“How come we have never heard, let alone tasted, any of these unbelievably delicious cheeses?” exclaimed one of the most informed foodies who took part in our Kea Artisanal classes this season. Our guests were fascinated and genuinely surprised by the samples from our diverse Greek cheese board.

Summer Table

Preparing the cheese tasting

Rosemary and Will ready to taste the cheeses

Cheeses from various islands

Cheeses from Naxos

Ceramists at Lunch

Ceramists on the trail to the Temples

Young Australians

Olive oil tasting

Reaching the ancient Temples

Ready for the olive oil tasting

A bite after the walk

Bickes in our Garden

Cooking with the Bickers

Will prepares the fish for grilling

Costas and the group at the grill

Costas serves the fish

Serving the Fish

Fresh black-eyed pea pods

Garden tomato relish

Sunset drinks at the Beach

New and older friends

Grilled fish with tomato relish and fresh black-eyed peas

  Slide Show: Summer Highlights

We went to great lengths all through the spring procuring a strong variety and finally managed to get about sixteen different artisanal cheeses, mostly from various islands of the Aegean. As we displayed them on our antique wooden board, even we were amazed at the diversity of textures, tastes and fragrances! Although we have done cheese tastings in the past, this year we managed to order directly from individual producers on neighboring islands, in addition to the small distributors who continue to supply us with their best and rarest cheeses –like the famous gylomeni manoura of Sifnos– a striking goat cheese that ages in wine sediment. (more…)

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I am not the first one to observe that TV food has long ago stopped being about taste, cooking, talent or tradition, becoming one more excuse for a sensational voyeuristic show, not unlike the uncovering of yet one more Egyptian mummy…

In that context I started receiving phone calls and e-mails from various US and AustralianTV producers who wanted to pick my brain about THE most extreme and ‘dangerous’ foods of Greece, and more precisely the poisonous fish that they have heard about. Some mentioned ‘the scorpion fish’ which they have read, or heard or told about. Because there was not one, but at least three similar inquiries last year alone, I understood that after the Asian rats and the south American insects, of which the American public has probably had enough, our turn had come.

I haven’t been able to verify if the producers who contacted me decided to visit our country on their own, or had been invited or lured by the Greek Tourist Organization offices abroad, in a quest to boost the influx of visitors in order to help our gravely ill economy. I seriously doubt that a rat-eating TV host will bring tourists to the part of the world where rats are consumed, but I am not an expert in PR matters, and maybe it is better to watch or hear about a fearful Greek ‘scorpion fish” than about the unbelievable size of the Greek public debt… (more…)

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After reading Corby’s Maple Mystery — especially the last bit where fenugreek imparts the maple syrup flavor to ice cream– at last I understood why I hate maple syrup, one of the very few flavors I can’t stand; one other is fenugreek (!) which causes your body to reek if you eat lots of it. Basically known as one of the many curry components, fenugreek is a fascinating grain, not a spice but a legume, that contains important amounts of proteins and minerals that make it an essential additive for vegetarians.

Photo by zoyachubby

I was completely unfamiliar with the taste of fenugreek, which is difficult to find in Greece, although, ironically, its name in Latin means “Greek hay.” Ancients called it Tἠλις(telis) — a word since lost. In modern Greek it is called tsemeni, using its Turkishname. In Greek cooking fenugreek is the predominant spice used in the intensely flavored rub used in pastourma –the Greek and Middle Eastern version of pastrami. (more…)

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Besides supplying us with their delicious edible buds, artichokes, if left to blossom, surprise you with their furry stunningly purple and huge flowers. First cousins to the ubiquitous Mediterranean thistle they look like medieval chevaliers, wrapped up in impenetrable green armor. Some artichokes have large spikes on the pointed edges of their leaves, but their sensitive hearts remain tender and vulnerable, juicy and crunchy.

Our first crop of artichokes that I complemented with fresh garlic, intensely flavored parsley and lemons, all from the garden.

I never believed that we would have such an abundance of wonderful artichokes this year.

I never believed that we would have such an abundance of wonderful artichokes this year.

Vangelis Lykourentzos, an artichoke producer from the Peloponnese, brought the tuber-like artichoke roots and helped us plant them.

Vangelis Lykourentzos, an artichoke producer from the Peloponnese, brought the tuber-like artichoke roots and helped us plant them.

In November the first shoots appeared…

…and now the artichokes are thriving.

Our artichokes are not too large but so tender that you can eat leaves and not merely the heart.

The purple heart of the artichoke, before removing the choke.

The common wild Mediterranean thistle is artichoke’s close relative.

The huge purple artichoke flower that blooms it we fail to eat the succulent edible buds.

Braised Monkfish with Artichokes and Olive oil-Garlic Mashed Potatoes

Braised Veal with Artichokes in Egg and Lemon Sauce. The veal & Artichoke dish is from my book, PHOTO by Anastasios Mentis, www.mentistudio.com

Artichokes Marinated in Wine, Olive Oil, Lemon and Garlic

Preparing the Artichokes

Artichokes truly embody the essence of the Mediterranean: sentimental and sensual but at the same time hardy and a model of perseverance. They totally dry out in the summer, only to bud miraculously from the earth with the very first rains, their lush leaves emerging like artesian wells from the soil.

They grow very easily, or so you might be told.  Artichokes don’t need much water, Greeks will tell you, neither do they require extra care; they simply take root, never to leave your garden.  Unfortunately, not inour garden! We have been trying to grow them for years… (more…)

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