For the first time in my life, I will be spending these days in the Vernal Equinox; Spring.
Yerp, I am turning my seasonal clock back/forward and will be lavishing my sinuses with the floral pollen hazed air of Thessaloniki and surrounding Greece.
I’m not very religious and I don’t fast but I do have respect for the traditions of the liturgical cloth I hail from, specifically, the gastronomic ones.
I reckon Greek Easter showcases our kitchens and spits at their best.
There’s all the Easter bread baking (Tsoureki), shortbread plaiting (koulourakia), red egg art making, whole beast marinating for the Sunday lamb-on-the-spit and my favourite of faves, the fast-breaking midnight soups.

I grew up in a household where no recipe or food item were a ‘no-go’.
My dad was my best teacher of this, as he devoured ANYTHING that was well sourced, marinated and seasoned.
So naturally, offal was a regular on the menu.
Whole baked lamb head, beef tongue, liver, brain, sweetbreads, heart, giblets, gizzards, tripe, blood, guts and grease off the rod…..it was all welcomed.
With a nice slosh of the good extra virgin oil, a sprinkle of rigani and a squirt of fresh lemon, it all went down a treat.
So when it came to Easter, Mayeritsa and Patsa, otherwise known as ‘The Gut Soups’ by the haters, were always looked forward to.
But not by the haters.
The haters would be the ones making the dash towards the safety of the chicken or veggie soup at the midnight feast, squeamish at a slight sight of a tiny piece of intestine.
I wasn’t one of them.
I sat over the soup pot thinking of ways to create world peace through offal.
There just HAD to be a way to open up people’s heads and hearts to it.
Afterall, a beast had devoted its tranquil existence for the feeding frenzy of few.
Historically, the innards eaten at the midnight table were cleaned from the lamb slaughtered for the Sunday spit. Back in the day, one whole animal provided multiple meals for farming families with very little. (Ironically, not so unfamiliar in Greece’s current economic climate).

So, there I sat trying to adapt the recipe and, by christ the resurrected, I would.
I brought in the French and the surgeons.
The French would provide bone roasting techniques for caramelisation and depth of flavour, the surgeons would clean and slice up those organs into almost unrecongnisable pieces.

Below are recipes for both soups I always make every Easter, Mayeritsa being the most traditional, Patsa not so much.
But dad and I eat both with ‘gutso’ every time (and I’ve converted a few of those haters over the years, too).

World Peace and a great Easter Feast to all.

.
MAYERITSA (Lamb Offal Easter Soup)

++ ΜΑΓΕΡΙΤΣΑ ++

INGREDIENTS

1 whole lamb neck*

4 lamb shanks*

*Ask the butcher to slice neck and shanks into smaller pieces with their blade saw or attempt this at home at your peril

1 lamb heart, liver and lungs, called a ‘Sikotaria’ (**All Greek butchers will sell this intact during Easter week)

2 lamb tongues

1 piece of tripe

500g lamb intestine (**Availability will depend on local Abattoir regulations. In the recent years, availability has varied)

1 whole head of garlic, finely chopped

3 red onions, finely chopped

1 bunch spring onions, chopped, keep white and green parts separated

1 bunch fresh dill, finely chopped, stalks and all

½ cos or iceberg lettuce, finely shredded

1 cup medium grain rice

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

3L cold water or beef/chicken stock

For avgolemono:

2 eggs

1 fresh lemon, juiced

METHOD

Cleaning:

A super sharp knife and scissors are the required tools for the following.

Lamb neck and shanks may only need a light trim of any excess fat, but remember the ‘fat is flavour’ mantra when doing so. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The ‘Sikotaria’ (lamb heart, liver & lungs) will need a good trim and removal of any dark blemishes. Cut the aorta and ventricles (white parts) away from the heart muscle (red parts). Once done so, cut the red muscle into 1 cm pieces. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The liver will need similar trimming; cut away any flesh that is blemished or white. Cut into 1 cm pieces. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The lungs are naturally light pink and white, so trim away what look like the better pieces and cut to 1 cm. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

Similarly trim the tongue and cut to 1cm pieces. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The tripe is usually well bleached by the butcher, so trim away the better part of the ‘honeycomb’ and snip into 1 cm pieces. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The intestines are also bleached and cleaned by the butcher (to regulation), however they will still require a thorough clean and trim.
Snip to half meter lengths.
Using a long skewer or knitting needle, turn inside out.
Lightly scrub and rinse well under cold water, then snip into 1 cm pieces.
Set aside.

As a guide, I usually stick to an Offal : Non-Offal ratio of 1:3

You can never expect to use every part of the offal and there is certainly alot of waste.
The amount of cleaned and trimmed offal usually ends up being about one third of the total of lamb neck and shank meat used.
Otherwise, I find the offal meat overpowers the soup (pushing the hater further offside).

You can always adjust this ratio to suit your taste, but whatever you decide, please don’t omit the offal all together!

Pre-heat oven to 200C.

Place cleaned and trimmed neck and shanks onto a baking tray.
Roast until golden and the red blood present in some of the joints has turned a red wine colour. This process caramelises the bones and meat and will provide a sweet depth of flavour as well as a deeper coloured broth. Remove from oven and set aside.

Fill two large saucepans with cold water and place side by side on the stove. (Two makes the task faster)
Bring water to boil then reduce to simmer. Add ½ cup of vinegar to each saucepan.
In separate batches, keeping the like organs together, blanch in the simmering water for about 5-10 mins. This process further cleans and removes scum from the meat. The vinegar helps alkalise any impurities.
Remove and again, rinse well under cold water and set aside.

Making the soup:

In a separate pot, heat olive oil and sauté red onions, garlic and whites of spring onions until translucent.

Add roasted neck, shank meat and offal pieces and saute with the onions for 5 mins.

Add half the dill and green spring onion tops.

Pour in water or stock and simmer for about 1 ½ hours, skimming any impurities that rise to the surface along the way.

About half way through cooking, add the rice.
Season to taste.

The soup is ready when the meat is falling off the shank and neck bones and the rice is cooked. The soup should be thick; if desired you can adjust by adding a little more stock or water to thin it further.

Remove the neck and shank pieces and allow to slightly cool. Clean away all their meat and add back into the soup. Discard bones.

Add the shredded lettuce, remaining dill and green spring onion tops and simmer for a further 5 mins until lettuce is soft.

Whisk the eggs and lemon together.

Remove a ladle of the soup stock and slowly add to the egg/ lemon mix whisking further until white and frothy. (Use a stick blender for best results)

Add this frothy mix back into the soup, stirring as you do.

Serve hot with extra lemon wedges.

PATSA (Lamb & Pork Offal Easter Soup) 

++ ΠΑΤΣΑ ++

INGREDIENTS

1 whole lamb neck **

4 lamb shanks **

5 pork trotters**

**Ask the butcher to cut into smaler pieces with their blade saw or attempt this at home at your peril

1 piece of tripe

2 whole heads of garlic, finely chopped

3 red onions, finely chopped

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt & pepper

3 fresh bay leaves

3L cold water or beef/chicken stock

For Skorthoxitho (Garlic vinegar dressing):

1 whole head of garlic, minced

1 Tblspn roasted chilli flakes

1 cup red or white wine vinegar

METHOD

Cleaning:

A super sharp knife and scissors are the required tools for the following.

Lamb neck and shanks may only need a light trim of any excess fat, but again remember the ‘fat is flavour’ mantra when doing so. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

The pork trotters only need a thorough rinse.

Place cleaned and trimmed neck, shanks and trotters onto a baking tray.
Roast until golden and the red blood present in some of the joints has turned a red wine colour. This process caramelises the bones and meat and will provide a sweet depth of flavour as well as a deeper coloured broth. Remove from oven and set aside.

The tripe is usually well bleached by the butcher, so trim away the better part of the ‘honeycomb’ and snip into 1 cm pieces. Rinse well under cold water and set aside.

Fill a large saucepan with cold water.
Bring water to boil then reduce to simmer. Add ½ cup vinegar.
Blanch tripe in the simmering water for about 5-10 mins. This process further cleans and removes scum from the meat. The vinegar helps alkalise any impurities.
Remove and again, rinse well under cold water and set aside.

Making the soup:

In a separate pot, heat olive oil and sauté red onions and garlic until translucent.

Add roasted neck, shank and trotters and saute with the onions for 5 mins.

Add the bay leaves and season to taste.

Pour in water or stock and simmer for about 1 ½ hours, skimming any impurities that rise to the surface along the way.

The soup is ready when the meat is falling off the bones.

Remove the neck, shank and trotter pieces and allow to slightly cool. Clean away all their meat and add back into the soup.
Discarding the bones is optional. If you are a bone marrow sucker, add them back into soup.

To make the skorthoxitho (garlic vinegar dressing), add garlic, chilli and vinegar to a clean jar with lid and shake.

Serve hot soup with skorthoxitho and tsoureki on the side.

The skorthoxitho will cut some of the fattiness of the soup, the sweet bread will complement the pork flavour.

TSOUREKI CLUB

In Greek women possies all over, the tsoureki making feat is spoken about and critiqued as if one’s life depends on it (or as if Michael Pierre White is judging).
The best never readily share their secrets or recipes.
I always feel like they are part of an exclusive ‘Tsoureki Club’, ostracising other Greek women who didn’t wear doily aprons, had long polished fingernails and peroxide bouffant hair (my mum).
I was brought up amongst a posse of full time working Greek mums who much preferred to buy their tsourekia than spend hours kneading and waiting for molecules to react, so I never really learnt how to bake from scratch until much later on.
My ‘formal’ tsoureki training took place in Mrs Loula’s kitchen.
Mrs Loula hailed from Athens (that’s about all I can reveal about her identity, ‘they’ may be watching!)
A polished, softly spoken, super polite and compassionate lady who gave up her whole day one Greek Easter, divulging her secrets to little old me.
Her baking skills were legendary. Her tsourekia, a dream.
Armed with my handycam and a pencil, I recorded and scribbled as much of her info and instruction as possible.
I needed all I could get to enable me to replicate these new found skills in my own little kitchen.
The following year I baked and partly failed.
The year after that I became Mr Miyagi.
Following that, I was teaching others.

The recipe below is my posse’s secret. Guard it as if your life depends on it.

And always remember:

The first rule of Tsoureki Club is, you do not talk about Tsoureki Club.
The second rule of Tsoureki Club is,….

(To this day I don’t muck around when it’s Tsoureki baking time. I can’t get enough of them and aim to over-indulge every Easter, so the quantity below makes about 13 Tsourekia, enough for giveaways and to curb my addiction.)

3 kg plain strong flour (eg. Western Milling Special White or Cake/Bread flour)
300g fresh yeast
1 cup warm water (about 40 C) for yeast
1 cup water (for mahlepi seeds)
2 1/2 cups full cream milk
1kg unsalted organic butter, melted
1 kg sugar
12 free range eggs
2 packets (15g each) mahlepi seeds or 30g ground mastic tears
4 tspn vanilla extract
grated zest of 2 lemons or oranges (if flavouring with mastiha, omit the zest)

To decorate:
5 beaten egg yolks with a little water, to glaze
red dyed eggs,1 per loaf (if using)
flaked almonds or sesame seeds

There was no way I could eat everything my garden produced at once so to minimise waste I got all the jars out!
This recipe is super easy.
You can substitute the eggplant for peppers, green tomatoes, carrot, cabbage, beets…no problemo.
All you need is time, patience and a good dishwasher to sterilise all your jars.

Ingredients

8 medium organic eggplants
200g salt flakes
600ml-800ml white wine vinegar
OR half wine vinegar : half apple cider vinegar
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
fresh pepper
1 1/2 tsp ground cloves
5 sprigs basil or fresh oregano, leaves picked
3 red chillies, such as milder long red chillies, split (not seeded)
Equal amounts vegetable (rice bran or grape seed) and extra virgin olive oil to top jars (perhaps 500ml-800ml)

Method

Day 1
Peel the eggplants using a vegetable peeler and slice lengthways into 1cm slices.
Cut the slices into strips about 1cm wide.
Place into a bowl and toss well with the salt.
Place in a colander, cover with a plate and weigh down evenly overnight – the eggplant will lose lots of water, so make sure the colander has somewhere to drain to.

Day 2
Rinse the eggplant in cold water, then squeeze well to extract the moisture.
Place into a bowl and cover with white wine vinegar.
Cover with a plate to keep the eggplant submerged and again leave overnight.

Day 3
Squeeze out the excess vinegar vigorously with your hands until the eggplant is quite compressed, place into a bowl with the garlic, banana peppers, pepper, ground cloves and basil.
Toss well.
Put the eggplant mix into sterilised preserving jars, pressing it down so it is quite compact, adding a chilli to each jar.
Top with the blended oil, gently tapping the jars as you add the oil to remove any air pockets.
Seal.
Store in a cool, dark pantry space or cupboard for two weeks before using.
Keep in the fridge once opened.

Makes about 3 x 400g jars.

My tomato seedlings were planted late last year and have hence taken, what seems like, f-o-r-e-v-e-r to mature.
They are all still hanging on their vines, leaves all dry and crispy, giant in size and…..green.
And they are turning red, two by two, day at a time; I feel like they are conspiring against me.

Lucky for me, my mum’s tomatoes have been in a mass-scale production line frenzy and, believe it or not, I have overdosed on the greek salad; too much of a good thing CAN be not so good.

So, I have fished out my fancy jars, sterilised the hell out of them and are in mini-scale food preservation mode.

You don’t need to get all ‘yiayia’ on an epic scale, just a few jars in small batches will do and you will soon fill up your little pantry.
This way you still remain sane, pick as you need (or in my case, as these buggers allow me to) and avoid any waste lost to birds, possums and other hungry midnight munchers.

The below recipe was adapted from my most recent book purchase ‘Growing Honest Food’ by Gabriella Gomersall-Hubbard. A gem of a read about life at the Rose Creek Estate in East Keilor, Melbourne where Tony, Lina and Angela Siciliano grow, harvest, preserve and produce their own organically grown food, olive oil and wine.
I have added fresh oregano but the Siciliano’s use fresh sweet basil instead (naturally).

And I don’t need to remind you that all 3 ingredients are organically grown.

Chopped preserved tomatoes

red mature, firm tomatoes, cut into chunks
fresh oregano, torn
red onions, finely chopped

Wash and dry the tomatoes and oregano.
Put all ingredients in a bowl and mix gently by hand.
Add to sterilised jars, pressing down firmly after each addition.
Bang jar onto a rolled teatowel to ensure pieces are firmly compacted.
Fill jar to ¾; if jars are overfilled they can explode during boiling.
Close lids tightly.
Add jars to a pot with water, leaving a gap between them so that they do no rattle.
You can add a tea towel to the bottom of the pot to create extra security against breakage.
Slowly bring to boil.
Cover and leave to gently simmer for 1 hour.
Allow the jars to cool in the pot.
Take them out to dry and store in a cool, dark cupboard.
Refrigerate once opened.

[The jar with the black lid in front (pic RHS above) was filled using only ONE Black Krim tomato. This tomato actually still appears green when fully ripe. Super proud of this beauty!]

See how they love to torture me.

Preservation on a sane scale

What to make with a glut of eggplants and zucchini?
Why the Greek national dish, of course!

Ingredients

3 large eggplants, thinly sliced (organic if you can get them)
3 large potatoes, thinly sliced (organic if you can get them)
3 zucchini, thinly sliced (organic if you can get them)
1/4 cup (60ml) olive oil
1kg lamb mince
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tblspn tomato paste
1 tsp each of cinnamon, clove & nutmeg
1 x 400g can tomatoes or freshly pulped.
1/2 cup red wine
1 tblpsn sugar or honey
1/4 cup chopped parsley
1 egg white (free range), beaten
1 cup grated kefalograviera cheese

Ingredients for the light white sauce or bechemel:

8 Tblspn butter, chopped
½ cup unbleached plain flour (8 Tblspn)
4 ½ cups full cream milk
2 cups kefalograviera cheese, finely grated
good pinch ground nutmeg
good pinch ground pepper
1 egg yolk (free range & optional)

Method

Preheat oven to 180°C.
In batches, fry eggplant and zucchini slices in olive oil until golden.
Set aside to drain.

For the meat sauce:
Brown mince, onion and garlic.
Add spices, parsley and tomato paste and stir
Add can tomatoes, wine, sugar and season with salt and pepper.
Stir, cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes or until sauce is cooked.
When sauce is ready, stir the egg white and 1 cup kefalograviera cheese into the meat mixture.

In the meantime, make the bechemel:
Melt the butter in a non-stick saucepan.
Stir in flour and cook for about 1 min, constantly stirring.
Pour in milk.
On low heat, cook until sauce thickens, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat.
Add the 2 cups kefalograviera cheese.
Season with nutmeg and pepper and add the beaten egg yolks to enrich sauce (optional).

To assemble: 
Divide some eggplant, potato and zucchini among ovenproof dishes.
Top with mince.
Layer again with eggplant, potato & zucchini and more mince sauce.
Spoon bechemel on top
Dot with butter or drizzle with some extra oil.
Bake for 20-30 mins.

N.B
You can always make a low-cal modification of the above by substituting with low-fat ingredients (milk, cheese, mince, etc) and omit the frying stage with both eggplant and zucchini slices.
But as I always say, it won’t taste the same as your mum’s or yiayia’s.

Ingredients

500g pitted kalamata olives
¼ cup grated kefalotiri cheese
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine or balsamic vinegar
3 to 4 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Preparation

Process all ingredients in a food processor until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides as needed.

Spread on EvErYthiNG!!!

Sweet yoghurt cream….

If you’re stuck for an easy summer dessert, you
can’t go wrong with this velvety sweet beauty!
I’ve nearly always got Greek yoghurt in my fridge
and a quick look in my pantry,
usually reveals a can of Nestle condensed milk
hiding in the back somewhere.
Sun kissed lemons from the tree in the backyard
and some gorgeous, door knob sized red globe grapes
and you’re in business!

400g condensed milk (1 can)
800g thick greek yoghurt (the thicker, the better)
Finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon
Pinch of salt
A handful of red globe grapes, rinsed.

Gently fold together the condensed milk, yogurt and lemon zest until just combined.
Spoon into serving glasses and cover with cling film.
Refrigerate for 12 hours or overnight until set.

Scatter red globe grapes on top and serve.

My dad went through a phase where he had hermetically attached a fishing rod to his right hand.

Every opportunity he got he was on a pier, somewhere.
Severe weather warnings or not, he was there.

No boat – that was for sissies.

Just him, the bait and the promising potential of the water.

Sometimes, hours later, there was nothing.

Other times, there was enough to fill a large chest freezer. And then some.

The ‘and then some’ was made into Psari Plaki (Baked Fish)

Any fish, really.

Just ensure it’s super fresh!

Ingredients

1kg fish, filleted and cleaned well (Cod, Bakaliaro, Snapper, Perch)
4-5 golden delight potatoes, sliced
5-6 summer tomatoes, sliced
2 red onions, sliced
1 whole head of garlic
3-4 springs of fresh oregano
a handful of fresh parsley
1 tblspn dried oregano
dried chilli flakes (optional)
a splash of white wine or retsina
a good glug of EV olive oil

Drizzle oil on the bottom of the baking dish.
Add slices of potatoes, onions & tomatoes.
Scatter garlic cloves, dried & fresh oregano ( and chilli, if using).
Lay fillets on top.
Splash wine and more oil over the top.
Scatter with fresh parsley.
Bake for 25-30 mins in 180C oven, initially covered with baking paper & foil.
Then uncover in the last 5mins.
Mop with bread.

Post Christmas leftovers (too many kourambiethes, melomakarona – yours and from the in-laws)

Christmas cherries in abundance (and as cheap as they’re gonna get)

Sweet tooth is whinging, again!

You got time on your side.
You are on holidays, after all.
And there’s no need to even go near an oven.
So, cherry-up baby!

Ingredients

Base
140g kourambiethes (or melomakarona)
85g soft butter

Filling
250g softened cream cheese
150g manouri cheese
½ cup icing sugar
250ml double cream
1/2 tspn lemon juice
1 tspn vanilla extract

Topping
2 cups pitted fresh black cherries
2 cups sugar

Blitz the biscuits in a food processor until they begin to form crumbs, then add the butter and whiz again to make the mixture clump.
Press this mixture into a 20cm springform tin; press a little up the sides to form a slight ridge.
Beat together the cheeses, icing sugar, vanilla extract and lemon juice in a bowl until smooth.
Lightly whip the double cream, and then fold it into the cream cheese mixture.
Spoon the cheesecake filling on top of the biscuit base and smooth with a spatula.
Put it in the fridge for 3 hours or overnight.

To make the topping:
Place cherries and sugar in a saucepan and gently heat, stirring frequently until sugar has dissolved and cherries are soft and caramelized.
Cool.

When you are ready to serve the cheesecake, unmould it and spread the black cherry over the top.

Ingredients

For the mincemeat baklava filling:
70g sultanas
70g dried cranberries
70g pitted dates, chopped
70g walnuts, chopped
70g pistachios, chopped
finely grated zest of 1 orange
freshly squeezed juice of 1 orange
finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp honey
½ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
2 tbsp Metaxa brandy or mastiha liquor
1 tbsp rosewater or orange blossom water

flour, to dust
250g good puff pastry
1 pack filo pastry
50g melted butter
1 free-range or organic egg, beaten
50g flaked almonds
icing sugar, to dust

Method

To make mincemeat baklava filling:

Put all the ingredients for the filling in a saucepan and cook over a low heat for about 15 minutes until nearly all the liquid has been absorbed. Leave to cool.

Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll out the puff pastry into a big rectangle about 20x40cm and the thickness of a $2 coin.
Thinly spread the mincemeat over the pastry, leaving a 1cm gap around the edges.
Tightly roll up the pastry, lengthways, like a Swiss roll, place it on a floured tray, and pop in the fridge to firm up.

Take two cupcake trays (for 12 cupcakes each) and butter each one lightly with the melted butter.
Place one layer of filo pastry over the tray (you may need more than one sheet to cover each tray depending on the size of the sheets) and ease the pastry into each hole.
Brush with the melted butter, then cover with a second layer of filo pastry.
Brush with butter again.

Take the puff pastry roll out of the fridge and, with a sharp knife, cut it into 24 slices.
Place each slice, flat-side down, into a filo-lined hole.
Brush with the egg and sprinkle a few flaked almonds on top of each little pie, then pop both trays in the oven for about 25 minutes, until cooked and golden brown.

Leave to cool, then crack the individual pies out of the trays.

Dust with a little icing sugar before serving.

nb. You can freeze the cooked, cooled mince pies in their trays (just wrap the lot in cling film) or in a plastic container. Then reheat them in a hot oven straight from the freezer.

This recipe was adapted from Jamie Oliver’s Best Christmas on Lifestyle Food.