I had lots of weird pets when I was little, they’d never get me a dog, so I had to satisfy myself with various creepy creatures.  For a while I had a small tank of tiny eels that I caught at a river, together with a bunch of teeny frogs that had just grown legs, and loved to jump out of the tank.  I also had a bat for a few days, which was the main reason I bought my wife a stuffed bat from IKEA a couple of years ago. 

But by far the largest pets I had were three chickens, and a little duck.  Unfortunately, these grew up fast, and we had to give them away. I mean, they were never pets really; they didn’t have fur or follow you around.  Pure frustration for a 12-year-old boy...

Contrary to the mild dish my mother cooked, I add green chilies or plenty of freshly ground pepper to my veal and artichoke avgolemono.

In this versatile dish from Tinos Island, the acidity of the sauce is a good contrast to the sweetness of the artichokes which traditionally are cooked together with fresh favas.