Recipe # 1: Let's Go Greek (Moussaka, Souvlaki, Falafel, and Tzatziki)

Disclaimer: I am no big cook here. I just enjoy cooking special food from time to time. Don't expect the right terms to be used in my recipes since cooking is not my jargon. Expect the recipes to be made easy for chef-wannabes like me.

Greek food is my go to cuisine. Whenever my boyfriend and I goes on a date, greek food will always be on top of our list. Since it has been raining hard these past few days, leaving home with fear of extreme traffic was not a good idea, I decided to try cooking our favorite cuisine. Get ready to indulge in the taste of garlic and Cumin.  

Ingredients:

½ kilo eggplants (cut lengthwise)

For Bechamel sauce:

½ cup butter

Olive Oil

1 tbs flour

1 large can of evaporated milk

1 pack of all purpose cream

Quickmelt cheese

For meat sauce:

½ kilo ground beef

Garlic (chopped)

Onion (chopped)

Carrots (diced)

Tomato paste

Cumin

Step 1: Slice your vegetables. (The thinner you cut the eggplants, the better!) For the eggplants, sprinkle some olive oil, salt, and pepper before grilling (to draw out the moisture). Don't grill too much since you'll be cooking it more later on.

Step 2: Cook your Bechamel Sauce

For your Bechamel, on a sauce pan melt the butter and add a little oil (So that the butter won't burn). Add flour to thicken. Then, add your evaporated milk and all purpose cream. Finally, add the Quickmelt cheese. Stir until thickened under low heat.

Step 3: Cook your Meat Sauce

For your meat sauce, saute garlic and onion. Add ground beef until browned. Add the carrots and tomato sauce. Then, add pepper, salt, and cumin to taste. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Step 4: Let's prepare the Moussaka! 

Layer 1: Eggplant

Layer 2: Meat sauce

Layer 3: Bechamel Sauce

AND REPEAT.

On your top layer, add Mozzarella cheese shavings.

Then BAKE!

Ingredients:

Tomatoes (halved)

Onion (sliced)

Bellpepper (sliced)

Your choice of meat

Cumin

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cups Yogurt

1 cup Lemon juice

Meat tenderizer

Step 1: Marinate your choice of meat: beef, fish, chicken, pork (whatever you have if your refrigerator)

Marinate your meat the night before with meat tenderizer, yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, and salt and pepper.

Step 2: i-Stick hahaha your Souvlaki

In a barbeque stick, insert your tomato-meat-onion-meat-bellpepper. 

Step 3: Its grilling time! 

Ingredients:

For Falafel:

1 large can chick peas

Garlic (chopped)

Onion (chopped)

Cumin

1 large egg

1 tbs flour

Step 1: In a food processor, combine your chickpeas, garlic and onion together.

Step 2: Add Cumin, olive oil, flour, salt and pepper to taste. Add egg for easy shaping.

Step 3: Deep Fry

Ingredients:

For Tzatziki Sauce:

2 pieces cucumber

1 cup yogurt

2 tbs white vinegar

2 tbs olive oil

Garlic (chopped)

Step 1: Shave your cucumber (like how you shave your cheese!) 

Step 2: Add you yogurt, vinegar, olive oil, and garlic. Mix.