Traditional Greek cuisine is based on fresh products. Until recently, that is up to my mother's generation, housewives would not dream of buying frozen or out of season goods, first because they were not widely available, and second because even when they became available, they thought they were of inferior value.
Summer, when the weather is generally hot and the crops abound, is the right time to apply the principles of traditional cooking that is widely known as "Mediterranean". Scientific research has shown that eating a diet based on fresh vegetables, grains, pulses and olive oil with some fish and a little dairy, offer an equally tasty but healthier alternative to the meat eating mainstream of current Western culinary habits.
There are some comprehensive cookbooks out there that may help you get started on a more varied diet. There is
The New Mediterranean Diet Cookbook: A Delicious Alternative for Lifelong Health
,
Mediterranean Light: Delicious Recipes from the World's Healthiest Cuisine
, and the recently published
The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook (ADA)
. And then there are some perenial favorites with emphasis on Greek diet, like the classic
The Greek Cookbook: The Crown Classic Cookbook Series (International Cook Book Series)
by Sophia Skoura, queen of the 60s and 70s, and
Vefa's Kitchen
by Vefa Alexiadou, last decade's Julia Child, who started a whole movement of magazines and TV shows on cooking.
Contrary to what you'll hear about how complicated or allien this kind of cooking can be, and how rare the ingredients are, Greek cooking is very straight forward, quite unlike other, mainly Eastern and Arabic traditions.
My recipe for
gemista, meaning
stuffed (vegetables) is even lighter, because of my sensitive stomach, and meat-free, not only because we are trying to be "green", but also because C does not like his
gemista stuffed with meat. (But I am going to give you links to meat-stuffing recipes below).
Depending on the size of your household and your family's appetite, you will need some vegetables to stuff. Tomatoes are the basic ingredient, but I love peppers, too. You may also stuff zucchini, zucchini flowers, and eggplants. In general you must count two veggies per serving. However,
gemista are great, even better, my husband would say, the day after, as the ingredients have bonded and settled. So it is worth to make some extras. Plus you may eat them straight off the fridge, which makes them perfect for late night snacking as well, with a cold glass of white wine :)
You will need some ripe TOMATOES, of a large, round variety.
 |
| these are the ones I used, rather medium size |
Some GREEN PEPPERS will be yummy, too
 |
| As with the tomatoes, you will need to cut the top part so as to create a lid. It's best not to remove completely the lid, but it's going to be ok even if you do |
 |
| You will need to empty the peppers of their seed cluster |
As a rule, don't go for perfect, shiny vegetables. They are probably genetically manipulated and loaded with persticides. Go for normal, and hopefully nice smelling ones.
Apart from the veggies, you will need
RICE
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| I am afraid I cannot help you with the name of the variety I use, but it is long grain, and if you click on the photo you can see it clearly enough and check your food counter to compare! |
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| This is the brand I used, supermarket's own brand. |
ONION
 |
| chop as finely as you can, especially for younger ones who don't like coarse stuff in their food. My electric food processor broke down some time ago, so I do the chopping by hand, but I really enjoy it! |
( plus some fresh onion, in Spring or early Summer, to add some zest)
GARLIC, the king of Greek cooking, excellent for lowering blood pressure and taking care of your heart
PARSLEY
 |
| I grow parsley in a pot on my balcony. It goes with everything and is easy to keep. The more you cut, the more it grows. It really makes you feel self-sufficient foodwise, in its own little way! |
And my secret ingredient: either some FETA or KEFALOTYRI cheese used at the bottom of your vegetables. Cut it in small cubes, if using
feta, or you may use it grated.
 |
| Avoid salt and add a distinct Greek flavour by adding some goat's cheese, like kefalotyri (which also comes ready grated) and lasts long. |
Prepare the vegetables:
Wash your vegetables. If using eggplants, you'll need to rub them with salt and put them in cold water first, until you are ready to stuff them; they thus lose their bitter taste.
Slice the tops of the tomatoes and peppers. Cut a small piece off the tops of the courgettes. It's good to leave a small piece attached to the base of the tomato to act as a hinge for the tomato top. This helps to keep the tops matched to the bottoms. In a large bowl, scoop empty the tomatoes of their juice and seed. Be careful not to pierce through the skin of the tomatoes Add the rice to soften, approx. one 500gram. packet per dozen of large tomatoes. Sprinkle a few grains of sugar in each tomato cavity to help reduce the acidity.
In the tomato and rice mixture, add two finely chopped onions and at least two cloves of garliĻ, parsley, a little pepper. Save the extra tomato juice; we shall be using it later.
Gather the vegetables in a deep baking pan, close together to keep them upright.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Put a slice of cheese at the bottom of each begetable and stuff them about 3/4 full. Pour a teaspoon of olive oil inside each stuffed vegetable. Put back the caps and sprinkle the tops with some bread or rusk crumbs (I use rusk, to absorb extra juice and oil and create a crusty top). Add he remaining pulp puree (some add here potatoes cut in squares; I like adding any remaining rice) in the bottom of the pan and season the vegetables with salt and pepper, if desired.
Bake for about an hour or until the vegetables have become tender and cooked through. For best results you can lower the heat to 275 and let the vegetables slow roast for a few hours.
The flavors develop as the vegetables sit so they can be enjoyed even more as leftovers the next day, here served with a slice of mousaka (recipe coming next week!)
Read an article on Vefa Alexiadou
here and visit
this website by the one and only Elias Mamalakis. You may find a good recipe for tomatoes stuffed with minced meat
here and a meatless alternative
here.
Enjoy your meal!
), Jamie Oliver and Tessa Kyros (
) as well as a number of Greek cookbooks. 
by D-Nick The Microphone Misfit:
