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.
Continue reading “Pretty in red fruit salad”
Meal prep perfection: a vegan and gluten free meal of green and yellow split pea soup
About a year ago one of us had a colleague that gifted her a mason jar soup mix that she had made using a recipe from the amazing blog Trois Fois Par Jour. It was a pretty combination of lentils and barley that was meant to be cooked with water and a can of diced tomatoes. The soup mix sat in the pantry for a few weeks and then, one evening when dinner was getting a late start, into the pot it went. Dinner prep took a total of 3 minutes.
Given the ease that came with that lovely jar of soup we would have been happy if it tasted just meh. But it didn’t. It was actually delicious. So delicious that we asked for the recipe and made several jars of the mix. We tucked them away in the pantry, and trust us when we say that they have saved supper more than a few times.
Continue reading “Mason jar split pea soup with rice”
A perfect make ahead meal which is vegan, gluten-free and so very nutritious!
Some days we are so rushed in the morning that we head out for work without packing a lunch, and that really sucks. Can you relate? Every best intention to head to the cafeteria or nearby restaurant to buy something healthy is usurped by the sights and smells of tempting options – like French fries and mayonnaise loaded sandwiches. We try to be strong, but sometimes we’re weak and we give in to greasy temptations.
One solution is to have ready-made, grab-and-go lunches ready and waiting. There is no morning that is so busy that you can’t open the fridge and pull out an already packed lunch to take along with you. And when you make a few of these pre-packed meals at a time, you’re winning at life!
Continue reading “Mason jar salad with quinoa and chickpeas”
A FREE downloadable meal plan, new lent-friendly recipes
and an invitation to help support the ALS Society of Quebec
Download your FREE Meal Plan and FREE Recipe Collection here:
Please enjoy our Free Meal Plan and Additional Lenten Recipes, and DONATE to TEAM MAKOS to help support the ALS Society of Quebec. Read more about this below. To donate click the link:
November 15 marks the beginning of the Nativity Fast for Orthodox Christians, a period of fasting which prepares us for the Feast of the Nativity of Christ on December 25th. This is one of four major fast periods observed during the ecclesiastical calendar and although there is an important focus on abstaining from certain drink (wine) and food (meat, dairy, eggs, fish and oil) there is equal emphasis, if not a larger emphasis, on prayer and almsgiving.
Almsgiving is the giving of alms; money and physical gifts offered to the needy or the poor. It is meant to change the giver, encouraging us to detach from physical comforts and excesses, and it reminds us that giving is a social act, which places us in a relationship with others. It is an act of solidarity with those who are struggling, and can be a show of support to those who are facing seemingly insurmountable odds and life challenges.
Continue reading “Mia Kouppa Nativity Fast Meal Plan – 2020”
Thick cut country bread grilled with olive oil and oregano flavour.
Just when you thought bread couldn’t get any better, along comes this. If you have ever eaten in a Greek restaurant, either in Greece or elsewhere, you would have likely been served a basket of bread like this; thick cut slices of country bread brushed with olive oil and kissed with oregano, grilled so that they are at once crispy, toasty and yet still soft and able to sop up all sorts of deliciousness.
Continue reading “Grilled bread with olive oil and oregano (Ψωμί στη σχάρα)”
A classic and traditional Greek side dish of rice cooked with fide
Frugality. Simplicity. Versatility. These are definitely values that homemakers of years gone by looked for in recipes that they would prepare for their families. You can be sure that women in villages all over Greece, and our mom when she came to Canada, would often make this side dish of rice with fide to serve their families. More economical and easier than this is hard to come by!
Continue reading “Rice with fide (Ρύζι με φιδέ)”
An incredible Greek side dish of fried eggplant which is then baked in a rich tomato sauce
We know that eggplant is a divisive fruit (yes, eggplant is botanically a fruit!) and that there are camps of people who love them, and others who hate them. We happen to be lovers of the aubergine and are thrilled when our gardens start to offer this versatile, hearty and delicious purple gift.
We have already posted several eggplant recipes, and here we are finally sharing what may be one of our favourites. In this classic Greek dish, which can be served as a side or just as easily as a meze or light lunch, eggplants are fried and then baked in a rich tomato sauce. This is a dish best served with a nice loaf of fresh bread for dipping; the sauce is to die for! You can even layer the eggplant and sauce between two slices of bread and make yourself an eggplant and tomato sauce sandwich. Sound strange? Have we ever steered you wrong before?
Continue reading “Fried eggplant with tomato sauce (Μελιτζάνες τηγανητές με σάλτσα ντομάτας )”
Classic Greek semolina dessert with a seasonal twist
Halva is the perfect go-to dessert during periods of Orthodox lent. Naturally vegan it meets all the requirements of no meat, eggs, or dairy when we are fasting. Although the Orthodox calendar is almost 1/3 fasting days, halva is so good that we find ourselves making it even when we can have egg, butter and dairy filled desserts like bougatsa or galaktoboureko or double chocolate zucchini cake.
Continue reading “Cactus pear, lavender and walnut halva (Χαλβάς με φραγκόσυκο, λεβάντα και καρύδια)”
Vegan meal of quinoa and rice pasta tossed with vegetables and a bit of chili heat.
There are so many special diets out there these days. Aside from all the ways that people are trying to either lose weight, or get fit, there are also medical reasons and lifestyle choices that can sometimes make cooking for guests a little challenging. But we love a challenge, and we love coming up with recipes that will probably satisfy every food restriction you may host.
Continue reading “Gluten-free pasta with vegetables”
A new take on a classic Greek recipe: spinach and quinoa cooked in a rich tomato based sauce.
Quinoa is not a grain we grew up with, and it is not traditionally used in Greek cooking. The grains you will more commonly find in Greek recipes include semolina, corn, barley, bulgur and whole wheat berries. All delicious and all used to make incredible foods and desserts.
But we do love quinoa. Our first introduction to this super grain was while one of us was an undergraduate in university. Walking through the neighbourhood around campus, trying to find dinner to carry us through an evening spent in the library, we came across a health food store. Although quite commonplace now, at the time natural food stores which sold things like vegan mayonnaise, tofu, nori, and quinoa were rare. Optimum was a two floor shop; the first floor on street level sold aromatherapy oils, incense, books and herbal medicines. The basement level was the grocery store and it was here that one could wander the aisles and see things that were foreign and fascinating.
Continue reading “Spanakoquinoa (Σπανάκοκινόα)”
