yogurt

Skyr cheese launched a thousand longboats

Skyr cheese launched a thousand longboats

Posted on by Pat and David
On our first day in Reykjavik, we wondered if we'd stumbled into some modern version of Gulliver's Brobdingnag. Everyone was … so tall. And fit. And wearing technical gear. They looked like they were about to dash up Iceland's volcanos, dive for lobsters in its fjords, or — at the very least — set sail in a high-prowed boat to discover a new continent or pillage an old one. It was a very Viking moment. The secret behind all this outsized vigor (or so we were told) was skyr. This Nordic cousin of Greek yogurt is so well-drained and thick that it's legally classified as a cheese. What distinguishes it from various other cultured milk products is that heated skimmed milk is inoculated with traditional...Read More
Finding a Greek solution to the zucchini problem

Finding a Greek solution to the zucchini problem

Posted on by Pat and David
Every gardener knows the zucchini problem. When you ordered seeds in January, you were dreaming of ratatouille—maybe even of zucchini bread with sunflower seeds that turn inexplicably green. Then the reality hits about this time of summer. Zucchini sounds like a great idea. So does keeping rabbits—until you're suddenly overrun with rabbits. Or squash. Pre-pandemic, you could invite friends over, get them well lubricated, and send them home with a bag of zukes. Or bunnies. Such solutions don't work in the COVID era. The Greeks take a more pragmatic attitude toward zucchini proliferation. During the season, they throw zukes into everything. One of the tastier light dishes is a bake that falls somewhere between a frittata and an unfussy souffle. There are zillions of different...Read More
Something Greek to spread on that fresh pita bread

Something Greek to spread on that fresh pita bread

Posted on by Pat and David
We've been practicing pita (see July 7 post) until we got it down just right. Sure enough, our loaves stay nice and pliable and puff up with an air pocket from edge to edge. The key is searing the first side when you start cooking. But with all that pita, we needed something Greek to spread on it. Wherever we went in Athens, every meze platter had pita with four spreads: hummus, tzatziki (cucumber yogurt), tirokafteri (whipped feta with red pepper), and baba ganoush. We have yet to tackle making our own hummus and we're reserving baba ganoush for next week's post. But here are our recipes for the yin and yang of Greek dips or spreads, tzatziki and tirokafteri. TZATZIKI This utterly refreshing dip/sauce...Read More