CarolCooks2…A-Z World Cuisines…Part 29…Greece the country of colourful meze dips served with warm pitta bread with a glass of Greek wine…

Welcome to my latest A-Z …World Cuisines…where I will be looking at the countries of the world, their food and national dish or their most popular dish around the world…by this I mean some dishes are eaten in many countries as their fame has spread around the world…

Today I am looking at the cuisine of Greece…when I think of Greece it conjures pictures of Taramasalata, tzatziki, melitzanosalata (aubergine dip), olives, and mousaka my mind is just whirling with images of delicious GREEK FOOD.

The most famous Greek dish is moussaka, consisting of layers of fried aubergine, minced meat and potatoes. That’s all topped with a creamy béchamel sauce and baked until golden brown…dolmades stuffed vine leaves and those beautiful fresh dips with soft fluffy pitta bread…

Greece is surrounded by oceans offering access to incredibly fresh fish, vegetables, and much more right off of their coasts. Regularly consuming fresh and unprocessed foods is why so many people live their best lives eating a fresh Greek diet…

I can’t think of a better way to start the day than with a typical Greek breakfast that usually consists of a wide variety of bread, pastry, fruits, and Greek yoghurt…one of my favourite yoghurts is Greek yoghurt and my biggest bugbear is when I see supermarket shelves stacked with Greek style yoghurt cos that ain’t proper Greek yoghurt…eating a proper Greek breakfast gives you a great start to the day its high in nutritional value and a great source of energy…it doesn’t come better than that…

In addition to providing a healthy, balanced diet, Greek food is famous for its love of olive oil when cooking, which is rich in healthy omega-3 fatty acids. It’s also lower in saturated fat than butter, making it a great healthful alternative to cook with.

I thought I would treat you to a fun jaunt around the Greek Islands with Gordon Ramsey. Gino and Fred… it’s a funny video in parts as Gino is Italian and thinks Italian cuisine is better and healthier than Greek Cuisine…Gordon Ramsey begs to differ…

In the ‘health’ department, Greek food is in fact superior to all cuisines when considering nutritional and health benefits which lead to longevity as confirmed in many scientific studies. With fewer sauces and more vegetables than Italian, Greek cuisine is very attractive to vegetarians as well…over to Gordon, Fred and Gino…Enjoy!

Greeks make lunch their big meal of the day and eat it between 2 and 3pm… Especially in summer…this sounds like me as it’s when I eat my main meal of the day…

Greeks often head to a cafe for some ice cream around 8pm…about when I eat my ice cream…

Dinner is often a light meal, seldom eaten earlier than 9pm, but when Greeks do go out to dinner, they usually don’t think of eating before 10pm….now this is way too late for me but it is the Greek way so when in Rome as the saying goes…

Desserts…Baklava is my all-time favourite Greek dessert with crispy layers of phyllo, nuts, butter and sweet syrup I am in dessert heaven…a close second comes Bougatsa which is a kind of sweet pie made of phyllo pastry & semolina custard. If you want to eat this pie from a roadside food court you will also get a sprinkle of powdered sugar and cinnamon on top…yummy…

I love feta cheese and this beautiful pastry can be eaten as a dessert or an entrée. Feta is wrapped in filo pastry before being oven-baked and honey is drizzled over it. The optimum balance between salty feta and sweet honey creates an unforgettable taste of feta me meli…

Of course, the coffee has to have a mention…Ellinikos is still the favourite style of coffee adopted in Greece. The coffee is served in the traditional long-handled coffee copper pot which is known as briki in Greek. There are three different tastes of Ellinikos Vari Glyko which means strong & almost honey sweet, Metrios meaning medium sweetness and Sketos meaning without sugar…it’s Sketos for me how do you like your coffee?

Like most countries, Greece also has its street food and who better than to take you on a tour…Mark Weins…

I love Mark’s tours because he takes you to the real heart of a place and he so enjoys his food…and loves his meat…

Finally, Greece’s favourite drink Ouzo is considered the national drink of Greece. In technical terms, it is either produced by partial distillation or the mixture of plain alcohol with aromatic herbs…Cheers x

Thank you for joining me on this virtual tour of Greece I hope you had fun as always I look forward to your comments and appreciate any shares xx

29 thoughts on “CarolCooks2…A-Z World Cuisines…Part 29…Greece the country of colourful meze dips served with warm pitta bread with a glass of Greek wine…”

    1. CarolCooks2 Post author

      Yes, it s not something I make often unless its a dip I tend to stick to stir fries given the heat here but I do like a good mousake and baklava-sigh- naughty but soooooooooo good 🙂 xx

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. CarolCooks2 Post author

      Thank you, Sally, and yes a Mediterranean diet suits many people …I’m with you on the Baklava I keep eying that phyllo in my freezer but I am being good not sure for how long though-smile- xx

      Liked by 1 person

  4. Sue Dreamwalker

    What a delightful tour you gave us Carol… My mouth is positively dripping with your Mouth-watering goodies…. Love Greek Yogurt too…. And you have to shop around the supermarkets for a good imitation lol
    Have a great day xx ❤

    Liked by 1 person

    1. CarolCooks2 Post author

      Thank you, Sue and yes Greek Yoghurt can be hard to find I really need to get my act together and make my own again…I hope you are having a great weekend , Sue xx

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Colleen M. Chesebro

        I was allowed to smell, not to taste. They were a very different family and not warm to Americans even though they lived in Milwaukee, WI. Eventually, the family moved to Palo Alto, California and we lost touch.

        Liked by 1 person

  7. beetleypete

    I have had some memorable meals in Greece and on Crete. But funnily enough, the best Greek meals I ever ate were in a Greek restaurant in Camden, in London. The owner was from Cyprus.
    Best wishes, Pete. x

    Liked by 1 person

    1. CarolCooks2 Post author

      It made me want to as well Alethea when I was researching and writing the post but unfortunately my tours of the Greek islands will likely just be virtual 🙂 x

      Like

  9. Victoria Zigler

    I love these posts, and this one brought back fond memories of the times I went to Cyprus where we have relatives (unfortunately the ones we kept in contact with best are no longer with us, but we still do have relatives out there, and those were two very wonderful holidays).

    Liked by 1 person

    1. CarolCooks2 Post author

      I am happy that my post brought back wonderful memories, Lauren and yes Baklava made by a friend would always be better writing this post has reminded me that I need to make some I haven’t made baklava for a good few years now…

      Liked by 1 person

  12. Pingback: CarolCooks2…A-Z World Cuisines…Part 29…Greece the country of colourful meze dips served with warm pitta bread with a glass of Greek wine… – MobsterTiger

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