Customer Reviews

The Food and Wine of Greece: More Than 300 Classic and Modern Dishes from the Mainland and Islands

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I would recommend this book highly. As a Greek American I can vouch for the authenticity of most of the recipies. In some instances the author has to make substitutions (mostly with cheeses) with ingredients that would be difficult to find for the average American.
Her wine selections are helpful and in my experience have paired well with the food.
Her measurements are very accurate. For anyone who has cooked from many Greek cookbooks (in english) you will know that very often measurements are totally off. This is due to the fact for thousands or at least hundreds of years these recipies were verbal and were not written down until relatively recently. I have suffered through many a dish trying to guess what amount is accurate. That has always been my biggest complaint with Greek cookbooks- AND that is not a problem with this one.
Everything I have tried has come out wonderful. I would recommend this as a great book containing all the classics.
Kali Orexi!

This cookbook is a masterpiece. It symbolizes greek cuisine at her best. The recipes are authentic and provide the novice or professional cook the best insight into the simplicity of greek food. The regional specialities are a delight. I have used this book countless times. It also shares with the reader little paragraphs about the recipes and their origins or variations. I own several greek cookbooks, but this one is my best and Diane has captured the heart and soul of greek cooking. From the meze to the deserts, all the recipes will stimulate the palate and keep you going back for more of her recipes. Some of the recipes reminded me of my childhood with my grandparents and my grandfather's cooking. This book should satisfy your cravings for greek cuisine.

We are so blessed here in the Detroit Metro area to have Greek Town with all its outstanding restaurants. You can even get their cookbook which is excellent: Opaa! Greek Cooking Detroit Style.

Kochilas' cookbook is even larger with over 300 recipes plus variations on most dishes, background sketches and wonderful memories of the dishes she's describing.

I am in love with the way Greeks do Lamb Stews--scented with allspice and cinnamon with just right acidic balance of rich tomato sauce. Kochilas' recipe Arni Kapam (Lamb in a Spicy Tomato Sauce) has become a favorite. Surprisingly so, I am a nut for Snails, so her Cochli me Pligoui (Snail and Bulgur Pilaf) is out of this world as well as the Cretan Classic Snail Stew.

Her classic Pastitsio and Mousakka are excellent as well as Chicken-Lemon Soup and syrupy Bakliva desserts.

One fine, well done cookbook.

This book is informative, well put together, easy to use, and full of great recipes. I grew up with Greek food, but the author has provided a much wider overview of Greek cuisine than most cookbooks on the subject, and has provided much interesting information about regional differences.

This is definitely the best Greek cookbook I own.

The recipes are authentic - as Greeks have been cooking them for hundreds of years.

It contains the recipes for all the classic Greek dishes and has a nice section on sweets. Best of all, it refers to everything by its Greek name (with an English translation, of course).

So if you want to cook moussaka, kokkinisto, kotopoulo, avgolemono, fassolatha, psarosoupa, yuvetsi, yemista, galaktoboureko, vassilopita, koulorakia, loukoumathes, kourabiethes and much more, then this book is for you.

Having lived in Greece, and having been a professional recipe writer and tester here in the US, I can give this book an enthusiastic thumb's up. In fact, I own the book already and am now getting one for my mother-in-law!
The recipes are simple, deceptively so: you can't bellieve it's going to taste like the real thing, but it will. Greek cooking is truly a cuisine of limited resources and resourceful handling of those resourses, and this book captures it well. The only thing missing is... food photos! But if you know Greek food well, you'll know why: it's uniquely unphotogenic, although the raw ingredients are usually worthy of a shot.

I'm Greek and love Greek food of course, but I've lived in the USA most of my life and only get to experience the true Greek dishes when i visit family in Greece. This is a great book of Greek dishes, they are very authentic and i have enjoyed trying something new each week.

I bought this book based on other reviews I read, and have to agree the recipes sound fantastic and authentic. However I've never cooked anything from it because the way that the recipes are set out in the book makes them incredibly difficult to read and follow. The type is very small and not well spaced. The ingredients are listed on the left hand side of the method on the left pages of the book, and the right side of the method on the right hand pages, making it very confusing to read when a recipe runs across two pages. I just don't find it an enjoyable book to read from which is a shame because there are tons of really lovely sounding recipes in it. They should do a new edition and make it cleaner and easier on the eye - I would buy it in a second.

I was raised on the recipes found in this book. Diane makes even the most seemingly complicated recipes manageable. I gave the book out as gifts this holiday season. I highly recommend it.

This is a very thorough cookbook with traditional recipes that are delicious. Very similar to my mother's ingredients in most recipes ... giving that homemade flavor.