It is the Victoria Day long weekend here in Canada. Originally it was set aside as May 24th but I think that the original meaning of the day, being Queen Victoria's birthday, has been lost. For most it means a day off. I have 4 days free and 4 days free to cook up a storm in my kitchen and still have time to enjoy what life in the valley has to offer.
Ruth from Ruth's Kitchen Experiments has a new weekly blogging event out in the blogosphere where anyone can blog about a recipe they have bookmarked. It can be from a cook book, food magazine, food blog, food website or anywhere at all. We all have recipes that are piling up on our counter tops and clogging up our computer files. Lets get these recipes out of the "wanna be" stage and into our kitchens!!!!!!
One of my favourite bloggers, whom I try to follow on a daily basis, is Peter of Kalofagas - Greek Food & Beyond . Peter is of Greek descent living in my old stomping grounds of Toronto. If only I could join him on the Danforth to enjoy all the wonderful Greek foods I remember. We do have many excellent Greek restaurants here, so I am not deprived by any means. If you are a follower of this blog you will already know that I LOVE everything Greek. I always check to see what my adopted foodie brother Peter is up to and what tasty dish he has in store for us each and every day. Everyone seems to know Peter, he gets around that guy, but if by some chance you haven't had a chance to visit his blog...do not pass GO, do not collect $100...just get over there!!!!
I was surprised upon writing a previous post that I hadn't tried more of his recipes. Everything he makes is so packed with flavour. So...today I am finally getting around to preparing his keftedes recipe. You can find Peters original recipe here . Mine were quite large, the size of a two patty burger. I invited my daughter over for lunch so I served it with the Avocado Tzatziki of a post that is coming and a Greek Salad.
**Keftedes Stuffed with Cheese**
**Keftedes Stuffed with Cheese**
1 kg. of medium ground beef
2 medium onions, box grated
4 slices of bread, soaked in water (or milk), hand squeezed and then crumbled
1 tsp of garlic powder/1 tbsp grated fresh garlic
2 eggs (for binding)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chopped parsley
pinch of cumin
salt & pepper to taste
1 inch flat squares of cheese (Vlahotyri or Kasseri)
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Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well using your hands. Form palm-sized patties with your hands, then squish them into flat patties and reserve in a platter. Cover with cling-wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mix well using your hands. Form palm-sized patties with your hands, then squish them into flat patties and reserve in a platter. Cover with cling-wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
Before grilling, allow the keftedes to come back to room temperature. Take your piece of cheese and place it in the middle of one patty. Now place another patty on top and press the two patties together to form one larger keftede. Now using your fingers, pinch the entire perimeter of your patty so that when you grill, the Keftede will hold together and your cheese will not leak.
Grill on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes a side. (Mine were quite large so it was aproximately 15 minutes all told)
Grill on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes a side. (Mine were quite large so it was aproximately 15 minutes all told)
Peter says, "Serve with some mustard/Mayo, Boukovo(red chili flakes), a salad and some bread."
