Greek desserts. Greek sweets! Greek cuisine - features

Never, never, never refuse dessert in Greece! Because, firstly, he is always incredibly beautiful, and secondly, it hurts and offends the owners. Despite the fact that before this the table was first bursting with snacks, in the second round it was filled with giant dishes with the second, if you offer to end the meal on this, the Greeks with a sweet tooth, like babies deprived of candy, will be upset, disappointed, discouraged, in a word, between you an iron curtain of misunderstanding will fall, which is much worse than any language barrier.

Desserts from Crete

I tried to do this a couple of times. Once, during lunch in Crete, when it was already hard to think that the stomach would take even a milligram of food, I said that they might not bring me dessert.

"What, you don't like sweets?" several people exclaimed. It seems that in the blink of an eye I have become a general enemy. “No, I’m just already full,” such an excuse was ridiculed, saying that if I don’t try the best creation of the cook, into which he has invested all his skill, soul and something else, then from now on he will refuse to feed me at all .

I had to try everything. But from that day on, they still looked at me with disbelief all week, constantly looking into the plate and carefully watching so that I would not try to do any such trick a second time.

By the way, the dessert was really beyond praise! I especially liked it with a fresh white light soufflé-like manouri cheese from sheep's milk, sprinkled with fragrant honey, and xerotigana brushwood.

Did you know that this popular deep-fried delicacy - brushwood - comes from Greece? To be honest, until I ended up in Crete, I never thought about it. It turns out that in the 19th century it came to St. Petersburg through Little Russia, whose inhabitants spied it from their Byzantine neighbors.

In fact, xerotigana is considered a wedding dessert in Crete, but many Greeks cook it for both the feast and the world. You can try it too - here.

Labor-intensive sweets and not so

On one of my next Greek trips, I almost shied away from coffee with sweets for the second time.

It happened on the peninsula of Halkidiki at a time when the endless dinner had almost become breakfast. I tried to escape, citing fatigue, the fact that in the morning (after a couple of hours) I had to get up early. I again heard the same question about sweets and felt like the most treacherous traitor.

As a result, the rest of the night had to calm the disappointed hosts, listening to how they tried and thought about the menu, how they selected each dish and how much time their chef spent preparing dessert. Yes, indeed, some Greek dishes are incredibly time-consuming.

For example, the Greeks love puff pastry filo. It is very elastic, after baking it turns out tender, thin, slightly crunchy melting in your mouth. But it is extremely difficult to make it - you need to roll it out and stretch it until it becomes like a sheet of paper. So, if you want to cook something Greek, the dough is better to buy.

From filo you can make huge pies with feta, spinach, chicken, small envelopes with various fillings and, of course, sweet nut baklava, poured with honey syrup. There is something original in all these sweets. Sometimes they are made from products familiar from antiquity: from honey (instead of sugar, which was not yet known at that time), from milk, olive oil, wheat flour.

But sometimes there are recipes from borrowed products. For example, from walnuts, so named only because they were brought to Russia by Greek merchants. One of my favorite Greek pies caridopita- the most delicate pie with walnuts. It is best to do it the day before the celebration, so that it is well soaked. Try to cook it.

Do you remember that the main rule is to try sweets? However, more than your refusal of dessert, Greek culinary specialists can only be upset if you compare their sweets with Turkish ones.

Forget that you ate almost the same baklava in Istanbul or ate almost the same brushwood in Anatolia - none of this matters if you don't want to hurt the quivering hearts of local Greek chefs.

The Greeks consider their goodies (even if it's Turkish-style coffee) to be unique. However, this feeling is mutual: a few years ago, real demonstrations took place in Istanbul demanding to protect the original Turkish dish baklava from Greek encroachments. But I will tell you about Turkish sweets some other time ...

Loukoumades

To prepare this dessert, you will need the following ingredients:

• wheat flour (two cups)
• dry yeast (10 grams),
• granulated sugar (one large spoon),
• warm water (1.5 cups),
• a pinch of salt,
• one lemon, water (one glass),
• honey (150 grams),
• vegetable oil.

Kiwi dessert with strawberries

You will need the ingredients:

• strawberries (30 pieces),
• kiwi (6 pieces),
• tangerine (3 pieces),
• powdered sugar (3 large spoons),
• lemon juice (3 large spoons),
• almonds (2 large spoons),
• yogurt (one glass).

Greek cookies

The recipe for this cookie is very simple. For this you will need the ingredients:

• butter(150 grams),
• wheat flour (450 grams),
• powdered sugar (200 grams),
• egg,
• cognac (one large spoon),
• vanilla sugar,
• soda (half a small spoon),
• ground and toasted hazelnuts (150 grams).

Greeks are considered one of the biggest sweet tooth in the world. On the territory of the country, there is, perhaps, not a single person who would not be happy to go to zacharoplastio (confectionery shop). Sweets in the country are an invariable attribute of a table set for a holiday or an everyday meal.

Over the long years of the domination of the Byzantine Empire, which harmoniously combined the traditions of dozens different peoples, a wide variety of oriental dishes were brought to Hellas, which eventually became national. Further in the article you will find a description of the most diverse, unusually delicious Greek sweets, recipes and photos of which are waiting for you in this material.

About desserts

In Greece, nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios) and honey (most often thyme) serve as the main components for sweets. For some Greek sweets, semolina (for halva), vegetable oil, dried fruits, cream, milk, and cheese are used in cooking. And a sheet of puff pastry, prepared with your own hands, is one of the main components in cooking.

Among the popular Greek sweets are quince marshmallow, galaktoboureko, Turkish delight. Greek jam is also famous, which is made from quince, oranges, figs, cherries and peaches. Sweets in sugar syrup or molasses can also be called traditional desserts - these are most often bones (nuts, pistachios, hazelnuts and almonds) and dried fruits.

Dessert groups

All oriental sweets, including Greek ones, can be divided into three groups:

1. Sugar confectionery - nishallo (sugar vermicelli), crystalline sugar, nogul (amphora sugar with spices).
2. Products like soft sweets - Turkish delight, nougat, sherbet, whipped delight, kos-halva, chuch-hela, etc.
3. Flour products - baklava (baklavas), mutaki, kurabiedes cookies, kyata and other various cookies and pies based on butter, biscuit, shortcrust, puff pastry.

Kourabiedes

This is one of the most delicious traditional Greek sweets. It is prepared during the period of Epiphany and Christmas. Kourabiedes differs from other types of shortbread cookies in that it contains almonds and immediately after baking is rolled in powdered sugar. In the manufacture of cognac, vanilla or mastic are added to it for flavoring. You will need:

• 200 g sl. oils;
• 1 egg;
• 200 g chopped almonds;
• 1 ½ st. powdered sugar;
• 300 g flour (preferably high quality);
• 2 tbsp. l. vanilla sugar;
• 30 g almonds;
• 13 g of baking powder.

How to cook

1. Combine dry ingredients: almonds, flour, vanilla sugar, baking powder.
2. We grind the softened butter until white, pour sugar into it, beat well and add the yolk during the process, and then combine the dry ingredients with the egg-butter mixture, knead the dough. It should be elastic and not stick to your hands.
3. Form balls from pieces of dough.
4. In the middle of each we put a whole almond nut (1-2 pcs.) And spread it on a sheet covered with baking paper.
5. Bake for 20 minutes at 180°C.
6. Sprinkle the finished cookies with powdered sugar (you can see the Greek sweet - kourabiedes in the photo).

Loukoumades

This dish is airy, very tender donuts wrapped in sweet syrup. In order to prepare 1 kg of sweets, take:

• 500 g flour;
• 32 g dry yeast;
• 27 g of salt and sugar;
• 500 ml of very cold water;
• 600 ml vegetable oil for deep frying.

For syrup:

• 1.5 tsp honey;
• 200 ml of water;
• 20 g lemon;
• 250 g sugar.

Cooking technology

1. Pour yeast, salt and sugar into flour. Flour must be sifted to give the dough a more tender and airy structure.
2. Gradually pour ice water into the resulting mixture and knead the dough for a quarter of an hour, after which we cover the container with the product with a napkin or cling film and put it in a warm place for one hour for fermentation.
3. 20 minutes before the dough rises, start preparing the syrup. Pour sugar into a small bowl, fill it with water, add honey and put on the stove.
4. After the oil boils, boil it for 5 minutes, add a slice of lemon and continue to cook the same amount.
5. At the same time, heat up the oil in a saucepan.
6. Form into balls with a spoon and drop into hot oil.
7. After they are well reddened, we take them out and dip them in hot syrup for 20 seconds.

We place the finished Greek sweet on a beautiful plate. Dessert should be eaten immediately after preparation, because after a short storage it can soften and lose its attractive appearance.

By the way, only when hot it has a tender, airy core and a crispy honey-caramel crust.

Baklavas (baklava)

Among Greek desserts and sweets, the popular confectionery baklavas occupies a special place. It is prepared from an exhaust unleavened dough filo, thin as papyrus paper (translated from Greek, "filo" means "leaf"). The preparation of such a dough is a real art and is passed down in every family from mother to daughter.

Ingredients needed for the test:

• half a kilo of flour;
• 200-250 g of warm water (depending on the quality of the flour);
• ½ tsp salt;
• 30 ml of olive oil;
• 1 tsp Sahara;
• some cornstarch.

For filling:

• 100 g of pistachios, hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts;
• 3 art. l. Sahara;
• 1 tsp chopped cloves and cinnamon;
• 1 cracker (chopped in a blender).

For syrup:

• 200 ml of water;
• 250 g sugar;
• under Art. l. lemon juice and honey;
• 2-3 cloves;
• cinnamon stick.

To brush the dough:

• 50 ml of olive oil;
• 100 g of margarine and butter;
• egg.

Stuffing and dough

First, let's prepare the nuts. It should be remembered that they must be fresh. In this case, it is recommended to soak almonds in water for a quarter of an hour, and then peel them.

1. Grind all the nuts indicated in the recipe in a mortar. Please note: since nuts have different hardness, they should be processed separately. Crushed nuts should not be too small, but not large. They can be fried in a pan, but also separately.
2. We combine the prepared nut with sugar, cloves, cinnamon, crushed crackers and mix.
3. Sift the flour together with sugar and salt in a slide, make a well and pour in the oil and vinegar, mixing gently.
4. Add warm water and knead the dough. It should be tender, but not sticky.

Dessert cooking

• We divide the dough rolled into bundles into 10 identical parts, we form balls.
• We put them in a deep bowl and cover with a damp cotton napkin. The dough should rest for an hour at a temperature of 20 ° C.

• We take out 1 ball in turn and roll out the dough, it is not recommended to take everything at once, because it can dry out.
• In order for the dough not to stick to the table and to the rolling pin, sprinkle them with cornmeal.
• Roll out into very thin sheets, the size of a baking sheet.
• For Greek sweets, coat the first sheet well with a mixture of oils (olive and cream), margarine and eggs. Definitely warm. This is necessary for the baklava to be crispy.
• We coat each subsequent sheet in the same way and lay it on the previous one.
• On 4, spread 1/3 of the filling and cover with the fifth sheet, oil the dough again and sprinkle with ½ of the remaining nut filling.
• Cover with a clean sheet, grease again and lay out the rest of the nuts.
• After that, we lay the remaining sheets in turn, oiling them well.
• Let the baklava stand for about 10 minutes, and then carefully cut into diamonds. We use clove buds as a decoration, one bud for one portion piece.
• We bake baklava (covered with foil) in the oven for about half an hour at 180 ° C.
• After that, remove the foil and reduce the temperature to 140 ° C.

Let the finished product cool for 1 hour.

Syrup

At this time, prepare the syrup. For this you need:

1. Boil water with honey, cinnamon, cloves and sugar.
2. Remove from heat and add lemon juice.

Warm baklava is poured with still hot syrup and served better the next day, when it is well soaked.

Greek sweets are very popular among adults and children in Greece, and are also very popular with tourists who want to get to know the country better through taste. Local cookies, sweets, waffles, nougat and much more do not lose their freshness for a long time, so foreigners buy all these goodies as a memory of a wonderful trip.

In this article, we want to tell you about six, in our opinion, the most delicious traditional Greek sweets that you can always cook at home if you wish.

6. Kourabiedes

Kourabiedes is one of the most delicious Greek desserts you will ever come across. Sometimes they are made with cognac, vanilla or mastic for flavoring. These delicious shortbread biscuits are traditional around Christmas and Epiphany. The main difference between courabiedes and your regular shortbread cookies is that these delicious cookies usually contain almonds and are immediately rolled in powdered sugar after they are baked. And here's a little free tip for those of you who've never tried them: try to hold your breath as you eat this sugary treat.

To make Greek Kourabiedes cookies, you will need:

butter 200 g

powdered sugar 1 ½ cup

egg 1 pc.

chopped almonds 200 g

vanilla sugar 2 tbsp. l.

wheat flour 300 g

baking powder 13 g

almonds 30 g

1. Dry ingredients - chopped almonds, vanilla sugar, flour and baking powder mix

2. Soften butter at room temperature until white, add 1 cup of powdered sugar, beat well.

3. Continuing to beat, add the egg yolk. Mix the egg-butter mass with dry ingredients. Knead the dough thoroughly.

4. From pieces of dough (it is elastic, does not stick to hands, and does not require additional use of flour), form a ball, put a whole almond in the middle and put on a baking sheet lined with baking paper.

5. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and bake cookies for 15-20 minutes. Sprinkle cooled cookies with powdered sugar.

5. Koulourakia

Koulourakia! It's so delicious! Especially after you dip it into your cup of coffee. These traditional Greek cookies are perhaps the most popular you'll find in bakeries. These butter-based sweets have a vanilla flavor and are the color of a shiny egg glaze. Koulourakia can also be recognized by the sesame seeds they are sometimes sprinkled on top of their distinctive serpentine shape. In fact, these cookies are formed in this way, because the ancient Minoans worshiped snakes for their healing powers.

We invite you to try making these wonderful cookies yourself at home. You will need the following ingredients:

200 g butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp almond essence or Amaretto
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Grease the baking sheets.

In a medium bowl, beat softened butter, sugar and eggs until smooth. Add vanilla and almond essence. Add flour, knead the dough, at the end you may need to knead the dough with your hands. Take 1 tsp. dough and roll into balls, bars or other shapes, for example in the form of an S. Place on prepared baking sheets at a distance of 3-5 cm from each other

Bake for 10 minutes in a preheated oven (200C), or until the cookies are browned and firm. Let cookies cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar.

4. Greek baklava (baklava)

Baklava is a traditional Greek dessert that was adopted by Greek sailors and merchants in ancient Mesopotamia and brought to Athens. baklava, sweet pie, made from thin crispy dough, the recipe of which the Greeks perfected by combining several layers of filo dough, sprinkled with ground walnuts, sprinkled with honey and cooked in the oven.

3. Diples

Diples is another wonderful traditional sweet, similar to our brushwood. This is a festive sweet, it is usually prepared for celebrations: on New Year, christmas, wedding, etc.
The dough for Diples is rolled out as thinly as possible. Then they are fried in a large pan until golden brown. They are fried gradually rolling into a roll, but they can also be wrapped in an envelope or rolled into a bundle, it happens in different ways. After frying, the dough is allowed to rest on a paper towel so that the oil is glassed. Then it is dipped in boiling syrup and sprinkled with nuts or powdered sugar already on a plate.

Greek Diples cannot be confused with any of the similar delicacies. To taste, add cinnamon, orange peel, liquor, honey, and sprinkle with nuts or powdered sugar.

2. Galaktobureko

Galaktoboureko is a Greek dessert in which pudding is dipped in semolina and wrapped in thin dough phyllo. Sometimes the cream is seasoned with lemon or orange. Galaktoboureko is baked in the oven, spread on a baking sheet with several oiled layers of phyllo dough and pudding, or rolled into 10 cm long rolls filled with semolina custard topped with oiled phyllo dough.

Loukoumades are one of the most popular and delicious desserts in Greece! These are a delicious type of deep fried honey mini donuts that are perfect as a dessert all year round, and even during Lent. You can try traditional loukoumades with honey and cinnamon, or any other flavors you like, such as chocolate or syrup.

If you can learn anything from My Big Big Greek Wedding, it's that Greeks love food. But Greek cuisine is not only about kebabs and yogurt. Greece is distinguished by one of the most appetizing cuisines, there are hearty meat dishes, and desserts with the scent of roses. Check out the list of dishes that you should definitely try in Greece.

Paputsaki

The name of the dish is translated as "little shoes", it is an eggplant stuffed with meat, tomato sauce and bechamel sauce.

Pastizio

This pasta dish is somewhat reminiscent of lasagna. It requires several layers of pasta, ground pork or beef, tomato sauce with mint and cinnamon, as well as béchamel and grated cheese. It is very tasty as an independent dish, but also goes well with a salad.

Taramasalata

This is a delicious spread of caviar mixed with olive oil and potatoes or bread. It's incredibly delicious when eaten with pita bread. The dish has a lot of fat, but it also has enough protein and omega-3 acids.

Avgolemono soup

Complemented with beaten egg, lemon juice and rice, this delicious chicken broth is the perfect dish for winter weather and a great cold remedy. Chop up some chicken and bell pepper to add more flavor to the broth.

halloumi

This cheese is made in Cyprus. Halloumi has a delicate texture with a slight salty taste, it is made from sheep and goat milk. This is a versatile cheese that can be eaten both in pure form and in a salad, on a sandwich, and even with watermelon. Unlike other cheeses, this one does not melt when grilled, baked, or pan-fried.

Kleftiko

This lamb roast is usually seasoned with garlic, onion and oregano and served with potatoes and vegetables. If the meat has been marinated long enough and cooked properly, it will separate easily under a fork and practically melt in your mouth.

Cooluri

It is impossible to imagine a Greek feast without a basket of kouluri - this is bread sprinkled with sesame seeds, which is usually baked in the shape of a circle. It is crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. Often made with olives or feta, this bread is especially tasty when served while still warm.

Koulourakia

This name sounds similar to the previous one, however, the dish is somewhat different. These are sugar-coated butter cookies that can be both crunchy and soft on the inside. Cookies are served all year round, but especially often at Easter.

Galaktobureko

For dessert, try a slice of sweet corn pie with custard. It has a delicate aroma of rose water and a puff pastry crust.

Spanakopita

Not all Greek pastries are sweet. For example, spanakopita is salty pie, which is made from spinach and feta. The pie crust is made from crispy phyllo dough.

Keftedes

These crispy fried meatballs usually made with pork or beef flavored with oregano, onion, garlic and a pinch of cinnamon.

Tzatziki

A popular sauce is made from plain yogurt, mint, cucumber, olive oil, and garlic. This is a great addition to both fried pork or chicken skewers, as well as to pita.

Sheftalia

These juicy lamb or pork sausages are a dish from Cyprus. The Greeks cannot imagine a family barbecue without such a product.

kalo prama

This dish literally translates as "a great thing" and once you try it, you will understand the essence of such a name. It's a corn cake soaked in rosewater syrup and garnished with almonds. The perfect dish for a light and sweet dessert.

Kritaraki

This pasta dish with onions and tomatoes is prepared with different types meat - lamb, pork, beef or chicken. Either way, it's very flavorful.

Gemista

This dish requires peppers and tomatoes, they are stuffed with rice, herbs, sometimes minced meat. It turns out a hearty and healthy main course, which can also be used as a side dish.

souvlaki

Many people imagine kebabs, but have never heard of souvlaki - these are grilled skewers of meat, usually pork or chicken. The meat is served on a pita with salad or eaten straight from a skewer.

Dolmades

Hand-rolled rolls of minced pork, rice and parsley, wrapped in grape leaves, are quite difficult to make. But they are incredibly tasty both hot and cold. Meat can be substituted for pepper for a vegetarian version.

Loukoumades

If you love donuts, you will love loukoumades. It is a popular dessert sold on the streets and consists of small fried pieces of dough served with syrup and cinnamon or nuts.

aphelia

This dish is pork marinated in red wine. It takes a very long time to cook, but the incredible flavor justifies all the effort - be sure to try it if you like meat.

Kourabiedes

During the festive season, many Greek grandmothers make cookies with walnut and powdered sugar, vanilla and orange. Try these cookies along with traditional Greek milk-free coffee to balance the sweetness of the dessert with the drink.

Mauromatica

This is one of the more useful products on this list. A protein-rich dish made from black beans in tomato sauce. It can be with or without meat.

Moussaka

Layers minced meat, usually lamb or beef, cooked in tomato sauce and topped with eggplant and béchamel sauce, are classics of Greek cuisine. If desired, the dish can be prepared without meat - eggplant with aromatic sauces turns out perfectly.

Lucaniko

Lucaniko is smoked sausage spicy, made with fennel, orange and sometimes chili. It's a great appetizer when eaten hot, straight off the grill, on a halloumi pita sandwich.

Baklava

Baklava is popular in Turkey and the Middle East, but in Greece it can be found in every pastry shop. Dessert made from filo pastry and pistachios is usually cut into squares or triangles. The dish also includes honey, lemon juice and cinnamon. It turns out an incredibly tasty and mouth-watering dessert.