Recipe(s) from Greece!

This past spring I went to Greece with a friend of mine and her roommate. I expected the typical gyro and lamb food-heaven, but I actually found a lot of chicken dishes and various cheeses! Most of the cheese I am not familiar with but the first one I noticed of course was feta. 

It was our first night of the trip and we were in Santorini. We asked for recommendations for dinner and the woman at the front desk of our hotel recommended an inexpensive place to eat within walking distance. The restaurant is called the Kypa Nikh. I saw something on their menu called "baked feta"... I had no idea what to expect and it ended up being amazing! 

The baked feta is served warm, topped with tomatoes and pepper, and I think it's typically eaten with a fork. I however, asked for a loaf of bread to eat it with. For the remainder of the trip we tried to order this or some other form of baked and/or grilled cheese.

Baked feta dish at Kypa Nikh

Unfortunately, when I got home I couldn't find a good recipe that seemed to replicate what we had. BUT I did find another Greek cheese recipe I want to share :-)

Whipped feta with cucumbers

from Food & Wine Magazine Nov '11

1 lbs feta cheese, cut into 2 pieces - room temp

1/4 lbs cream cheese - softened

2 Tbs heavy cream

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

2 cucumbers - halved, seeded and cut into 1/2" dice

1 Tbs chopped oregano

Salt and fresh pepper

Toasted pita for serving - I used sea salt crackers

Cracker topped with whipped feta
and marinated cucumber

• In a bowl, cover feta with water and let stand for 30 min
• Drain and crumble feta
• Transfer to food processor and puree - I made this in the KitchenAid stand mixer
• Add cream cheese, heavy cream, 2 Tbs olive oil, and 1 Tbs lemon juice
• Process until smooth
• Refrigerate for 1 hour
• Meanwhile, in a bowl, toss cucumbers with remaining 2 Tbs of olive oil, 1 Tbs lemon juice, and oregano
• Season with salt and pepper
• Cover and chill for 1 hour
• Serve feta lightly chilled with the cucumbers and toasts

I've never really been a huge fan of Greek food but it's my new obsession. Since I've been back, I've been enjoying Greek yogurt topped with honey almost every day for my work breakfast. For just a few moments, it really brings me back to Greece.

Beat this Applebees!

Applebees is once again running their 2 for $20 combo deal (one appetizer and two entrees for $20). I think I've got them beat with this HUMUNGUS, fresh, grilled dinner for two my husband and I had a couple of weeks ago.

We went to the grocery story to find something for dinner. I didn't have anything in mind, including a budget. But we ended up spending just under $20 total and came away with a really great dinner.

It started out like this

Then ended up like this.

It was all very basic grilling. Cooked the steak with some salt and pepper. Then I topped mine with gorgonzola cheese and my husband left his plane. We wrapped asparagus in tin foil and threw in some garlic cloves and butter. Once it was done, I topped it with some fresh parmigiano cheese. We also rapped mushrooms and onions in tin foil with butter and garlic. For the starch, we sliced up some sweet potatoes and covered them in oil. I read that you can cook it like a regular potato (whole, poked, and covered in foil) but it takes at least twice as long to cook. Finally, we sliced up some pineapple and put that on that grill as dessert (not pictured because there wasn't room on the plate!).

It all was so good and filling. To add to the enjoyment, we ate it outside with some cold bottles of our favorite beers.
I recommend this menu for a quick, fresh dinner that you should try while there are some good grilling days left this "summer".

Note: The $20 total could go either way depending on the cut and quality of the steak you get. It also assumes that you already have oil, butter, and cheese at home.