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 THE FOLLOWING IS AN ARTICLE PUBLISHED MONTHLY IN R.I. HOME--

  LIVING & DESIGN  MAGAZINE, written by Master Chef George Karousos

                                                   JULY

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Ancient Flavors

Fresh approach of ancient flavors, this is the approach of the Greek cuisine for thousands of years. In the book The Life of Luxury Archestratus, published in Great Britain in 1994 we read the foundation of the Greek cuisine and the modern cuisine today.

(This remarkable and almost unique work was written in the 4 th century BC by the poet Archestratus, from Gela, a Greek colony in Sicily.) The complete text has long since vanished but these fragments or quotations enshrined in a much later book by Athenaeus have come down to us. Archestratus’ description of foods, particularly fish, available, how they should be cooked and where found in the best condition is precious testimony of the strength of the Mediterranean culinary tradition. His style of cooking can best be called nouvelle cuisine of the ancient world, and contrasts piquantly with the elaborate and strongly flavoured dishes of Apicius, the much later and perhaps coarser Roman author. The Greek verse has been translated into prose by John Wilkins and Shaun Hill, who set it in context in their introduction, and pursue byways of ancient Greek cookery in their commentary.

Philosophy, art, architecture, literature, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, psychology, political theory, and sports were all profoundly influenced by the Ancient Greeks and Romans. Their legacy to our culture continues to affect our daily lives.

Preparing and cooking food was a part of the Greek psyche. Hospitality and a love for sumptuous feasts have always been included in the Greek heritage and extend to friends and strangers alike. Food was a fascinating subject and poets and philosophers of Sophocles’ time not only discussed the merits of the Parthenon but also held long discourses on the art of cookery. Sophisticated men’s clubs formed where gourmets gathered to discuss the importance of different foods, native and foreign, and virtually all the foods familiar to the world today were known and used by the ancient Greeks. Indeed, the principles and practice of fine cooking and gastronomy as we know them in Europe and the United States today, were first established in the abundantly stocked and highly creative kitchens of ancient Greece, and modern Greeks still enjoy foods and tastes that inspired the chefs of antiquity.

In order to better understand the development of the Greek cuisine (and, indeed, the development of gastronomy), it would be useful to reveal the expansion of ancient Greek civilization, the position of the chef within society, the structure of the dining process and the foods themselves.

The modern Greek cuisine has the foundation of the fresh and seasonal ingredients. Greek food is simple and down to earth, tied to and making the most of the seasonal produce of each region. Greek cooks and chefs don’t make stuffed tomatoes or eggplant spread in the winter, although these vegetables are now available year round. But how do these many and varied regional eating habits combine to form Greek cooking? I believe that Greek cooking is, foremost, the product of great ingenuity. Everyday the Greek cook or chef manages to create a new dish from the same few, humble, seasonal ingredients. Take, for example, the various wild greens and comestible weeds that Greeks gather from the hills and fields. In many parts of the country, wild greens (horta) fulfill an important role in people’s diets. The greens are boiled and made into salad, or sautéed with onions or garlic and supplemented with homemade pasta or cheese to make a more substantial meal. Greens are also added to a flour-based soup or porridge, or mixed with a batter and fried to make patties. When meat or poultry is available, the greens can be added and finished with avgolemono, the delicious Greek egg-and-lemon sauce, to create a Sunday feast. And of course, wild greens are the basis of many pies, flat and coiled.

Genuine, uncomplicated dishes that are enticing, healthy, and delicious-this is seasonal Greek cooking at its simplest and best. Fresh-tasting spring lamb casserole, summery tomato and feta salad with purslane, tuna with golden potatoes in autumn, or warming winter pork with chickpeas.

Summer - Start with sweet, ripe tomatoes, scented herbs and plump, purple aubergines.

Autumn – Start with delectable pine nuts, golden quinces and fresh, ripe green olives.

Winter – Start with ruby red beetroots, delicious dried beans and comforting casseroles.

Spring – Start with new leaves, fresh vegetables and glorious fish and shellfish.

The Benefits of Greek cooking:

Here is where gastronomy and scientific research meet.

  ? Each day, consume fruits, fresh vegetables, bread, cereal

or dried vegetables products, cheese or yogurt, and olives

  ?Cook and season with olive oil

  ?Drink plenty of water and a little red wine

  ?Several times a week, eat fish, chicken, eggs, and desserts

  ?Eat red meat only three or four times a month

The essence of Greek cuisine is its simplicity, fresh ingredients, rich protective elements of fruits for health, rich protective elements of vegetables, cereals, breads and grains, fish, meat, poultry and eggs, milk and yogurt, olive oil and olives. The dishes may sometimes

be frugal, but they are always wonderfully flavoured…..

Feta Saganaki        Serves 4

4     Tomatoes                                                     2 cloves   Garlic

1 bunch   Basil                                                    1lb.2oz.   Feta

7-8     Black Olives                                            1     Red Bell Pepper

1 Pinch   Paprika                                               1 Pinch   Oregano

                                                    Olive Oil

Method:

Wash tomatoes, pat dry, cut each one into 3 slices. Arrange the sliced tomatoes in a small ovenproof dish. Scatter over thin slices of peeled garlic and basil leaves. Arrange two cubes of feta on top of each round of tomato.

Pit and halve the olives. Wash and dry the pepper. Slice it in half and remove the white membrane and seeds. Cut into strips. Arrange the strips among the tomatoes, with the feta on top. Scatter the black olives over the dish. Sprinkle the top of the dish with paprika and oregano and drizzle with olive oil. Place the dish in an oven preheated to 475° for 15 minutes. Garnish with a few basil leaves.

Saffron Rice with Mussels and Baby Vegetables    Serves 4

2¼ lb.     Mussels                                             2-3     Carrots

1     Zucchini                                                     1     Onion

2 cloves   Garlic                                               ½ cup     Olive oil

scat ½ cup   White wine                                   scant ½ cup   Ouzo

3 cups     Fish Stock                                         1     Bay leaf

3 tsp.     Saffron                                               Salt and Pepper

1¾ cups   Long grain rice                               1 bunch   Arugula (rocket)

                                        2 Tbsp.   Wild dill

Method:

Scrape the mussel shells to get rid of any incrustations and remove the beards. Cut the ends off the carrots, peel and slice into small batons. Wash the zucchini and cut into batons. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet, and gently fry onion, garlic and carrots. Arrange the mussels on top of the bed of vegetables in the skillet and leave them to simmer for 5 minutes. Add the zucchini batons. Over the heat stir in the wine, ouzo, fish stock, bay leaf, saffron, and season with salt and pepper. Let cook for 4-5 minutes to bubbling, turn up the heat and add the washed rice. Stir, then leave to cook for about 10 minutes at a rolling boil.

Serve hot, garnished with arugula leaves and sprigs of dill.

Ice Cream on a Nest of Kadaifi and Morello Cherries Serves 4

Scant ¾ cup                                 Sugar                                                     10 oz.   Morello cherries, pitted

7 oz. Kadaifi                              Greek angel hair pasta                      Mint leaves for garnish

Ice cream (Your favorite)                 

Method:

Make a syrup by heating a scant ¾ cup sugar in ? cup water. Spread the kadaifi and separate the strands into 12 portions. Smooth them into 12 long ribbons, twist each ribbon loosely, and trim ends. Lay out 3 ribbons of kadaifi and plait them tightly. Make another 3 plaits. Shape the plait into a round “nest” and bake in an oven preheated to 320° for 10-15 minutes. Arrange each nest on a plate, put a scoop of ice cream in the center, surround with cherries, and coat with syrup. Garnish with mint.

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The Herald News, Monday, June 11, 2007

They’re cooking now

Fourteen graduates receive diplomas in culinary arts

MARC MUNROE DION

HERALD NEWS STAFF REPORTER

FALL RIVER — You got to hear the theory, join the celebration and, of course, eat some good food.

That’s how it went on Sunday, when 14 proud students, all wearing a chef’s tall, white hat, took their diplomas from the International Institute of Culinary Arts, Fall River’s temple of food preparation, located on Rock Street.

The graduates, who received one-year culinary arts certificates or a one-year baking certificate, were welcomed by Sen. Joan Menard, who attends every graduation and was honored this year with an honorary diploma.

“It is my honor to be here congratulating you, the graduates of the International Institute of Culinary Arts,” Menard said.

Menard said she was well aware of the institute’s importance to Fall River.

“We in Fall River consider this to be our adopted treasure,” she said.

And Menard said she knew well what graduation represented-to the room full of just-about-to-be-chefs.

“This is a major important step in achieving happiness in your life,” she told the white-garbed graduates. “Be courageous, be happy. Embrace the challenges and test your skills.” George Karousos, president of the International Institute of Culinary Arts, began his speech with an observation on the weather that went into -something just a little bit deeper. “It’s a beautiful day,” he told the graduates. “It’s a beautiful day because you are graduating.”

And Karousos reminded the graduates that, for them, Sunday represented a great change in status, the change being the reason they came to his school.

“Until yesterday, you were students,” he told them. “Tomorrow, you are chefs.”

Karousos said he knows well, from his own years as a chef, that there is a great deal more to cooking than just turning on the stove.

“People think culinary arts is only cooking,” he -said. “It is art.”

Karousos reminded the students what he taught them in food preparation — presentation, or how the food looks, is as important as taste.

“We also eat with our eyes,” he said.

And just preparing food isn’t enough for success, Karousos reminded the graduates.

There is a philosophical-component to life as a chef.

“Hard work, honesty and good working ethics lead to success,” he told the graduates.

Afterward, as graduates stood proudly for parental pictures out in the institute’s courtyard, well-prepared, well-presented hors d’oeuvres reminded everyone of what Karousos had said.

Dave Souza

Nicole Leblanc receives her diploma from master Chef George Karousos Sunday during graduation ceremonies for the International Institute of Culinary Arts. At left, the 13 graduates

in the class of 2007 listen as KarousosL delivers his commence ment address.

        2007 Graduation Class of the International Institute of Culinary Arts.                                                                                          

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