I was delighted to see June looking so well. It was just like old times when June and Themis,
Eddie and Tassos, Susanne and Miltos Zouros, Eileen and Nikos Melissaropoulos and Alecos and I use to meet, so
many years ago.
The red carpet was rolled out for us. Luba, who looks after June, had prepared a
fabulous lunch with meat with brown gravy, potatoes au gratin, two
delicious salads, one with lettuce the other with avocado, strawberry ice
cream and I added a cherry pie recipe.
Here are my recipes for the above dishes which might not
reach the rich taste and delicious flavour of the original ones, that we so enjoyed yesterday.
MEAT WITH BROWN SAUCE
1 kg (2 lb) meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
250 ml (1 cup) red wine
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp Worcester sauce
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
1 rosemary sprig
Hot water to cover
6 tbsp cornflour diluted in
250 ml (1 cup) cold water
Sauté the meat in olive oil on all sides and season with
salt and pepper to taste. Add the onion
and cook for a few minutes more, sprinkle with the garlic powder, pour in the wine
and simmer until the alcohol evaporates. Pour in the hot water and add the
Worcester sauce, cinnamon stick, and bay leaf, cover the saucepan with the lid and simmer for
30 minutes, until the meat is tender.
Just before serving heat the meat and gravy and dilute the
cornflour in cold water and pour over the meat and gravy. Simmer until the
gravy thickens, and obviously, discard the bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and rosemary sprig before serving.
Serve with au gratin potatoes and a green salad.
AU GRATIN POTATOES
8 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2 onions, peeled and sliced into rings
Salt and pepper to taste
6 tbsp butter
6 tbsp cornflour
1 bay leaf
1 tsp salt
6 cups hot milk
3 cups grated cheese of your choice
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) and brush a casserole with
melted butter.
Layer ½ the potatoes into the bottom of the prepared
casserole dish. Top with the onion
slices and add the remaining potatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste.
In a medium-sized casserole, melt the butter over medium heat
and add the bay leaf. Mix the cornflour and salt and stir constantly with a
whisk for 1 minute. Pour in the hot milk
and cook until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Discard the bay leaf and stir in the cheese all at once and continue stirring
until dissolved about 1 minute. Pour
the cheese bechamel over the potatoes, cover with foil and bake for 1 ½ hour
until golden brown.
AVOCADO SALAD
4 avocados, peeled, stoned and cubed, and placed in a salad
bowl
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 spring onions trimmed and finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp of olive oil
1 tsp mustard with honey
Whip the citronette sauce, pour over the avocadoes, toss and
serve immediately.
LETTUCE SALAD
2 lettuces, trimmed, washed, patted dry, and shredded
2 spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped
1 tbsp finely chopped dill
1 cup feta, crumbled
1/2 cup stoned Kalamata olives
1 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Place the shredded lettuce in a salad bowl and sprinkle with
the chopped spring onions, dill, feta, and Kalamata olives. Just
before serving, beat the vinaigrette, pour over the lettuce and toss.
STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM
1 ½ cups strawberries, hulled and diced
2 tbsp honey
½ cup sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
125 ml (½ cup) thick cream
1 vanilla
Place the strawberries in a large bowl with the honey, sugar, and lemon juice. After 20 minutes the
strawberries must have released their juices.
Add the remaining ingredients and blend the strawberry mixture until smooth. Place in the freezer and after one hour whip
and return to the freezer. After a couple
of hours whip again and repeat the same procedure twice more.
Spoon the ice cream into a container with a lid and place it in
the freezer until completely set.
CHERRY PIES
5 eggs
50 g (1.8 oz) sugar
2 vanillas
75 g (2.6 oz) plain flour plus extra for dusting the cherries
1 pinch of salt
1 tsp baking powder
100 g (3.8 oz) yogurt
75 ml (2.6 fl oz) milk
750 g (1.7 lb) sweet cherries
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) and brush 4 pie dishes with butter. Beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy, add the flour, salt, baking powder, yogurt, and milk to the egg mixture and stir well.
Rinse the cherries, drain, remove the pits and cut in half. Mix them with 2 tbsp of flour to prevent them from sinking into the dough.
Place half the dough into the 4 pie dishes, arrange half the cherries in the dishes, place the remaining dough over the cherries. Smooth and sprinkle the remaining cherries over the top.
Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. Cool slightly and serve with vanilla ice cream.
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