Kakavia (Κακαβια)

Kakavia is also known as "Psarosoupa" or a fish soup. Kakavia also gets it's name from the pot in which it's cooked in, the "kakavi". By all accounts, Kakavia is the pre-cursor to the modern-day bouillabaisse. It made its way from Greece to Marseilles (Massalia) around 600 B.C.

The Greeks cooked this in the "kakavi", the French in the "bouillet". Which pot do think came first? Good.

There are many renditions of Kakavia, this one having some tomatoes, others made in a Avgolemono Sauce and both are absolutely delicious. The two versions (any many in between) are made with a combination of fish and shellfish, filled with vegetables and herbs and it makes for an excellent pairing with some crusty bread and a dry glass of white wine.

Some of the older recipes for Kakavia even call for the use of sea water in the soup but we'll steer away from that. Kakavia is traditionally made from the day's catch to feed the crew so, don't fret if you don't have the same array of seafood I've used. The best fish and seafood is the freshest fish and seafood.

There are three components to a Kakavia, the first being the base of vegetables and herbs. The second component is the whole fish that's gives the soup mid-range seafood flavours. Without the whole fish, this would just be a vegetable soup with some shellfish thrown in the end. The third and final component is the actual fish and seafood that get added just near the end of the cooking process. The meat of the dish, if you will.

Preparation or "mise en place" is always important when cooking but I'd recommend you get organized when making Kakavia. It's not a difficult soup to make, there are just some steps one has to be organized about when tackling this dish.

Bouquet garnis are required for the whole fish that get poached in the soup and, for the bundle of herbs and spices that will add depth of falvour. Leeks are best for soups but onions work fine too. A rough dice of all the vegetables is all that is required. The goal is to have chunks that fit well on the soup spoon. A gulp of potato, a slurp of carrot and clam, a bite if shrimp and celery.

Kakavia is also a liberal recipe in that there's no set rules as to what fish and seafood one should use. My only caution to you is to avoid adding salmon here...the salmon will dominate the entire flavour of the soup.

So, pay a visit to your fishmonger, ask him (or her) to find you a good whole fish for stock, say a red snapper or 2-3 red mullets. In Greece, the Scorpion fish does the fish stock duties but I've yet to see such species on this side of the Atlantic. A medley of shellfish are the jewels of the soup. Grab some clams, mussels, the shrimp and some fillets of white fish (like bass, cod, whiting or grouper).

An important procedure with Kakavia is to wrap the whole fish well in a cheesecloth. The wholefish will be poached in the broth and the body can come apart rather easily. The cheesecloth does a very good job of preventing pin bones from remaining in your soup.

Finally, do accompany this soup with some good crusty bread. On this occasion, I toasted some homemade Artisan bread, wizzed up some roasted garlic with olive oil and scallions and smeared the spread over the crusty warm bread. The combination of dipping this old-school garlic bread into this chunky fish soup will remain a memory for awhile.

Kakavia (Κακαβια)

(serves 6)

1/2 cup olive oil

2 large leeks, rinsed well & rough dice

3 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 ribs of celery, chopped

3 large potatoes, diced

4 cloves of garlic, smashed

3 bay leaves

4-5 allspice berries

6-7 peppercorns

1 bunch of fresh thyme

pinch of saffron threads

1 heaping Tbsp. tomato paste

1/2 cup tomato puree

1 cup dry white wine

2 red mullets (or 1 whole red snapper or Scorpion fish)

1 lb. clams

1lb. mussels

1 lb. shrimp, peeled & deveined

(shells reserved)

1 lb. white fish fillets (bass, haddock, halibut, whiting),

cut into bite-sized pieces

8-9 cups of water

salt and pepper to taste

some cheesecloth

crusty garlic bread

chopped fresh parsley

wedges of lemon

1. Have your "mise en place" in order. Clean, peel & chop up your vegetables, wash, scrub, peel, clean, trim your fish and seafood and keep in the fridge until ready to cook. Have some cheesecloth handy to make a bouquet garni of your herbs and spices and to wrap your whole fish.
2. Place a large pot on your stovetop over medium-high heat and add your leeks, carrots and celery and saute. You may also add the bouquet garni of bay, thyme, allspice, peppercorns along with the saffron threads and another bouquet garni of reserved shrimp shells (lots of flavour in those). Lower to medium and cover and allow to sweat and soften for about 10 minutes.
3. Add your potatoes, tomato paste and tomato puree and stir in for a minute or two. Now add the wine and water and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce to medium and simmer for another 30 minutes. Add some salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add your whole fish (wrapped & tied in cheesecloth) and simmer for another 15 minutes. Carefully remove the fish, continue simmering the soup. Carefully remove the meat of the fish and reserve. You may discard the fish bones.
5. Clams take longer than all the remaining seafood to cook. Drop the clams into the pot and bring back to a boil. As soon as your soup is boiling, turn the heat off and add the mussels, shrimp and pieces of white fish and cooked red mullet meat. Cover and allow the residual heat of the soup to cook the seafood for about 10 minutes. Remove both bouquet garnis and discard.
   
6. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Divide the soup in large bowls and serve with some crusty garlic bread, sprinkle some chopped fresh parsley and serve with a wedge of lemon.
7. I recommend drinking a Pavlou Xinomavro-Riesling. It's a "blanc de noir", meaning it's a made primarly of crushed red grapes and the skins are removed to preserve it's "white wine" appearence. The Xinomavro-Riesling is an 80/20 mix and it has intense acidity (that's good), berry tones with a lemon finish.

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.blogspot.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author.
© 2007-2009 Peter Minakis

Grouper en Papillote (ροφός στο χαρτί)

I am enjoying this January from an eating perspective. It's been refreshing to look and enjoy meals that are on the lighter side without sacrificing taste or neglecting your hungry stomach.

Last week's Fish a la Spetsiota was warmly embraced by you my readers and it appears it's caught the attention of some at Food Network Canada!

Today, I'm going to feature another fish, the grouper. My fish monger seems to always have a decent and fair supply of these fish. They likely come from the waters of Florida and the fish can be the size of a salmon to half the size of a human.

I would characterize grouper as a semi-firm fleshed fish, not as dense as shark or swordfish but something a little firmer than salmon. It's flavour is mild in flavour and holds up well to the recipe I'm about to show you.

I do enjoy baked fish (almost as much as grilled) and this grouper "en papillote" (in paper) is easy to prepare, easily accessible ingredients and healthy to boot!

Healthy you say? Remember it's still January, I have my eye towards healthy dishes and this one is a good serving of grouper, some vegetables, olive oil and your one component of decadence...a big, crusty roll of bread who's only purpose on Earth was to give you the honours of mopping up this lovely, aromatic sauce.

Grouper en Papillote (ροφός στο χαρτί)
(for 4)

1 medium red onion, sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1/4 cup olive oil
2 pints of cherry tomatoes (pre-roasted on high heat in your oven)
1 Tbsp. of minced garlic
1/4 dry white wine
1-2 unpeeled zucchini, sliced
4 (7-8oz.) Grouper fillets
1/4 cup of fresh basil leaves
(or 1/2 tsp. dry basil)
1 tsp. dry Greek oregano
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. fresh cracked black pepper parchment paper
butcher's twine
extra-virgin olive oil

Pre-heated 400F oven

1. Rinse and pat dry your fillets and season lightly with some salt and pepper, set aside. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil reduce to medium and saute your onions and peppers on for about 6 minutes or until softened and tender. Add the tomatoes, garlic and wine and simmer for another minute. Stir in zucchini and add salt and pepper according to taste and set aside.
2. Cut four pieces of parchment paper (about three times the size of each fillet) and layout on your kitchen's work surface. Set each fillet in the middle and spoon some sauce mixture over each fillet. Top with a few basil leaves and some dried Oregano and fold the sides up towards the middle, fold the two pieces to form a seal in the middle and twist the ends of the paper with your hands. Now secure each end by tying each end with butcher's twine.
3. Place your paper parcels of fish on a large baking sheet and place on the middle rack of your pre-heated oven for 25-30 minutes.
4. Carefully transfer to each plate and cut open the packets at your dinner table. Drizzle extra-virgin olive oil over each fish and serve with a seasonal salad, some crusty bread and a dry white wine.
   

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.blogspot.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author. © 2007-2009 Peter Minakis

Fish à la Spetsiota (Ψάρι α λα σπετσιώτα)

Many, many years ago...1990 to be exact, I was working for a Canadian bank in my first "adult" job and being at the bottom of the ladder, I was given a mere ten days for vacation and that vacation could only be taken after the summer holidays (when those with seniority and children came back from vacation). The only window of opportunity for me to visit Greece with some decent swimming weather was September.

I actually booked and stayed in Greece for 2 weeks! Some of you might be thinking, "I'd take two weeks to Greece" but let me put things in perspective for you. Two weeks for a Greek who's accustomed to spend an entire summer in Greece is almost a tease of a vacation.

Regardless, I went to Greece for two weeks but it was one of the funnest and action-packed trips to Greece. Not one day wasted, every hour savoured, every moment with friends and family precious.

Some friends of mine set up to meet me in Athens upon my arrival and we were spend a night in Athens then take a short ferry boat ride to two islands in the Saronic Gulf, Hydra and Spetses.

These islands are very popular with Athenians as they are only a short distance away by car and ferry or just a ferry from Athens. Both islands picturesque, transporting you far away from the hustle & bustle of Athens and offering the city folk a slower pace, a sip of the good life and a breath of warm sea air. Today, we'll dine in Spetses.

I remember a pretty town lined with old mansions, horse drawn carriage rides and many roads finished with mosaic patterns. Days were spent taking leisurely strolls or taking a short ferry to the mainland for a nice swim at Kosta beach.

The evenings? What else but to dine in one of the many quaint and affordable eateries that cater to foreign and Greek tourists alike.

This baked fish dish comes from Spetses and it's basically a baked fish (Plaki) with whole or fish fillets, tomatoes, parsley and breadcrumbs. There are obviously many slight variations to this dish but here, you get simplicity, you get a healthy dinner option, a viable weeknight meal that will transport you to one of Spetses' many tavernas.

Fish à la Spetsiota is also in keeping with my goal to eat lighter and healthier during the month of January. I have cracked a bit and I will share some of the richer meals real soon.

But in the meantime, go to the market and see what the catch of the day is. It's Friday and I'm sure your fish monger is brimming with some fresh fish. Fancy a whole fish on the bone? Or would you like the "no fuss - no muss" of a fillet?

Either way, this dish can accomodate you. Sole, tilapia or snapper fillets will work fine here and on the instance I made this dish, I used sea bass filllets.

The dinner was accompanied but a simple yet delicious salad of Romaine lettuce, scallions, dill, extra-virgin olive oil, wine vinegar, sea salt, pepper and some Feta cheese.

Greeks enjoy rice with fish and I've paired the Spetsiota dish with baked rice and a side of blanched green beans.

Try Fish à la Spetsiota with the rice and green beans. The rice is your obvious starch but the beans and fish pairing really work here. Place the fish fillet on top of a bed of beans and allow some of the tomato sauce to get on the beans. The two work beautifully together!

If using fresh tomatoes, a little tomato paste will help bring the sauce together but here I used a good quality canned plum tomatoes. Finally, don't even think about using that store bought crap they label as breadcrumbs. It's more akin to sawdust than anything else.

Grab some old bread and pulse it in your processor or even take some good bread, cut in cubes, bake it in low heat (300F) for 30 minutes and turn the heat off and allow the bread cubes to cool and dry out for another hour so. Place in your processor and you have the tastiest breadcrumbs ever!

Fish à la Spetsiota (Ψάρι α λα σπετσιώτα)
(serves 4)
adapted from The Food and Wine of Greece, Diane Kochilas

4 fish fillets
1 1/2 cups of plum tomatoes
3-4 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup fresh parsley
1/2 cup dry white wine
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
1 cup cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/4 cup olive oil
extra-virgin olive oil for finishing

Pre-heated 375F oven

1. Rinse your fish fillets and pat dry. Lightly season your fillets with salt and pepper and stand for about 30 minutes.
   
2. In a food processor, add the plum tomatoes, parsley, garlic and wine and pulse until the mixture is blended but some pieces of tomato remain. Allow the mixture to marry for 30 minutes. Pre-heat your oven.
3. Season the fish with a little more salt and pepper and place in a lightly treated baking tray with olive oil. Pour some of the sauce on the tray then lay your fillets down. Pour the tomato sauce over the fillets and sprinkle with your homemade breadcrumbs.
4. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and bake until the sauce has firmed up and the breadcrumb topping has formed a crisp, light-brown crust (approx. 30 minutes).
   
5. Serve warm with some baked white rice, a bed of boiled & blanched green beans and a green salad. Drizzle each fish with some extra-virgin olive oil.
   

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.blogspot.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at truenorth67 AT gmail DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author. © 2007-2009 Peter Minakis

Swordfish With Skordalia (Ξιφίας Με σκορδαλιά)

For the month of January, I'm trying to keep with some fit, clean, easy to prepare and healthy dishes. The month of December saw most of us indulging in food and alcohol, saying yes to another serving, another helping of dessert and perhaps one extra beverage.

My neighbors were over last week for coffee and an array of Christmas treats and it turns out they consumed FORTY POUNDS OF BUTTER. That's alot of sweet and savory foods. Upon closer inspection of our grocery bills, we consumed a mere 25 pounds of butter...PHEW!

I'll do my best to showcase some lighter fare for the month but I do still have a backlog of treats to post about but I can assure you that NO TOFU will appear on this blog for January or any other month.

Today's subject is swordfish. It's a fish that can convert the hardest of pescio-haters out there. Consider it the chicken breast of the sea, if you will. It usually comes in a fillet, very neutral in flavour, forgiving to cook and moderate in cost.

If you do find yourself enjoying swordfish, try & limit the consumption to once a month. Sadly, our oceans are also becoming a sewers and larger fish have higher levels of mercury in them. The higher the fish is in the food chain, the higher the mercury levels.

On to the fish dish. This recipe comes courtesy of The Australian Women's Weekly Cookbooks and this dish comes from the Seafood installment. There must be dozens of these magazine-formatted magazines that offer quick, delicious recipes with photos for you folks that still like and read "pop-up" books like me!

So...there are three components to this dish: swordfish, skordalia and baby spinach. The sword fish, we've already discussed. The Skordalia, well it's a puree of boiled potatoes that are mixed with pulverized garlic in a mortar & pestle. Skordalia is traditionally paired with fried codfish but the paring with the swordfish works wonderfully.

Some of you might be tempted to try and make this skordalia in your food processor - resist temptation unless you want a garlic paste fit for applying wall paper or having the mixture split on you.

The third and final component is baby spinach that's wilted in some olive oil with a little bit of minced shallot, some mint and a bit of salt. Lay a bed of Skordalia on your plate, set your swordfish on top then crown everything with a mound of baby spinach and another dollop of skordalia.

Finally, the swordfish can be done on an outdoor grill or on one of those stovetop grilling pans. In either case, ensure the grilling surface is clean, lubricated with a vegetable oil (prevent sticking) and grilled over high heat.

Swordfish With Skordalia (Ξιφίας Με σκορδαλιά)
(serves 4)

4 swordfish steaks
sea salt
ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp. olive oil
10 handfuls of baby spinach, rinsed
1 tsp. of fresh mint leaves
1 shallot, minced

Skordalia
3-4 large potatoes, boiled with skins on
4-5 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
splash of wine vinegar or lemon juice
salt to taste

1. Prepare your mise en place (organize all your ingredients). Boil your potatoes with the skins on in salted water (retain nutrients), rinse and dry your baby spinach and have your shallots and garlic peeled and ready for use. Ensure your swordfish fillets are brought back to room temperature before cooking.
2. As soon as your potatoes are fork-tender, remove them from the boiling water and replace with cold water to bring the heat down to a safe handling temperature. Use the dull side of a knife to peel off the skins and set aside. Now add a little coarse salt and your garlic cloves and pound into a mash with your mortar and pestle. Now add the potatoes and a splash of vinegar and pound into a mash until the garlic and potatoes are incorporated. While stirring the mash, slowly add your olive oil into the potato mixture. Add in small stages until the warm potatoes have absorbed the oil. Continue until about 1/2 cup olive oil has been absorbed by the potatoes. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt.
3. Grill your fish either on your pre-heated outdoor grill or indoor grilling pan. In both cases, high heat is required and your grilling surface should be clean. Rub some olive oil on your fillets and season with salt and pepper. Grill your sword fish fillets for about 2-3 minutes a side and keep warm.
4. In a large skillet, add the olive oil and shallots and saute over medium heat for a minute. Add half of your spinach leaves and toss to coat with oil and to wilt for a couple of minutes. Turn the heat off and add the remaining spinach leaves and mint and continue to wilt the leaves for another couple of minutes. Season with some salt, toss and reserve.
   
5. Divide the Skordalia evenly on each plate (reserve 4 Tbsp. to top each plate), place a fillet on top, followed by a mound of wilted spinach, then a small dollop of Skordalia over the spinach. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil and serve.
   

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://kalofagas.blogspot.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author. © 2007-2009 Peter Minakis

Heads & Tales: Fish Tails (and a Recipe)!

Today's installment of my New York City recap involves making more new friends from the blogging community, celebrating seafood and living like a New Yorker.

Having been given the luxury of having one week to live in New York City gave me a new perspective on this great city.

New Yorkers are kind. Throughout the week I did get lost on the subway, disoriented on many occasions at an intersection and often "rescued" by an all too eager New Yorker willing to help me, one of thousands of tourists in the city that never sleeps.

Many New Yorkers use the transit system. Unlike other North American cities (like Toronto) where a transit system is in place, many New Yorkers actually prefer using the vast subway and train system. It's extensive, runs 24/7 and it's safe.

New York City has the best of everything, the worst of everything. New York has ten-times better everything but...ten-times "the worst" of everything - all is multiplied. It's a big city, with flaws and like any other destination, you need to explore, do some homework (buy & read a travel book) and with some good travel instincts, you'll find what you're looking for.

As a fish and seafood lover, I knew that I'd be spoiled with some of the freshest seafood in the world. When Marc of No Recipes extended an invite to dine together at a sushi restaurant in New York, I couldn't refuse.

His choice, Sushi Azabu...located in TriBeCa near the Hudson River. I got to the place a little early, ordered a Japanese beer and leafed through the new cook books which I had just bought from The Strand.

New Yorkers are very familiar with The Strand but for those of you contemplating a trip to NYC and looking for rare books for fabulous price, The Strand is a must. The place is teeming with book lovers, helpful staff and shelves upon shelves (18 miles) of mostly used (some new) books touching upon every genre possible.

I was kindly assisted to the cooking section, found some Greek cookbooks, snapped them up and toted them in my backpack for the day.

Marc and his ever-smiling wife Liz arrived punctually and ventured to the basement of the establishment (upstairs served steak and Italian), downstairs was sushi. I'm not a fan of basement haunts but the service staff here are warm, courteous and the decor sleek (Japanese designed - right down to the bathroom amenities).

Liz, Marc and I warmed up to each other quickly and being a Greek dude who enjoys sushi, I allowed Marc to take the lead on ordering.

First up was the beverage of a choice...a sesame Shochu which is a brew of premium wheat, rice and sesame. This drink was served on ice, reminded me of vodka with a definite sesame aroma and taste. We ordered one bottle and had no difficulty in finishing this fabulous Japanese drink.

Marc's choices for the dinner were of the highest quality and every morsel went unwasted. From the Japanese seaweed salad to some seared, rare Wagyu beef and on to the red snapper carpaccio and the Chef's Choice of the market-fresh sushi offering of the day...the meal was dreamy.

Liz, Marc and I got acquainted with each other's lives, talked food (what else) and relished every single course of this masterpiece sushi dinner. A trip to Japan just got bumped up on my "to do" list.

Let's rewind a bit. Not that far back - just a little earlier in the day. STAY right there...mid-afternoon and lunch.

What was to be the largest food-blogger gathering of the week for me would take place at Lupa, a Mario Battali and Joseph Bastianich osteria.

Coordinating the lunch was Stacey of Stacey Snacks and Giff of The Constables Larder. Stacey made the reservation (based on her contented patronage of Lupa) and Giff liaised with myself and the others to confirm all in attendance.

You've already met Stephane of Chefs Gone Wild and Mlle. Claire of Colloquial Cookin' but I'd like to also introduce a new acquaintance and friend, Rachel of the Essential Rhubarb Pie.

I was afraid that Rachel was going to arrive late (something about work) but it appears she and Stacey got real comfy with each other, at the bar and in the midst of an afternoon glass of wine...how civilized!

We met for a late lunch and although most were hungry, we kept on getting distracted by the usual "getting to know you chats" that ranged from life in New York, rude behaviour (or not) of Parisians, a little politics, more New York and a little about each of us.

With lunch hours dwindling...Stacey suggested we order some sampling platters: one seafood antipasti and other a veggie/salad antipasti.

Each of us ordered their own main and we washed our food down with a northern Italian white and a Sicilian red.

Being a Greek and enjoying the food concept of appetizers and mezedes, I would have been most comfortable just ordering and ordering starters, sampling, chatting, drinking and sampling again...THAT is a good dinner and company for me!

Lupa's service is very good. The staff attentive, they know the menu and the wines and they were kind and patient with our tardy ordering from the menu.

The best approach to ordering from Lupa's menu is order some antipasti, enjoy your wine - order your main and don't forget it's ala carte here...grab a side to complete your entree.

I didn't order dessert but I had a sample of Claire's hazelnut tartuffo (huge) and if any of the other desserts are like this one...Lupa delivers from start to finish.

I'd like to leave you all with a dish that reminded me of that day in New York City, filled with memories of some the freshest seafood I've ever had in North America, the new friendships made and the memories...forever!

Here's a simple Italian seafood dish, works great with bream, sea bass or any other white-fleshed fish fillet. I found some wonderful Grouper fillets at my local market and in keeping with Lupa's unpretentious Osteria cooking approach without sacrificing quality or breaking the bank, I present a Walnut Gremolata Grouper...enjoy!

Walnut Gremolata Grouper
(serves 4)

4 Grouper fillets
olive oil
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
sweet paprika

Gremolata
2 Tbsp. of lemon rind, thinly sliced 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. coarse bread crumb
1/3 cup toasted walnuts, chopped salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine all the Gremolata ingredients in a bowl and cover - set aside.
2. Rub both sides of the fish with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and sweet paprika.
3. Add some olive oil into a non-stick pan over medium high heat and place the fillets (skin-side down first) for 3-4 minutes per side or until crisp and brown.
4. Plate the fish immediately with a mound of Gremolata on top and serve with a garlic mash or in my case...orzo with mushrooms and zucchini.

Heads & Tales: Saturday Night at Ammos

Saturday would be my first full day in New York. In any city a Saturday is going to be exciting but in New York, we're talking electric.

The day started off with myself making my usual fry-up of bacon & eggs, toast, juice and coffee. Soon after, I headed out and took the train to the bottom of Manhattan and paid hommage to the site of Ground Zero.

Security was very tight with respect to people taking photos and the property was fenced off and covered by a green tarp to block any decent photos from beingt taken. The most logical explanation I heard was that the World Trade Center was being rebulit and that the location of safes & storage is what security was trying to protect. Any other theories out there?

The rest of the day was spent exploring TriBeCa (Triangle Below Canal), Greenwich Village and Chelsea. I have been to all three of these neighborhoods before but one new attraction was the Chelsea market.

It's a converted warehouse that's turned into a long market with many shops catering to food enthusiasts and it also houses some office space, including the operations of the Food Network.

The late afternoon saw me return to my apartment, feed and walk Stiva the wonder-pooch, recharge my batteries and plot the evening ahead.

My first contact with a New York area food blogger was with Maria of "Kali Orexi". Maria is a native of Astoria who now lives in Queens and she's only just begun her Greek food blog, which translates into "bon appetit".

I left the dinner & drinks suggestions open to Maria's choosing...afterall, I was the visitor with no idea of the New York Greek food scene.

It was agreed that we'd meet at Ammos (literally translated as Sand). Ammos is located just behind Grand Central Station and for those of you who have not been to New York, a visit to the main hall is well worth the subway trip to take a few snaps, watch the hustle & bustle or perhaps even take it a drink or a bite from one of the cafes & restaurants perched atop of the hall.

I arrived early at Ammos but I was promptly greeted by Maria, her sisters and husband. As with Greeks, formal introductions melted away and we all became quite comfortable with each other as we sat down, shared in array of Greek dips and pondered what to eat for dinner.

Maria turned out to be as friendly, charming and hospitable as her blog is. I encourage you to visit her blog as she shares some wonderful Greek dishes enjoyed by her family.

Most of us chose seafood and I was pleased that much of the fish was grilled whole and as a bonus, presented to the customer de-boned.

I chose the grilled lavraki, which is also known as Loup de Mer in French. Lavraki is also known as a European sea bass, much of it is today farmed but it's a wonderful product and perfect for either baking or grilling.

After dinner, we ordered an array and desserts and shared the different offerings of Karydopita, yogurt with sour cherry spoon sweets, kataifi.

After all that food, wine and dessert...us Greeks have to burn off those calories and lucky for us, a small ensemble band was geared and ready to perform comtemporary Greek hits.

The music was loud, the liquor flowing, Greeks on their feet and dancing up a storm!

From being seated at the door to being driven home to the apartment I was staying at, Maria and her husband were most gracious hosts and I hope to soon return the gesture of their warm hospitality.

In the meantime, I'd love to share a new way that I like to grill and present sardines. Fresh caught sardines are still affordable and are one of the most enjoyed fish by Greeks.

Although they can be fried or baked, grilled sardines seem to be the favourite to prepare them. Here, I've taken the souvlaki concept and applied it to grilling sardines.

The method helps keep your fish in tact, allows you to easily flip the fish during grilling and the presentation is no doubt an eye-opener when you're served a plate of these beauties.

As always, I prefer buying whole fish as this allows me to inspect the fish and confirm it's freshness (bright- not-sunken eyes, firm body, bright red inner gills and smelling only of the sea).

I was delighted to see fresh sardines being sold through much of New York City and I hope some fish mongers in Toronto are paying attention: WE NEED MORE FRESH SARDINES!

There's no rocket-science here. The sardines are scaled and gutted, heads left on (to help secure the skewers) and the fish is brushed with vegetable oil, seasoned with salt and pepper and adorned simply and deliciously with a Latholemono.

Pre-heat your gas grill, brush(clean) your grill surface well, wipe the grill surface with some vegetable oil and grill your fish.

Sardines take a mere two or three minutes a side and a warm potato salad and some sauteed bitter greens round out this wonderful Greek seafood dish.

Kali Orexi!

Oven Baked Sole With Chickpeas

One of the facets of Greek cooking that I love is that it's so versatile. It touches upon vegetables, fruits, poultry, meats and mince, seafood, legumes, grains and pasta.

Greek food relies on herbs to flavour dishes, and an array of spices. Greek food can be complex and it can be easy.

This fish dish is a perfect of example of quality ingredients, prepared simply to highlight the freshness and to maximize flavour.

Today, I'm giving you more tastes of the Aegean, in particular the Cycladic islands of Syros and Sifnos. Syros is an island I've visited in previous travels to Greece and Sifnos was most recently visited this past summer.

This recipe for baked sole comes from Syros and the feature fish is sole, seasoned and baked simply with olive oil, lemon juice, Capers and dill.

The side dish highlights Sifnos' beloved use of chickpeas and here, I've baked them with bay, onions, garlic and cherry tomatoes.

This combo makes a perfect weeknight dish as the ingredients are readily available at the market.

The prep is quick, both main and side dish can be thrown in the oven.
Go change into something more comfortable, open the mail, open a bottle of wine and set the table.

Now your oven baked sole with chick peas is ready to be served. Don't hesitate to break some crusty bread and mop-up the olive oil and sauce in your plate.

Oven Baked Sole
(serves 4)

4 fillets of sole
1/2 cup olive oil
4 Tbsp. of capers, drained
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
salt and pepper

Baked Chickpeas
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1/3 cup water
1 medium onion, sliced
1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heated 375F oven

1. Rinse and pat-dry your fillets. Thirty minutes before baking, season the fillets with salt and let them sit.
2. For the Baked Chickpeas, in a baking vessel, add all the chickpeas ingredients together and toss well. Place in the oven and they should take about 1 hour and be ready when you fillets of sole are also done.
   
3. Place your fillets on an oiled baking sheet, pour the oil, lemon juice, dill and capers over the fillets. Bake for 30 minutes and serve warm with a lemon wedge.

Seafood Pie With Rösti Topping

Last year I recall seeing many seafood & fish pie dishes being presented by my Brit friends 'oer across the pond. To all of you, each and every pie you baked had me salivating and I promised you all and myself to add this dish to my roster.

The kicker for this dish is what the book calls a "rösti" topping. For those not in the know, rösti is a Swiss dish of grated potato, usually mixed with butter or animal fat and fried into lovely patties of spud goodness.

This seafood pie emulates that taste and texture on the topping. Many fish & seafood pies get the mashed potato topping but when I read this technique, I loved it from the the "get go" and the result is a textured, fab looking topping that will please the eye and the belly on these cold autumn nights.

The dish comes from a book called Easy Entertaining by Julia Aitkens. There are few few photographs in the book but it's jammed with many simple dishes that will WOW your guests with little effort.

This recipe originally called for smoked salmon - I had smoked mackerel. It's all good as long as you added something smoked for the proper flavour mix.

Seafood Pie With Rösti Topping

Filling
1 1 1/4 cups of cold milk
1 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter
1lb cod, haddock or other white fish 8oz. raw shrimp, peeled & deveined 8oz. of bay scallops
2 cups of frozen mixed vegetables (thawed & rinsed)
4oz. of smoked salmon
3-4 bunches of scallions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup minced dill pickles
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh dill
splash of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. of black pepper
1/4 tsp. of salt
1 large bay leaf
1 clove of garlic

Topping
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes
1/3 cup of melted butter
salt and pepper

Pre-heated 400F oven

1. For the filling: In a large sauepan over medium-high heat, combine the milk, wine and flour, bay leaf and whisk until smooth. Stir in butter and bring to a boil while whisking and the mixture becomes smooth and bubbly. Reduce to medium and whisk for a couple of minutes until it thickens.
2. Add the fish and seafood, mixed vegetables, scallions, herbs, pickles and Worcestershire, salt and pepper and stir gently. Taste & adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and remove the bay leaf and garlic clove. Spoon/pour the mixture into a 11 by 7 inch baking lined with parchment.
3. For the topping: Add the potatoes (skin on) to a large pot of water and fill with enough water to just cover. Bring to a boil and add salt and boil for 15-20 minutes, until just under-cooked. Drain and place in cold water to cool down just enough for you to safely handle them.
4. Peel the skins off the potatoes with the aid of the back of a knife and using the largest holes of your box grater, grate the potatoes evenly over the surface of your seafood pie mixture.
5. Using a brush, dip it in your melted butter and sprinkle over top of your potato topping. Lightly season the topping with salt and pepper and place in your pre-heated oven for 40-45 minutes. If necessary, heat the broiler and the broil your seafood pie for 2-3 minutes to get a golden-brown topping.
6. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes, cut into portions and serve immediately with a dry white wine.