Mpiftekia (Hamburgers) with Vlita and Garlicky Cucumber Salad

Eating healthy or being on a diet does not necessarily mean that you should eat boring food.  I have been watching my diet and loosing weight just by eating a little bit healthier.    Maybe I have not lost many kilos but I am satisfied loosing 2 kilos a month, without being hungry.

I have a lot of posts with healthy diet food but as I will be taking a break during August, I will try in each post to give more than one recipes.

Mpiftekia are the Greek burgers and although the word mpif (tekia) is derived from the word beef (steak), the French then called it bifteque and we translated it into mpifteki, now the word generally means burgers.  Mpiftekia may be made with beef, pork or chicken or even veggies.

Now that  it’s summer, we go to the beach most of the mornings and going to a decent beach near Athens, is about 40 - 45 km far, so it’s an hour to go and and an hour to come back, so I don’t want to spend much time cooking.   When I make burgers, I usually make a large quantity.  I form them into patties and then deep freeze them.  They are so easy to cook and make a very light meal if they are accompanied by a salad.  I Just thaw them in the morning before going to the beach and when we come back, while I am preparing a salad or an other side dish, I grill them in a robot grill and they are ready in just fifteen minutes, without having to turn them, as they are cooked with air which circulates under the meat as well.     If you grill them in the oven it will take more time, depending on your oven.

I have made them many times this past month and I served them with Vlita (amaranth leaves) and potatoes and carrots wrapped in parchment paper, with a yoghurt and cucumber salad and sometimes only with a Greek salad.

Each burger I have made weighs 200 grams (uncooked), so if you are dieting I think they should be smaller, so you’ll get more than mine.   I also made a batch with feta inside and for the stuffed ones I used the Tupperware Hamburger press.  I put half the amount of the meat, pressed it, then added a slice of feta, added the remaining meat and pressed it again.  It’s easier to enclose the feta inside but you can also do this by making the ground meat flat in your hand palm, putting the feta on top and then covering it on top, then shaping it into a patty.

Mpiftekia (Hamburgers) ? Recipe by Ivy

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Makes: 12

Ingredients:

2

Kilos

Ground pork

3

Medium

Red onions, grated

2

Cloves

Garlic, minced

¼

Cup

Olive oil

3

Eggs

3

Cups

Soaked bread

2

Tbsp

Greek dried oregano

1

Tbsp

Greek dried thyme

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For Vlita:

Salad for 4

1

Kilo

Amaranth leaves

4 - 5

Cups

Water

For dressing

1/3

Cup

Olive oil

2

Tbsp

Vinegar

1

Clove

Garlic

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Roasted potatoes with carrots:  Side dish for 4

2

Potatoes, peeled and cut into thin wedges

4

Carrots, cut into slices

1

Tbsp

Olive oil

2

Tbsp

Water

Juice of 1 lemon

Salt, freshly ground black pepper and oregano, at will

Directions for the burgers:

1.

Remove crust from the bread and soak it is water until soft. Squeeze out all the water and put it in a bowl.

2.

Add the onion, garlic and olive oil in a food processor and puree.

3.

Add the ground meat, eggs and all the other ingredients and form into patties.  (If you wish to freeze them, you can wrap them with cling film),

4.

Grill on both sides.

Directions for Vlita:

1.

Wash vlita and leave only the most tender of the stems.

2.

Bring water to boil and add the greens. Do not add salt, as the greens loose their vibrant green colour with the addition of salt.

3.

Boil for fifteen minutes and then put in a colander to drain all the excess water.

4.

Prepare the salad dressing in a food processor and dress the salad.

(Note: For those on diet, a tablespoon per portion).

Directions for potatoes and carrots:

1.

Wash and peel the potatoes and carrots. Cut into thin wedges.

2.

Put the potatoes on an aluminum foil, lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with all the ingredients.

3.

Wrap the parchment paper and then the foil so that the steam will not escape, and bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees C for 1 hour.

One day I served the mpiftekia with a  Garlicky Cucumber Yoghurt salad.  I saw this recipe at Choosy Beggars and I knew I would love it as Cypriot cuisine has an influence from Lebanese cuisine as well.  This salad is just like like the Cypriot talatouri, the only difference is that the cucumber is grated.

Garlicky Cucumber Salad with Yoghurt and Mint ? Recipe Choosy Beggars

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

2

Small

Cucumbers

250

Grams

Greek Yoghurt 2%

2

Cloves

Garlic

½

Tsp

Salt

1

Tbsp

Olive oil

1

Tbsp

Dried Mint

Directions:

1.

Peel the cucumbers. These small ones are so tender you can leave some skin on which gives an extra flavour.

2.

Place in a bowl and add the olive oil.

3.

Add yoghurt and dried mint.

4.

In a mortar and pestle crush garlic with the salt and mix in with all the other ingredients.

Other related posts:

Mpiftekia (Greek Beefburgers)

Sheftalia in Cyprus Pita

Tzatziki or  Talatouri

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