HOPE, DREAM….IMAGINE!
Spring time has never felt like this before…we stay home , not sharing the same table..but we stay close!
This is a journey in the taste of Greece full of hope… follow us and remember to dream!
STAY HOME & EAT HEARLTY:
- Cook with us 4
authentic Greek
Recipes - Greek Stories
- Let’s get personal
Authentic, Greek & TASTY!!
This is a taste of Greece …
Beloved Recipes from my favourite Greek Chef Akis Petretzikis
Enjoy!
Authentic Greek salad – Horiatiki
By Akis Petrezikis
Ingredients
- 6-8 tablespoon(s) extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon(s) vinegar of white wine
- salt & pepper
- 2 tablespoon(s) oregano dry
- 350 g cherry tomatoes
- 1/3 onion, dry
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1/2 cucumber
- salt 1 tablespoon(s) capers
- 150 gr feta cheese
- To serve 5-6 rusks
Method
- In a bowl, add 4-5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil,
the vinegar, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon oregano. - Gently stir with a spoon just to combine, you don’t want
to emulsify the dressing. - Chop the cherry tomatoes in half and add to the bowl.
Thinly slice the cucumber into half-moon shapes and
thinly slice the onion. Add to the bowl. - Cut the green pepper into thin strips and add to the
bowl. Add the olives, capers, feta and 1 tablespoon
oregano. - To finish, drizzle with 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive
oil, top with rusks and serve.
Olive Paste Palmiers
By Akis Petrezikis
Ingredients
- Olive paste 100gr
- 1 puff pastry sheet
Method
- Dust a clean working space with flour. Spread out the puff pastry sheet.
- Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough a bit. Spread the olive filling on the dough with a spoon, leaving about 4 cm from the edge, clean.
- Roll in both longer ends, until they meet in the
middle. Transfer the dough to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. - Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate or even better, put in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 200* C (390* F) Fan. Remove
from freezer. - Using a sharp knife, slice into 0,5-1 cm slices. Place back onto lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven.
- Allow to cool on a wire cooling rack for 5 minutes and serve.
Balsamic cranberry roast chicken
By Akis Petrezikis
Ingredients
- 4 chicken, breasts, boneless, skin on
- For the marinade
- 40 g cranberries, dried
- 2 tablespoon(s) extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon(s) soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon(s) maple syrup
- 30 g balsamic vinegar
- salt pepper
- 2 clove(s) of garlic
- 2 tablespoon(s) thyme, fresh
For the topping
- 70 g cranberries, dried
- 1 tablespoon(s) maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon(s) balsamic vinegar
To serve
1 tablespoon(s) thyme
Method
- Put all the ingredients for the marinade in a food processor, and beat until they are homogenized.
- Place the chicken breasts in a baking pan and pour into the marinade.
- Mix the marinade with the chicken very well, so that it is completely covered with the marinade.
- Place the chicken breasts in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes, so that they get the taste of the marinade. Preheat the oven to 180ο C (356ο F) set to fan.
- Take the chicken breasts out of the refrigerator.
- Flip them over so that the skin touches the bottom of the baking pan. On top of them, spread the extra cranberries and the thyme.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes. Flip them over again, so that the skin is facing upwards. In a bowl, mix the maple syrup with the balsamic vinegar and brush the chicken breasts.
- Bake for 5-10 more minutes, until the skin turns crispy and the chicken breasts are well done.
Check the spices and serve with fresh thyme.
Olive Oil Sweet Bread
By Akis Petrezikis
Ingredients
- 12 g yeast
- 1 tablespoon(s) granulated sugar
- 440 g water, lukewarm
- 120 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 4 eggs
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon(s) salt
- 1 kilo all-purpose flour
- 100 g raisins, soaked in sweet wine, port or water and drained zest, of 3 oranges
- 1/2 teaspoon(s) cardamom,
- ground 1 egg, for brushing sesame seeds, for sprinkling
Since we are using olive oil and allpurpose flour, the dough will not be as “stringy” as we might want but it is certainly soft and much healthier
Method
- Combine the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar with the water in a bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes, until the mixture starts to froth.
- Add the oil and start to mix with a hand whisk. Add the eggs, one at a time, waiting for each egg to be completely incorporated before adding the next.
- Add the zest, cardamom, sugar and salt and mix well. Add the flour in batches and mix until
completely combined. Turn the dough out on to a generously floured working surface and start to knead with your hands. - The point is to fold the dough over and over, pulling and turning it to activate the proteins in the flour which make the gluten develop.
- Knead until the dough becomes nice and elastic.
- Transfer dough to a bowl lightly brushed with flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for at least an hour, until it doubles in size.
- When ready, turn out the dough and press down on it to release the air. Set aside again for ½ an hour so it can rise again. Now you can add the raisins. Knead for 1-2 minutes to distribute.
- Divide the dough into 6 equal parts. Shape them into long strips and make 2 braids. Brush 2 sheets of parchment paper with olive oil. Place each braid onto a sheet of the parchment and transfer to baking pan. Preheat oven to 190* C (374* F) Fan. Brush the dough with some lightly beaten egg yolk and set aside again for 1 hour, so they can rise. Brush with some more egg yolk and sprinkle with sesame seeds, poppy seeds or almond slivers before baking.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden. When ready, remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
STORIES!
GREEK STORIES
APRIL 2020
One of the best feelings in the world, without question, is LOVE. We use the word “love” in many different contexts- the love for our parents, best friend, romantic partner, grandparent, sibling, job, automobile, etc.
The Ancient Greeks had eight words that corresponded to different types of love:
- Eros (romantic, passionate love) The first kind of love is Eros, named after the Greek God of fertility.Eros is passion, lust and pleasure.
- Philia (affectionate love) The second type of love is Philia, or friendship. Plato felt that physical attraction was not a necessary part of love, hence the use of the word platonic to mean, “without physical attraction.”
- Agape (selfless, universal love) The third is Agape, selfless universal love, such as the love for strangers, nature, or God
- Storge (familiar love) Storge is a natural form of affection experienced between family members.This protective, kinship-based love is common between parents and their children, and children for their parents.
- Mania (obsessive love) When love turns to obsession, it becomes mania.Stalking behaviors, co-dependency, extreme jealousy, and violence are all symptoms of Mania
- Ludus (playful love) The Ancient Greeks thought of ludus as a playful form of love.It describes the situation of having a crush and acting on it, or the affection between young lovers.
- Pragma (enduring love) Pragma is a love built on commitment, understanding and long-term best interests. It is a love that has aged, matured and about making compromises to help the relationship work over time, also showing patience and tolerance.
- Philautia (self love) The Greeks understood that in order to care for others, we must first learn to care for ourselves. As Aristotle said “All friendly feelings for others are an extension of a man’s feelings for himself.”
All you need is love!
Let’s get personal!
What a month!
APRIL 2020
It is now almost a month that Greece is “locked”down…Never believed that, never expected that…All our lives have completly changed and we still wait …
This was planned to be the beginning of the new Olive Routes “Tours” season…but this is a different
beginning..
Personally, this month, I had time to think how grateful i am for my work, for the people i met, for the memories we created..
This newsletter is because we need to stay close, because we need to stay creative, because we will travel soon..
Looking forward to receive your April Stories Email; theoliveroutes@gmail.com
HOPE, DREAM….IMAGINE!
Spring time has never felt like this before…we stay home , not sharing the same table..but we stay close! This is a journey in the taste of Greece full of hope… follow us and remember to dream!
STAY HOME & EAT HEARLTY!
See you SOON!
Androusa Messinias