Cracking egg. Photo: Sugar Sweet Sunshine, Flickr

• Eggs: why the whites matter, what the difference is and why we should crack the shells with one hand.
• When made with the right rice, Paella is so magical that it can become an aromatic party centerpiece.
• The ins and outs of that tasty little thing called rice.
• White, red or pink -- each wine has its own optimal temperature, and it's not as easy as "room temp." Plus: what happens to some wines when an ice cube enters the mix.
  
• The Tribune now offers a "Good Eating Meal Planner" -- a search engine of the recipes that have appeared in the newspaper.
• Simple tricks to make your outdoor summer dinner come together a little bit faster.
• "Vefa's Kitchen" is a Greek cookbook chock full of classic recipes.
• Wine and beer events across the Windy City.
• Recipe: Omelet with Corn and Smoked Mozzarella.

I'm not sure that there is anything as tantalizing as Greek food. While most culinary regions tap into my moods at certain times, I am always itching to go for Greek. From flaming Opa! to Ouzo, it's all good. How can you not love meals that always starts with garlic bread or pita with delicious, feta-laden salad? It's the type of food that makes diets irrelevant.

To give you a quick taste of Greek flavor at home, try out the above recipe for melitzanosalata, or eggplant salad. The preparation is pretty simple, and in a flash you can have a rich and smokey dip that would be perfect with your Greek-themed meal, or as a creamy side to toasted chunks of pita. Unfortunately, the recipe requires a gas stove. If you're like me and sadly gas-free, try broiling, or grilling the eggplant either on a stovetop grill or bbq grill.

A few weeks ago, my friends and I got together after work to play board games (yes yes I know - how very, um, exciting), and a friend and I were charged with providing food. We were meeting rather late, so there was no need to go with full dinner fare. I decided on a few Mediterranean dips and a salad because really now, is there anything better than ripping a pita loaf into shreds when you're caught up in the excitement of Jenga?!?! Tzatziki is one of my favorites, and though I do believe it's used more as a sauce or condiment in Greek cuisine, I love scooping it up with pita bread. My Sarah-ized version is written out after the jump:

It's hard to say whether we can call a gyro a sandwich because it's made of bread wrapped around the fillings, but who's making the rules here anyway? This is a gyro we shared as part of a late afternoon lunch at Le Petit Greek on Larchmont in Los Angeles. Now technically, "gyro" refers to the vertical, slow-spinning spit on which meat like chicken, lamb or pork, is placed. "Gyro" is Greek for "turn," thus the name. However, when we say "gyro" in the food world, we're talking about the sandwich made with slices carved off the meat on the turning rotisserie, fresh tomatoes, sliced red onions, French fries, and tzatziki. I have no idea how French fries play into this Greek equation, but I'm certainly not complaining.

This one from Le Petit Greek

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.

Stuffed grape leaves are a typical Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food. Depending on which cultural cuisine, they are called by slightly different names: "dolma" in Turkey, "dolmade" in Greece, and "dolme" in Iran. The grape leaves are filled with anything from rice, different types of nuts, and meat, usually lamb.

Though I call my stuffed grape leaves "dolma," and they include rice and pine nuts, they are nowhere near traditional because I leave out typical herbs like mint (I don't love mint), and cook the rice before wrapping in the grape leaves.