What to Cook Tonight #12

A Greek Special! With videos! We are writing from Lindos, where we have been busy writing and cooking and spending much-needed quality time together.

As we live on opposite sides of the world (Annabel in Wānaka, Rose in Lisbon) we try and meet for a week or so every year to have some family time (although arguably, this is often work time). This year, we’re are feeling so lucky to be in one of our favourite places — Greece. We’ve rented a charming house in a little fishing village that has a fantastic kitchen and courtyard that is perfect for writing, cooking, eating, and drinking (in no particular order).

Whilst it is very much high summer here, we wanted to share a taste of Greece with you all — so we’ve got some delicious recipes that we developed for you this week using trans-seasonal ingredients, allowing us to all cook together!

Greece is very much the land of olive oil and the birthplace of the Mediterranean diet. Greece is also one of the worlds “blue zones” — regions in which many people live well into their 90s and experience lower rates of heart disease, cancer, and other diseases associated with age and lifestyle factors. The reason for these healthy populations is a variety of factors: plant based diets, relatively low-stress lifestyles, close relationships with others and tight-knit communities.

The much-lauded Mediterranean diet very much reflects the local landscape — lots of fresh vegetables and fruit, bread and cereals, as well as olive oil, fish, and plants rich in omega-3 fatty acids like wild greens (horta vrasta). Free-range eggs, walnuts, anchovies, and sardines are also excellent sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which may benefit depression and anxiety, improve heart health, reduce inflammation, and prevent age-related mental decline (amongst many other things).

As we don’t have access to a large variety of ingredients this week, we are keeping things very simple — olive oil, lemons, garlic, dried oregano, rosemary from the garden, and a little paprika that Annabel found in Spain are the flavours that unify these recipes.

Village Bean Soup with Silverbeet & Lemon

With this in mind, our first recipe we are sharing this week is for a Village Bean Soup with Silverbeet & Lemon. This soup is a riff off a traditional Greek soup called fasolada, which is considered, along with Greek salad, to be the national food of Greece. Our version has opted to exclude tomatoes to keep the flavour light and focus on the greens, and the addition of paprika and oregano adds a touch of aromatic spice.

You can use any type of bean you like for this, and play around with the vegetables. A large onion works well in place of the leeks, and spinach, kale and cavolo nero can all be subbed in for the silverbeet. We love to serve this with a big dollop of Greek yoghurt, a squeeze of lemon, and a sprinkle of herbs. This recipe is easily halved if you’re cooking for a smaller household.

Leftover celery is excellent in chicken or tuna sandwiches (you can use any remaining chicken from the traybake for this too). Shred the chicken meat (or mash the tuna) and mix with finely chopped celery, finely chopped red onion, finely chopped parsley, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper. You can add some toasted pine nuts if you like too. Slather into fluffy bread and enjoy!

We’ve decided to try something new this week and share a video for this too! You can join us in our little Greek kitchen and watch it below: