Blog
I could write tomes on the evolution of Greek food as chefs around the world push the limits on tradition, and I could (and would love to) pen the story of Greeks’ contribution to the restaurant industry from their earliest days as dishwashers to their glory days as dynasties in the world of hospitality. That’s a project for another time.
Greek Lent What are the Foods of Greek Orthodox Lent? Several years ago, I spent the night before «Clean Monday», as Greeks call the first day of Lent, baking the traditional Lenten flatbread lagana with a local Athenian baker. Even though he went about his business methodically and professionally, turning out more than a thousand […]
Like most of us, I can’t remember the first time I tasted chocolate, but I have plenty of fond recollections of teenage indulgences, calorie-oblivious and urgent, right down to the Oreos and Entenmann’s chocolate pound cake I used to like to tamp down into water glasses then douse with milk. The ensuing sludge was very appealing to my 1970s palate, honed as it were on the munchies.
The most beloved manifestation of carbs in Greece is without a boubt bread: Beautiful, plush breads, dense breads, decorative breads, whole-grain breads and festive breads abound everywhere.
Every season has its bounty but it’s those in-between times, not quite winter, not quite spring, or that tentative stretch between summer’s bright gifts and fall’s earthier fare, that my cook’s heart is most excited.
Salt cod, called bakaliaros, is the fish most Greeks eat on March 25th. Discover how this ocean fish found its way to the Mediterranean and try some of the delicious dishes Greeks prepare with it.
Salt Cod, The Greek Mountain Fish I am writing this upon arrival back to Greece, landing on a grey March day, the latest in a string of chilly, wet days that have made it seem like spring will never come. I just finished an exhausting trip to the States, on and off airplanes between NY, […]
How Are Mushrooms Used in Greek Cooking “Look up, not down” Vasilis Paparounas, arguably Greece’s premiere mushroom forager, advised one late August day as he dropped us off in the middle of the dense woods of Mitsikelli, one of the highest peaks in the Pindus Mountains separating Epirus from Macedonia. Then he went off with […]
Five Reasons Why Octopus & Squid are Lenten Superfoods Did you know that octopus, squid and cuttlefish, the three main cephalapods in Greek cuisine, are a among the healthiest nonplant-based proteins we can eat? It’s no wonder they play such an important role during Greek Lent. The six weeks before Easter call for abstaining from […]
The end of the summer on Ikaria is always filled with a sweet sadness. The light shifts ever so subtly from crisp white to hints of gold. Fall is imminent. We pack up the house. We say “Kalo Fthinoporo — Have a good autumn,” to friends who we won’t see for months, maybe for a […]