Category: Vegetarian

Constantinople Style Spicy Cabbage Salad / Politiki Lahanosalata

This colorful Greek cabbage salad is a classic on the winter table.

Soup with Trahana / Trahanosoupa

Trahana, an ancient grain product that is made with flour or bulgur and milk, buttermilk, or sometimes vegetable pulp, is one of the oldest foods in the Eastern Mediterranean. I like to call it the world’s first instant soup or first fast food. Its rich, complex, milky flavor is a revelation. To find trahana go […]

Lentil-Chard Soup / Faki me Seskoula y Spanaki

Although greens and lentils both play a major role in the Greek vegetarian diet, the combination of the two is unusual in Greece. This is a thick and hearty soup, perfect for a cold winter’s day. Try stirring a little Kalamata olive paste or Greek balsamic into the soup to add depth of flavor. You […]

Chick Pea Fritters from Rhodes / Pitaroudia

Unlike small, meatball-size chick pea fritters elsewhere in Greece and certainly a distant cry from the Egyptian falafel, the Rhodian version turns calls for big, plump filling patties. They are found, in various renditions, all over the island. Pitaroudia with chick peas are by far the national dish of Rhodes.

Barley Rusks, Tomatoes, Apples, and Mint (Dakos salad)

Rusks are an ancient food in Greece. Basically they are the twice-baked breads, in various shapes. A dearth of fuel, i.e. wood, made daily, or even weekly, baking almost extravagant in the Greek countryside. These rusks are slowly dehydrated during the second baking, which happens overnight in a wood-burning oven that is not fired up […]

Tomato Fritters / Tomatokeftedes

All over the Aegean you can find vegetable fritters and they are a great way to make vegetables–everything from wild greens to cauliflower to tomatoes, chickpeas, and more–fun and interesting. Kids love these crispy treats. This particular recipe is from the Cyclades. Tomato fritters are a traditional meze and main course vegetarian dish in Santorini, […]

Spicy Cabbage and Rice Pilaf / Lahanorizo Thrakiotiko

Try this spiced cabbage pilaf from N. Greece for your Thanksgiving table. Great for vegans and vegetarians, even as a main course!

Giant Beans Baked with Honey and Herbs

The best Greek giant beans are from the north, especially from Prespes and Kastoria. When cooked, they are creamy without being mushy, and that’s the way gigantes -giant beans- should be. You can also substitute butter beans for this dish.

Yellow Split Pea Purée (Fava)

Fava, this simple puree of yellow split peas made velvety with a copious amount of great Greek olive oil, and tangy with a spritz of lemon, is one of the great meze dishes of Greek cuisine. It’s also one of the most versatile, since you can marry fava with almost anything. To find the fava […]

Giant Beans with Roasted Red Peppers, Olives, & Feta

Oh, giant beans, how do I love thou, let me count the ways! Here’s one, for sure. To find the giant beans, aka Greek gigantes, herbs, olives and olive oil in this comforting recipe, go to my online store here.