I don’t know when I last actually went on a summer holiday. Not a moan, but a statement of fact and, moreover, a conscious choice. I just can’t take the heat, any more. I don’t miss the travel, but I do miss the vibe: that feeling that nothing lies ahead for a couple of weeks except lazy, languid days, long lunches, gorgeous food, beautiful scenery, and expansive evenings. Not that it's exactly how holidays actually turn out in real life. I feel on safer ground imbibing the atmosphere through books. And Opa!: Recipes Inspired by Greek Tavernas has made me feel on holiday already! I was enchanted by Helena and Vikki Moursellas’s last book Peinao, and this is just the perfect follow-up.
Frankly, I knew this was the book for me before I’d even cooked from it, but once I’d made the Patates Lemonates – those so very Greek wedges of potatoes, roasted with olive oil, garlic and lemon juice – I was completely smitten. Right now, I can’t stop cooking these, but there are so many recipes in this beautiful book that sing so enchantingly to me. The authors (identical twins, I feel compelled to tell you) have given some recipe titles in English, and others in Greek and English, and I’ve decided to give the recipes just their English names in the shortlist I’ve eagerly drawn up for you. If you’re ready, I’ll dive straight in: Filo-Fried Feta with Honey & Nuts; Fried Whitebait with Ouzo Mayonnaise; King Prawns with Fennel & Caper Butter; Fried Red Mullet; Grilled Calamari with Fava & Pickled Onion; Grilled Sardines & Tomato on Charred Bread; Prawn Youvetsi; Clams with Lemon Rice; Pork Spare Ribs with Lemon & Oregano; Beef Pastitsio with Graviera Bechamel; Preserved Lemon Roasted Chicken with Jammy Leeks; Dakos Salad, which is rather like a Greek panzanella and which uses rusks rather than stale bread; Cabbage Rolls with Avgolemono; Lemon Yogurt Cake; Sour Cherry & Vermouth Granita; Sticky Fig & Honey Semifreddo; Pomegranate & Mint Spritz; and a most enticing Ouzo and Olive Oil Sour!
I’d be happy to share any of those with you today, and many more recipes besides, but I just had to go for – as you might well have guessed – those absolutely dreamy Lemon Potatoes.
OPA! Recipes Inspired By Greek Tavernas by Helena and Vikki Moursellas (Smith Street Books, £30).
Photography by Bonnie Coume.
