Yummy.Surely.Greek Dips and Spreads
By Maria K. Wisdom
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Growing up in a Greek home, you come to learn a few things about hospitality, the most important being: Feed everyone who walks in the door—whether it is a long-lost cousin from the old country or the TV repairman. No one ever leaves the house without having a little something. This lesson has served me well over the years. I have had plumbers not charge me for leaky faucets because my koulourakia (braided sugar cookies) were so buttery and crumbly and my coffee so welcoming.
This hospitality requires a well-stocked kitchen. I learned some tricks in this department from my dear mom. Like her, I make tiropites (feta cheese phyllo triangles) a couple of times a year in huge batches and freeze them. And I usually have some sort of homemade Greek pastry on hand. I'm partial to my grandmother's koulourakia, which I love to dip in my morning coffee, but I also make a mean baklava that I learned from mom, who is known in the family as the best baklava maker this side of Athens. I also keep a stash of spoon fruits (fruit preserved in sugar syrup) in the refrigerator to dish up on a plate and serve with coffee, as well as kalamata olives, feta and kasseri cheese, and pistachios. This way, you are never empty-handed when the doorbell rings.
Of all the things that my mom whips up for guests, it's her dips that linger in your memory. She makes the lightest, fluffiest taramosalata (carp roe spread), and her tzatziki (cucumber yogurt dip) is addictive. These dips are the kings of the mezedes (appetizer) spreads that are so beloved in Greece. They are also the test of a fine Greek cook. They should be so positively light and so darn tasty that you literally can't stop eating. As the Greeks say, "Trogantas erhete i orexi—With eating comes the appetite."
Back to Wine @ MSN
Greek dips and spreads
Turn on the oven for three fall desserts
Fresh from the farm
Late summer picnic
How super are Italy's "super reds"?
Previously on Wine @ MSN
The most common dips, or spreads, are tzatziki, taramosalata, meltizanosalata (eggplant salad), and skordalia (garlic sauce). These dips are not your ordinary dips that go with crudités and crackers alone; these dips are sauces, too. Now let us pretend you served some of these dips at a dinner party and had some left over. You can serve the tzatziki alongside grilled meats and fried vegetables for dinner. I like to eat taramosalata with a mild fish; skordalia is excellent with beets, fish, and chicken; and meltizanosalata makes a nice partner with chicken and lamb.
In my house, however, any leftover dips are gone by lunchtime. I am lucky to be married to a man who finds leftovers for breakfast repellent, especially garlicky ones. As a child, my sister and I would fight over any dips that happened to be sitting around. You might think tzatziki slathered on two slices of whole-wheat bread and coffee at 6 a.m. is disgusting, but it is also sort of wonderful.
Potato Skordalia
Makes about 4 cups
Ingredients
1 pound boiling potatoes, halved (leave skin on)
5 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons good-quality red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
¾-to-1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Preparation
In a large saucepan, bring salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain and cool.
Peel the potatoes; push them through a ricer into a bowl.
Pound the garlic with salt in a mortar and pestle until smooth, and add to the potatoes. Gradually add the vinegar, lemon juice, and 3/4 cup of the oil, pounding or stirring constantly. Taste and season with salt and freshly ground pepper to taste, and add more oil if desired.
Tzatziki (Cucumber Yogurt Dip)
Makes about 3 cups
Ingredients
Two 1-pound containers plain yogurt
2 cucumbers, partially peeled
1/3 cup sour cream
4 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon good-quality red or white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
Preparation
Line a colander with paper towels and set it over a large bowl. Add the yogurt to the colander and let drain, covered and chilled, about 4 hours or as much as 8.
Grate the cucumbers and squeeze between paper towels to remove excess moisture. Add to a bowl along with the yogurt and sour cream.
On a cutting board, sprinkle a lot of salt over the garlic, and mash with a fork until smooth like a paste. Transfer to the yogurt mixture.
In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and sugar, and whisk until the sugar almost dissolves, and add to the yogurt mixture.
Stir the mixture and gradually pour in the oil, stirring to combine. Season with salt.
This article was reprinted with the permission of House and Home. |
