For California Peggy (my big fat Greek dinner)

[DFW]

We had a couple over for Greek food today. As usual, my wife thought the entire population of the Pelopponesus was joining us, and she arranged a "snack" like she did when you were here.

Does this look at all familiar?

[niyad]

1. Oh my! The last Greek dinner I hosted didn't look fabulous like that (even

though there were only about two grains of rice from the avgolomeno left at the end of the evening!)

All I can say is, what a feast for the eyes, and the palate!

[AllaN01Bear]

2. ohm myyyyy.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. Omigod, my dear DFW! Does it ever look like what she did for us.

Thanks for alerting me.

I think I may have a photo of the spread she made for us. BRB!

I think I take too many photos . . . I cannot find the one I was looking for!

Anyway, thanks for thinking of me!

[peppertree]

4. Opa!

[erronis]

5. That's gorgeous. And it isn't a fast-food experience! Lots of samplings and conversations.

Question, DFW. Do you like the Greek wines (red and white)? I really liked the retsinas when I was much younger. Now sticking to the bitter rivals of the northern Italian cheap reds.

[DFW]

7. Well, no, not at all, but that's a trick question without your intending it

I hate the taste of all alcohol, and never drink any of it, ever. So, my dislike of Greek wine extends equally to the finest Bordeaux, as well as cognac, brandy, gin, beer, sangria, and a lot of etc.

[erronis]

8. Good for you! In many ways.

[NBachers]

6. I gave my son tickets so he could take his wife to the Mama Mia party at the O2 Center in London.

for her birthday.

It looks like you’ve got the whole production right there at home!

[electric_blue68]

9. As a 2nd Gen half Greek-American w a big extended family and plenty of Greek foods...

meals (yuuuum!); I admit I don't recognize a lot there. 🤔

I see eggplant, and ?tzaziki in the oval dish. I see feta in the square dish.

Do you remember what else? It looks good, I just don't recognize a lot of it.
Tia

[DFW]

10. There was souvlaki made with turkey meat

Last edited Wed May 15, 2024, 12:52 AM - Edit history (1)

I am not supposed to eat red meat (cholesterol issues), a loup de mer (branzo), zucchini balls (baji, if you’re familiar with Indian food terms), a red beet and apple salad, and a traditional Greek salad with cucumbers, tomato quarters, green pepper slices, feta, oregano, and oil and vinegar dressing. There was some traditional souvlaki meat, too, but it was pork, and thus not on my menu. My wife augmented the veggies with grilled white asparagus in olive oil, potato halves grilled with rosemary, and a mixture of grilled peppers (red, green and yellow). For herself and our guests, she made sort of a pseudo white sangria with a puree made from a fresh mango we had brought back from Portugal the day before.

[electric_blue68]

12. So tasty sounding....

I recognize the Traditional Greek salad in the photo, now.
Apples, and beets? Interesting!

I love beets, feta, thin sliced red onions, with olive oil & garlic.

We've never had souvalki as a dish, though I've had it restaurants.
Otoh ... we've had shesk kaba - lamb, reg, green, peppers, onion pieces (good Lord, soooo good 😄 )

We've never cooked fish. But I & my sis have gotten taramsalata from specialty shop. (Another, ohhh yum!)

The grilled white asparagus, and colored peppers sound, good, too.

Ah... baji (drifting into one of my other favorite cuisines). Fried zucchini balls, ok!

Anyway - a lovely feast! 👏

[DFW]

13. We all had difficulty walking afterward!

Even getting up from our seats was a chore!

[electric_blue68]

14. Ha!

[malthaussen]

11. Are you absolutely certain your wife is not from the Southern US?

Then again, maybe not. I don't see potato salad or cole slaw anywhere.

-- Mal

[DFW]

15. Positive!

She may resemble the "Southern Belle" image when she wants to, but the second she opens her mouth, that German accent is unmistakeable. She has accepted it over the years. It used to fluster her on early visits to the USA, when she would utter two words, and people would immediately say, "eins, zwei, drei, vier, fünf!" But her English is much better now, and her accent isn't so heavily German any more. She is sometimes asked if she is from Scandinavia. Being tall, slender and blonde helps reinforce the stereotype, of course.

We do sometimes eat potato salad here (cole slaw usually only in the States), but it really didn't fit in with a solidly Greek menu that already had three times as many dishes as we needed.

The thick white asparagus is typically German when it is in season, which is now. It is traditionally served in butter, which is a no-no for me, but olive oil is a fine substitute. A bit of sea salt and some herbs, and you're all set. It is even reputed to be bealthy, but we eat it in spite of that.