Easy, fun and tasty!

I love my dinner parties and experimenting with different ethnic foods that you don’t eat everyday. Check out my Mexican dinner party and my Asian Dinner party menus! 

I love to make Greek food, because I love the flavors, and the Mediterranean diet is one that I’ve heard countless doctors proclaim is the overall healthiest for pretty much everyone.

Greek food uses a lot of lemon, tomatoes, onion, garlic, cucumbers, and olives. So there you go- it has healthy written all over it. If you like these flavors, I highly encourage you to try some Greek recipes, and of course, turn it into a fun meal for your family and friends. There are some items I cannot find easily at the grocery store, or are more time-consuming to prepare than I’d like, so I buy them to complete my menu.

But in general,  most of these are easy to make at home.

Festive Drinks

Have a special toast to kick-off the Greek-themed meal.

“Yamas!” means “To our Health!” in Greek, and is a perfect toast to start the party!

Try shots of ouzo, an incredible Greek liquor. It tastes like sweet licorice (which I think is wonderful, but realize is not for everyone). If you ever saw the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding, you will definitely remember them drinking this!

There are some delicious Greek wines as well. I lean toward a crisp white, so a favorite of mine is Assyrtiko. Get a full description of Greek wines that suit your palate and menu here.

Appetizers

Grape Leaves/Dolmas. I’ve seen people make these on cooking shows, but I wouldn’t waste my time, because it seems pretty complicated. If you can’t find them in the grocery store (they are sometimes in the olive bar or in ethnic food aisle), buy them online- and get a few cans at a time! We have a local Greek Food Festival in our area each year, and the dolmas they make are authentic and divine. The canned ones don’t compare, but are still very good. They are a must for your Greek Dinner Party.

Spanakopita. My oldest daughter loves this, and you can find darling little triangle bites of this treat in the appetizer section of higher end grocery stores (Wegmans and Trader Joe’s have awesome frozen appetizer sections). If you haven’t tried these, they are spinach and feta cheese layered between sheets of phyllo dough. We’ve tried to make them before, but any time you work with phyllo it’s a pain, because it’s so thin and delicate. The Greeks love to use this dough (baklava)- and it does make a light and luscious treat, but I prefer buying it since it’s just as good.

Dips with Naan Bread

You must serve these dips with a yummy, warmed up naan bread. If you’ve had the authentic bread made in the tandoori oven-OMG. If it’s ‘all you can eat’ naan at the restaurant, we’re in serious trouble. Pita chips are good with these dips too- they’re crunchy and perfect for dipping. But I recommend the bread as a first choice.

Hummus. It’s a very traditional Greek dip, and I love making this from scratch. It tastes so fresh compared to store-bought versions, and you can customize the flavors to make them perfect for you. Look at how easy this recipe is!

• One can of garbanzo beans/chick peas
• 1/2 cup tahini
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Juice of one lemon 
• 1/2 tbs cumin
• 1/2 tbs cayenne
• Salt and pepper to taste

Blend all these together in a food processor or blender. Add more olive oil in small increments to get your desired consistency. It makes about two cups.

This is your standard, no frills recipe, but I personally like to add three cloves of minced garlic to this. I’ve also tried it with roasted red pepper. Both versions amp up the flavor beautifully. Try serving it with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. You can store home-made hummus in an air-tight container for up to two weeks in the fridge.

Tzatziki. This is a lovely and light dip with greek yogurt, cucumbers and fresh dill.

You absolutely can make this, since it literally has three ingredients. Just know that when making it from scratch, you really have to dry/squeeze out the water from the cucumbers thoroughly, or it will come out too runny. I have a hard time getting this consistency right, so my best bet is buying it.

Mains

Greek Salad. This is an easy salad to throw together and have out on your table for dinner. I cut up a big bowl of romaine, then put all the fixings/toppings on the side to make a little ‘self serve’ salad bar, because I find not everyone likes everything (my husband is not a cucumber fan). I also like to let people dress their own salads- I don’t want to over or under do it.

Toppings to have on hand:

• Chopped tomatoes 
• Chopped cucumber
• Kalamata olives
• Sliced red onion
• Marinated artichokes
• Feta cheese
• Greek dressing

Shepard’s salad. This salad uses the same ingredients as above, but without the lettuce, and the vegetables are chopped into bigger cubes. I’ve also seen this salad with chunks of red bell pepper added. It is so easy with a beautiful lemon dressing (lemon juice, olive oil and red wine vinegar). Store it for awhile in the fridge to let those flavors meld, then top with feta when ready to serve. 

Lemon potatoes.

I got this recipe from the Pioneer Woman, and really like it. The lemon in this recipe is just the perfect amount, and marrying it with bland potatoes just works.

Chop up five medium potatoes into chunks. 

Prepare the following marinade in a measuring cup:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Juice of two lemons
• 2 tbsp garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

Just pour your prepared marinade over the potatoes, and bake for 30 minutes at 425 degrees. Stir them around a bit, and bake for another 10-15 minutes until desired 

Marinated chicken. I make this using what I think is the healthiest and easiest chicken to work with, chicken tenders (see my post on making them). The marinade is similar to several of the other recipes in this menu- with yummy lemon, garlic and olive oil.

Marinate 5 or 6 tenders for at least an hour, but up to a full day in the following marinade:

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• Juice of one lemon
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• Fresh oregano and parsley (see my post on working with fresh herbs)

I made this shortly after planting my herbs for the summer, so it was perfect timing!

Dessert

I tend to fill up on naan bread and all the other goodies in this Greek meal, so don’t typically need a dessert other than a nice cup of decaf coffee.

But if you’re wanting to round out the meal completely, definitely go to your local bakery. for a delicious sweet, like the ever-popular baklava. I mentioned it above, since this dessert layers lots of phyllo dough and yummy bits of nuts and honey. If you have a local Mediterranean restaurant near you-do not pass on ordering this, because they do it the best.

I’m not a huge dessert person, and if I do splurge on it, it’s never something with a lot of dough like pie, so I wouldn’t be the first to order this. But my daughters and I went to a local Turkish cafe, and they brought us some baklava for FREE! We could not get enough of it. I’m quite sure that’s why they were giving it away, so you were sure to come back and buy it next time!

I hope you enjoy planning and preparing your Greek Dinner Party menu!

Kali Orexi (Bon Appetit)!!