Preparation Time:

Cooking Time:

This is a favorite dessert worldwide: Homemade Apple pie! A universal sweet having millions (if not billions) of fans all over the globe.

Yes, we’ve seen the expression “as American as Apple pie” but the truth is the Apple pie is a centuries old dessert, that remains extremely popular on both sides of the Atlantic.
Millions of Americans and Europeans have so many memories of their moms (and grandmas) baking delicious apple pies and their selves as kids being impatient to taste them :)
We are part of that tradition ourselves, so we couldn’t resist sharing our traditional apple pie recipe with all of you through our website.

Our version is very simple. The dough is a classic French dough, called Pâte Sucrée that contains flour, eggs, butter, water and sugar. As simple as that. Perhaps you ‘ve also seen it as Pâte Brisée. The Brisée type doesn’t contain any sugar and it’s therefore also suitable for savory pies.

Our filling is made with apples, cinnamon, a bit of clove, raisins, sugar, lemon and –if you like-a bit of Grand Marnier. Grand Marnier is a liqueur which pairs amazingly with this pie. If you want your pie to be more kid-friendly, you may omit this of course.

Instead of simply making the top crust by adding another disc of dough and slitting it, we prefer to make the Lattice crisscross pattern. This pattern allows the pie to ventilate better and therefore, bake better. Plus, it looks beautiful! Many people are intimidated by this pattern, but trust us, it’s VERY easy to make. You can find our method in the pictures below, or you can browse for videos on YouTube for tutorials. It’s really easy though.

The difference in this recipe in comparison to others in our site, is that we offer easy, step by step instructions for making the pie. This way, even if you never baked an apple pie before, if you read the instructions and follow the pictures below, we are confident you will be able to make a perfect pie.

Take a couple of minutes to read the instructions; we think you’ll get it at once. Even the Lattice crust. Then, give it a try! :)

So let’s see how to bake this delicious, traditional homemade dessert!

Ingredients:

For the dough (Pâte Sucrée):

- 450gr / 16oz / 1lb all-purpose flour (you can also measure using 3 cups plus 4 tablespoons of flour)
- 250gr butter, unsalted (Do NOT use margarine instead of butter in this recipe!)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon salt

For the apple filling:

- 1kg /2.2lb / 35.3oz apples, peeled and chopped (see steps below)
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 170gr / 6oz (1 cup) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 20gr / 0.7oz (3 tablespoons) all purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 35gr / 1.2oz (1/4 cup) black (Corinth) raisins
- 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier (optional)
- 1 egg, beaten with a tablespoon of water (egg wash)

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First start making dough:

Sift the flour into a large bowl (pic.1). This will help incorporate some air in the dough, which will make it fluffier.
Add the salt and the caster sugar (pic.2).

Add the butter (pic.3) and mix with the flour and the caster sugar. If you have a special wire tool dough cutter you can use this here, otherwise use your hands (like we do).
Mix until all the flour becomes crumbly (pic.4).

Add the beaten eggs, mixed with the 2 tablespoons of water (pic. 5) and mix all with a spatula until you get a nice dough (pic. 6). You can always use your hands of course.

The end result will be a beautiful dough. Form into a ball (pic.7), cover with film (pic. 8) and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

While the dough is resting, start making the apple filling:

Peel the apples and cut in quarters. Remove the core part from each quarter (pic. 9). Cut each quarter into strips (pic. 10). The strips can be as thick or thin as you like.

Slice the strips in 2 or 3 pieces (pic 11). Add them in a large bowl and add the lemon juice (pic. 12). Mix well. The point is to get some of the lemon in all the apples, in order to prevent them from browning.

Add the brown sugar (pic. 13), the cinnamon powder and the ground cloves (pic. 14).

Add the flour (pic. 15), and the raisins (pic. 16).

Mix well with your hands (pic. 17), and drizzle the Grand Marnier (pic. 18, optional). Set aside.

Remove the dough from the fridge and cut in half.
Dust your kitchen counter/table with some flour and put the first half on.
Using a rolling pin create a circle rolling from the center outwards, all around (pic. 19). You want to create a disc wide enough to cover a 28cm/11in round pan/pie dish (4-5cm/1.5-2in deep). We prefer using a tin metallic non-stick pan ourselves.
When the disc has formed, roll the dough on the pin (pic. 20).

If there's too much flour on the dough, you can dust it out with a brush (pic. 21).
Roll out the dough on the pan/dish (pic. 22).

Gently push the dough into the pan/dish, to take its form (pic. 23).
You can use the rolling pin at this point to cut the excess dough from the edge of the pan (pic. 24).

Add the apple filling (pic. 25). Gently spread it equally into the pan (pic. 26).

Take the second half of the dough, dust the counter/table with flour and again using the rolling pin form a similar disc as before. Cut the top and bottom parts and keep aside (pic. 27).
Using a pizza cutter or a knife, cut the dough into strips (pic. 28). The strips can be as many or as little as you prefer, depending on the width you want for them.

Add some of the strips vertically (pic. 29). Trim the edges (pic. 30) and set them aside with the excess dough.
Now it's time to form the Lattice (crisscross) crust. It's VERY easy, even though it seems complex.
Here's our method, which we call "Odds and Evens".

Pull the Even strips on the far edge towards you. In this pie, it's the strips 2,4,6,8.
Add a strip horizontally (pic. 31).
Put the Even strips (2, 4, 6, 8) back into their position, on top of the added strip (pic. 32).

From this point on, you lift the strips the other way. Away from you, instead of towards. And you select the Odd strips (1, 3, 5, 7, 9). Add again a horizontal strip (pic. 33).
Cover with the Odd strips.
Then do the same with the Even strips. Lift them, put a horizontal strip and put them down on top of it.
Then the Odd strips again, etc.
The final result is the wonderful crisscross pattern.
Now, take the excess dough you set aside before and form small strips to add them around the edge of the pan/dish (pic. 34).

Brush the crisscross pattern with egg wash (pic. 35) and sprinkle with some more brown sugar (pic. 36).

At this point cut some aluminum foil strips (pic. 37), and cover the dough on the edge of the pan (pic. 38). This helps it not being burned. You can also use some special metallic pie rings that exist in the market.

Place into the oven at the lower third rack, at 220 degrees Celsius/425 Fahrenheit and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the aluminum foil from the edge and continue baking for 30 to 45 minutes more.

IMPORTANT: Do not cut the pie for at least 3 hours after removing from the oven. This will help the pieces to stay together when you cut them, and will allow the juices to be absorbed.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream. You can also dust with some caster sugar.
Kali oreksi!

Tips:

Use a variety of apples (at least 2 types); your pie will taste so much better!

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Cinnamon scented energy bars

littlecookingtips — Tue, 03 Jun 2014 17:55:21 +0000

Photos and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

200

Servings:

12+ slices/pieces

Cooking Time:

30 minutes

Energy bars (also known as power bars) are increasing in popularity everywhere in the world in the last few years. The same goes for Greece.

For us Greeks it was very normal to start eating energy bars, as we already had a similar snack for decades, called "pasteli". Pasteli is a traditional bar with nuts (usually sesame, peanut or pistachio) with honey and/or sugar. It's still sold everywhere here.

Energy bars have partially substituted pasteli, as a more complex solution for a snack, as they contain more grains and other wholesome ingredients, making it a healthier choice.

If you're trying to control your weight and boost your metabolism you can also use energy bars. They are great snack option for any time of day, so they're very useful for those long periods between meals.
They're also perfect for breakfast if you're in a hurry or on the go. Having an energy bar is a wholesome way to start the day! Depending on what you'll add in the bar, they can be very nutritious.

So, after having tried many store-bought energy bars, we had to come up with our own versions. The reasons for making your own homemade power bars are many. Let's see some:
- If you create your own bars you control the ingredients you'll use.
- They don't contain additives and preservatives.
- They're much more affordable.
- You can experiment to create the flavor and texture you prefer.
- If you have food allergies, you will only use what you can eat.

The recipe we'd like to share here, makes a delicious cinnamon-scented oats, all bran and walnuts energy bar. It's iron-rich, it's flavorful and far from boring! For sweetness we added a little brown sugar that adds a caramel flavor and a little honey that's beautifully combined with cinnamon and vanilla.

The recipe is for 12 large 200 calories bars so it’s perfect pre or post work out. If you want to cut back on calories you can slice the same quantity in smaller bars (like half the size with only 100 calories per bar). They are very filling in any case.
Each bar is individually wrapped in some cling film and put in the refrigerator to retain its freshness. We find this very convenient as we can grab a bar and go any time of the day.

And here's the best part: It's very easy to make them! You only need a medium sized saucepan or a small pot (use non stick cookware) to melt the butter and mix all the ingredients together. You bake for 20 minutes and you're ready!

Of course you can experiment with many different seeds (you can add chia seeds or flax seeds for example), nuts and cereal to make those bars your own. You can also use different butters (like almond, peanut), especially if you're a vegan. The possibilities are endless!

So let's see the recipe for those delicious energy bars!

Ingredients:

- 65gr (1 cup) all bran (minimum 40% fiber)
- 50gr (1/2 cup) rolled oats
- 110gr (1 cup) walnuts kernels
- 35gr (1/4 cup) sunflower seeds, shelled, unsalted
- 70gr (1/2 cup) raisins (Black Corinth or Sultanas)
- 80gr (2/5 – 0.4 cup) brown sugar
- 80gr (1/4 cup) wildflower or thyme honey
- 50gr (3 1/2 tablespoons) butter
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 8gr/0.25-0.3oz vanilla sugar. You can also use 1-2 teaspoons of vanilla extract or vanilla powder

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Preparation:Add the walnuts and the all bran in a food processor and pulse for about 10 seconds (pic.1). Do not grind into powder; you need small pieces of bran and walnuts in your bars for better texture.

Line a 26cmx18cm / 11inx7in baking pan (medium sized, preferably ceramic or glass) with parchment. You can also use any baking pan with the same area.

Over medium heat, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the sugar and the honey. Stirring continuously for 2 minutes, until the mixture bubbles (caramel is starting to form) (pic.2).

At this point add the oats, the sunflower seeds, the raisins, the cinnamon and the vanilla. Stir well and add the bran-walnuts mixture.
Mix with a wooden spoon or spatula until no dry spots remain. It takes a couple a minute or two. Don't worry, all the ingredients will mix together if you keep stirring. (pic.3)

Spread the mixture in the baking pan. You can press some parchment on top and roll a hard glass to spread it (as a rolling pin). (pic.4)

Bake in the middle rack at 180 degrees Celsius/360 Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
Remove and let it cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing the bars. Use a hard spatula or even a pizza cutter to slice the bars.

When in room temperature, wrap each bar in film and keep in the refrigerator. They can easily last for 1 week without any issues.

Tips:

1. As mentioned before, you can substitute with the ingredients you prefer. In this case, make sure the butter is enough to glue the ingredients together.
2. To slice the bars in 12 pieces, slice in the middle horizontally and vertically, creating a cross and then divide each quarter into 3 strips.

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Greek yogurt with honey and walnuts

littlecookingtips — Tue, 08 Apr 2014 17:03:24 +0000

Photo and text by Panos Diotis and Mirella Kaloglou.

Calories (per serving):

505

Servings:

serves 1

Cooking Time:

10 minutes

This time we’d like to share with you one of the best and simplest dishes of the Greek cuisine: Giaourti (or Yaourti) me Meli, which literally means Yogurt with Honey. A simple, filling food you can snack throughout the day.

This -rich in protein- creamy sweet treat is a staple in Greek cuisine and it's extremely popular; us Greeks are eating this for breakfast, or snack or for dessert! It's actually so common here, we don't even have to publish this recipe in Greek as we do with all our posts.

If you ever visited Greece, you may have already tried this, as it's often served in taverns & restaurants in tourist destinations. All of us here LOVE this stuff as much as the folks in the States love ice cream, or perhaps the French love croissants.

Here’s the good news now: you don't need to cook or bake anything! This is a super-fast and super healthy combination of 3 wonderful ingredients: Greek Yogurt, Honey and Walnuts.

The honey variety, is usually thyme or wildflower honey which combines perfectly with the subtle sour taste of the Greek yogurt. A few walnuts add depth, complexity and texture to the dish, making it a food for the Gods. If you have a bit more time, you can also toast the walnuts to enhance their flavor.

This is hardly a recipe; as mentioned before, it's a simple combination of great, healthy ingredients. We will provide the instructions for the way we make this for ourselves, but feel free to adjust the dish to match your personal preferences. Keep in mind one thing though: since this is a very simple dish, the quality of the ingredients is critical. Choose high quality Greek yogurt and a good wildflower (or thyme) honey for this dish.

We really can't stress enough how good this is! If you never tried it before, please do it. Today. It will become a staple in your home as well.

Ingredients:

- 200g / 7oz Greek yogurt
- 30ml (2 tablespoons) thyme or wildflower honey
- 2 tablespoons crumbled walnuts

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Method 1 (traditional):
Add the yogurt in a bowl or a short, wide glass.
Drizzle with the honey and sprinkle the walnuts.

Method 2 (layered, our favorite):
Add half of the yogurt in a bowl or a short, wide glass.
Drizzle with half the honey and add half of the walnuts.
Repeat with the rest of the ingredients on top.

Tips:

1. You can also use any low fat Greek yogurt.
2. You can add dry or fresh fruits, raisins, craisins and any other nuts you like.
3. If you liked this recipe, we recommend another quick and easy one, that's also served in a glass, a sour cherry no-bake cheesecake

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