All posts tagged: lent

spaghetti with bottarga

Spaghetti with Bottarga

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Bottarga either you like or you don’t. As for us, we think it’s unique. The greek version (avgotaraho) is cured grey mullet roe and is produced in the lagoon of Messologi (and nearby Aitoliko) in western Greece, where the romantic poet Lord Byron caught a cold and died in 1824. The most renowned greek producer is Zafeiris Trikalinos, a man with a vision.  The family business started in 1856, when stories about Lord Byron were probably still told by people who witnessed them first hand. Mr. Trikalinos likes to stress the nutritional benefits of his product, as if anyone needs to be convinced to consume it! Avgotaraho is not cheep, nevertheless in the following recipe we advocate that more is better! Serves 4 500g spaghetti 8 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 200g leeks, white and tender green parts, finely chopped 3 spring onions, finely chopped 1 clove of garlic, peeled and finely chopped 2 Tbsp parsley, finely chopped sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 Tbsp lemon juice bottarga, 32 very thin slices zest of one lemon Mix the bottarga slices with …

chickpeas with leeks

Chickpeas and leeks, a vegan feast

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Chickpeas have existed forever in the Mediterranean. They have been found in Jericho, and they were probably consumed under the walls of Troy by the Myrmidons. They are cheap, nutritious and connected to historical memory (ground chickpeas were used as a cheap alternative to coffee during the big wars of the 20th century). Most bizarrely, roasted chickpeas are eaten as a snack, similar to nuts; I had not had them for a number of years, and thinking about them reminds me of ‘simpler times’. They go exceptionally well with whiskey. To prepare the chickpeas 200g  dry chickpeas, soaked overnight in plenty of cold water 150g onions, finely chopped 800ml water 4 Tbsp olive oil 1 pinch sea salt For the leeks 6 medium leeks, white and pale-green parts only, cut into 2cm pieces (about 700g) 3/4 olive oil 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (optional) 1/2 cup white dry wine 1 cup grated or puréed tomatoes (fresh or canned) 1 tsp sugar (optional, depending on the acidity of the tomatoes) 3 cups very well drained boiled chickpeas sea salt and …

langoustine and shrimp giouvetsi

Shrimp and Langoustine Giouvetsi

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Giouvetsi is a typical Sunday dish. It is usually  beef cooked with orzo in a clay pot, and one of the horrors of my childhood. I could not stand the slippery texture of it, or the suspicious sense of ‘comfort’ it was supposed to convey. As a famous greek dish, giouvetsi is of course appreciated by many, but I, as a grown up never looked back or tried to compromise! So I was reluctant to try this ‘seafood’ giouvetsi, in one of our favourite seafood restaurants. It turned out however that this is a giouvetsi only by name; it tastes more like a risotto. We have tried to reverse- engineer the recipe and this is the variant we use. (Adapted from a recipe by Argiro Barbarigou) Serves 3-4 For the giouvetsi 500g langoustines or shrimps (or both), shelled and deveined 1/2 cup olive oil 1 carrot (80g), cut into small cubes 1 courgette (80g),cut into small cubes 1 onion (100g), cut into small cubes 1 garlic clove, finely sliced 1/2 cup dry white wine 2 tomatoes (200g), blanched, peeled …

Gemista (Stuffed Vegetables)

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Gemista in greek means ‘stuffed’, and the most common vegetables to stuff are tomatoes and green peppers. We can however argue that Gemista was a popular dish, with the same name, before tomatoes and peppers were introduced to Europe after the discovery of America. They probably stuffed eggplants, that were introduced by the Arabs in the middle ages, and vine leaves. Rice was available in Greece ever since the soldiers of Alexander brought it home from Asia, so it could be used in the stuffing. We can deduce that Gemista have existed at least since the 15th century, because poor Gemistos, a byzantine scholar and teacher had to change his name to the more archaic “Pletho’. How can you keep your academic dignity, if you are named after stuffed vegetables? Serves 8 The vegetables 5 tomatoes, ripe but firm 8 green bell peppers 3 sweet red long peppers 20 vine leaves 3 large onions (make about 10 stuffed onions) 2 medium potatoes, cut into thin wedges The rice filling 500g white middle-grain rice (risotto rice), …

Wild Rice Salad

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Healthy and delicious, this hearty salad is great to serve all year round. Makes a perfect light meal or side dish for anything grilled and it’s great on a buffet table. For the salad 2 cups wild rice, uncooked 1 red bell pepper, diced 1 yellow bell pepper, diced 4-5 spring onions, finely chopped 1 cup green peas, boiled in water for 3-4 minutes 1/2 cup black olives without pits, chopped 1/2 cup black raisins 1 cup parsley, stalks and leaves finely chopped 1 cup dill, stalks and leaves finely chopped For the vinaigrette 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 6 Tbsp balsamic vinegar 3 tsp dijon mustard 1 tsp brown sugar 2 Tbsp chives, finely chopped Add rice and 7 cups of salted water in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered for about 45-50 minutes. Drain off any excess liquid and place the rice in a bowl. Pour half the vinaigrette over warm rice mixing thoroughly, then set aside to cool. Combine rice with all the other salad …

The Analytics of Taramosalata

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Taramosalata ranks high as far as Greek dishes are concerned. If you google Taramosalata you get 47,300 results. It does better than moussaka  (30,600 results) or tzatziki (8,280 results), but not as high as greek salad (54,900 results). Drilling down on the varieties, you get 18,300 results for the taramosalata recipes using potatoes and 27,600 results for recipes using bread. The one  I’m going to present here is  intense using more tarama (carp roe) than bread. If it is too salty for your taste you can add more bread. Depending on the type of roe used, it’s colour can vary from light beige to pale pink. Try to avoid the bright pink coloured fish roe, as it is usually of lower quality and artificially dyed. 100 g white tarama (carp roe or cod roe) 90 g white sourdough bread, crusts removed, soaked in water and squeezed- 1 or 2 days old bread works better for this recipe 60 g lemon juice (approximately the juice of two lemons) 190-200 g extra virgin olive oil Place the …