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GreekGirlCooks

Active member
I’ve been experimenting with Greek Christmas baking this year, and I keep coming back to masticha. I love the aroma, but I’m still figuring out the best ways to use it without overpowering the other flavors.

For those of you who bake with masticha regularly, I’d love some guidance. How much do you typically use in cookies like melomakarona or kourabiedes? Do you grind it with sugar, add it to the syrup, or incorporate it directly into the dough? I’m also curious about which ingredients pair well with it. Does it play nicely with orange zest, cloves, or vanilla, or is it better as the star flavor?
 

What Do You Put in Your Gemista?

Gemista is one of those Greek dishes that seems to be a little different in every household, and I’m always interested in hearing how other people make it. I usually think of the classic tomatoes and peppers stuffed with rice, herbs, and sometimes ground meat, but there are so many variations.

What do you put in your gemista? Do you make yours with meat or keep them vegetarian? Which herbs do you use? I’ve seen recipes with parsley, mint, dill, or different combinations, and even the amount of tomato in the filling seems to vary.

I’m also curious about what vegetables you like to stuff. Do you stick with tomatoes and peppers, or add zucchini, eggplant, or onions? And do you always cook potatoes alongside them?

I’d love to hear your family’s version, especially if there’s an ingredient or technique that makes your gemista a little different.

How Much Garlic in a Batch of Tzatziki?

How much garlic do you usually put in a batch of tzatziki? I think I may be using a little too much. I usually make mine with about 2 cups of Greek yogurt and 4 cloves of garlic, along with cucumber, olive oil, and the other usual ingredients.

It tastes great when I first make it, but we usually take about three days to finish the batch. By the second or third day, the garlic flavor and smell become really strong. Some people in my household love that and don’t mind it at all, but others think it becomes a bit overpowering. I’m starting to agree that four cloves might be too much, especially since the garlic seems to get stronger as it sits.

What do you all do? How many cloves would you use for about 2 cups of Greek yogurt?

What Is the Best Way to Serve Taramosalata?

I absolutely love taramosalata and have it pretty regularly at home, but I’m having some people over soon and was wondering about the best way to serve it when entertaining.

Normally I just eat it with some bread or pita, so I don’t really put much thought into presentation. For guests, though, I’d like to make it part of a nice Greek-style spread with a few other things on the table. I was thinking warm pita triangles, crusty bread, maybe some cucumber and other vegetables for dipping, but I’m curious what everyone else usually serves with it.

Do you drizzle a little olive oil over the top or add any kind of garnish? And are there particular meze that you think pair especially well with taramosalata?

I’d love some ideas for making it look a little more special while still keeping everything traditional and simple.

What to do with garden zucchini?

Every summer, I seem to end up with more zucchini from the garden than I know what to do with! Of course, in Greek cooking there are plenty of good options, but I’m always looking for new ideas once I’ve made the usual favorites a few times.

I tend to use zucchini for kolokithokeftedes, briam, stuffed zucchini, and simple sautéed dishes with olive oil and herbs. I also like adding it to vegetable pies or roasting it alongside potatoes and other summer vegetables. Still, when the garden is producing zucchini constantly, it’s easy to run out of inspiration.

What does everyone else do with an abundance of garden zucchini? Are there traditional Greek recipes you make every summer, especially ones that use a lot at once?

I’d also love ideas for preserving or freezing zucchini in a way that works well for Greek dishes later in the year.

What Greek Foods Do You Start Craving in the Fall?

I've been thinking more about seasonal eating lately, especially from a Greek perspective. Summer Greek food feels so naturally tied to the season with tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, fresh herbs, grilled foods, and plenty of fruit. But once the weather starts cooling down, I find myself wondering what traditional Greek foods really feel like fall.

Are there certain dishes you start making as soon as September or October arrives? I'm thinking of foods like fasolada, giouvetsi, trahana soup, baked dishes, savory pies, and recipes using apples, grapes, walnuts, chestnuts, pumpkin, or other fall ingredients.

I'd especially love to hear about foods that were seasonal in your family rather than dishes you ate year-round. Were there certain meals your yiayia or parents always started making when the weather changed?

What Greek foods make you think, "Okay, fall is officially here"?
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