9781551 523675 52195 OliveGrove OliveGrove M C o o editerranean ooking with live il From the Olive Grove: Mediterranean Cooking with Olive Oil Copyright © 2010 by Helen and Anastasia Koutalianos All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form by any means—graphic, electronic, or mechanical—without the prior written permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may use brief excerpts in a review, or in the case of photocopying in Canada, a license from Access Copyright. ARSENAL PULP PRESS #101-211 East Georgia St. Vancouver, BC Canada V6A 1Z6 arsenalpulp.com The publisher gratefully acknowledges the support of the Government of Canada through the Book Publishing Industry Development Program and the Government of British Columbia through the Book Publishing Tax Credit Program for its publishing activities. The author and publisher assert that the information contained in this book is true and complete to the best of their knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the author and Arsenal Pulp Press. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information. For more information, contact the publisher. Photography by Darla Furlani Book Design by Electra Design Group Printed and bound in Hong Kong Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Koutalianos, Helen, 1950- From the olive grove : Mediterranean cooking with olive oil / Helen & Anastasia Koutalianos. Includes index. Issued also in an electronic format. ISBN 978-1-55152-367-5 1. Cookery (Olive oil). 2. Olive oil. 3. Cookery, Mediterranean. I. Koutalianos, Anastasia, 1980- II. Title. TX819.O42K68 2010 641.6'463 C2010-902973-9 To Basil, Vicki, Anastasia, and Evangeline: the reasons for all my cooking. With love, Mom contents 7 Preface by Helen Koutalianos 9 Preface by Anastasia Koutalianos 11 Acknowledgments 12 Introduction by Anastasia Koutalianos 23 Appetizers 49 Salads and Salad Dressings 67 Soups and Stews 85 Meat and Poultry Main Dishes 115 Fish and Seafood Main Dishes 137 Vegetarian Main and Side Dishes 163 Breads and Muffins 175 Desserts 190 Index 194 Guest Chefs' Biographies 199 About the Authors Preface Our single-estate family olive grove is in the makes his annual trek from Vancouver to Greece, west Peloponnese region of Greece. The where he spends the next two-and-a-half months. hilly landscape, about twelve miles (nineteen km) His time there takes great patience and endurance, from the sea, is peppered with relics of the past. as we strive for high standards in the production of The panoramic views are breathtaking and the our olive oil. He is often challenged by bad weather region’s natural beauty is unmatched; fruit, olive, (too much rain, or not enough) and a tight timeline pine, and cypress trees line the slopes, with in which to assemble a work crew, organize the vegetable farms and vineyards nestled in-between. harvest, oversee the olive press, and prepare our Here we grow Koroneiki olives and Corinthian cur- oil for shipment. None of this could be done without rant grapes, which we use to produce our award- our family and friends in Greece, who help us to winning extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. maintain the grove and produce the oil. For four generations, our family has been pro- For years, we gave bottles of our olive oil as ducing olive oil. Our olive grove is certified organic, gifts to friends. Everyone loved it and always asked which means we don’t use chemical fertilizers or for more. In 1997, Basil and I decided to bring our sprays; our farming practices are similar to those olive oil to Canada. We have been privileged to in- of our fathers, grand-fathers, and great-grand- troduce our extra virgin olive oil to food lovers and fathers. (Some consumers believe that organic feel blessed to do something we truly love. foods are too expensive, but there are enormous The cuisine offered in this book is inspired by “hidden” costs to foods that have been grown with the olive oil we grow and produce. It includes a pesticides, which affect our health and the environ- blend of modern fare, creations by renowned chefs ment. And with increasing consumer demands, Basil and I have met over the years, and treasured organic foods are becoming more affordable and Greek and Mediterranean family recipes, passed accessible.) down from generation to generation. When I was Basil, my husband, takes enormous pride in growing up, all of our meals were made from harvesting the olives we grow. Each October, he scratch—there was no fast food. You cannot rush PREFACE 7 perfection. I remember the mouth-watering aromas times called “liquid sunshine”; it is real food, that is, from slow-cooked foods that would greet us at the it has life and vitality, and isn’t riddled with chemical door when we got home. My mother (Evangeline) additives. It is also a functional food, helping to and grandmother (Anastasia) were both great prevent disease and increase health and well-being. cooks. I loved cooking with my grandmother, who When I taught Greek cooking classes, the encouraged my participation in the kitchen and students always told me how wonderful everything was a perfectionist, especially when it came to tasted. The lesson was that fresh herbs, proper making dolmades (stuffed grape leaves). This seasoning, the use of local and organic produce, recipe (p. 155) calls for quality olive oil, and a lot and good quality olive oil enhance the taste of food. of it! My mother and grandmother taught me how As producers of olive oil, we have filled these pages to make everything from bread (p. 164) to quail with tips on how to choose a great olive oil and how with olives (which to this day is my favorite—you to use it in healthy meals your can find the recipe on p. 110). I owe my talents in dinner guests and family will enjoy. Eat well. And the kitchen to them. as the Greeks say, kali orexi (bon appétit)! In writing this cookbook, I want to share with —Helen Koutalianos readers the true versatility of olive oil, beyond its better known uses in Greek cuisine. Olive oil is flavorful, and not just for drizzling on salads; it’s a healthy oil that can be used to sauté or fry foods, make delicious cakes and cookies, and even as an ingredient in ice cream (p. 185; 187). In Greece and throughout the Mediterranean, we use olive oil liberally, as part of a well-balanced diet contain- ing a moderate amount of meat, plenty of seafood, and fresh fruit and vegetables. Olive oil is some- 8 FROM THE OLIVE GROVE Preface I’ve always loved the kitchen, and more impor- Good food was a constant in my family’s home tantly, food. I remember being ten or eleven and still is. My mother made us home-cooked years old and getting to stay home on a school meals every night. The kitchen was packed with day because I didn’t feel well. I would end up in fruit, fresh fish, game meat (my dad loves to fish the kitchen pretending to be a cooking show host. and hunt), herbs, veggies from the garden—and I was Julia Child, voice and all, and created imagi- an abundance of love. My father would always say nary but magnificent meals for hours. When I was of me, “This kid, she knows how to eat.” I would a kid, I loved to help my mom stir whatever she make weird culinary concoctions, adding Dijon was making. Anything that needed stirring, I was mustard, splashes of olive oil, and spices to any there. Even to this day, sure, I’ll cut the veggies meal; I’ve always been creative in the kitchen! I’m if you need me to, but stirring—you don’t have also the child who, on a trip to Greece at the age of to ask—I’m already on it! ten, fell asleep with her head in the plate of tzatziki. The first thing my mom asks when we talk on To this day, our whole family gravitates toward the phone is, “What did you eat today?” Food has the kitchen whenever my mom is cooking. It’s our always been a big thing in my family. Our kitchen place to share and create, and my mom is a great and pantry were filled with great olive oil, hand- teacher. She is patient and cooks with love. And picked dried spices, grains and roasted nuts, she is a storyteller—a gift she’s passed on to me. and homemade preserves, sauces, and wine. In 2007 I went back to school to study magazine Every summer since I can remember, my parents and book publishing. It was then that I got the idea have been going to the Okanagan in southern to write a cookbook filled with my mother’s recipes. British Columbia to pick ripe tomatoes so we At the time, my parents’ company, Basil Olive Oil could can our own sauce. We chopped and Products, was entering its tenth year of business, blended each tomato and boiled the sauce in a and I figured this would be a great way to celebrate huge cauldron over the old backyard sandbox. all their hard work. I rifled through her recipe bind- Over 200 pounds of tomatoes each time! ers and newspaper clippings from the food column PREFACE 9