"Greek cooking" news and stories

Photo: Amazon.com

'Vefa's Kitchen'
The Bible of Authentic Greek Cooking
Recipes collected by Vefa Alexiadou
Photographs by Edward Park
Phaidon -- 2009
Buy it on Amazon

No longer content to be the neglected little sister to Italian cuisine, Greek cooking has enjoyed quite a renaissance of late, perhaps in part spurred by Michael Psilakis' popular eateries in New York City (Anthos, Kefi, Mia Dona).

When Vefa's Kitchen, a compilation volume from Vefa Alexiadou (trumpeted by press materials as the "leading authority on Greek cookery,") arrived in the mail, we felt optimistic, busily stocking our fridge with Greek yogurt and mint, and the cupboard with garlic and tuna. To give an idea of the book's breadth, there are 14 recipes involving octopus alone.

Takeaway tips: This is a sprawling, 700-page volume, with many different styles of recipes. If you purchase it, be sure to read every recipe all the way through; they are occasionally a bit confusing.

What we tested and whether the book's worth buying, after the jump.

Californians are crazy for Spanish wines, especially since they are a good value; but SIV's Wine of the Week is a 2003 Berra Sassisto Langhe from Piedmont. It's "warm and earthy," and for $22, makes me warm and earthy, too.

In the kitchen, parsley isn't just a garnish anymore. Fabiolus Cafe on Melrose offers its recipe for Bigoli all'Anatra, a pasta with a rich duck sauce. If you need sausage, Bob's Market in Santa Monica makes it fresh. A story on Greek food has recipes for Balkan moussaka, pastitsio, masahri yiouvetsi, as well as resources around LA for ingredients.

Out on the southeland dining scene, SIV treks out to Ojai and gives two stars (**) to Christian and Tedde Shaffer's Auberge. Neal Fraser will be serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner at BLD.

Regina Schrambling seeks out intelligence on the newsstand that's covered with the likes of "Yum-o" Rachael Ray and Paula Deen.

Back when I roasted cauliflower with curry, I thought that Indian raita, a minty cucumber yogurt sauce, would have been a nice accompaniment.

Raita is made by wrapping 1 seeded, grated cucumber in cheesecloth and squeezing out all the moisture. In a bowl, whisk together 1c. whole milk yogurt, 1/2 tsp. cumin, a pinch of cayenne. Add the cucumber, as well as 2-3 Tbsp. finely grated carrots, and 1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro or mint.

Raita is very similar to Greek tzatziki which is yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, and a lot of minced garlic. I have to say that even though the raita sounds like it matches better with a roasted curried cauliflower, I'd rather have the garlicky tzatziki.