This Lentil and bulgur Spicy salad is not Cypriot dish but some of its ingredients are much closer to Cypriot cuisine, as I was inspired to make it by a Bulgur Pilaf we make in Cyprus.
Legumes
This Hummus Dip is a wonderful recipe which is based on the traditional hummus recipe but combined with roasted butternut squash and garlicky Greek olives.
This vegan Greek Fava Santorinis and Pumpkin Soup is made from scratch and is healthy, filling and perfect as a starter for a dinner party or a light supper.
These beans are called barbounofassoula or hantres in Greek, which means beads. When these are fresh and green they are called fassolia barbounia (runner beans) Phaseolous Coccineus which are a hybrid of Phaseolous Vulgaris (the common bean) and when they are ripe their pods become beige and red and inside the beans are off-white with red markings. However, when cooked they loose this lovely colour.
Louvi, as we call it in Cyprus, are the black eyed beans. Although the word “louvi” is ancient Greek from lovion, plural lovia (λόβιον, πλ. λόβια), in Greece this word is not used any more. Instead, they are called fassolia mavrommatika, which means black-eyed peas.
Revithosoupa, (pr. reh-vee-THO-sou-pah), is a very simple, vegan Greek, healthy and nutritious chickpea soup made with a few simple ingredients.
Gigantes plaki is a deliciously hearty vegan dish made with giant beans, cooked in a tomato sauce, served as a main dish or as part of a mezze platter.
Ampelofassoula are the fresh green green beans (Vigna unguiculata) also known as cow peas, also called louvi in Cyprus. These beans are eaten before they mature,usually boiled and eaten as a salad with olive oil and lemon juice. When they ripen the seeds are dried become the well known black eyed peas.
Revithia giahni sti gastra is a vegan dish with stewed chickpeas, traditionally cooked in a clay pot and baked in a wood burning oven. However, not all of us have wood burning ovens or clay pots but we can still cook it in a Dutch oven or any casserole dish in our home oven. If you don’t have any of the above, use a baking tin which cover with an aluminium tent.
Revithokeftedes me Garides are Chickpea Patties with Shrimps. During Greek Orthodox fasting period seafood is allowed to be eaten, so I decided to incorporate some shrimps in the patties.