Greek cuisine includes mezes, vegetable soups, cheeses, and wine. Appetizers include stuffed vine leaves, Greek salad, and horta. Entrees feature lamb, chicken, pork, and sometimes wild animals. Quick meals include puff pastry with meat or vegetables. Desserts include pastitsio and cookies made with olive oil and honey.
The different types of Greek dishes are appetizers called mezes, appetizers made with vegetables, poultry, seafood or some game meats, and desserts made with various traditional ingredients. Various vegetable soups are also common in Greek meals, as are cheeses and wine as part of homemade Greek appetizers. Greek cooking with vegetarian recipes is often done at certain times of the year when meat is eliminated for periods of religious observance. Favorite ingredients for all Greek cuisine include olive oil, honey, feta cheese, wheat products, yogurt, and eggplant.
Greek food served as mezes often includes dishes such as vine leaves or zucchini flowers stuffed with meat, rice or cheese. The traditional Greek salad is also a favorite; it is usually made with cucumbers, tomatoes and red onions topped with feta cheese and drizzled with olive oil. Another vegetable appetizer called horta consists of various lightly steamed green vegetables flavored with a mixture of lemon juice and olive oil. Most of the appetizers to Greek meals are served with spirits such as ouzo which are trademarks of this particular culture.
Entrees served in Greek cuisine sometimes include wild animals such as rabbit, while lamb, chicken and pork are also popular choices. The recipes for these types of homemade Greek dishes often draw inspiration from various Mediterranean traditions, many of which date back to the Ottoman and Byzantine empires. Some types of appetizers are even unique to specific areas of Greece and are made with a variety of local seasonings such as basil, oregano, thyme, and mint. Vegetable appetizer dishes commonly found throughout Greece include stuffed cabbage rolls called lachanodolmades and a stew called spanakorizo that is flavored with the Greek staples of lemon juice and olive oil.
Quick meals in Greece offer a unique cultural insight into foods that are affordable yet still retain this culinary tradition. Puff pastry filled with meat or vegetables is a favorite fast food option that is often available at street vendors in Greek cities. Variations on these recipes include kotopita and chortopita which are made with diced chicken and grated vegetables respectively.
Greek desserts encompass a wide range of baked goods that draw influence from other traditions such as the Italian ones. A Greek pastitsio is actually a pasta dish that resembles lasagna but is made with dessert ingredients like cinnamon, nutmeg, and egg-based custard. Cookie recipes are popular dessert items on Greek special occasions, and many of these are made with olive oil and honey before being garnished with ground almonds.
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