It’s early morning at the top of Mercado del Capo in Palermo and the stalls are already piled high with this morning’s catch glistening with seawater, a playful light casting myriad rainbows across the benches. Mountains of lemons piled into baskets, purple garlic, bunches of wild mountain fennel , briny sea salt, spicy red chillies,…
Tag: Extra Virgin Olive oil
Jaffa Fattoush Salad with a Zesty Sumac and Pomegranate Dressing
I love to explore new places and I love to get lost. To my mind, it’s only way to discover a place. My Israeli friends think I am absolutely insane to walk out into the summer sun with no destination in mind but I walk in the shade and find the sanctuary of a tiny…
Greek Skordalia with Slow-roasted Plum Tomatoes, Capers and Organic Thyme
Skordalia is a beautifully simple smooth purée of waxy potatoes, lots of juicy garlic, lashings of vibrant extra-virgin olive oil, a generous splash of white wine vinegar and flat leaf parsley whipped together to create a classic Greek dip which is served at room temperature with a scattering of salty capers. Trust me, this bears…
Greek Flatbread with Organic Thyme and Olive Oil
No mezze table is complete without copious amounts of freshly baked bread and you will find plenty of recipes on this website but here is one for the simplest of them all, flatbread. It requires no proving so it’s ready to go in a matter of minutes; simply prepare the dough ahead and cover with…
Shuk Hummus with Smoked Chilli Harissa and Toasted Sesame Seeds
Machane Yehuda market in Jerusalem was the first full blown Middle Eastern market I ever visited and, for me, it was an absolutely mind-blowing experience with over 250 vendors and stall holders inviting me to sample their beautiful chaos of fresh fruits and vegetables, bread, pastries and halva, cheeses, nuts and seeds, herbs and spices all piled…
Nephele’s Beetroot and Garlic Salad with Creamy Ricotta and Fresh Dill, Pantzaria Salata
Whilst holidaying in the harbour town of Symi in August, we were invited to lunch by my friend Nephele, the lucky custodian of one of those beautiful pastel-coloured neo-classical villas that slowly wind up the herb-covered hills that rise up from the sea. Hers is buttercup yellow. Inside, the huge middle floor is open plan…
Dakos, a Cretan Summer Bruschetta with Ricotta and Organic Oregano
The beautiful island of Crete with its wild mountainous terrain and a strong traditional culture is justifiably proud of a cuisine that is internationally famed for its unique ingredients and flavours. Based on simple techniques, it’s the variety of local produce that distinguishes their dishes: mountain herbs and greens, wild bulbs, unique cheeses, olives and,…
Greek Tomato, White Bean and Caper Salad with Lemon and Olive Oil with Honey and Thyme-baked Feta
We woke up to the sound of bees and the distant toll of a single church bell. The women in the small white houses that surrounded ours prepared for their day by sweeping their jewel bright bougainvillea lined courtyards quietly talking to their neighbours. Theirs were animated conversations that I wanted to be part of…
Greek Kritharaki with Feta, Tomatoes, Olives and Wild Oregano
‘Each day had a tranquility a timelessness about it so that you wished it would never end. But then the dark skin of the night would peel off and there would be a fresh day waiting for us glossy and colourful as a child’s transfer and with the same tinge of unreality’ – Gerald Durrell. I…
Medina Spiced Bulgur Wheat and Chickpeas with a Yoghurt, Preserved Lemon and Mint Dressing
“The desert landscape is always at its best in the half-light of dawn or dusk. The sense of distance lacks: a ridge nearby can be a far-off mountain range, each small detail can take on the importance of a major variant on the countryside’s repetitious theme. The coming of day promises a change; it is…
Cardamom and Dill 