My First Dolly

Dolmathes are one of my favorite things at any Greek restaurant. They're great snacks, appetizers, entrees, side dishes, hot or cold, vegetarian or not, and so on and so forth. So, when I discovered I could buy grape leaves in the supermarket, I figured I'd give it a go and make them myself.

Since one jar of grape leaves can yield a ridiculous amount of dolmathes (much like one head of cabbage yields a ridiculous amount of cabbage rolls), I went two separate routes. In the first corner we have the Vegetarian Dolmathes, which have always been my preference, and in the other corner we have the Lamb Dolmathes, which are still pretty keen. Let the battle begin!

Both are seasoned relatively the same, so they both have similar flavors. I added garlic, lemon and raisins to the rice ones, but otherwise the flavor is basically that of dill and mint. The lamb dolmathes turned out a little dry compared to the rice ones, since rice is basically a moisture pocket where meat is definitely not. Score one for the vegetarian ones!

The larger grape leaves were kind of chewy in both instances. The chicken broth that the lamb variety was simmered in would allow for an easily prepared sauce, but since both were served with Tzatziki, that's only a mild bonus. I just think that the vegetarian ones taste better (which is somewhat unfair since I added more flavor to them) and generally have a better texture. The vegetarian dolmathes win! Horray!

While I waited for the dolmathes to finish cooking my stomach started rumbling, so I made a pretty typical Greek dish of
Cauliflower with Lemon Sauce. Basically, cauliflower in its own cooking water with lemon and eggs. Don't be fooled by the simplicity! This is an excellent way to have cauliflower and a very good side dish. It's not exactly a vegetarian entree, but it definitely has enough flavor to stand up as a worthwhile addition to a meal.