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Gigantes plaki – Greek baked beans

These large white or cream coloured beans (gigantes means “giant” in Greek) are a classic ingredient in Greek cooking. This recipe combines beans which are of course a great source of protein, antioxidants and fibre, while the addition of tomato not only makes them tastier but the vitamin C in the tomato helps increase the absorption of iron from the beans. Plaki refers to the method of cooking which means basically baking in the oven with a sauce made with tomato, onion, garlic and parsley. Satisfying and super healthy, enjoy this dish as a stew-like main course, as a side dish or even as a part of a meze with good chunky bread.

The recipe is easy and even though the cooking time is somewhat long, active prep time is very short. You basically soak the beans overnight, boil them, prepare the sauce, mix everything and bake.

prep time 10 min + soaking time    cook time 2hrs or more
ingredients
  • 500g dried gigantes beans
  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 onions, diced
  • 1 carrot, diced
  • 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
  • 800 g ripe tomatoes, skinned, roughly chopped or 2 cans (400g each) of crushed tomatoes
  • salt and pepper
  • dried oregano
  • pinch of ground cinnamon
  • chopped flat leaf parsley

1. Soak the beans overnight, drain and rinse and boil in water about 1 hr until tender but not mushy. Make sure you boil them enough, otherwise they will be too hard to eat even after baking.

2. In the meantime prepare the sauce. Sauté the onion and carrot in a bit of olive oil on low heat for a few minutes, then add the minced garlic.

3. Add tomato, tomato paste, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper and cinnamon and about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Let simmer until sauce thickens, about 10-15 minutes.

4. Preheat oven at 180 C (350 F).

5. Once the beans have boiled, drain them and stir into the tomato sauce.

6. Tip into a large ovenproof dish, drizzle the remaining 1/4 olive oil on top and bake approximately 1 hr uncovered and without stirring until the beans are tender.

7. Serve with feta cheese if you so choose and good crusty bread.

Tip: you can substitute the gigantes beans with lima beans, Great Northern or even butter beans. Not the same but good enough 😉

BUON APPETITO!

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Fried friggitelli peppers in tomato sauce

Friggitelli peppers are small, slender, mild flavoured southern Italian peppers which are great for frying.

They can be just fried adding a fair amount of salt on top which is the way I usually serve them. But this time I wanted something a little different so I made them southern Italian style with tomato sauce.

prep time 10 min     cook time 15-20 min
ingredients for 4-5
  • 500g friggitelli peppers
  • 200g cherry tomatoes
  • 200g (small can) crushed tomatoes
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • peperoncino optional
  • salt
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • peanut oil for frying

1.  Wash and dry well the peppers one by one. The authentic way to cook these is to leave the stem and seeds on.

2. Pour peanut oil until it covers the bottom of a large skillet and heat it over high heat. Fry the peppers in two batches until they are turning brown (about 3-4 min) on all sides.

3. Remove them and add a fair amount of salt.

4. Clean the skillet and heat a few tablespoons of olive oil. Add garlic and after a few minutes add cherry tomatoes cut in half. After a few more minutes add crushed tomatoes and some salt and let cook on low for 15 minutes.

5. Add peppers to the pan and let simmer for a few minutes more.

6. Serve with crusty bread and be sure to wipe up all the sauce. I make this always as a main but if served as a side dish, this amount yields more.

FOR GLUTEN-FREE option, leave out the bread or use appropriate bread.

BUON APPETITO!

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Fried zucchini rounds

Fried zucchini rounds are almost as good as fried zucchini blossoms 🙂 The batter I make with flour and cold sparkling water gives the fried zucchini a very light and crispy coating almost like tempura.

prep time 15 min     cooking time  10 min total
ingredients
  • 1-2 zucchini
  • 3-5dl peanut oil
  • 1dl flour
  • 2 dl COLD sparkling water/mineral water
  • pinch of salt

Disclaimer: the quantities are very approximative.

1. Wash and cut the zucchini into thin even slices with a mandoline slicer  or a knife and pat them dry.

2. Heat the oil in a heavy bottom pot or pan over medium high until the oil is hot but not smoking.

3. In the meantime make the batter: Take the water out of the fridge just before using it. Blend the batter to the consistency of a heavy cream.  Add a pinch of salt.

4. Dip or soak the zucchini rounds in the batter and fry them in batches for a few minutes on each side until golden brown and crispy.

5. Drain on paper towels or better yet on brown paper sheets for fried food, season with salt and serve hot.

BUON APPETITO!

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Rainbow roasted veggies

These healthy rainbow veggies are an easy way to add color, tons of vitamins and flavors to your meal in one sheet pan. They are a fantastic side dish for chicken, beef, lamb or pork. You can omit the oil, if you want to. I always use a little bit of extra virgin olive oil. I have two variations. And both times I forgot to take a photo of the cooked veggies. Prep time and cook time are the same.

prep time 15 min     cook time 30 min
ingredients for 4 (option 1)
  • 2 sweet red peppers, chopped
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
  • 3-4 carrots,  cut into sticks
  • 2 onions, quartered
  • 2 zucchini, cut into rounds
  • 1 sweet potato, chopped
  • handful of parsley, dried rosemary and dried thyme
  • salt and pepper
  • 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 200 C.

2. Place vegetables onto a baking sheet. Season with salt, pepper and herbs. Drizzle oil on top.

3. Bake for about 30 min until the vegetables are cooked but still a little bit crunchy.

ingredients for 4 (option 2)

  • 2 sweet red peppers, chopped
  • 1 eggplant, chopped
  • 4-5 carrots, cut into rounds
  • 350 g mushrooms, chopped
  • 2 red onions, quartered
  • 2 zucchini, chopped
  • dried herbs: thyme, rosemary, oregano
  • salt and pepper
  • 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Other than the above mentioned vegetables, you could choose some of these:

RED: tomatoes, beets, radishes

YELLOW: yellow beets

ORANGE: orange bell peppers, pumpkin, butternut squash

GREEN: green beans, asparagus, broccoli, brussels sprouts, snow peas

PURPLE: purple carrots, purple cabbage

You can also add potatoes, but I hardly ever mix potatoes with the veggies, instead I make a whole baking sheet of potatoes.

tip: try to make one layer of each vegetables, they will roast better.

BUON APPETITO!