Author Archives: auntie Sofia

About auntie Sofia

Greek gal in London, learned to cook cause I wanted to eat pastitsio (it rocks). Next recipe to master: Anything from the Black Sea.

Social media baking: Lagana Bread

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(refresh – this post is updated – working draft as I bake, take pics, video, update facebook (in Greek) and tweet (in English).) 

(This post was being updated while I was baking. Thank you for the nice comments and support on Facebook and twitter. Full normal post (and video) coming up) 

21:00

Check our the full normal recipe post with loads of pics and tips

17:45

It’s all gone Pete Tong. Or rather, half of the two laganas is gone. We chomped it all!

Baked each for 20 minutes and they came out lovely!

Here’s a quick pic and I will be uploading a full proper post (and video) tonight with full explanations of what the heck lagana bread is.

Lagana Bread done

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Tsiknopempti – the Greek BBQ Thursday and some survival tips

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If you ever happen to be walking around a Greek town or village and it seems that there are BBQ smells everywhere chances are it’s probably Tsiknopempti. (It could also be Easter Sunday but in that case the smell is the roasting lamb on a spit so you’ll know quite quickly which is which).

Tsiknopempti comes from the words tsikna (the characteristic bbq meat smell) and Pempti (Thursday). It comes about once a year, about two weeks before Lent starts.

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Onions stuffed with cheese by Dimitris

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Onions stuffed with cheese by Dimitris

See the Greek version of this postThere is a whole host of dishes we make in Greece which are classed as ‘meze‘. These are small (or big) plates of delicacies and nibbles (not prawns on stick or mini sausage rolls though) which are served with tsipouro (a.k.a. raki) or ouzo. Try not to drink the later if you’re not used to them. Meze can be simple – just a few slices of cheese and tomatoes, more complicated like boureki or just out-of-this-world, like today’s recipe.

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Lessons learned | Nigel Slater’s Sea salt chocolate snaps

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Nigel Slater's Sea salt chocolate snaps

See the Greek version of this postI’ve been watching Nigel Slater‘s (he really needs a new website) Simple Cooking on BBC lately. What actually made me watch it in the first place was the amazing title sequence. I want to bake something for the people who thought of having episode and recipe titles on food packages. So cute!

What kept me watching are the really interesting recipes. Even though in every single episode I marvel at the miles he has to walk in his kitchen to get from the cupboard to the fridge or from the oven to the garden. Seriously, this must be the biggest kitchen ever.

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Saffron squash & carrot soup with youvarlakia (tiny meatballs)

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ambercup squash

See the Greek version of this postThere is something about London in November that just makes me ache for hearty soups and curling up on the sofa with thick socks. It’s not so much the cold – it gets worse over December and January. It is all about the sharp smell of the cold to come in the air. Sort of like the promise of winter right around the corner.

I was looking for something seasonal to do this week and I stumbled upon some lovely ambercup squash the other day. They look so lovely, don’t they? Small, round, tough, they are like a toy vegetable I think. In the past I never cooked with squash and pumpkin, for some reason my family is not very big on them. My mum has now started growing them in her garden, too late for me as I have flown the nest and my memories of what we eat “at home” are pretty much set. So using squash and pumpkin is very much a London thing for me.

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Roasted chicken with mustard marinade and winter vegetables

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Roasted chicken with mustard marinade and winter vegetables

See the Greek version of this postI uploaded a pic of our dinner today on Google+ and Stratos asked for the recipe. That is to say he actually threatened that he would have a heart attack if I didn’t share it. Fine. You know me, I’m here for my friends.

What you need to know about this recipe is that roasted chicken with potatoes is one of the most frequent things we have in Greece. It is considered ideal for a family Sunday lunch so after a few years you are sick and tired of it. So I just gave the recipe a little twist to make it more interesting.

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VIDEO | Making Frappé (Greek iced instant coffee)

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Frappé

Here I am with the first ever Digital Scullery video in English. Cheers to all the friends of the Greek blog for the idea, by the way if people hate the video I’m blaming you 😉

I honestly thought about doing the Greek accent but I sound so fake that I just stuck to my own. So no funnies there I think. Anyway.

In this first ever Digital Scullery video in English the only classic recipe from modern Greece I could think of was the Frappé coffee – beloved in Greece. The actual phrase “drinking Frappé ” in Greek has become sort of like a cultural symbol. Depending on the context it could mean that you’re just chilling or – in some cases – that you are just lazying about.

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How to make roxakia (Greek cocoa, cinnamon and vanilla syrupy goodies)

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Roxakia | Ροξάκια

See the Greek version of this postRoxakia are a Greek type of sweet dough. I hope it’s mainly Greek but you never know. Anyway. They are bite sized cocoa and vanilla and cinnamon goodies that look lovely and taste like heaven. Avoid if syrupy stuff is not your cup of tea, but you will love them if you like any of the syrupy Greek, Turkish and Arabian goodies.

So. Friends of the Greek blog LOVE this dessert and have been asking me to do a video for absolute ages. I got around to it over the weekend (you can watch the video here – it’s in Greek obviously but you’ll see the technique I am describing below) and I managed to take some pics for the English side too.

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Fall in love: Lorraine Pascale

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Home Cooking Made Easy

See the Greek version of this post

For about two seasons now I have been watching Lorraine Pascale and her BBC programmes. Baking Made Easy and Home Cooking Made Easy.

Lorraine is an ex model and after a few jobs here and there she got busy, went to some seminars, studied and today she is a chef. Her first programme was mainly about baking, particularly desserts and pastry. Her second programme is all about food in general.

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How to make the Dukan galette

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galette_dukan

See the Greek version of this post

It seems that the Dukan diet is sweeping the whole world , not just the nation (please get the media to stop with Carole Middleton and how she got her figure!). It does have some weird and interesting recipes (mainly with oat bran admittedly) and I mentioned that I wanted to make the muffins on our Facebook page. However, the Greek friends on there shouted out in despair about the galette. It seems people find it impossible!

All the chums on facebook (and twitter) are saying that this galette comes out horrible, gets stuck, it’s really hard. So, did my research and here I am with my photos.

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What you should have in your fridge (busy people version)

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See the Greek version of this postOne of the most useful things – and nobody thinks to share this with you if you’re a newbie – is a list of what you should have in your fridge and your cupboard, especially when you’re busy and do not have time. Everybody kind of assumes that you know how to miracle food on the table or that you have time to stand over a stew. Let’s face it. You don’t.

Never ask your dear mother. Especially a Greek mother. Over the years they know all the tricks and they’ll tell you to have a lot more stuff than you actually need for quick lunches and dinners. The result will be that you’ll be throwing out about half of your fridge contents.

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Making kokkinisto (Greek beef stew) in a pressure cooker

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Βήμα 18

See the Greek version of this postKokkinisto literally means ‘reddened‘ in Greek. It’s basically a stew which you can make with all sorts of meat – even though each cut and animal have their littler secrets. It’s a bit different than your normal stew – it comes up with a spicy and cinnamon-y taste. Come to think of it that’s very common in my kitchen.

Anyway. Kokkinisto was the first recipe I really wanted to learn and it took quite a while. I’ve had to get rid of whole pots crying (even though it was better than what I had to deal with when I was learning to bake a cake).

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Walking around Borough Market

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Borough Market

The entrance – some work is going on now

This Saturday we went for a walk to Borough Market in London, a fantastic food market.

If you are in London and like food (seriously, who doesn’t?) it is definitely worth a stroll. Have some cash on you too – you will definitely be buying stuff.

The smells and the photos are really great but people are the best feature. You end up chatting with everyone, they explain, invite you to take photos, tell you what kind of wine to choose to accompany what you bought.

Here are some photos (there is a full set on flickr)

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Strawberry Beer

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I was in Covent Garden yesterday (sun in London!) and a friend got a strawberry beer.

Apparently, yes, this does exist (they didn’t just tip some food coloring in to make fun of her)

Another friend tried it and apparently she thought it tasted like jam – not he most positive of comments, I have to say.

I liked it but I’m not a beer drinker generally so I’m not sure at all.

Anyway though it’s pretty sweet, right?

Φραουλένια Μπύρα