My Big Fat Greek Lunch Box! Four phyllo triangle stuffed with tofu feta, a fennel cucumber salad with capers and olives, gigantes plakis (Greek "giant beans"), and paximadia (Greek anise-flavored "biscotti"). Beverage: organic concord grape juice.Verdict: I invited my mom over for lunch to help us eat the rest. Twice she looked at the table and said, "Wait, you mean this is what he had for lunch? Wow." Little shmoo says he especially loved the crunchy triangles and the cookies. 5 Opas!
Yummy -- I want to eat like schmoo!!!!!
ReplyDeleteMe too! Wow! Where do you find the greek beans in our area? Did you make the biscotti yourself?
ReplyDeleteI'm a sucker for phyllo-anything.
The lunch looks superb.
ReplyDeleteI think I'll steal some of your ideas for myself. My kids are too grown up (their words, not mine) to be impressed by sensible food, no matter how well presented.
Jim B.
Ali, they're at K&J Delectable Gourmet in Kennewick, just down from the health food store.
ReplyDeleteYes, I made the paximadia myself. It took me *four* batches yesterday to get it just right (2 were so bad I had to throw them away!).
It was fun running into you and Nels at the bakery today!
Wow. All your ideas are so great! I wish I had lunchboxes like that when I was a kid. Heck, I wish I had them now!
ReplyDeleteAny chance you'll be posting more of the recipes you use? Or where you get them from?
Yummers!
rad.
ReplyDeleteI hate weekends now. There are no schmoo lunches on weekends. Poot.
ReplyDeleteah yes Paximadia. We eat it during the four Lents of the Orthodox Church year. Makes for a nice treat away from the never ending Toubouli and Lentils with rice.
ReplyDeleteJoe Zollars
My wife stumbled across your blog, and I have to admit, I would like to eat like Shmoo as well. One very lucky kid. Vegan diets have always scared me a bit, my wife is a veggie and that means I eat more like a veggie as well. I posted alink on my blog to yours, I just think the time and care you take in these meals is amazing.
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good work
Zorph
Oh, I think you should change your blog name to
ReplyDelete"Cooking For Shmoo"
;+)
omg...there is hope for the kids in america yet! thank you, thank you, thank you!
ReplyDeleteThis is my favorite yet, looks so good, I want to cry! Are the beans naked? They are bigger than the olives!
ReplyDeletehi!
ReplyDeletei've been reading your blog for about a month now, looking for inspiration for my own packed lunches. i'm truly impressed by the variety and your creativity!
last month, you made some calzones with vegan 'ricotta'-- is this something you bought, or something you made? the only thing i could find at my local vegan-friendly stores is tofu cottage cheese (not really the same). i've seen recipes online for vegan ricotta, but am a little gun-shy after some very disappointing "tofeta" recipes.
thanks so much for your pictures, recipes, and ideas!
ps. unrelated, but i have googled to no avail-- is there a difference between lentils of different colors? can you subsitute red for brown or vice versa?
Hi, jacinta! Thanks for your kind words. Yes, I made the tofu "feta" myself. Granted, it's not exactly like feta, but it's darn tasty! I've loved cooking and reading about cooking for so many years that I guess my brain has built up a database of menu ideas. They just keep coming to me. I'm sure at some point we will start repeating some shmoo favorites.
ReplyDeleteHi, rachmouse! I make up most of the recipes myself and am writing them down. If I use someone else's recipe I will reference it.
Hi, teagan! Thank you so much!! Aren't those beans huge? We measured one at almost 2 inches! They come in a peppery viniagrette, like three bean salad. I rinsed it off for little shmoo, because he doesn't like sweet peppers.
Hi, anonymous! Yes, I made the tofu "ricotta". Like the feta, it's not a dead ringer but it's very good.
Re. lentils, you can use black, green, and crimson lentils interchangeably, perhaps altering the cooking time slightly (smaller ones will cook faster). But red lentils are very different -- they are regular lentils that have the outer skin removed, so they will cook a lot faster and break down more during cooking. Happy lentil eating!
Mmmm, i love Greek food!!
ReplyDeleteI guess those are GIANT BEANS! Goodness! I wish I had the knowledge and patients to make phyllo triangles.
ReplyDeleteJennifer, can you PLEASE post the
ReplyDeleterecipe for the tofu feta triangles?
They look great! And where are those great giant beans available?
Thanks!