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Greek Island Parsley-Garlic Dip

ByElena Paravantes, MS, RD

Easy and quick is what I need right now. After being sick on and off for several weeks, I’m slowly trying to catch up. So when I needed some sort of appetizer one day, this was it.

This is a dip from the island of Syros (one of the Cyclades islands). Parsley is its main ingredient but you will definitely taste the garlic. This dip resembles in preparation as skordalia (Greek garlic dip) and taramosalata where you add a steady stream of olive oil to the dip, so you end up with a pesto like texture, rich and flavorful, however there is no cheese or nuts s in pesto.

I had heard of it but had not made it before and I was looking for some sort of parsley recipe as I had a huge parsley plant growing out of control on my balcony. I saw the dip at Kalofagas by Peter Minaki and decided to try it.

It is wonderful. A Mediterranean dip which goes well with anything that you can dip in, but I find it is good to mix in pasta or as a topping for pizza or a spread for sandwiches.

And yes this is super healthy, there is not one ingredient in this recipe that does not have health benefits: from the parsley to the onion and garlic to the olive oil, this dip is bursting with antioxidants. I also used whole wheat bread (instead of white), and for those avoiding gluten you can use potato instead of bread.

Greek Island Parsley-Garlic Dip

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 ½ cup parsley leaves
  • ½ onion
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 teaspoon capers
  • ¼- ½ cup olive oil
  • juice from half a lemon
  • 1-2 tablespoon red wine vinegar
  • 1 cup stale bread (I used whole wheat) or boiled potato
  • salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

1. Blend the parsley, onion, garlic and capers in a food processor until somewhat smooth.

2. Wet the bread and squeeze out the water and add to the parsley mixture, mix well.

3. Add the olive oil slowly continuously mixing. And then add the vinegar, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste

4. Cover and leave in refrigerator for at least an hour before serving.

 Photo by Elena Paravantes

Elena Paravantes, MS, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist by the U.S. Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). She is an expert on the Mediterranean Diet. She has been active as a clinician, consultant, author and lecturer for 20 years, both in the U.S. and Greece. An expert on the Greek Mediterranean Diet, her interviews and articles have been published in many publications including CNN, U.S. News and World Report, Prevention, NPR, and Shape. Elena has collaborated with a number of organizations including Loyola University, Yale University, University of Missouri, Louisiana State University, and the American College of Greece. Elena earned her Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition and Dietetics and her Bachelor of Liberal Arts and Sciences in Psychology from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She holds has a Master’s Degree of Science in Health Management.

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9 Comments

  1. Made the Parsley Dip for the first time and absolutely delicious, especially with either chicken goujons or raw carrots!

    Thank you.

    Reply

  2. It looks and sounds like a recipe to give a try, but what does the bread or potato add? Is it texture? I can’t decide which to go with.

    Reply

  5. Beautiful and easy and just look at that colour! Definitely one to come back to when my parsley is abundant.

    Reply