EQUINOX

Equinox, the 21^st of September, is officially the first day of autumn. Technically speaking, the equinox occurs when the sun is directly in line with the equator therefore, both in the Northern and in the Southern Hemispheres, there are equal hours of day and night.
         

We are very lucky in Greece because September is the "fourth month of summer", as the saying goes.  But, during the last few days there has been an abrupt decline of temperature, especially in the northern parts of our country where, unfortunately, heavy rains and hailstorms destroyed many vegetable and fruit cultivations.

In Attica, where we live, there was a sudden downpour, yesterday, that didn’t last very long. The sun is shining brightly today, without the imperceptible suspicion of autumn.  I just adore the middle section of this season, with golden-red leaves on the trees, the multi-coloured chrysanthemums blooming in gardens and windowsills, the fruit trees bending with their delicious crop, the beautifully mellow autumn sunsets and the oblique slanting shadows before dusk.

The Orange-Red Folliage on the Trees

Chrysanthemums

Quince Trees Bending with Fruit

Mellow Autumn Sunsets

Moreover, we are especially satisfied that we haven’t, yet, felt the climate change in Greece, despite the severe alarm of global warming, from scientists.

Here are a few recipes of dishes with autumn vegetables and fruits.

                                          QUINCE AND CARROT SOUP

A delicious soup.

2 large, ripe quinces, quartered, cored and very finely sliced

1 ½ tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 small onion, peeled and grated

250 g (½ lb) carrots, scraped and very finely sliced

2 potatoes, peeled and sliced

1 ½ litre (6 cups) or more hot, tasty vegetable soup

Salt and freshly ground white pepper to taste

Whipped Greek yoghurt and chopped parsley to serve

Sauté the quinces, onion and carrots in olive oil and a little water for 5-7 minutes, then add the potatoes and pour in the hot vegetable stock, sprinkle with freshly ground white pepper. Lower the temperature., cover the saucepan and simmer for about 20-25 minutes until the vegetables are cooked.

Puree with a hand blender until smooth, taste and season with salt and extra pepper if necessary.  Serve with Greek yoghurt and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

                                       CREAMY BEETROOT SOUP

This is a lovely, comforting soup with a rich colour, an appropriate choice for Christmas meals

 2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

2 large leeks, trimmed, split in half, washed and sliced

1¼ kg (2½ lb) beetroots, peeled and cut in small pieces, (leaves reserved for another meal)

3 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks

1½ (6 cups) hot tasty chicken stock

1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf + 1 large sprig dill + 1 sprig thyme + thin slice peeled ginger)

½ cup grated kasseri or Graviera from Crete or Cheddar or Gouda

Salt and pepper to taste

A tiny knob of butter

Garnish:

250 g (1cup) Greek yogurt mixed with

Salt and pepper

Snipped chives

Croutons toasted lightly scented with garlic

Sauté the vegetables in olive oil, over low heat, sprinkle with freshly ground white pepper, a little salt and stir for about 7-8 minutes, until the onions and leeks are limp and the beets and potatoes and starting to soften.     

Pour in the hot chicken stock, add the bouquet garni, cover the saucepan and simmer for 20 minutes or more until the vegetables are thoroughly cooked.

Discard the bouquet garni.  Puree the soup with a hand blender until smooth and strain it through a fine sieve pressing any pieces of vegetable with the back of a spoon to release all the taste.     Pour the soup to a clean saucepan and bring to a simmer. Sprinkle with cheese and stir until well combined.   Taste and add freshly ground white pepper and salt, if necessary.

Serve in soup bowls, with a swirl of yoghurt sprinkled with snipped chives and garlic croutons.

             BROCCOLI RISOTTO WITH MUSHROOMS AND WHITE TRUFFLE

  

                                            

It is difficult to give the exact amount of liquid used for a perfect risotto. Some rice varieties need 1:5 (1part rice – 5 parts liquid), others need less or more liquid.

750 g (1 ½ lb) broccoli florets, boiled al dente, strained and dried on kitchen paper,

                                                                                                            water reserved

500 g (1 lb) fresh white mushrooms, trimmed and cut into chunks

1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

2-3 tbsp butter

6-7 saffron stamens infused in

250 ml (1 cup) good quality, warm white wine

500 g (1 lb)) risotto rice

1 litre (4 cups) hot chicken or vegetable stock

500 ml (2 cups) hot broccoli water

½ cup parsley, chopped

1 tsp fresh marjoram leaves, finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

90 g (1 cup) San Mihalis or Parmesan cheese, grated

Extra grated cheese for serving

1 small white truffle scrubbed with a brush and washed

Sauté the mushrooms in 1½ tbsp butter, for about 7 minutes, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Add the broccoli and cook 5 minutes more. Then remove the vegetables and keep hot.  

 In the same pan add the remaining butter, onion and garlic and cook gently until the onion softens.  Add the rice and cook until transparent, pour in the warm wine with the saffron and stir continuously until absorbed.  Add the chicken or vegetable stock and the broccoli water, a cup at a time, stirring the rice until the liquid is absorbed, before adding the next cup.

  

When the rice is almost done, add the vegetables and the herbs and carefully mix together.   Finally, remove from the fire, add the cheese and let it melt, and shave a little white truffle over.   Serve immediately with grated cheese and a glass of the same white wine you used for cooking, iced this time!

                                

                 RICE WITH BEETROOT, ROASTED TOMATOES AND BASIL                                                                 

                                               

This is a colourful, tasty dish.

2 large beetroots, parboiled, peeled and grated

2 large, ripe but firm tomatoes, peeled, seeded and halved

1 clove garlic, mashed

1 tsp or more sugar

3 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

450 g (2 cups) risotto rice

250 ml (1 cup) dry, white wine

One litre (4 cups) chicken stock (2 more cups might be needed according to the type    

                                                                                                                   of rice used)

1 cup beetroot tops, boiled in slightly salted water, drained and finely chopped

1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped, or

1 tbsp parsley, chopped

90 g (3 oz) feta cheese

Salt and pepper

A knob of butter, optional

90 g (3 oz) grated or flaked San Mihalis or Parmesan

Place the tomatoes in a baking dish, sprinkle with garlic, sugar and a pinch of salt, drizzle with 1 tbsp olive oil, and roast until tender.  Chop and set aside.

Heat the stock in a saucepan.   In a larger pan, sauté the onion and garlic in the remaining olive oil until soft, around 2 minutes.   Add the rice, stir and sauté for 2-3 minutes more, then pour in the wine and simmer, stirring, until absorbed.   Then add 1/3 of the chicken stock and stir, cover the saucepan and simmer gently, until the liquid is absorbed.  Add the grated beetroot and enough of the remaining stock to just cover the rice.  Stir constantly until absorbed, before adding the next ladleful of stock.   The rice should never dry out. 

When the rice is almost cooked, add the beetroot tops, chopped tomato, basil (or parsley) and the feta cheese, and simmer for 2-3 minutes more. The rice should be tender but firm. Taste for seasoning and correct with salt and freshly ground black pepper, if necessary. Add a little stock if dried out. Stir in the butter, remove from the heat and serve immediately sprinkled with grated cheese.

                                              PETIMEZI OR COTTO

Petimezi or cotto, as it called in the Ionian Islands, is boiled grape must, reduced until dark and syrupy.   Petimezi is used in many Greek recipes, both savoury and sweet.

                                             SPICY PETIMEZI TART

Do try this tart if you like petimezi.

Pastry:

200 g (an ample 1½ cup) plain flour

30 g (1 oz) powdered almonds or thinly chopped walnuts

A pinch of salt

130 g (½ cup + 1 tsp) cold butter, cut in small pieces

1 egg

Very little brandy, if necessary

Filling:

4 medium-sized eggs

150 g (¾ cup) sugar

50 ml (1/5 cup) petimezi

1 liqueur glass brandy

1/8 tsp ginger powder

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp grated nutmeg

½ tsp baking powder

60 g (2 oz) self-rising flour

First, make the pastry.  Rub the butter with flour, almond powder or thinly chopped walnuts and salt, until they resemble fine bread crumbs.   Then add the eggs, stir lightly and gather the dough into a ball.  If the dough crumbles add the brandy, drop by drop until the particles adhere.

Line a tart tin evenly with pastry, pressing it in the bottom, up the sides of the tin,

trimming the edges.   Cover with cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.  Bake blind, in an oven, preheated to 180 C (350 F), for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling.   Beat the eggs with the sugar until light, fluffy and doubled in bulk.  Pour in the petimezi, brandy, the spices, baking powder and flour and stir until well combined.  Pour over the hot, baked crust and bake for 20 minutes more, until brown and still a little wobbly and remove immediately from the oven.

                                             MINI QUINCE QUICHES

                                               

                                

                                               

 A lovely recipe!     

 Pastry:

350 g (2 1/3 cups) plain flour

Salt

180 g (6 oz) butter, diced

4 tbsp cold milk

1 ½ tbsp fine dried breadcrumbs, for sprinkling over the pastry cases

Filling:

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, grated

2 spring onions, finely sliced

600 g (1 lb 3oz) quince, peeled and grated

3 medium carrots, peeled and grated

2 celery stalks, trimmed and finely sliced
A little hot water if necessary

500 ml (2 cups) cream

1-2 tbsp dill, finely chopped

½ tbsp chopped parsley

Salt and pepper and nutmeg to taste

For the top:

180 g (2 cups) mild-tasting feta thickly grated

90 g (1 cup) San Michalis cheese or Parmesan, grated

Freshly ground black pepper

For the pastry mix the flour and salt together, rub in the butter, add the milk and knead into a pliable dough.   Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling.   Sauté the onions, quince, carrots and celery in olive oil.  Sprinkle with a little salt and freshly ground pepper. pour in a little hot water and cook very gently, covered, stirring once or twice, until most of the cooking liquid evaporates and the vegetables turn into a thick puree.  Stir in the cream, nutmeg, dill and just simmer for 1-2 minutes more.  Take off the heat and set aside to cool.

Roll out the dough and line 12 buttered tart dishes. Bake blind in an oven preheated to 190 C (375 F) for about 12 minutes and set aside to cool.  Sprinkle the crumbs over the pastry shells.  Spoon the filling over, and level with a spatula.   Mix the two types of grated cheese together and place evenly over the vegetables, and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper.  Bake in an oven, preheated to 190 C (375 F) for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 180 C (370 F), or even lower, and bake 10  minutes more.

                                    CHICKEN DRUMSTICKS WITH GRAPES                                         

This delectable, gourmet dish is always enjoyed.

12 chicken drumsticks

Marinade:

125 ml (½ cup) soy sauce

125 ml (½ cup) water

2½ cm (1 inch) square piece of peeled ginger, sliced

2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

4 rosemary or tarragon sprigs divided

Olive oil

1 kg (2 lbs) sultana grapes, stems removed or any other variety of seedless grapes

 A knob of butter

Salt and pepper

1-2 tbsp petimezi (syrup of grape must)

Marinate the chicken for 3 hours at room temperature, turning them around once.   Then place them on a grill standing over a baking tin and brush with olive oil.   Pour a cup of water in the tin and roast the drumsticks in an oven preheated to 190 C (375 F) for 35-40 minutes.  Pour the rest of the olive oil in the marinade and baste every 15-20 minutes.  After 20 minutes turn the chicken over and cook, for the remaining time or until the skin is crisp and brown.

 Meanwhile, reserve a cupful of fresh grapes and sauté the remaining in butter.  Season with a little of the marinade add a sprig of the same herb used for the drumsticks, taste for seasoning and add some salt and pepper if necessary.   Stir in the petimezi, but do not cook more than 6-7 minutes.

When the drumsticks are ready, arrange them attractively on a dish.  Add the raw grapes to the cooked ones and spoon them next to the chicken.

       

            

  

                                         MEAT WITH QUINCES

                                                      

         

     

This dish is cooked with olive oil and the butter added at the end.

1.5 kg (3 lb) beef or pork cut in serving pieces

1 kg (2 lb) quince, cored and cut in sixths or eights

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 tbsp olive oil

1 liqueur glass Metaxa brandy

125 ml (½ cup) Mavrodaphne or any other sweet sweet wine

3 ripe tomatoes, halved, seeded and grated, skins discarded

Salt, pepper and a little sugar

Hot water

1 tbsp or more honey

2 tbsp butter

Brown the meat in olive oil, add the onion and sauté until transparent, and season with salt and pepper.

Pour in the brandy and then the wine and simmer stirring for 2-3 minutes, until the alcohol evaporates.  Then add the tomatoes and enough hot water to just cover the meat.  Sprinkle with a little sugar, cover the saucepan and simmer until the meat is half cooked.

Add the quince to the meat, adding a little salt and water, if necessary.  Cook gently until both the meat and fruit are tender.  Taste and add more salt, if necessary, freshly ground pepper, honey and butter, and swirl the saucepan and simmer for 2-3 minutes more.   Serve with steamed white rice.

                                

                                   QUINCE AND APPLE CRUMBLE

  

                                              

The quinces provide aroma and thicken the fruit juices in this lovely dessert!

1 medium-sized quince, finely sliced

4 apples, peeled and finely sliced

200 g (1 cup) sugar, plus 1 tbsp

225 g (1 cup) butter, plus 1 tbsp

300 g (2 cups) flour, plus 1 tbsp

Cinnamon to taste

Juice of ½ a lemon

4 tbsp water

Brown sugar, optional

Mix the fruit with one tablespoon each of flour, sugar and butter, cinnamon to taste, water and lemon juice.   Spread this mixture in a baking dish.

  

Place the remaining flour in a bowl, rub in the butter and then stir in the sugar and cinnamon to taste.   Spread this mixture on top of the fruit and press down firmly.

  

Sprinkle with some brown sugar, if liked.  Bake the crumble in an oven preheated to 190 C (375 F) for about ½ hour, or until nicely browned.

                                                    

                                                 QUINCE PRESERVE

       

                 

 Kydonopasto is very popular in Greece.

1 kg (2 lb) quinces (about 4 pieces)

½ kg (2 ½ cups) caster sugar and

¼ kg (1/2 lb) honey, or

750 g (1 1/2 lb) brown sugar 

200 g (1 cup) roasted almonds

2-3 small sprigs sweet-scented geranium leaves, tied in a bouquet, or

1 medium-sized cinnamon stick

1 liqueur glass Metaxa brandy

1 cup granulated sugar or more for coating the preserve

A few bay-leaves for storing

Wrap the quinces in foil and bake until tender.  Then peel, de-seed and blend them until smooth.  Reserve the seeds and tie them in a piece of muslin.

Place the quince puree in a saucepan, over low heat.  Gradually add the sugar and honey (or sugars only), the reserved pouch and the sweet-scented geranium bouquet and simmer gently, stirring with a wooden spoon.   When the mixture thickens and detaches itself from the sides of the saucepan, add the almonds and cook 2-3 minutes more, stirring constantly.   Remove and discard the bouquet and the seed pouch.

 

Spread the mixture in a tin, lined with oiled baking parchment, drizzle with brandy and level the surface evenly.   It should not be over 2 cm (¾ in) in thickness.

Place in an oven preheated to 180 C and bake for 45-50 minutes. Remove the tin from the oven and cool a little. Turn over the preserve, peel off the baking parchment and cut it into small squares or diamond shapes.   Roll in granulated sugar, and store in boxes, interspersed with bay leaves or baking parchment. 

Kydonopasto is excellent cut in slivers, accompanied by cheese.

                                            

                                                 QUINCE JELLY

                                                       

The pectin in the fruit makes the jelly set beautifully.

1 kg (2 lb) about 4 quinces, peeled and quartered, peel and pips reserved

Sugar: 1 cup sugar to 1 cups quince juice

1 thick slice lemon, peeled

1-2 sweet geranium leaves

Tie the quince, peel and pips in a piece of cheesecloth, cover with water and simmer until soft.  Then strain the juice and measure it; set aside the quince pieces for preparing kydonopasto.

 

Add the sugar to the quince juice, the peeled lemon slice and a sweet geranium leaves and simmer gently.  It should be ready in about 25 minutes.  Pour the jelly into sterilised preserving jars, let cool and seal.

                                               

                                     

                          GRAPES (SULTANAS) PRESERVED IN SYRUP

                                           

           

 Sultana grapes make an excellent spoon sweet as they have no pips and are very thin-skinned.

1 kg (2 lb) sultana grapes, stemmed and washed

½ kg (1 lb) sugar

62.5 ml (1/4 cup) Metaxa brandy

2-3 sweet-scented geranium leaves

Place the grapes in a large saucepan in layers with the sugar in between, and refrigerate for 12 hours. The next day, bring the sultanas to the boil, skim, and cook gently for 10 minutes.  Remove the saucepan from the fire, add the brandy and sweet-scented geranium leaves, stir and set aside.

   

After 24 hours, simmer the grapes until the syrup thickens.   Set aside to cool and discard the geranium leaves.   Finally, pour the spoon sweet into sterilized jars, cover with baking parchment rounds and seal.

"Quinces, Peaches and Jasmins" by Fede Galizia