Okay, so yesterday I tried making some Greek desserts. I’ve always wanted to try my hand at these sweet treats, and I finally got around to it. Started the whole process by looking up some popular Greek dessert recipes online.
First one I tackled was Baklava. I mean, who hasn’t heard of Baklava, right? It looked pretty straightforward – layers of phyllo dough, nuts, and that sweet, sticky syrup. I got all my ingredients together: phyllo dough, a bunch of walnuts, cinnamon, and the stuff to make the syrup which was basically honey, sugar, and some lemon peel. Prepped the nuts, mixed them with cinnamon, and started layering the phyllo. It felt kinda therapeutic, brushing each sheet with butter and layering them up.
Then I made the syrup, watching sugar and honey melt together was oddly satisfying. Poured that all over the assembled Baklava and into the oven it went. The smell that filled my kitchen while it baked was just heavenly. And the taste? Oh boy, it was crunchy, sweet, and just delightful. Not to toot my own horn, but I think I nailed it for a first try.
- Next up were Loukoumades. These are like the Greek version of donut holes, and they seemed simple enough. Made a basic yeast dough, let it rise, and then formed little balls.
- Frying them was a bit tricky, had to make sure the oil was just the right temperature so they’d be golden and crispy.
- Once they were fried, I drizzled them with the same honey syrup I made for the Baklava. They were so good, all fluffy inside and crispy outside with that sweet syrup soaking in.
I also gave Galaktoboureko a shot. This one’s a custard pie with phyllo, and it sounded amazing. Made a simple custard with milk, eggs, sugar, and semolina. Layered some phyllo, poured in the custard, more phyllo on top, and baked it. I think I messed up the phyllo a bit, wasn’t as crispy as I wanted, but the custard was spot on. Creamy, sweet, and just a hint of that semolina texture. It was a bit more challenging, but still a win in my book.
A Couple of Easier Ones
After those, I tried Revani, which is a semolina cake soaked in syrup. This one was way easier. Mixed up semolina, flour, sugar, eggs, and yogurt, baked it, and made a simple syrup with sugar, water, and lemon. Once the cake was out and cooled a bit, I poured the syrup over it. It was moist, not too sweet, and had a nice lemony kick. Definitely making this one again.
Finally, I just whipped up some Greek Yogurt with honey and walnuts. I mean, you can’t get any easier than this. Just took some plain Greek yogurt, drizzled honey over it, and sprinkled some chopped walnuts on top. It was the perfect light and refreshing end to my Greek dessert adventure.
Honestly, the whole experience was so much fun. I might have made a mess in the kitchen and maybe not every dessert turned out perfect, but I enjoyed every bit of it. Plus, I got to eat a bunch of delicious Greek sweets. Can’t wait to try making these again and maybe even try some other recipes next time!
