Easy pumpkin bread

October 25, 2021October 28, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 9 Comments

Our easy pumpkin bread is the ONLY recipe you will ever need!

This easy pumpkin bread is one of those recipes that falls under the category of Our Kouppes, recipes that we (Helen & Billie) have either developed, tweaked or perfected over the years. In other words, our parents have never made pumpkin bread and we’re pretty sure they would be shocked to learn that you can buy pumpkin puree in a can. Any pumpkin they use in recipes is grown by them, grated by them, and turned into lovely Greek recipes like pumpkin pita, and an assortment of squash or pumpkin fritters, like these with cheese, and these without.

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Secret to making the best grilled cheese

September 27, 2021September 27, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 4 Comments

The secret to making the best grilled cheese sandwich includes a variety of cheeses and a few tricks

Now, we know that some of you are thinking….Please! A recipe for grilled cheese?! Who the heck needs a recipe that most 7 year olds know how to make? Well, if your typical grilled cheese is white bread, a slice of American cheese, and some margarine then we guess you’re right – no recipe required. But, if you want to elevate your grilled cheese game to something that is epic, we’ve got the secret to making the best grilled cheese! Also, we actually love the white bread, processed cheese, margarine version too.

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Easy breakfast tortilla wraps

August 26, 2021August 26, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 2 Comments

These easy breakfast tortilla wraps are full of eggs, veggies, cheese and ham for the best make-ahead meal!

Breakfast is often touted as being the most important meal of the day. We’re here to help make it the easiest one as well. If you’re like us, mornings are often CRAZY! We thought things would get better as the kids got older, but…no. To those of you with little ones, dreaming about the future and imagining yourselves sipping lattes during peaceful, uneventful mornings…we’ve got some news for you! Whether your children are still in diapers or you have teens that need to be dragged out of bed, morning challenges always exist. They just look different.

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Egg zucchini muffins

August 20, 2021October 28, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ Leave a comment

Egg zucchini muffins flavoured with cheese are the perfect make-ahead breakfast!

School starts back soon and a new academic year always feels like an opportunity for new beginnings! Key to stress-free school year living is planning and organization and although we would love to say that we are always on the ball…that just isn’t always the case. Before bed searching for misplaced books or socks, snoozed alarms and rushed mornings, forgotten notes, lost lunch boxes, pimples on picture day….we’ve lived it all! And it isn’t over!

There are some things however that make us feel as though we’ve got a grip on life. As silly as it may sound, recipes like this one for egg zucchini muffins are one of those things. These portable, easy to reheat and eat egg muffins are so handy to have in the refrigerator. Make a batch and store them in a container for your family to grab and go on busy mornings. Pack a couple for lunch and along with some carrot sticks or a salad and you’ve got a pretty well-balanced meal.

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Zucchini and cheddar muffins

July 20, 2021October 28, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 4 Comments

Savoury zucchini and cheddar muffins made with summer squash, aged cheddar and fresh herbs

Most gardeners will tell you that growing zucchini is an essential part of a well-rounded garden. Actually, we don’t know if most gardeners will tell you that, but our dad would. When one of us decided to start a little vegetable patch in our own back yard we were excited to share our plans with our Baba. Xeno husband was proud to announce that we would be planting tomatoes and jalapeno peppers and kohlrabi. Our dad was impressed, to an extent. He wondered what kind of ψευτοκεφτέδες or fake keftedes you could make with kohlrabi, and whether or not jalapenos would lend themselves to being stuffed for yemista. He then asked which section of the garden we would reserve for the zucchini.

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Vegan apple cake

April 20, 2021April 20, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 6 Comments

A wholesome apple cake which is vegan, fat-free, and sweetened with maple syrup.

Νηστίσιμη μηλόπιτα. A classic Greek dessert is milopita, a cake loaded with apples that is perfect with a nice Greek coffee, or a tall glass of cold milk. We could have milopita every day of the week, it’s that good! Although our original recipe is great, we do like to have options and so we have come up with an apple cake that can be enjoyed anytime, by almost anyone!

During periods of Orthodox lent, or when we are baking for vegans we love, this vegan apple cake is a sure winner. And its got even more going for it! This vegan cake is full of apples, uses both regular all-purpose and whole wheat flour, it’s sweetened with pure maple syrup and it contains no fat. We often joke that some desserts are healthy because they contain a vegetable (carrot cake anyone?) or a fruit (strawberry shortcake friends?) , but in this case, it’s actually true!

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Pretty in red fruit salad

February 2, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ Leave a comment

A perfectly delightful and beautiful fruit salad

Sure, it’s easy enough to grab an apple or a handful of grapes and call it a day, but if you’re looking for a way to really celebrate fresh fruit, we think that a fruit salad is the way to do it.

Fruit salads have endless possibilities, and you can’t really go wrong so long as you remember a few key points.

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Smoothie with orange juice and berries

January 8, 2021 ~ miakouppa ~ 4 Comments

A vegan and fruity pick me up, perfect for any time of day

Many people turn to smoothies when they are trying to lose weight, or eat healthier, or feel better about the 3 pieces of bougatsa they had the night before. We get it, and that’s okay. But we’re here to tell you that there’s another reason to enjoy smoothies – because they are delicious! And, they are a fun way to get some fruits, veggies and other goodies into people (kids? husbands?) who may otherwise be less inclined to welcome them into their diet.

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Ginger molasses cookies

December 15, 2020December 20, 2020 ~ miakouppa ~ 14 Comments

A soft centered ginger molasses cookie with a hint of orange

You may recall us telling you that growing up we didn’t know what gingerbread cookies were. Ginger, in any form, was not an ingredient used in our childhood Greek kitchen. When one of us was a teenager, rebelling against traditional Greek cuisine (what were we thinking?!), we purchased the Better Homes and Gardens Cookies for Christmas Cookbook. We still have that book and its stained, dog-eared and kind of smelly pages are a testament to just how much we use it when holiday baking season arrives. In that book we discovered a whole new world of cookie goodness that went well beyond melomakarona, kourabiethes and koulourakia . In that book we were introduced to florentines, and shortbread, and gingerbread men, gingerbread houses, and gingersnaps. Ginger became a new fascination, and obsession.

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Spanakopita inspired deviled eggs

October 6, 2020October 9, 2020 ~ miakouppa ~ Leave a comment

Deviled eggs made with spinach, feta and ricotta

Sponsored by Egg Farmers of Canada

Every day is special; of that there is no doubt! Whether it is a birthday, an anniversary, the first day of college or the first day of retirement, life is full of small and grand moments that beg to be celebrated.

These days we find it especially important to look for the positives. There is no denying that our world has changed, at least temporarily, and it’s easy to become overwhelmed and blinded to the beauty of the everyday and the goodness that surrounds us. But, it’s especially during trying times that we need to shift our focus, and zero in on the positive; not to ignore everything else, but to be reminded that hope and heroes exist!

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