Her recipe, the very first I encountered of roasted cabbage wedges –many have been published since– inspired me to try my version.

I omitted the anchovies and parmesan, but added both soy and fish sauce, as well as a large pinch of my favorite hot Florina smoked pepper, along with plenty of rosemary, which I think complements beautifully this Asian-Mediterranean roasted cabbage.  Costas and I loved it, and we make it quite regularly these days.

It accompanies beautifully any kind of meat or chicken, but we also eat it with the wonderful olive-oil-fried eggs from our neighbor’s hens, and feta cheese.

Serves 3- 4 

1 medium head green cabbage (1 ½ kilo, about 3 pounds)

½ cup fruity olive oil, plus more to drizzle at the end

¼  cup soy sauce

2  tablespoons fish sauce

3-4 garlic cloves, finely grated, or passed through a garlic press

2 teaspoons piperokama or any good smoked, hot pepper

¼ cup rosemary leaves, and more sprigs to serve

Freshly ground black pepper, as needed

½ cup whole wheat breadcrumbs, or chopped walnuts or other nuts, such as almonds or hazelnuts

Heat oven to 450 F (230 C).

Cut the cabbage in quarters lengthwise through the core, then cut out the cores and stem. Slice the quarters lengthwise into about 1½-inch-thick (3,5 cm) wedges.

Place the wedges on a rimmed sheet pan, lined with parchment paper, flat sides down. It’s OK if the pan seems a bit crowded; the wedges will shrink as they roast but try not to overlap much, if possible. Lightly drizzle them with oil.

In a small bowl, combine the soy and fish sauces, the garlic, the smoked pepper and the rosemary leaves. Add about ½ cup olive oil and stir to mix. Massage this mixture into each cabbage wedge, making sure it goes in-between the leaves.

Roast until cabbage is lightly browned in spots, about 20 minutes. Spritz with water, nd contilue roasting another 10 minutes, until the cabbage is tender and caramelized. Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and roast another 10 minutes, then remove from the oven, drizzle with a bit more olive oil, sprinkle with some black pepper and serve immediately or let cool and serve at room temperature.

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Now I wend a long way east, taking inspiration from a very interesting recipe in Serious Eats.

“There’s a lot going on in the marinade, but one of the standouts—arguably even the key ingredient—is anchovy-based Vietnamese fish sauce, or nuoc mam,” write Emily and Matt Clifton. “Lime, ginger, and fish sauce add bold, bright, deep flavor to chicken,” they point out.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the particular fish sauce they mention, so I used the standard Thai fish sauce (nam pla) available at the Asian food stores in Greece. Limes are, again, an imported fruit that we can only get on Kea in the summer, when bars and the more sophisticated restaurants use it. I only had the local fragrant lemons, which, I must admit, are quite different in flavor; I decided to combine lemon and orange in my recipe.

I didn’t discard the very flavorful Vietnamese-inspired marinade but used it as the sauce to bake both the chicken as well as the accompanying vegetables, potatoes, some of our last garden peppers, and squash, drizzling with olive oil, as I usually do.

I think you will like this deep-flavored, easy chickenand vegetable dish as much as Costas and I did…

Serves 4 

About 2 1/2 pounds (1 kilo 250 grams) chicken, spatchcocked

The MARINADE

1/4 cup (60ml) soy sauce

1/4 cup (60ml) Asian fish sauce

1/4 (60ml) sunflower oil

2 packed tablespoons (7g) fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, finely chopped (optional)

¼ cup (60ml) fresh lemon juice

¼ cup (60ml) fresh orange juice

1 teaspoon (5g) finely grated zest from 1 orange

3 tablespoon (30g) minced peeled fresh ginger

2 tablespoons smoked hot pepper, or Aleppo pepper flakes

4 medium cloves garlic, minced or grated (about 4 teaspoons)

The VEGETABLES etc. 

3 medium baking potatoes peeled and cut into about 1 ½-inch pieces

1 pound peeled and seeded butternut squash cut into about 1 ½ -inch pieces

1 large red bell pepper seeded and thinly sliced

2 small, sliced oranges, plus 1 orange peeled, quartered and sliced

About 1/3 cup olive oil

Cilantro leaves, for garnish (optional)

Lay the chicken on a parchment-lined plate or pan, or place in a large zipper-lock bag, if you plan to refrigerate it with the marinade.

In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, fish sauce, oil, cilantro, if using, lemon and orange juice and zest, ginger, smoked or hot pepper, and garlic. Pour half the marinade over the chicken, and massage to make sure it coats well the entire front and back. Cover with kitchen film, or seal the bag and let the chicken marinate for at least 45 minutes, and up to 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 375°F (200°C) and set the oven rack in the middle position.

Line a rimmed baking dish with parchment paper and spread the potatoes, squash, and pepper pieces pouring the rest of the marinade over, and tossing well to make sure all vegetables are coated. Add the quartered orange slices and toss again.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Remove the chicken from the bag, and arrange over the vegetables, skin-side up, pouring any marinade drippings over, arrange the orange slices over the breast and thighs and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for about 45 min. then cover loosely with parchment paper and bake another 20 minutes or more, until done –the center of the thickest part of the thighs should register 155 to 160°F (68 to 71°C) on an instant-read thermometer.

If the chicken skin is not brown enough by the time the thighs are cooked through, set broiler to high and broil for 1 minute or until browned and crisp, but be very careful, because the skin can burn fast.  

Let rest for 5 minutes before serving, transfering chicken and vegetables to a platter, if you like, and garnished with orange slices and cilantro.

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I originally wrote and posted this seven years ago, as I was going through my first-grade school book published right after the Second World War. In it there was a description of fassoláda (bean soup), which was often referred to as ‘the Greek national dish’ in the old days. Surprisingly, the version in my book had no tomato! I was shocked, as fassoláda is always made with tomatoes as far as I can remember, but probably in those days canned tomatoes as well as tomato paste were not yet a common ingredient in all households. See also how the kitchen and stove looked in most parts of the country the 1950ies…

My revised recipe below is flavored with the wonderful Piperokama, the dried, smoked, hot peppers of Florina that our friend Naoumidis prepares.  I am told that it will be soon available in the US, as are his other deeply flavored roasted peppers which you can order  HERE and also HERE. 

We love to eat fassolàda with feta cheese, but also with canned sardines in olive oil or any smoked fish.

A simple bowl of olives, and/or taramosalata is the custom during the days of Lent, preceding Christmas.

Serves 4-6

2 cups dried white beans, like cannelini, soaked overnight in water and drained, or 4 cups pre-cooked beans

2/3 cup olive oil

2 small onions, halved and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

4 large garlic cloves, sliced

2 tablespoons (70 grams) tomato paste

3 medium-small carrots, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

One 16-ounce can diced tomatoes with their juice or 2 cups grated ripe tomatoes 

1 tablespoon turmeric

Peel from half an orange, in 2 strips or 2-3 pieces preserved lemon, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste

2 teaspoons Piperokama, or Maraş (Aleppo) pepper, or crushed red pepper flakes, to taste

2 cups coarsely chopped celery, preferably ‘wild’ (see note)

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Extra-virgin olive oil to drizzle

Fleur de sel, preferably from Kythera, to sprinkle

1 lemon, quartered, to serve (optional)

Place the beans in a large pot and cover with plenty of water, about 3-4 inches. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook 5 minutes. Drain, discarding the cooking water. If you use pre-cooked beans omit this step.

In the pot warm the olive oil, add the sliced onion and sauté for 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic, sauté one minute more then add the tomato paste and stir a few seconds. Add the peas, if you use them, along with the carrots and the precooked beans. Toss a few times and add the tomatoes, turmeric, orange peel, salt, Maraş pepper, celery, and 2 cups water.

Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, adding water as needed, until the beans are very tender, almost mushy. Add the mustard, taste and adjust the seasoning. Simmer for 5 minutes more, until the beans are just covered with broth.

Remove from the heat and serve, drizzling with extra-virgin olive oil.

Pass the lemon quarters so people can add a fresh, bright squeeze at the table, and also pass Piperokama or Maraş pepper, as well as good Fleur de sel, we use the one from Antheas, so diners can sprinkle more over the beans.

NOTE:

If you use common celery add an extra 1/2 cup coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley with the mustard toward the end of cooking.
The leaf or‘wild’ celery commonly used in Europe is strongly aromatic and looks like oversized flat leaf parsley. You can easily grow it in your garden or in pots. It is very different from American celery, which has long crunchy stalks, and wild celery is never eaten raw.
You can get leaf or ‘wild’ celery in Asian markets under the name kun choi or kin tsai. When you find it, buy it in quantity, wash it, coarsely chop it and keep it in zip-log bags in the freezer to use as needed. Unlike common celery, it does not keep long in the refrigerator.

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I baked it in a very old copper casserole, over several layers of parchment paper, as the traditional inside lining of the is somewhat worn, and there are very few itinerant craftsmen to renew it.

This dish is particularly good on islands like Naxos, or here on Kea, where the local potatoes have exceptional flavor. If you want to cook this dish using small potatoes there is no need to peel them, but I suggest that you halve them, because they taste best when they can absorb the flavorful juices.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

3 pounds chicken thighs and drumsticks, preferably with the bones and skin

2 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

2/3 cup olive oil

4-6 garlic cloves, minced (to taste)

1 1/2 tablespoons dried oregano, thyme or savory, crumbled

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Freshly ground black pepper, or Aleppo pepper flakes to taste

½ thick-skinned or Mayer lemon thinly sliced (optional)

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock, or white wine

1/3 -1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (to taste)

2–3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, thyme or savory and some sprigs

Preheat the oven to 375°F (200 C)

Place the potatoes and chicken in a single layer in a round baking dish, about 12-inch (30 cm), and pour the oil over them. Add the garlic, dried oregano, salt, cumin, mustard, and pepper to taste, and toss well to coat all-over with the oil and flavorings.

Alternatively, you can work all the above ingredients in the blender and make a paste, then toss the chicken and potatoes to coat all over.

Bake for about 40 minutes. Add the stock, toss well, and bake for 15 minutes more. Drizzle the lemon juice, toss again top with the lemon slices, if using, and bake for about 20 minutes more, or until the chicken and potatoes are cooked through.

If you like, preheat the broiler, and broil the food for 2 to 3 minutes until golden brown. Sprinkle with fresh oregano and serve at once.

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The tart sour cherries are traditionally cooked with meatballs in Iran, Syria, and Turkey, and since I love the combination of fruit with all kinds of meat, I thought chicken would be great with cherries. Boned and skinned chicken thighs cook fast, so the cherries don’t lose their bright color when the dish is done.

Last but not least, I balance the cherries’ tartness with plenty of sliced Kea onions which are wonderfully sweet.  

I marinate the chicken with soy sauce and wine, as I do when I make a stir-fry, and this adds an extra layer of flavor.   

Serve with just fresh crusty bread, or with toasted pita triangles, like Anissa Helou’s Kabab Karaz. Great with a simple bulgur pilaf, as well as with mashed or roasted potatoes. In the winter it is ideally complemented with David Tanis’ Baked Polenta.   

Serves 4-5

MARINADE:

¼ cup soy sauce, preferably Japanese

¼ cup white wine

3 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced

About 2 Tablespoons fresh thyme

1 ½ pounds (750 grams) boned and skinned chicken thigs

About 1/3 cup olive oil

2-3 medium sweet onions (about 1 pound, 500 grams) halved and cut to about 1/8-inch slices

1 ½ pounds  (750 grams) pitted sour cherries, fresh or frozen

Freshly ground pepper and salt, to taste

1-2 teaspoons honey or maple syrup, optional

Fresh thyme to sprinkle 

In a medium bowl mix the marinade ingredients, add the chicken, toss, cover and set aside for about 20 minutes, while you start sautéing the onions. Or you can transfer to a Ziploc bag and refrigerate for up to 3 hours.

In a heavy skillet or sauté pan warm the olive oil and add the onions. As they start to sizzle, toss, lower the heat and let the onions cook for about 8 minutes, to soften.

Increase the heat and add the chicken along with its marinade to the onions in the pan. Cook tossing often for about 10 minutes, or until the pieces are no longer pink.

Add the sour cherries, toss, and cook in high heat for another 10-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked.

Taste, and add some honey or maple syrup if you find the sauce tart –I don’t. Add freshly ground pepper and salt, if needed, sprinkle with fresh thyme and serve.

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Unlike the boldly flavored cacik, the Turkish yogurt-cucumber-garlic soup, common throughout the Mediterranean –an ancestor of tzatziki– this older, fragrant Persian soup has no garlic.

I use almonds or pistachios instead of the walnuts the original recipe calls for, and I add preserved lemon, which enhances the soup with its salty-tangy flavor. I suggest you double the recipe and enjoy it the next morning for breakfast.

Serves 6

1/4 cup (25 g) dried rose petals, crushed

1/3 cup (40 g) almonds, or pistachios

About 1/8 of a  preserved lemon piece, briefly rinsed

2 cups (500 g) Greek-style yogurt

1 1/2 cups (360 ml) ice water

1/2 cup (80 g) golden raisins, finely chopped

1 1/2 cups peeled, seeded, finely diced cucumber (one small or 2/3 of a large cucumber)

1/4 cup (10 g) finely chopped fresh mint

1/4 cup (10 g) finely chopped fresh dill

1/4 cup (25 g) finely chopped chives or scallions, white and most of the green parts

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Sumac

2-3 tablespoons coarsely chopped pistachios (optional)

Garlic Blossoms (optional)

In a small bowl, soak the rose petals in slightly warm water until softened and cold, about 20 minutes. Drain and pat dry with paper towels.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

Spread the almonds or pistachios on a baking sheet and toast for 8 minutes, or until fragrant and lightly colored. Let cool and chop finely in a food processor together with the preserved lemon.

In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt with the ice water. Add the raisins, cucumber, mint, dill, chives, rose petals, and almonds. Season with salt and pepper.

Cover and transfer to the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning, then serve in glasses or in shallow bowls, sprinkling generously with sumac, pistachios, and garlic blossoms, if you like.

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The story goes that some women secretly fed their sons or husbands who were guerrillas in the mountains, during the war of independence from the Ottomans in the 19^th cen. by leaving water jars filled with food near the fountain. In the night, the men came secretly and collected it.

Since the water jar has a small opening, small pieces of meat and vegetables were inserted in the jar, which was then sealed with dough and slow-roasted in the wood-fired oven.

On the other hand, ‘Arni Kleftiko’ (Guerillas’ Lamb) is a variation of the previous recipe. It was a simpler dish the guerillas prepared and baked in holes in the ground, where just a few charcoals warmed the stones keeping a slow, smokeless fire that didn’t betray their position, as they roasted pieces of lamb or goat wrapped in leaves and goat or lamb skin. ‘Kleftiko’ included small pieces of aged, spicy cheese, and is flavored with lemon and herbs. Unfortunately the Kleftiko most taverns make today, has lots of mostly melted cheese and it is far from the original recipe, I feel. 

The version of ‘Arni Stamnas’ I puiblished in my first book was given to me by Electra Kalamboka from Kavalla in northern Greece, and it is obviously a more contemporary recipe with tomatoes, which came to be a common ingredient in Greek cooking around the end of the 19^th cen. after Greece became an independent country.  

Somehow merging the two previous recipes, to cook chicken wrapped in parchment paper. Placing the wrapped food in a clay pot enhances the flavors, as it slows the roasting even further.

Get the Recipe for Slow-roasted Chicken Kleftiko with Vegetables Wrapped in Parchment Paper 

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Since the water jar has a small opening, small pieces of meat and vegetables were inserted in the jar, which was then sealed with dough and slow-roasted in the wood-fired oven.

On the other hand, ‘Arni Kleftiko’ (Guerillas’ Lamb) is a variation of the previous recipe. It was a simpler dish the guerillas prepared and baked in holes in the ground, where just a few charcoals warmed the stones keeping a slow, smokeless fire that didn’t betray their position, as they roasted pieces of lamb or goat wrapped in leaves and goat or lamb skin. ‘Kleftiko’ included small pieces of aged, spicy cheese, and is flavored with lemon and herbs. Unfortunately the Kleftiko most taverns make today, has lots of mostly melted cheese and it is far from the original recipe, I feel. 

The version of ‘Arni Stamnas’ I puiblished in my first book was given to me by Electra Kalamboka from Kavalla in northern Greece, and it is obviously a more contemporary recipe with tomatoes, which came to be a common ingredient in Greek cooking around the end of the 19^th cen. after Greece became an independent country.  

Somehow merging the two previous recipes, to cook chicken wrapped in parchment paper. Placing the wrapped food in a clay pot enhances the flavors, as it slows the roasting even further.

Serve with bulgur pilaf, or with plain olive-oil-and- pepper spaghetti or orzo, dousing the pasta with the delicious Kleftiko juices.

Serves 4-5

About 650 grams boned and skinned Chicken Thighs

3 medium carrots, sliced lengthwise and cut into 3-4 inch pieces

1 medium purple onion, halved and sliced

3 small eggplants –about 800 grams

5 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced

1 lemon, halved to remove the pips then thinly sliced, PLUS more lemon juice as needed

3 bell peppers (red, green and yellow) seeded and cut into strips

150 grams hard, aged goat’s or sheep’s milk cheese cut  into small pieces (I used some leftover  Manoura of Sifnos (the cheese that ages in wine dregs) BUT any hard, spicy & salty goat’s or sheep’s milk cheese is fine –try the very hard aged mizithra, or aged, hard Pecorino. 

About 1/3 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, preferably the one with the seeds

Ground coriander seeds, cumin, salt and lots of Aleppo pepper)

A few branches of thyme and/or oregano, and dried Greek oregano to sprinkle at the end

Preheat the oven to 175 C (350 F).

Place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss well, then cut two large pieces of parchment paper placing them one on top of the other in the pan –clay or Dutch oven that you plan to roast the food in.

Close the paper to cover the food and place the cover on top of the pan.

Bake for about 3 hours, opening after 2 hours to check and maybe taste the juices, correcting the seasoning with more salt, pepper, or olive oil.

When everything is almost fully cooked, open the parchment paper and continue roasting to get some color and caramelize the top of the vegetables.

Sprinkle with oregano and serve.

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The sweet beet greens are especially delicious flavored with the tart, avgolemono sauce.

Serves 6

6  whole chicken legs, separated, or a whole cut-up chicken –preferably free range

Salt and coarsely ground black pepper

1 teaspoon fennel seeds, preferably freshly ground or crushed in a mortar

2  tablespoons ground coriander seeds

1  large onion, coarsely chopped

About 2 cups Chicken Stock or more, as needed

2 1/2  pounds beet greens with stems; separate the stems and cut into 2-3 inch pieces (see NOTE)

1-2  fresh oregano or thyme sprigs (optional) 

AVGOLEMONO SAUCE

About 1 1/2 cups cooking broth from the chicken and beet greens 

2/3 cup white wine

2 large eggs

4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more, to taste

1  tablespoon cornstarch

Freshly ground black pepper and Aleppo pepper, to taste 

Chopped fennel fronds or dill 

Prepare the chicken: Season the meat on both sides generously with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with fennel seeds and coriander all over the chicken pieces.

In the deep skillet heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and sauté the chicken pieces on both sides until nicely browned. With a slotted spoon remove the chicken pieces to a platter and keep warm.

Add the onion to the skillet and briefly fry, then pour over the wine and broth and scrape up any caramelized bits at the bottom of the pan.

Arrange the chicken pieces in the pan  and bring to a boil. Half-cover the skillet, turn the heat to medium and cook for about 35 minutes, until the chicken is almost cooked, adding more broth or water, as needed. It should be quite brothy. 

Add the beet stems to the chicken and cook for about 8 minutes, or until tender, then add the beet leaves, toss, and cook for another 4-5 minutes until done to your taste. 

Make the Avgolemono Sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, 3 tablespoons of the lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of the wine. In a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch with the remaining wine, then whisk into the egg mixture.

Whisking constantly, slowly pour about 1  1/2 cups of the hot cooking broth, 1/2 cup at a time, into the egg mixture. 

Pour the egg mixture into the saucepan and simmer, stirring very gently, until the sauce thickens.

Taste and adjust the seasonings, adding pepper and more lemon juice if you like.

Serve hot, sprinkling with dill.

NOTE: 

Instead of beet greens and stems you can use chard, large, not baby, spinach, or a combination of various greens, as in Yahnera.

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Cut into chunks a couple of small, longish, tender eggplants, some peeled butternut squash, one or two bell peppers, add a sliced onion and a couple of garlic cloves and douse them all with olive oil; sprinkle with some cumin, ground coriander seeds, oregano or thyme, plenty of Aleppo (or Maras) pepper flakes and of course salt, and bake in the center of the oven for about 45 minutes, tossing once after 30 minutes or so.  

For my 15×12 inch (37×32 cm) deep pan I used about 1 1/2 pounds squash and more or less the same weight of tender (no seeds) eggplants.

I find that squash and eggplant complement beautifully each other! But by all means, if you want to use any other seasonal vegetables, the same formula more or less works for zucchini, or with sliced fennel bulb instead of the squash etc. 

A medium onion, thickly sliced, and a couple of coarsely chopped garlic cloves are essential. Add 2 or 3 bell peppers, any color you like, and drizzle with plenty of olive oil –I would say that I used about 1/2 cup. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon cumin, plus about 2 tablespoons ground coriander seeds, and 2 teaspoons oregano or thyme. Add salt and pepper of course and toss very well –your hands or 2 large spatulas are needed here. 

Bake in a medium-high oven (about 400F, 200 C) for about 45 minutes.

Just before serving, sprinkle with plenty of fresh or dried thyme or oregano. Adding it at the end enhances the aromas and flavors tremendously. 

Don’t forget to line your pan with parchment paper so that cleaning it afterwards is dead easy!

These roasted vegetables are great hot, warm or room temperature. If you refrigerate the leftovers, heat in a low oven or in the microwave. 

You can also use them as the base to make an omelette, especially my favorite Frittata-stratta. 

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