A Report and a Review

Greek Weekend! I finally had company, and took advantage of it to try a couple recipes from Elaine Schmitz's Recipes & Recollections of My Greek American Family.

It was done in my usual of-course-I-messed-with-it way of cooking. This usually happens because I refuse to go out and by an ingredient if I have something else that I need to use up, and that just maybe, could substitute without totally screwing up the recipe.

More often that not, this involves vegetables.

So yesterday, I donned an apron and pulled out the pots and pans. The recipes:

Connie's Arni Souvlakia - Shish Kebab p. 50
Minnie's Copenheim p. 125

Then there were the dishes I had to make up on the spot to deal with leftover ingredients:
Veggie-Cheese Turnovers (a weird version of spanakopita, or perhaps Cheese Puffs)
Lamb Stew (sort of)

First, I made the syrup for the Copenheim:

Sugar, water, & lemon juice, simmered for about 45 minutes.







Then I got busy with the phyllo dough. Being me, I found, and used, whole grain phyllo dough. Every little bit helps.

I should probably remind you that I'm not a patient person. It's rare that I make something both delicious AND attractive. I can live with that.






Then I beat the egg yolks, folded in the walnuts and beaten egg whites, and spread it over the phyllo:

This was topped with more buttered phyllo dough and baked for about an hour. The syrup was poured over the top of it.

You know, sometimes it does turn out looking attractive!

I need to get a picture of the inside. The egg/walnut mixture bakes into a fluffy, cake-like center. I never would have imagined it. This tastes wonderful, too. A great dessert. Even though I cut the recipe in half, there is still a huge amount left, so it was divided between the guests to take to their various places of work on Monday. The whole Bay Area gets to play Greek!

I'll post the other recipes in a separate entry, so I don't overdo the picture fairy. But I should add: this recipe is very easy to do! Don't be afraid to try it - just have plenty of people around to help you eat it!