For most of my adult life, Greece the place I visited when I needed to lick my wounds or, when work drowned me, this is where I stole time between flights; it has always been the place where I  gathered strength in sufficient quantities to deal with the cards life dealt me. More importantly, it was home to uncle Eleff who not only taught me to understand the Greek people & learn their history but Evangelina, the lady who cooked for him, taught me the complexities of cooking Greek food: an enormous lesson.

The Greeks believe eating out and sharing one’s meal is as important as the food itself (it’s called paraia) and in Lawrence Durrell’s words, it’s a transcendence of the dinner table to include conversation, the view, ambiance & the overall spirit of place! There are few ingredients used in Greek cooking which form the basis of most Greek dishes: olive oil, yoghurt, fresh fruit, honey, vegetables, lamb & fish are the basics; notwithstanding this, the Greeks have managed to produce an endless variety of dishes that provide the diner with a seemingly endless menu of tastes. They are not ashamed of their kitchens and don’t hesitate to invite their guests to have a look at what’s on offer in order to make an educated choice – best of all, Greek food is probably the healthiest food on earth.

The Greeks have been living on the island of Crete for at least 130,000 years – this has recently been proved by archaeologists who found their stone tools during the past couple of summers – in other words, they were already sailing the seas at that stage – after all, the toolmakers had to have arrived in Crete by boat! This would make them the earliest marine travellers of which we know and not homo sapiens who sailed to Australia about 60,000 years ago. A team led by Thomas Strasser and Eleni Panagopoulou found over 2,000 stone artifacts (including hand-axes) on the shores of Crete, near the town of Plakias. “The 130,000-year date would put the discovery in a time when Homo sapiens had already evolved in Africa, sometime after 200,000 years ago. Their presence in Europe did not become apparent until about 50,000 years ago. Archaeologists can only speculate about who the toolmakers were. One hundred and thirty thousand years ago, modern humans shared the world with other hominids, like Neanderthals and Homo heidelbergensis ……they may lend credibility to proposals of migrations from Africa across the Strait of Gibraltar to Spain”. The tools were found on Crete’s southern shore – 200 miles from North Africa and the most interesting point here is that “ archaeologists and experts on early nautical history said the discovery appeared to show that these surprisingly ancient mariners had craft sturdier and more reliable than rafts …… the cognitive ability to conceive and carry out repeated water crossing over great distances in order to establish sustainable populations producing an abundance of stone artifacts”.

New York Times. Surely that’s food for thought! After that Greece is normally divided into the Minoan and the Helladic periods but we know relatively little about the Minoans – except that we haven’t managed to decipher their script yet, that they were a mercantile people who traded in timber, selling most of it to Cyprus, Egypt and the Aegean islands and that their civilisation ended with the Mycenean invasion around 1400 BC. The Mycenaeans are the characters depicted in Homer’s mythology and it is their civilization that gave birth to a warrior aristocracy who buried their dead in tholoi (bee-hive shaped tombs (image above) consisted of large round burial chambers). Myceneans were buried in a sitting position and the nobles were buried with the jewellery and their weapons and (mostly) mummified. Their civilization only lasted for about 300 years and legend has it that the Dorians trounced them (image Doric columns, below), a sea faring people armed with iron weapons, heralding a really grim period in the Greek history, often referred to as the Greek Dark Ages that lasted until about 800 BC when the first

Greek city-states made their appearance. The ancient Greek period started at about 1000 BC and ended with the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC after which the Hellenistic period began. (According to some historians it ended around 300 AD when Christianity had been established but this is open to debate). This (the Ancient Greek) was the period that most influenced the law, politics and languages of Europe and taught us how to educate our youth, what architecture was and how to think philosophically.  Be that as it may, the state of affairs lasted until Rome annexed both peninsula and islands and whilst the political situation changed, it had little effect on the Greek society at that time.  When it came to food it was the Greeks who began teaching the Roman chefs how to cook without altering the taste of food so dramatically that it was (usually) impossible to guess what was on the menu. The Romans (cleverly) didn’t interfere in Greek administration & politics and when Caracalla decreed that all free males in the empire would become Roman citizens, it became common practice to invite Greek chefs to work in Roman noble homes – thus creating a small culinary ‘revolution’ in Roman upper class circles.

After Rome was divided into East and West, the Greeks began to identify with the Romans for the first time and this obviously had an effect on Greek food (bearing in mind that the Romans were taught by the Greeks) so it’s unclear who influenced who. In mid Byzantine era, Greece was invaded by the Persians (yet again) and soon a host of other cultures and tribes followed suit, beginning a most unsettling period in the history of the Greeks with major influences affecting the empire but, strangely, the food of the Greeks remained reasonably unaffected – of course the country and it’s food was influenced to a certain extent and of course the Greeks made use of spices and ingredients that they did not know previously, but the use was limited and yet again one has to ask who influenced who? In 800 AD Greece had had enough and started to get rid of the Slavs – asking them to leave ~ (not too politely) or assimilating them so that by 900 AD Greece, once again, belonged to the Greeks and Greece began to thrive again. The economy picked up (especially in rural areas) and church building was in full swing. Athens and many towns flourished and the Venetians began to trade with Greeks, shipping their produce throughout the

PATÁTAES LEMONADES

Ingredients

• 1 kg waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into really fat chips
• 1 tbsp fresh oregano, finely chopped
• 2 lemons, juice only
• ½ lemon, grated zest only
• Greek extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly grated black pepper to taste

Method

• Pre-heat oven to 200 C
• Put the chips in of an oven proof dish in a single layer, season with the salt, zest, oregano and black pepper before adding just enough water to just cover the potatoes.
• Bake in the oven until all the water has evaporated.
• Drizzle more olive oil to brown the top and as soon as it’s golden brown, turn off the oven and leave them in the oven for a few more minutes; serve hot.

known world. The country flourished and when the rest of Europe was suffering from the Arab invasions (1100 – 1200 AD), the Greek Golden Age of Byzantine Art began – to this day many countries in Europe bear witness to this. The mosaics in St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice are decorated with Greek mosaics as are the Palatine Chapel (La Martorana) in Palermo and many others in Italy, France and Russia. At this time Constantinople still belonged to Greece and virtually all the mosaics dating back to this period are still Greek.  The loss of Constantinople to Latin Crusaders, albeit only for 50 odd years, spelled the beginning of the end because  the Turks soon  invaded and by 1453 the Ottomans put a stop to the golden years.  This sent the Greek academics packing, emigrating to Western Europe and eventually playing a huge role in the Renaissance and the rest of the Greeks into the mountains.  The Turks remained in Greece until the early 1800’s when the Greeks just couldn’t take it anymore and rebelled, fighting bitterly for their independence which, with help of the rest of Europe, they gained and became a monarchy with Otto of Bavaria as the first king. Greece opposed Turkey in World War I and after the war, they were awarded parts of Asia Minor (including the city of Izmir, image of a street below). The Turks were livid and the nationalists, led by Atatürk, overthrew his own government to attack the Greeks and then exchanged over a million Greeks for 100’s of thousands of Muslims who were then living in the Greek state. Prophetic, perhaps? The warring didn’t end and conflicts between Greece and Albania

and Greece and Bulgaria followed. Even though Greece had a tiny army, they gladly contributed what they could to the Second World War, siding with the allies until Italy invaded Greece, albeit for a short while, because the Greeks fought bitterly and bravely and eventually got rid of them. This was a historical victory because it was the first Allied victory in Word War II. Adolf must have been rather irritated by this and sent the full force of Germany and her allies into Greece and eventually managed to occupy them for obvious reasons – it was a little like two Goliaths slaying the infant David with an AK47. On the 20^th of May 1941 the Germans made the mistake of their lives and tried to take Crete but they didn’t realise who they were dealing with because an angry Cretan is something no-one would like to come up against. Naturally they didn’t get too far. The war was horrific and thousands of Greeks died of hunger or in combat with thousands more sent to concentration camps. Despite desperate efforts by the Greek Orthodox Church to shelter the Greek Jews, most of them were murdered and in the process the Greek economy was destroyed. Unfortunately the fighting didn’t end there and the Greek Civil War began but it ended with Greece becoming a member of NATO.

REGIONAL FOOD

Greek food can certainly be divided into various regions that have different trends but the food is not as strictly regionalised as some other countries.

ATHENS

This is a city of restaurants and tavernas where eating out is a part of daily life. Fish is superlative and cooked with shocking expertise in host of different ways. Mezédes are as popular with locals as with tourists and provide extremely healthy, tasty and satisfying meals inexpensively.

• ATTICA AND CENTRAL GREECE - is a wine region, the land of Retsina and ouzo, pistachios, Greek noodles, stockfish with skordaliá, stuffed sea urchins and desserts like Kadéfi (syrupy nut rolls) and Galakto-boúreko (the classic milk cake).
• THE PELOPONNESE – wine, home made feta cheese made from sheep’s milk, the best pork in Greece and potatoes to die for are a fraction of the food on offer here. Nobody uses lemons like the Greeks and patátaes lemonades (lemon potatoes) has to be the emperor of potato recipes as well as the perfect dish to serve with almost any kind of meat or fish.
• IONIAN ISLANDS – these island are truly blessed  and beef and lamb are plentiful, orzo features in many dishes, mullet (though expensive) is still found on many menus and this is the home of Avgolémono (egg and lemon sauce that’s used in so many recipes), Pastítsio (minced beef and Greek macaroni baked in the oven), Youvétsi me arnáki (baked orzo and lamb dish so often found on Greek menus), Poutínga (a bread pudding made in Corfu, incidentally the birth place of Prince Phillip of England), Robola wines and honey – a Greek mainstay.

YOUVÉTSI ME ARNÁKI

Ingredient

• 1 kg lamb shoulder
• 125 g butter
• 5 tomatoes, peeled and pureed
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
• 1 clove garlic, peeled but left whole
• 500 g kritharáki
• 100 g kefalotíri cheese  (for those of you that can’t get hold of the kefalotíri cheese, use mozzarella even though it’s not nearly the same thing
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Extra virgin olive oil

Method

• Pre-heat the oven to 160 C.
• Season the lamb to taste, place the garlic and the butter inside the foil pocket and wrap the lamb in a double layer of tinfoil to form the pocket – close the ends carefully to make sure no air can escape.
• Bake this for about 2 hours until the meat falls off the bone, remove from oven and allow it to cool until you are able to shred it.
• In the meantime, fry the tomatoes in a little oil until it’s soft and disintegrated and smooth, season with salt and pepper to taste and then add the kritharáki , the shredded lamb and enough water to fill oven proof dishes or individual dishes almost to the top.
• Bake for about half an hour to cook the kritharáki and then, just before it’s ready, sprinkle over the cheese and bake until it’s golden brown on top; serve hot

.

• EPIRIUS - special region to be found in North western Greece and worth a visit because its not too commercialized. The beef and the sausages are heavenly – often cooked in communal ovens known as Gástra and tripe is a popular meal here. Phyllo pastries and pita are often handmade and venison is plentiful – especially hares.
• THESSALY – fruit, herbs (often also used for medicinal purposes), vegetables and chestnuts are plentiful as is venison that is a popular item on the menu – for afters, local liqueur and the world famous Baklavá.
• SPORADES – the 5 islands of Skiáthos, Alónnisos, Skópelos, Skyros and Euboea have been richly blessed and plums feature in many recipes and Khtapódi me Damáskina (Octupus with plums) and Moskhári me Damáskina (veal with plums) are a speciality certainly worth trying. Lambs and goats are spit-roasted with typical Greek expertise and Almond and Walnut cake is a classic.

• CHALKIDIKÍ – this northern Greek region looks like 2 fingers stretched out into the Aegean sea and the menu is features honey, fish, figs, cherries and wine in abundance. Kakaviá (Greek fish soup), Kolií me Rígani (mackerel with oregano) and boiled fish are popular because fish is just so delicious – because the sea is just so clear! One of the most interesting delicacies of this region is the Petimézi which is, essentially, grape must simmered for absolutely hours, filtered over and over again to remove any and all bits and constantly simmered until a thick, clear syrup is formed that is often used as a basis for desserts (sun-dried fish cooked in the syrup until they are soft and juicy, then left to cool down and served as is, with cheese or with ice-cream.)
• MACEDONIA – Thessaloniki, the capital of this province, is one of the busiest cities in Greece and like the province, has a history of immigration second to none. Not for nothing referred to as the Fruit Bowl of Greece, a huge variety thrives here with peaches, a particular favourite.  Peaches in red wine are typical, Revaní (Syrup cake), a huge variety of salads, saffron, tomatoes, aubergines, fish and glorious wines are commonly enjoyed here.

MOUSSSAKA

Ingredients

• 950  g lean lamb, minced
• 3 large aubergines
• 150-175ml extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large red onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole and only lightly smashed
• 50ml white wine
• 1 x 400g tin diced tomatoes
• 1 x 5cm  piece cinnamon stick
• 4 black cardamom pods
• 1 x handful fresh oregano leaves, chopped
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Topping

• 75g butter
• 75g plain flour
• 600ml full cream milk
• 200 g parmesan cheese, finely grated
• 2 medium free-range eggs, beaten

Method

• Preheat the oven at 200 C
• Heat a small amount of olive oil in a pan and fry the onions until they are soft and golden and remove from the pan.
• In the same pan, add the minced lamb and fry on high until the meat is brown and loose – make sure that there are no lumps, add a drop of oil if you really need to but try to do this on the pan without the oil because lamb is quite fatty.
• Add the wine, the garlic cloves, the tomatoes, the cinnamon and the oregano and simmer gently for 30-40 minutes.
• Cut the stalks off the aubergines and cut them lengthways into  ½ cm thick slices – heat up the oil in a large saucepan until it’s hot, add a splash of olive oil and fry the aubergine slices quickly until they are just soft and lightly coloured on each side, lift them out with tongs and start to layer over the base of a large (about 2,5 litre) ovenproof dish  and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Continue layering until all the aubergines are used up, adding more oil to fry should this be necessary.
• To make the topping, melt the butter in a non-stick pan, add the flour and cook over a medium heat for a minute  or so to cook the flour, gradually whisk in the milk and bring to the boil, stirring swiftly (as you would any white sauce) and leave to simmer very gently until it is thick, whisking more often that not.
• Stir in the cheese and check and correct the seasoning to taste, allow the sauce to cool and beat in the eggs.
• Remove the cinnamon stick and black cardamom pods from the lamb sauce, season to taste with salt and pepper and spoon it over the top of the aubergines.
• Pour over the topping and bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden-brown and bubbling.

• THRACE - Xerxes used Thrace as his passageway in 480 BC and the Roman Via Egnatia passed through the area. Byzantine monks, on their way to Mount Athos, influenced and were influenced by the interesting and ever changing cooking of the region and during the Middle ages, when everyone was building fortresses and castles to protect themselves from the Slavic Bulgars, the Thracians simply didn’t. Their chickens are legendary, having arrived from China via Central Asia,  and are known as Persian birds. Roast chickens, chicken with wheat, bread, maize cakes and semolina are plentiful.
• NORTH AEGEAN ISLANDS – it was only in the 20^th century that these islands became part of Greece and the food has been influenced by by Greeks, Venetians and Turks to create a truly modern Greek cuisine. It’s a gourmet’s dream and seafood (including crayfish), wine and especially ouzo (it’s the home of ouzo because of the giant Mastic trees that grow here) and typical of the region.
• THE CYCLADES - skate wings are typically served here in a so many ways that it would take a month of meals to work through the repertoire – the skate wings are cooked in tomatoes, in garlic and served with Skordalia, in salads to name a few. Sea food, snails, ham and pork are plentiful and best of all, the citron grows here. They are used in sweets but also turned into the famous Kítro liqueur.

• THE DODECANESE - the Dodecanese are amongst the most yearned for holiday destinations to choose from:  Patmos, the island where the Apostle John spent the last years of his life and where the Book of Revelations was inspired, is legendary; Kálimnos, famed for it’s sponge fishing ,  Rhodos where the medieval Knights of St John held sway and Kos with it’s strong Turkish presence are but a few of the many islands. Vanilla plays a great role in local food and a spoonful of vanilla in icy water is a beloved summer treat here.  Dissolve 600 g of sugar in 125 ml water into which 2tbsp of lemon juice have been stirred,  boil with a large pod of vanilla that has been  split in two (don’t worry about the seeds) until the syrup is thick and white in colour. Transfer to an airtight container and store in a cool place until needed. Pomegranates thrive and soups are firm favourites with the locals – Fasoláda, Youvarlákia and chick pea soup are amongst the many available.
• CYPRUS - Cypriots are quick to remind one that they are Cypriots and not Greeks but despite the strong Arab influence, their food tells a different story and fish, vegetables and meat cooked in the Greek way are available everywhere. Kléftiko (roast lamb) is a delicacy on the island and typical mezés are available everywhere at really good prices. Where else would one be able to enjoy beetroot and walnut paste, paphos cheese made from pure sheep’s milk or steamed carrots, celery root and onions? The Arab influence in Cyprus is seen in, amongst other, the Tsamaréla (the only ham in Europe made with goat’s meat) and the khaloúmi (originally an Arabic cheese, it’s made here from sheep’s, cow’s and goat’s milk.) Carob syrup (from the carob trees that are native here), rose water, fruit preserves (even baby aubergines are preserved in syrup), crunchy peanuts and local wine ensures the visitor a tasty visit.