Fearless Kitchen

Recipe: Olive Cigar Pies

Recipe Source: Barron, Rosemary.  Meze.  Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2002 pp. 98-9

This is another dish that I made for our family's tree decorating party this past Christmas.  I chose it because it could be easily consumed as finger food (not that it was) and because it contained olives.  I love olives.  I always have and, barring some sort of majorly scarring experience, I probably always will.  The dish went over reasonably well, although not quite as well as the more Italian dishes I served.  I suspect that's because the bread-to-filling ratio was a little skewed in favor of the bread, which is funny because I actually increased the amount of olives and therefore the amount of filling! 

I would also like to point out that these can be made well ahead of time.  This makes them great for parties, picnics and snacks for unexpected guests.

Olive Cigar Pies (makes 8; approx. $1.00/ea.)

1/2 teaspoon honey

1/4 cup warm water, plus 1 tablespoon

2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 1/2 cups bread flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 egg

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1/3 cup (approx.) pitted Kalamata olives

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon oregano

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/2 cup feta cheese

Equipment:

• Small bowl
• Stand mixer
• Saute pan
• Baking sheets
• Rolling pin
• Mini-prep food processor

1. Combine the honey, 1/4 cup warm water and the yeast in the small bowl in a warm room.  Set this mixture aside until frothy.  Believe me, you'll know.
2. In the bowl of the stand mixer, combine the bread flour and salt. 
3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon water, egg and olive oil.  Mix to distribute.
4. Add the yeast mixture.  Mix on very low speed 3 - 4 minutes, then increase the speed very slightly and knead another 3 - 4 minutes.  The dough should be smooth and elastic.
5. Set the bowl aside and cover.  Let rise in a warm room until doubled in size, at least 1 hour.  For the record, I never make a yeast-leavened bread unless I'm already heating up the kitchen for some other purpose.  For me, in my kitchen, it's the only way to get an area that is warm enough for yeast to be active.  Your kitchen may be warmer, but this is what works for me.
6. In the meantime, heat the olive oil over low heat.
7. Add the onion and sweat until just beginning to color. 
8. Put the olives in the mini-prep and process to a paste. 
9. Add the ground coriander to the saute pan with the onions.  Heat until fragrant. 
10. Add the olive paste, cilantro and oregano.  Cook 1 minute.
11. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and the feta.  Mix to combine.
12. Preheat your oven to 375.
13. When the dough has finished rising, divide it into 8 separate portions.  Roll each portion into a ball, then roll that ball into a circle about 4" in diameter. 
14. Put 1/8 of the filling into the center, then spread it out a bit. 
15. Fold down the top and bottom ends of the circle. 
16. Fold the left side of the circle over, then roll the right side to make a vaguely cylindrical object. 
17. Bake 5 minutes at 375, then reduce heat to 350 and bake another 15 minutes.
18. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Recipe: Savory Pear Pastries

Recipe Source: Barron, Rosemary.  Meze: Small Bites, Big Flavors.  Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2002 pp. 96-7

These are the result of more Sunday open house fun.  I was really drawing a blank on vegetable dishes when I was doing my planning.  I was just feeling so incredibly uninspired.  Then it hit me.  Why not do something savory with a fruit?  After all, fruits and vegetables are lumped together in the food groups, right?  I found this recipe and decided to run with it.

I did have to make a few changes.  First of all, these were intended to be pies, not pocket pastries.  I just didn't feel like screwing around with the chickpea flour pastry.  I was very tired and very, very achy and needed to minimize time on my feet.  Phyllo dough was suggested by the author, but the whole pocket thing was all me.  Second, I didn't have enough time to let the fruit macerate as long as required.  It was supposed to sit for four hours or overnight; it got two hours.  Finally, I omitted a lot of additions toward the end, like the additional honey, the olive oil, the vinegar and the egg yolk.  I was nervous that they would make the filling even soggier than it was. 

The results were decent.  The flavor was pretty decent, if I do say so myself, but the filling was pretty moist and that left the filling soggy.  It's okay if you would rather use butter than olive oil to brush the phyllo.  I normally would too - it makes for a richer-tasting pastry.  This time, though, one of my guests had a dairy allergy and so I used olive oil. 

Savory Pear Pastries (serves 6; approx. $0.31/serving)

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons honey

2 firm, ripe pears, peeled, cored and diced

4 bay leaves

1/4 package phyllo pastry, thawed (use a phyllo labeled "#7".  You'll find it easier to work with than the more common, thinner phyllo.) 

1/4 cup walnuts, chopped

1/2 tablespoon savory

Pinch of kosher salt

Olive oil for brushing

Equipment:

• Bowl
• Pastry brush
• Baking sheets
• Pizza cutter
• Time

1. Combine the vinegar, honey, bay leaves and pear bits in the bowl.  Let sit at least two hours before proceeding.  Four hours is better, overnight is best.
2. Stir the walnuts, savory and salt into the filling.  Mix well. 
3. Use the pizza cutter to cut out large rectangles of dough from the phyllo pile. 
4. Brush one rectangle with olive oil.
5. Immediately place another rectangle on top of it.  Brush with more oil.
6. Place about 1/6 of the filling in the middle of the dough. 
7. Fold the edges of the dough onto the filling to create a nice, roughly square-shaped pocket.  If the dough is a little on the dry side, you may need to use some water to encourage the edges to stick. 
8. Transfer - carefully - to a baking sheet, seam side down. 
9. Repeat until all of the filling is used.
10. Bake 20 minutes or until golden.
11. Remove from the oven and serve. 

Recipe: Braised Turkey with Scallions, Lemon and Dill

Recipe Source: Kremezi, Aglaia.  The Foods of the Greek Islands.  Houghton Mifflin, New York, 2000 p. 133

My favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal was always the stuffing.  I shared only with extreme reluctance.  The recipe, which I posted last year, originally came from my grandmother, although I only ever had it made at my mother's hands.  When I was very small I was permitted to help make it by tearing up the bread into appropriate-sized pieces.  Not only did it free my mom up to work on other parts of Thanksgiving, it also gave me the feeling that I owned part of Thanksgiving dinner.  I'd helped in some way. 

Anyway, fast-forward a whole lot of years.  Last year I got to eat Thanksgiving dinner at home for the first time since 1996, and it was a beautiful and wonderful thing.  There was stuffing.  Lots of stuffing.  There was other food too, and it was very tasty, but really what I liked best was the stuffing (and my aunt's chocolate pie.)  Most years we have Thanksgiving with my husband's family.  They have their own stuffing recipe.  It is very different from my family's recipe.  It's still good, don't get me wrong, but it isn't the same. 

This year we're retreating to our old pattern of Thanksgiving with my husband's family.  This will be nice - it's always nice to see them, and it's especially nice now since his cousin is due at the same time that I am.  I was still feeling pretty down, though.  I wanted stuffing - the stuffing - and I wasn't going to get it.  Then I put on my big-girl pants.  So I wouldn't have stuffing on Thanksgiving Day.  I have a big beautiful kitchen.  What was to stop me from making my beloved stuffing on a day that was not the third Thursday in November or whatever?  I've developed a severe intolerance to pork, but there are chicken sausages out there that are almost as good.  I lacked duck stock too, but I had plenty of Lemony Vegetable Broth to make up for it.  I made the stuffing.  All I had to do was come up with something to go with it.

Which is where we get to our featured recipe for today.  You don't have to serve The Stuffing with turkey, but there's no reason why you shouldn't.  Turkey is tasty, and tends to be a little healthier than chicken (at least in my head; there's no scientific basis for that), and it really is a shame that we only think of eating turkey in November and sometimes December.  This particular turkey recipe matched incredibly well with The Stuffing.  The sauce, in particular, was just wonderful.  The lemon in the sauce paired beautifully with the lemon in the broth. 

I did make a couple of changes.  First, I couldn't find turkey drumsticks or thighs.  They'd been there last week, but not this week.  Oh well.  There was a half a turkey breast, bone-in, that was just about the right weight for my purposes.  It had the added bonus of letting me get out some of my frustrations by hacking it into pieces with a cleaver as well.  That sort of therapy you just can't overestimate.  I used Lemony Vegetable Broth instead of the chicken stock called for, because I had it on hand.  That's really it.  It's a very simple and very delicious recipe.  If you don't want to make The Stuffing to serve it with, the sauce would compliment mashed potatoes very nicely, and rice would probably be more authentic anyway.  (But if you want my advice, you'll make The Stuffing.) 

Braised Turkey with Scallions, Lemon and Dill (serves 4; approx. $4.32/serving)

1/4 cup olive oil

1/2 bone-in turkey breast, cut into 4 pieces

2 large bunches of scallions, cut into 1" pieces (use the whole scallion, please.) 

1 cup white wine

1/2 cup Lemony Vegetable Broth

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

4 tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

Equipment:

• Dutch oven

1. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. 
2. Add the turkey bits and cook until golden on all sides, turning frequently.
3. Evacuate the turkey bits to a plate or something similar.  Add the scallions to the pan mixture and saute until wilted.
4. Arrange the turkey bits on top of the scallions.  (It sounds fussy, I know, but it both affects the flavor of the finished product AND makes cleanup much easier.)  Add the wine and the broth along with the salt and pepper.
5. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. 
6. Turn the meat over and simmer, covered, another 20 minutes.
7. Add the lemon juice and most of the dill to the pan.  Cook uncovered 10 more minutes. 
8. Serve, sprinkled with the remaining dill. 

Recipe: Ouzo Mussels with Feta

Recipe Source: Botascos, Jim.  The New Greek Cuisine.  Broadway Books, New York, 2006 pp. 184-5

Mmm.... shellfish.  I love them.  It took me a long time to work up the courage to make them myself, though, but now that I have I seriously regret having been such a chicken for so long.  They're such a tasty treat!  I made these for dinner one recent night, and my only real regret about them was not having made enough bread to soak up the sauce! 

I made a few changes, although they're kind of minor.  First of all, I did not count out the mussels.  If I had, I would have paid a small fortune to make this dish.  Instead, I just bought the two-pound sack-o-mussels.  I used Lemony Vegetable Broth instead of clam broth, because I had it on hand and because it's significantly less expensive.  I couldn't find cinnamon basil and so used regular, and I increased both the garlic and the tomatoes (tomatoes being fresh from the garden and for free.) 

Ouzo Mussels with Feta (serves 2 - 4; approx. $3.16/serving)

2 tablespoons olive oil

6 garlic cloves, sliced

1 generous pinch cayenne pepper

5 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup ouzo

2 cups Lemony Vegetable Broth

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

2 lb mussels, scrubbed and debearded

1/2 cup diced feta

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Equipment:

• Large saute pan
• Large, shallow, oven-proof serving dish (I used the bottom half of a tagine.)

1. Preheat your broiler.  
2. Heat the oil in the saute pan.
3. Add the garlic.  Cook 2 minutes.
4. Add the cayenne and stir to blend.
5. Add the tomatoes.  Cook 1 minute. 
6. Add the ouzo and boil 2 minutes.
7. Add the broth, half the basil and the mussels.  
8. Cover and steam 5 minutes.  Discard any mussels that have not opened.   
9. Transfer the mussels to the serving dish.
10. Add half the feta to the sauce in the pan, along with the salt and pepper and the remaining basil.   Heat briefly, then pour over the mussels.
11. Sprinkle the remaining feta over the mussels, then broil 2 minutes.
12. Serve immediately.

Recipe: Eggplant and Tomato Rice

Recipe Source: Goldstein, Joyce. Taverna. Sunset Books, Menlo Park, 1996 p. 65

I've tried to make this recipe about a thousand times, and every time I tried it came out poorly. For the most part the problem always lay with the rice. When I was looking for an eggplant dish to serve at a recent Sunday open house, of course this dish came to mind. It was perfect for the purpose at hand, after all. It would feed a lot of people, it would give the athletes among us some carbohydrates, and it would give my friend Carol some eggplant. Finally, it would allow me to finally conquer this troublesome recipe. And how, you may be wondering, did I finally make this recipe and its recalcitrant rice submit to my will? I'll tell you – I ignored the instructions.

The original recipe is fiddly, with a lot of steps and activities that I would never normally use for making rice. It's not as though I don't know how to make rice. I make rice all the time. Why, then, should I struggle with instructions that seem so counterintuitive and clearly don't work for me? (This is no knock on Ms. Goldstein. The instructions just don't work for me. Your results may vary.) I decided this time that I would prepare the rice and the other ingredients separately, then mix them together. And that is exactly what I did. Otherwise, the only change that I made was to reduce the amount of olive oil.

Eggplant and Tomato Rice (serves 20; approx. $0.65/serving)

4 eggplant, diced

4 cups basmati rice, washed

4 teaspoons kosher salt

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 onions, chopped

8 tomatoes, chopped (4 very large supermarket tomatoes would do the job, but I was using tomatoes of variable size from the garden. What the heck, tomatoes are super-good for you anyway.)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground allspice

2 teaspoons black pepper

4 cups warm tomato juice

Equipment:

• Large saucepan
• Colander
• Very large mixing bowl

1. Salt the eggplants. Put them in the colander and let them drain for at least one hour. This will help to drain off any bitter juices. (Different kinds of eggplant have different amounts of bitter juices.)
2. Make your rice according to your preferred method.
3. Rinse your eggplant thoroughly.
4. In the large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
5. Add the eggplant and fry until well browned – you may want to add a little more oil; I didn't need to.
6. Add the onion. Sauté until tender.
7. Add the tomatoes. Cook until tender.
8. Add the spices and tomato juice. Stir well, bring to a boil and let simmer until some of the liquid is evaporated.
9. Combine the pan mixture and the cooked rice in the very large mixing bowl.
10. Stir well and serve, or set aside until you're ready to serve. This dish works equally well warm or at room temperature.

Recipe: Apple, Honeyed Walnut and Paneer Salad

Recipe Source: Malouf, Greg and Lucy.  Artichoke to Za'atar.  University of California Press, Berkeley, 2008 p. 153

I love apples.  They are easily my favorite fruit.  I don't much care for the crappy Red Delicious variety that you can get year-round and often get as the "healthy side" at some sandwich joints, though.  No, I like the kind of apples you get only in the fall, preferably picked oneself on a warm sunny day with a cold, crisp evening.  I like my apples raw.  Seriously.  When my favorite variety of apple comes in later in the season (that would be Empire, in case you're curious), I go to the Brookline farmer's market and find the one guy selling Empires.  Then I buy everything he's got, and I usually manage to eat it all in one week (two if I'm not at home often.) 

My husband, on the other hand, prefers them cooked.  I thought this salad would please him, and I was right.  The original recipe called for pears, but I don't care for pears and had a lot of apples on hand.  I made a few other changes of course.  I was out of orange-flower water, so I substituted rosewater.  I don't have any sherry on hand, but I've successfully used Chinese shao xing wine as a substitute in the past, so I used it here.  I wasn't able to find halloumi at the supermarket, so I substituted paneer (and reduced the amount, because we just didn't need that much fat.)  I also used a lot less oil thanks to a procedural change (using a grill pan instead of frying the cheese.)  Finally, I just didn't have time to fiddle with all the different types of greens called for in the original recipe.  Instead, I used a pre-packaged salad mix, which gave me time to see Derek Jeter break Lou Gehrig's record.  The substitution was worth it. 

This recipe is my entry into the September chapter of No Croutons Required, a monthly vegetarian soup and salad challenge founded by Jacqueline of Tinned Tomatoes and hosted this month by Lisa from Lisa's Kitchen.  The September theme is Mediterranean.  Some of you may be thinking (or shouting), "Wait, this has paneer in it!  Paneer isn't from the Mediterranean!  Stupid Americans and their lousy geographical knowledge!"  Yes, I know, paneer is an Indian ingredient, and the last time I checked, India did not border the Mediterranean.  As I mentioned before, the original recipe called for halloumi, which is a Cypriot ingredient, and Cyprus is firmly in the Mediterranean.  At least it was the last time I checked, and the sudden relocation of a large (and sometimes hotly contested) island would be bound to make headlines even here in Boston.  I was kind of forced into the change, and I'm pretty confident that the rest of the ingredients fit the bill nicely. 

Apple, Honeyed Walnut and Paneer Salad (serves 4; approx. $4.32/serving)

3 apples (I used mostly Roxbury Russets because that's what I had)

2 1/2 tablespoons honey

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

1 tablespoon rosewater

3 teaspoons shao xing wine (or sherry)

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup walnuts

1 block paneer, cut into cubes

4 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons lemon juice

1 red onion, thinly sliced

1 package herbal salad mix

2/3 cup black olives

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Equipment:

• Small saucepan
• Saute pan
• Grill pan

1. Toast the walnuts by whatever means you see fit - in the oven if you have it on, or in the saute pan if not.
2. Cut the apples into bite sized chunks.
3. Combine the cardamom, honey, rosewater and shao xing wine in the small saucepan and heat over low heat. 
4. Melt the butter in the saute pan. 
5. Add the apple chunks and sear briefly on each side. 
6. Add the walnuts and the honey mixture.  Mix well, coating the walnuts with the sauce.
7. Heat the grill pan over medium-high heat.
8. Grill the paneer on all sides, so that all sides are showing some of the grill marks. 
9. Combine the greens, onions and olives in a serving bowl.
10. Add the paneer and toss well.
11. Add the olive oil and lemon juice.  Toss to combine.
12. Pour the pan mixture (apples, walnuts etc.) over the rest of the salad.  Serve. 

Recipe: Smoked Pastitsio

Recipe Source: Egghead Forum member U4EA-Jeff.  Find the original recipe here.

As a general rule, when we do our Sunday open houses, I make the side dishes while my husband handles the main dish.  He does this because he likes to cook on the Big Green Egg, and that thing just doesn't make small quantities.  It gives him a chance to play, to enjoy cooking, and maybe to show off just a little bit.  A little while ago, he was feeling a little stumped for inspiration, and he found this recipe on the Egghead Forum. 

Pastitsio isn't my favorite Greek dish, personally.  I tend to find it heavy.  If you've never had it, I've had it described as "kind of like Greek lasagne," but it's a little more like a Greek baked ziti (in my humble opinion.)  However, I thought that this could be a really interesting experiment.  The fat in the cheese and the sauce would really hold the smoke flavor well, I thought, and I was distinctly not wrong.  The dish went over well - very well, really, and the smoke flavor came through just as nicely as I thought it would.  The few leftovers held up a day later, even cold.

Smoked Pastitsio (serves 12; approx. $1.51/serving)

1 lb whole wheat penne, cooked and drained

1 lb ground lamb

2 onions, chopped

7 garlic cloves, chopped

8 fresh tomatoes (the original called for canned, but we had a bunch of tomatoes from our garden and I used them instead.)

1 teaspoon oregano

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

4 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons flour

2 cups 1% milk

4 tablespoons pecorino cheese

6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

3 eggs, beaten

Equipment:

• Roasting pan or baking pan that you don't mind putting in the Egg.
• Saucepan
• Skillet
• Big Green Egg or other smoker.  You can make this dish indoors in the oven if you must, but really, why not just make regular baked ziti instead?

1. Prepare your BGE for indirect cooking.  Preheat it to 350 degrees.  We used apple wood as the smoking wood; hickory would probably work just as well here, or vine cuttings.
2. Melt the butter in the saucepan.
3. Add the flour and stir briskly to make a paste.
4. Add the milk and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. 
5. Add the cheeses.  Stir until melted.
6. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
7. Add the eggs and stir until thoroughly combined.
8. Heat the oil in the skillet.
9. Add the onions and garlic and cook until softened.
10. Add the meat and spices.  Cook until the meat is browned. 
11. Add the tomatoes and cook another minute. 
12. Combine the meat combination with the pasta and pour into the roasting pan.  Level it out.
13. Pour the sauce over the pasta, making sure that the top is as covered as possible. 
14. Bake 45 minutes over the Egg.
15. Let rest 5 minutes before serving to solidify the dish. 

Recipe: Fava Bean and Arugula Salad

Recipe Source: Barron, Rosemary.  Meze.  Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2002 p. 69

While shopping at the Greek market up in Arlington, I happened to find fresh fava beans.  They weren't great fava beans, but they were the only fresh fava beans I'd seen in over a year.  I've had to use frozen fava beans, dried fava beans and on occasion frozen lima beans as substitutes.  So I picked them up, assured that I would find a use for them before they rotted in my fridge.  I was not disappointed.  I made them for the cookout we hosted to celebrate the town's fireworks display. 

I did make a few changes, and I made those changes because I confused this recipe with another recipe I intended to make but scrapped at the last minute.  I omitted the scallions and the radishes, substituting a bed of arugula for the radishes (nowhere near the same thing, I know) and green garlic stalks for the scallions.  The result was tasty and got more vegetables into my guests. 

Fava Bean and Arugula Salad (serves 8; approx. $0.98/serving)

2 pounds fresh fava beans

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons water

1/2 bulb green garlic, crushed

1 green garlic stalk, chopped

Kosher salt and Grains of Paradise to taste

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

1 bunch fresh arugula

Equipment:

• Saucepan
• Skillet with a lid
• Slotted spoon
• Small bowl

1. Shell the fava beans.
2. Fill the saucepan with water and bring to a boil.
3. Blanch the shelled beans 2 minutes; drain.
4. Pop out the beans from the skins. 
5. Heat the olive oil in the skillet over low heat. 
6. Add the fava beans, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and the water. 
7. Reduce heat to very low, cover and cook 2 minutes. 
8. Using the slotted spoon, remove the fava beans from the skillet and set aside.  Reserve the pan liquid.
9. In the small bowl, combine the garlic with the salt and freshly ground Grains of Paradise. 
10. Whisk in the remaining lemon juice, then whisk into the pan juices.  Heat until warm.
11. Arrange the arugula on a serving platter. 
12. Arrange the beans on top of the arugula, then pour the pan juices over the beans.
13. Sprinkle with the dill and green garlic stalk.
14. Serve. 

Recipe: Hortopita Triangles

I think most people are probably already familiar with the traditional Greek dish spanakopita.  It basically means "spinach pie," and I've seen it served in slices like a pie (or a casserole, really) and I've seen it served folded into delicate little triangles.  In their small, triangle-shaped form, they make a great cocktail party nibble or appetizer.  This recipe was intended to be a basic spanakopita, which I would make with the spinach from the spinach box by the side of my house.  That didn't work out so well.  There wasn't enough spinach.  So I filled it out with some mixed greens from my "mixed greens" box (that's how the seed packet comes, just "mixed greens.") and some ... er... mesclun mix that I had lying around in my fridge.  It needed to get used up and it's what I had.  And it was green, which was the idea. 

Anyway, they were a hit, which I fully expected.  I'm not a huge spanakopitafan myself, but these always go over amazingly well any time I serve them.  The important trick to remember is to use the slightly thicker "#7" phyllo dough, not the overly thin and dry stuff you can get at your local supermarket.  Greek groceries will usually carry it, as will some of the better-stocked Middle Eastern markets.  If you can't find it, go ahead and use the other stuff, but be prepared to curse, swear and have to throw a lot of it away.  For more detail on folding the little triangles, click here.  Note: If you cannot find green garlic - and I've never seen it in a supermarket, only at the Brookline farmer's market - you can use regular garlic and scallions.

Hortopita Triangles (serves about 16 as an hors d'oeuvre; approx. $0.90/serving)

4 ounces fresh spinach, roughly chopped

12 ounces mixed greens, chopped (these greens can be whatever you can find.  I'm partial to dandelion greens myself, but mine had all gone bad.)

1 box phyllo dough, thawed (#7 preferred)

2 1/2 sticks of butter, melted

1 bulb green garlic, chopped, plus two green garlic stalks, also chopped

1/3 bunch fresh dill

1 cup feta cheese, crumbled

2 onions, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

Equipment:

• Pastry brush
• Cookie sheets
• Large saute pan
• Pizza cutter or very, very sharp knife

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
2. Heat the oil in the saute pan. 
3. Add the onions and the chopped garlic bulb.  Saute until softened. 
4. Add the greens and spinach.  Saute until beginning to wilt.  Season with kosher salt and pepper if desired.
5. Add the dill and the chopped green onion stalks.  Cook until all of the greens are wilted.
6. Remove from heat and stir in the feta. 
7. While waiting for the filling to be cool enough to handle, use the pizza cutter to slice that whole box of phyllo dough into strips about 2" wide.  If you've worked with phyllo before, you can probably work quickly enough that you don't have to worry about it drying out too much.  If not - well, cover it with a slightly damp kitchen towel.  Seriously, though, the only time I've had a problem was when I was using low-quality phyllo. 
8. Lay one single, solitary strip of dough on a work surface.  Paint the strip with melted butter - not too much, just a little bit to moisten the dough a bit.
9. Put a small amount of dough near the bottom.  Fold the strip into a triangle shape per the instructions in the link above. 
10. Repeat until you've used all the dough (or all the filling, whichever).  Paint the tops of the triangles with more melted butter.
11. Bake 12 - 15 minutes at 375 degrees, or until golden. 
12. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Recipe: Byzantine Radishes

Recipe source: Seth, Simeon.  "The Collection, in alphabetical order, of the properties of foods dedicated to Emperor Michael Doucas, written by Simeon Seth, Master of the Palace of Antiochus."  1071 AD.  Greek to French translation by Marc Brunet, 1939.  French to English translation by Henry Marks, self-published in a volume on Byzantine Cuisine as appendix D.  Per the author, books may be ordered from Henry Marks, 1270 Montecello Drive, Eugene OR 97404. 

Phew!  That was a mouthful.  I made this dish for a recent dinner we gave for medieval enthusiasts on a camping trip we took.  I definitely wanted to include some Byzantine foods, both because I wanted to offer foods from as many different medieval cultures as I could and because someone once told me that "there are no sources for Byzantine food," which as you can well imagine was a direct challenge.  The dish served a number of purposes.  First, it was documentable.  Even if the original author said nothing more than that radishes with vinegar and salt are an appetizer, we can still point to where the author said that (page 28 of the appendix in this publication, to be specific.)  Secondly, it was Easy.  I got my husband to slice up the radishes while watching the Yankee game the day before we left, and I'm pretty sure that most of them wound up in the bowl.  Third, it was a vegetable.  Very often at large dinners the meal consists of meat and starch, which is Not Healthy.  And finally, my husband really, really likes radishes. 

Wow, is it me or was all that (including the source information) a really long-winded way to describe a dish with three ingredients?

Anyway.  I chose white wine vinegar because wine vinegar would have been the most likely used in a Byzantine context.  Red wine vinegar would have discolored the radishes too much and would have had an overly strong flavor.  White had the delicacy I was looking for in this situation.  If I were not trying for historical accuracy I would have used rice vinegar - it is an even more delicate flavor, about as mild as you can get without being insipid.  I decided to mix the salt and vinegar together purely for ease of transportation.  Mr. Marks recommended sprinkling the salt and vinegar on separately, but Simeon Seth himself gives no indication either way.  There may be more salt in this solution than suits you.  My husband and many of our guests had been working out in the hot sun all day and were going to need more salt than I would normally use.  Feel free to reduce the amount of salt.

Byzantine Radishes (serves 20; approx. $0.29/serving

2 bunches radishes, trimmed and thinly sliced

3 tablespoons kosher salt

1/2 cup white wine vinegar

Equipment:

• Small bowl
• Whisk

1. Arrange the radish slices on your serving platter.
2. Whisk the vinegar and salt together in the small bowl.
3. Drizzle the dressing over the radishes and serve.

Note 1: If you are not going to serve these right away, store the radishes in the refrigerator until ready to serve.  Do not apply the dressing until the moment you are ready to serve.

Note 2: For people looking for the asparagus dish I served at the same event: increase the proportion of salt to vinegar.  The source is the same.