Wild Pickled Treats from Ikaria
On Ikaria, the perfect meze for ouzo are pickled wild greens, hyacinth bulbs and home-cured green olives.
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Ikaria Longevity Tea!
People from Ikaria, famed for their longevity, drink herbal infusions, one secret thought to help promote a long, healthy life.
When life gives you Lemons, make a Greek recipe!
From a cook’s perspective, Greeks own the lemon! The way Italians, say, own the tomato. Lemons are without doubt one of the defining flavors of Greek cuisine and together with olive oil, oregano and garlic make for a seminal part of the quartet that can Hellenize almost any recipe. Despite the ubiquity of lemon in […]
New Year’s and the Pomegranate
The pomegranate is one of the most symbolic fruits in the Mediterranean, especially around New Year’s.
The Foods of Greek Easter
The most cliché image that comes to mind with Easter in Greece is that of a whole lamb on a spit, roasted to crisp perfection. It is not the only way Greeks enjoy their Pascal lamb, though. The Easter table all over the country mirrors the age-old wisdom of any rural people, that nothing should […]
Skordalia, the Greek Garlic Dip
Skordalia, the Greek garlic dip, belongs to the grand tradition of Mediterranean garlic pastes and like them, it is almost never served alone; instead, it plays an accompanying role to fried fish and seafood or to classics like boiled beets. While there are as many methods for frying salt cod as there are cooks who […]
Tarama and Taramosalata (Fish Roe and Fish Roe Dip)
Read about tarama, cod roe, one of the most misunderstood traditional Greek ingredients.
The Greek Lenten Table
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 or so loaves, he didn’t fail to observe all the […]
Tahini
Tahini is the dark golden colored cream made from soaked, peeled, roasted then, finally, pounded sesame seeds that usually replaces olive oil during the most austere fasting days of Lent. But beyond its role as a nutrition-packed Lenten ingredient (filled with protein, vitamin B, calcium, phosphorous and iron), tahini is also one of the most […]
Beyond Spinach: Winter Greens in Greek Cooking
January. I am devoting this month to greens, glorious greens, which are available in great variety in Greece and are prepared in countless ways in Greek cooking. To these eyes the brightest thing around right now in Greece are the mountains of greens that glisten and flutter at the farmers’ markets or in the wild. […]