Ricotta: Soak the cashews for at least 2 hours in a bowl with water. Drain and place all other ingredients into a blender or food processor.
Process until creamy. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator for an hour or two.
Spanakopita: Thaw frozen spinach completely before using. Drain in a strainer to get out most of liquid.
In 1/4 cup olive oil, sauté leeks, scallions, and garlic on low heat until soft. Add herbs and spices, stir for 5 min in very low heat.
Add spinach to pan and mix well to combine completely. Remove from heat and set aside in a bowl to let it cool down.
Add the cold ricotta to the bowl and stir to combine. Put bowl back in the refrigerator for at least 1 hr.
Preheat oven at 350 degrees.
In a 9x13 baking pan, add 6 layers of phyllo, one at a time, brushing some olive oil in between sheets. Add the filling to the pan.
Add another 6 layers of phyllo on top of that, again, one at a time, brushing olive oil in between sheets.
Cut the pie into 6 to 9 pieces with a knife.
Bake for 45 minutes or until a beautiful golden brown.
Vegan Baklava
Serves - 12
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup agave nectar
3 cups nuts (pistachios, walnuts, pecans)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 pkg phyllo dough, thawed ( you will only use half)
3/4 cup margarine, melted
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Margarine the bottom and sides of a 9x13 -inch baking dish.
In a small saucepan, heat the water and sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved. Add the vanilla and agave nectar.
Simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, and set aside to cool. You want this to be completely cooled before pouring onto the baked baklava.
Pulse the nuts in a food processor until they're a coarse meal (not fine crumbs). Add the cinnamon and mix. Set aside.
Carefully unroll the phyllo dough from the package. Trim the stack of dough into 9x13 inch sheets, so they fit into the pan use Athens Fillo Dough and it fits almost perfectly, so I don't trim it down). Keep the sheets that you're not working with covered with some waxed paper and a damp cloth (the waxed paper goes directly on top of the dough, the wet towel on top. If you have a helper, they can lift the paper/cloth as needed, makes it easier).
Place 2 sheets of dough in the pan, and using a pastry brush, coat the top sheet completely with margarine. Spread a thin layer of the nut mixture, add 2 more sheets of phyllo. Repeat with the butter, nut mixture, and 2 phyllo sheets until you have a total of 8 layered sheets. For the top layer, place 2-4 phyllo sheets, but this time brush margarine between each individual sheet.
Using a very sharp knife, carefully cut the baklava into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan.Thisis important to do now because you won't be able to cut the baklava once it's baked without crushing the pastry.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the baklava is golden.
Remove from the oven and immediately pour or spoon the (completely cooled) sauce over. Cool uncovered for at least 3 hours or overnight before serving.
Potato Salad with Leeks and Dill The Greek Vegan
8 cups of cubed new potatoes
(approx 14-16 medium potatoes)
3 cups sliced leeks (1 large leek)
3/4 cup fresh chopped dill
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
Boil potatoes: Place cubed potatoes and 1 tsp salt in pot, cover with water, cook on high heat until water boils. Once water is boiling, time approx 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are just fork tender. Drain and set aside.
Heat olive oil in pan on low and add leaks. Gently cook for approx 5 minutes, stirring often, or until they are almost translucent. Remove from heat and pour sautéed leeks with all of the olive oil from the pan into a large bowl. Add fresh dill and salt. Mix well.
Add boiled, cubed potatoes to the bowl and CAREFULLY mix well until completely combined. Mixing too quickly or roughly will give you broken, mushed potatoes so go slow with this last step.
Garnish with fresh dill, a squeeze of fresh lemon and fresh ground pepper.
Serve warm or room temperature. Kali Orexi!
Greek Salad with Vegan Feta Cheese
Feta Cheese
9.7 ounces firm tofu
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup water
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp oregano
1 tsp of white miso
Salt if needed
Press the tofu to squeeze out water.
Cut the tofu into cubes.
Mix all the marinade ingredients in a bowl
or a container (the lemon juice, water,
apple cider vinegar, miso,oregano and
salt), add the tofu, cover and refrigerate
for 2 hours or more. It will taste better 2
or 3 days later.
1 med red onion 3 tbs olive oil
2 tbs red wine vinegar
Place onion, oil, vinegar and oregano in 1-qt. resealable plastic bag. Seal, and shake to coat. Refrigerate 4 hours, or overnight.
Salad
2 cups Romaine Lettuce
2 cups Cucumber, peeled, sliced, halved
2 Tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup kalamata olives
1 cup artichokes, halved
2 Pepperoncini for each plate
Dressing 3 tbs Olive Oil
1/4 tsp Oregano 3 tbs Lemon
Place onion, oil, vinegar and oregano in 1-qt. Resealable plastic bag. Seal, and shake to coat onion with liquid. Refrigerate 4 hours, or overnight.
Toss together lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, olives, artichokes in bowl. Add onions and vinaigrette, and season with salt and pepper, if desired. Add Pepperoncini.
Add dressing if needed. Add Red Wine Vinegar if needed.
