| OPA!  Back To Top  Tyropita  (Makes: 4 Servings) Ingredients: 1 pound feta cheese 1 pound filo pastry 1/4 pound ground kefalograviera cheese 1 cup milk 3 tablespoons butter 4 eggs, beaten dill or mint, diced pepper a little margarine Preparation: Mash the feta cheese with a fork and add the kefalograviera, milk, butter, dill or mint, eggs and pepper. Butter a pan with the margarine and place half the sheets of filo on the bottom also buttered with the margarine. Pour the cheese mix and cover with the rest of the filo sheets, also buttered with margarine. Bake in 350F oven for about 1 hour. Back To Top Vasilopita  (Makes 1-10 Inch Tube Cake) A coin is baked in the cake, The person who bites into his piece of cake and finds the coin will be blessed with good luck in the year to come. Ingredients: 1 cup butter or margarine, softened 1 3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon white sugar 5 eggs 2 tablespoons water 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 cup slivered almonds 2 tablespoons sesame seeds 1 coin Preparation: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large bowl, blend together the butter or margarine and the sugar. Separate 3 of the eggs; add the yolks and the 2 remaining whole eggs to the butter mixture. Stir in the vanilla and water. In another bowl, sift together the baking powder and flour. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Whip the egg whites until they are foamy. Add 1 tablespoon sugar. Continue to whip the whites until they are stiff, but not dry. Pour the batter into a greased 10 x 4 inch tube pan. Wrap a large coin in foil, and place the coin in the batter. Press the coin down; it should be completely hidden. Sprinkle the nuts and seeds on top of the batter. Bake the cake for about 70 minutes, or until done. Cool on a wire rack. Back To Top Veal Stifado  (Makes: 5-6 Servings) Ingredients: 2 pounds veal shoulder 1 onion chopped 1 cup dry red wine 1 cup olive oil 4 ripe tomatoes, peeled and cut up 1 tablespoon tomato paste 1 bay leaf salt 2 pounds baby onions Preparation: Brown the veal in olive oil. Add onion, brown a while longer and then the wine. Add the tomatoes, the tomato paste thinned in a cup of water, the bay leaf, salt, pepper and 1/2 cup hot water. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Cross the baby onions with a sharp knife, add them into the pot and cook for another hour. Back To Top Walnut Baklava  Ingredients: 4 cups chopped walnuts 1/2 cup sugar 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon 1-1/4 cups melted butter 1-1/2 lb. phyllo Syrup: 4 cups sugar 3 cups water 1-1/2 cups honey 1 cinnamon stick 5 to 6 whole cloves Preparation: Mix together the walnuts, sugar and cinnamon. Select a pan the size of the phyllo sheets and brush well with melted butter. Use 4 sheets of phyllo for the bottom layer, brushing each one with butter before adding the next, and top with a sheet of unbuttered phyllo. Sprinkle with a handful of the walnut mixture. Cover with a buttered sheet, an unbuttered sheet, and another sprinkling of walnuts. Repeat until the ingredients are used up, reserving 5 sheet of phyllo for the top layer. Brush each of the top 5 sheets with ample butter, and pour the remaining butter over the top of the last sheet. Trim the edges if necessary, and cut the baklava into the traditional diamond pattern. Do not cut through the bottom layer. Sprinkle the top of the baklava lightly with water from your fingertips. Bake in a pre-heated 250 F. (120 C.) for about 1 hour. Remove from oven and cool. Preparation: For the syrup, combine the sugar and water in a large pot and boil for 5 minutes. Add the honey, cinnamon stick and cloves, and boil for 5 minutes more. Pour the hot syrup over the cooled baklava. Do not pour over a hot baklava, it will turn soggy. Cool then cut through the bottom layer of phyllo following the previous cuts. Back To Top Walnut Pudding  (Makes: 4-6 Servings) Ingredients: 2 cups bread crumbs 1 tsp. baking powder 5 eggs, separated 1 cup sugar, plus 1 tsp. for dusting 1 tsp. flour for dusting 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup cognac 1 tsp. vanilla extract 2-1/2 cups chopped walnuts Preparation: Butter a 2 qt. mold and dust lightly with sugar and flour. Mix the bread crumbs with the baking powder. Beat the egg yolks and the sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy. Melt the butter and add it to the egg yolks, a little at a time. Add the cognac, vanilla and the walnuts. In another bowl beat the egg whites until stiff, and then fold in the crumbs and the egg yolk mixture. Pour into the mold and place the mold in a baking dish with approximately 1 in. of water in the bottom. Bake in a preheated 350 F. (180 C) oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until firm. Allow to cool for 30 minutes before turning onto a platter to serve. Back To Top
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