Guest Post: Pasteli
I hope you all are enjoying this series of guest posts by some of my favorite food bloggers! I know I am.
This next edition is written by a great friend of mine, and one of the few blogging friends I have been able to actually meet in person – Peter Georgakopoulos from Souvlaki for the Soul. Isn’t that the coolest blog name? Not only is the blog name so inventive, but the recipes he posts are absolutely mouthwatering. Greek is one of my favorite cuisines, and Peter, although born and raised in Sydney, Australia, is of Greek descent, and this shows in his delicious food! He uses simple, fresh and delicious ingredients to their fullest potential, and more often than not, they include the flavors of Greece, including old favorites. Not only is the food divine, but the photography and food styling really bring his recipes to life.
I just love Peter, and really can’t say enough about what he offers on his blog, so if you haven’t already been to Peter’s blog, you need to get on over there! So now, I will let Peter take it away! THANK YOU PETER!
First off, let me begin by saying that I am very honoured and proud to be a guest blogger here at the Leftover Queen. I’ve “known” Jenn and Roberto from the blogging world and have actually met them in real life too. Their food philosophies and passion for everything about it is infectious. They are truly a great example of people who believe and follow their dreams.
When Jenn asked me if I was keen to do a guest post I said “yes” straight away. My mind went to cooking up something Greek (of course) plus I wanted it to be healthy. I thought about all those hours they put in to running their farm-from herding the goats, looking after the chooks, planting vegetables and making cheese. This is serious hardcore work that requires some energy! So I came up with the idea of creating some natural “energy bars” known as pasteli.
Pasteli is Greece’s version of the sesame bar. Traditionally it is made with sesame seeds and honey and sometimes has nuts mixed through it. Once it sets, it becomes this chewy, irresistible, almost addictive snack. When I was growing up, I always looked forward to the “care packages” we got from Greece and they almost always had pasteli included in them. I must admit, I had a love/hate relationship with this all natural energy bar. I loved it’s taste (cause I adore sesame seeds) but hated the way it sort of got stuck in your teeth! Nevertheless, I still munched on them with great abandon.
For today’s recipe (which I adapted from Elly’s blog here ) I played around with this concept by adding some black sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds and pistachios. If you can get hold of some Greek thyme honey it would make this recipe just about perfect, if not any honey will do. It’s as simple as toasting the seeds in a hot pan, adding in your warmed honey, letting it cook for a few minutes and voila! You have nature’s perfect marriage. Feel free to add any kind of nuts you like as well. I’ve made my pasteli a little thicker as I wanted them to look like energy bars but traditionally it is much thinner. If you want them thinner use a larger baking pan. Also, if you prefer a “crisper” i.e.”jaw breaking” pasteli you may wish to add some sugar ( I wouldn’t add more than 50 grams).
Munch on these during the day as a healthy snack between meals, pop them in your kids lunch boxes or serve them up with a cup of Greek coffee. Whatever you do just make these! Thank you Jenn-hope you guys like these.
Rosa - September 23, 2011 at 2:02 am
What a beautiful speciality and post! Those must be addictive. I love Peter’s amazing blog!
Cheers,
Rosa
banana wonder - September 23, 2011 at 3:04 am
peter and jenn thanks for this! i love pasteli and also look forward to getting it in care packages. your pasteli is far far far better than the store bought kind my aunt mary sends me. black sesame seeds?! YES! the thyme honey is so money too.
Peter - September 23, 2011 at 4:55 am
Wonderful to see Pete here and showcasing Pasteli, one of my favourite treats! Love the array of seeds used. The more honey the tastier!
MikeVFMK - September 23, 2011 at 11:34 am
So glad I came over to see what else was going on. Love Peter’s blog so I naturally followed him here. Beautiful recipe and love the variety of seeds used. Beautiful guest post Peter!
ValleyWriter - September 23, 2011 at 11:55 am
I guess I’m behind the times – but I just saw sesame bar in the store for the first time the other day. Never heard of them before. But thanks to Peter’s post, I have a much better idea of what they’d taste like. I love the one with black sesame seeds, too – it looks pretty, and I’m sure it’s delish!
Ivy - September 23, 2011 at 3:51 pm
I think you’ve turned a healthy snack into a healthier one. Great job Peter.
angela@spinachtiger - September 23, 2011 at 8:39 pm
Jen is right. Peter is remarkable. I am a huge fan of both of you and follow whatever you do.
Y - September 25, 2011 at 10:43 am
Beautiful! I adore sesame bars, and am particularly intrigued by the greek thyme honey.
Aldy @ Al Dente Gourmet - September 26, 2011 at 9:46 pm
Hi Jenn, I come from Peter’s gorgeous blog. And this Pasteli looks absolutely delectable. I love the addition of honey–It makes this sesame bars even more tasty. Wonderful job, Peter!
BTW, Just love every single click 🙂
Have a great day, Jenn.
Jamie - September 27, 2011 at 8:40 am
What a fabulous treat! The flavors are familiar to me from a Middle Eastern treat I ate once in a while as a kid but these delicious healthy bars are even better! I really can’t think of anything better for a snack. Gorgeous photos.
Simone - September 27, 2011 at 3:58 pm
Ah there is that glass of honey that I mistakenly thought was brandy…lol… I love the look of these pasteli and the colors of the cut bars are just beautiful!
Jenni - September 28, 2011 at 5:33 pm
So great to see Peter over here. I just recently discovered his blog, so it’s lovely to see his amazing work over here at your place, too, Jenn! And the pasteli? Sounds like a fun recipe to play around with. I love sesame seeds, so I know I would be a huge Fan of pasteli!
Cris - September 29, 2011 at 8:51 am
They look beautiful and I like the fact that they pair with coffee!!!
ninatimm - September 30, 2011 at 10:13 am
I have been looking high and low for this recipe. So glad it came form the talented Peter. Love the pics!
hungryandfrozen - October 1, 2011 at 10:46 pm
I’m a sesame seed fiend, am going to buy up large on them and try making this. Great guest post – am going to check out the rest of this blog now 🙂
Leftover - October 3, 2011 at 2:05 pm
Thank you so much for this suggestion.
Divya - October 8, 2011 at 10:36 am
Fabulous guest post! The pasteli looks like the perfect tea time treat.
barbara - October 14, 2011 at 7:21 pm
I loved sesame seed bars. It was a very eighties thing for me. They were always on the display at the supermarket check out and I often grabbed one for a quick snack between work and picking up the boys from school. I must investigate this sweet further.
Heather - January 12, 2012 at 3:59 pm
This is such a unique recipe – I have never seen anything like it, looks amazing!
What beautiful photos – the one with the red cup is stunning!