
Table of Contents
Koulouri
Greek sesame bread ring (koulouri) with a view of Ermou - credits: vovidzha/Shutterstock.com
Pies
Traditional Greek spinach pie (spanakopita) - credits: Anna Hoychuk/Shutterstock.com
Greeks are really famous for their pies. Spinach pie (spanakopita) and cheese pie (tiropita) are among the numerous choices that a vegetarian can taste. They are usually made with homemade phyllo and a rich filling. As bakeries are common throughout Greece, you can find these delectable treats around every corner of the country and if you do so, don't skip on eating one; it is a feast for your taste buds you won't regret!
Greek salad or “Horiatiki”
Greek salad - credits: Sunny Forest/Shutterstock.com
The famous Greek salad is a fresh dish consisting of tomato, cucumber, green pepper, onions, and olives topped with a generous amount of Greece’s national cheese, feta. This salad could be ordered as a main dish or as a starter. Don’t forget to accompany it with bread and make delicious dips in the tasty olive oil and vegetable juices.
Yemista
Oven-baked stuffed tomatoes (yemista) - zi3000/Shutterstock.com
For Greeks, yemista is a typical Greek summer recipe. Yemista - which in the Greek language means 'stuffed with' - are vegetables, most commonly tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants stuffed with rice, chopped onions, parsley and sometimes fresh mint, accompanied by potatoes and baked in the oven. Sometimes cinnamon is also added, which gives not only a magical taste to the food but also an oriental scent to it. Accompany this delectable dish with copious amounts of feta cheese and you'll be taking a trip to flavorville in no time!
Dolmades
Vegetarian stuffed wine leaves (dolmades) - credits: vivooo/Shutterstock.com
Souvlaki without meat
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Vegan souvlaki - credits: Nic Crilly-Hargrave/Shutterstock
Who said that the national Greek food, souvlaki, is only for meat lovers? Souvlaki is a food choice especially loved by locals as it is delicious and offers great value for money. You can just ask for wrapped pita without meat, stuffed with fried potatoes, tomato, lettuce and tzatziki spread. In some places, you can also ask for veggie or mushroom souvlaki. The taste is equal if not better than eating gyros!
Fasolada
Traditional Greek Fasolada beans soup with tomatoes and olives credits: Markellos Plakitsis/Shutterstock.com
Spoon sweets
Homemade cherry spoon sweet - credits: Marie C Fields/Shutterstock.com
Greek cuisine provides a great variety of traditional sweets too. Every place has its own production of marmalades, sweet pies, syrup and spoon sweets. Spoon sweets are mainly produced by housewives and served as a gesture of hospitality. Spoon sweets can be made of almost any fruit or even vegetables and flowers. The original recipe is cooking fruits with honey, but as time went by, honey was substituted by sugar. Some of the fruits that are used are citrus, bergamot, oranges, cherries, lemons, and other varieties, including flower petals like roses. Crete is mostly known for its grape spoon sweets, Aegina for pistachio sweets, while Peloponnese is famous for citrus and bitter orange spoon sweets. We do not have to mention that they’re all handmade! But what about Athens? Do not worry. You can find sweets produced in different Greek regions, in many local shops. Before you leave, don’t forget to try them!
Loukoumades
Loukoumades drenched in honey syrup - credits: foodlove/Shutterstock.com
In Greece, loukoumades are mostly a winter dessert, but you can also find them during summer. They are based on everyday ingredients like flour, water, sugar, and yeast and then they are deep-fried in oil resembling loosely the taste and texture of doughnuts. You can either eat them plain with honey and cinnamon or with ice- cream and chocolate syrup, in their modern version.
Baklava
The traditional dessert of baklava - credits: Alp Aksoy/Shutterstock.com
A true war began between Greece and Turkey is about the birth country of the dessert of baklava, although most sources mention that baklava was spread throughout the Ottoman Empire. In Greece, it is a beloved choice for dessert, because of its layers of traditional phyllo filled with chopped mixed nuts, sweetened and held together with syrup.