Spanakopita

This is a classic Greek dish and makes a nice appetizer for entertaining or can be served as a main dish, with a salad.

Ingredients:

2 10oz. boxes frozen spinach
1 lemon
2 bunches green onions
1 T. fresh dill
¼ c. fresh parsley
5 eggs
1 T. bread crumbs
½ lb. crumbled feta
¼ c. shredded parmesan, Asiago, or Romano
¼ c. olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
16 sheets phyllo dough
2 sticks butter, clarified

Thaw spinach and squeeze excess juice to create a dry product.

Place butter in small saucepan; melt slowly over medium heat.  Skim off white milk solids.  You can also strain the butter through a small sieve until a clear butter is achieved.

 

Remove root ends and 1/3 green portions of the green onions.  Chop into small pieces.  Chop parsley and dill.

In a medium sized bowl, add drained spinach, parsley, dill, green onions, salt, pepper, cheeses, bread crumbs, and oil.

Zest the rind of one lemon and add to mixture along with the juice from the lemon.

Break eggs into a separate bowl; beat slightly and add to spinach mixture.  Mix and set aside.

Using a pastry brush, brush clarified butter on bottom and sides of a 15½ x 11 x 1½ pan.  Add layer of phyllo dough.  In the demonstration, I used four pieces to cover the bottom of the pan.  Brush phyllo with butter.  Add four more sheets, and brush with butter.

 

Add cheese and spinach mixture.  Cover with four more sheets and brush with butter.  Add last four sheets and brush with remaining butter.

Score with a knife (or leave as is).  Preheat oven to 350º.  Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

Cut into squares before serving.

Svenska Hallon Mandel Sandkaka

Swedish Raspberry Almond Shortbread

Although these were not a standard Christmas cookie growing up as a child, it has become, over the past few years, one of my favorites.  The shortbread is so tender and buttery and the raspberry jam filling, along with the almond glaze, evokes a memory of the kinds of cookies my mother used to bake this time of year.

The ingredients listed below are for a single batch, yielding 3½ dozen.  However, the photos in this demonstration show quantities doubled, yielding 7 dozen..

Cookie ingredients:
2/3c. granulated sugar
1 c. butter, softened
½ tsp. almond extract
2 c. flour
1½ c. seedless raspberry jam

 

Cream sugar, butter, and almond extract until smooth.

 

 
Add flour to make dough.  Make one inch balls and place 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

 

Using your thumb, press into the center of each cookie to make a thumbprint in the middle.  Place jam in a glass container and microwave for approximately 20 seconds to thin the jam.  Place ¼ tsp. jam in the center of each cookie.

Bake at 350º for 12-18 minutes (depending on the temperature of your oven - my cookies took 12 minutes).  Cool completely before adding glaze.


Glaze ingredients:
1 c. confectioners' sugar
1½ tsp. almond extract
2 - 3 tsp. milk

 

Mix ingredients to make a thin glaze.

 

Place into a Ziploc bag.  Cut a small hole in the corner of the bag, as shown in the picture.  Glaze each cookie as shown.  Allow glaze to dry completely before storing the cookies.

Oven-Ready Sauerbraten

I found this recipe in a cookbook - it's a traditional German dish.  I think you will find the ingredients simple and the flavors interesting.


Ingredients:

2 lbs. stew beef
1 large onion, quartered
¼ c. canola oil (for browning)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
½ c. flour
3 c. cider vinegar
3 c. beef broth
1 tsp. pickling spices, tied into a pouch
20 ginger snaps

                                       

In a plastic Ziploc bag, add flour, salt and pepper, and beef cubes and shake to coat.

 

In a large Dutch oven, add canola oil.  Heat until the oil is sizzling.  Slowly add the beef cubes, making sure most of the flour has been dusted off the meat.  When adding to hot oil, making sure not to add too many beef cubes at once, as this will cause your oil to cool and beef will not sear properly.  Cook in batches, removing to a bowl, until all cubes have been browned.

Add quartered onion to hot oil and sear until the onion is caramelized.

 

 

Return beef to pot and add beef broth and vinegar, pickling spice pouch.


Preheat oven to 325º and place covered pot into the oven for 2½ hours.

 

Remove pot from oven and remove 3 cups of drippings from the pot, using a ladle or baster.  Strain drippings using a sieve and place in a small saucepan.  Add ginger snaps to the saucepan and stir until they have absorbed all of the liquid.  For a smoother sauce, you can whisk the ingredients or use an immersion blender (as shown in this demonstration).

Return thickened sauce to the pot.  Stir to combine.  If you think the sauce is still too thick, you can thin it down with additional beef broth or water.

Keep warm in a 200º oven until ready to serve.

This dish can be served over noodles, rice, or mashed potatoes.  Yield: 4-6 servings.