Ancient Mt. Olympus Mix - 3000 Year-old Recipe!

Aristophanes - the ancient Greek satirist - mentioned a fictional dish in his play "Assemblywomen" which was a word that had 183 letters! I have written the name of the dish at the bottom of the post. On stage, this word was pronounced without taking a breath!

In ancient times, these dishes - or "mixes" - with a variety of ingredients, were prepared in large quantities for public consumption at large gatherings or after a battle. It was supposed to be very healthy and nutritious when eaten in small portions.

The following is a recipe for an "ancient" mix - though I cannot swear that this was the one that Aristophanes mentioned!

Ingredients
200g goat's meat
2 teacups lentils
1 teacup dry red wine
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 carrot
2 bay leaves
1/2 teacup of frumenty ("trahanas" in Greek)
100g hazelnuts
100g raisins
100g prunes with their stones removed
2 tablespoon olive oil
Salt
Red pepper

Preparation

Chop the garlic and onion and brown them in olive oil in a large pan.

Add the meat and continue cooking until it turns brown.

Add the lentils, carrot, bay leaves and hazelnuts along with 6 cups of water.

Simmer at a medium heat for 40 minutes.

Add the raisins, prunes, frumenty, wine, salt and red pepper and leave it to boil for another 10 minutes.

Serve with bread, goat's cheese and wine (preferrably Greek).

Eat and Enjoy!

And the name of the "mix" in Aristophes' "Assemblywomen" is -

"Lopadotemahoselahogaleokranioleipsanodrimipotrimmatosilfiolparomelitokatakehimenokihlepikossifofapoperisteralektrionoptopifallidokinglopeleiolagoosirai vafitraganopterigon". !!!

If you would like to read the play (the "mix" is mentioned in Verse 1.169), then you can order it here -

Kouloukopsomo

This is a very, very quick snack to prepare! If you're suddenly very hungry and you want to prepare something immediately that's not only filling , but also tasty and nutritious - then this is it!


Ingredients
2 barley rolls
2 tomatoes
Olive oil
250 g feta cheese
Oregano

Preparation

Wet the rolls slightly with some water.

Place the rolls on a dish and pour some olive oil over them.

Grate the tomatoes on top of them.

Cut the feta into small pieces and sprinkle on top.

Finally, add salt, pepper and plenty of oregano.


Eat and Enjoy!

Chickpea Balls (Revithokeftedes)

A nice, healthy dish that is actually a lot more filling than it may appear to the eyes. This can be eaten as a main dish at lunch along with salad or can be part of a buffet meal. In the photo the balls are long, but you can also make them round.

Ingredients
1 kg boiled chickpeas
600g bulgur
1 kg mashed onions
7 pieces sun-dried tomato
1 tablespoon chopped spring onion

1 clove of garlic
Marjoram
Flour
Some parsley

For the sauce
3-4 tomatoes
1 teaspoon sugar
1 clove of garlic
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil

Preparation

Soak the chickpeas from the previous evening and boil them with the marjoram.

Once they're boiledand soft, remove the skin and place them in a bowl and mash them.

Add the bulgur, having washed it well first.

Then add both kinds of onions, 1 clove of garlic, chopped finely, salt and pepper.

Finally, add the sun-dried tomato and mix all the ingredients well.

Knead the mixture with your hands until you have created a smooth mixture, and place it in the fridge for a few minutes to harden a little bit.

Make the mixture into balls (long or round) and sprinkle them with flour.

Fry them in plenty of oil and then put them on a plate where you have laid a paper towel, to absorb the oil.

Sauce

Heat some oil in another frying pan and brown the clove of garlic. Once it gives off its aroma, remove it from the frying pan.

Add the grated tomatoes and lower the heat.

When it comes to a boil, add salt, pepper and some sugar if the tomato is very fresh.

Let it simmer for 15 minutes.

To serve, pour the sauce on the dish and place the chickpea balls on top of it.

Eat and Enjoy!

Cabbage with Yoghurt Sauce and Mint

This refreshing salad is ideal for accompanying kebabs, meat balls or grilled fish.

Ingredients

200 g cabbage
2 carrots
2 spring onions
3/4 tea-cup black raisins
1/2 tea-cup white almonds
1 tablespoon fresh mint
Salt

For the sauce

2 tea-cups yoghurt (preferrably Greek)
2 teaspoon honey (preferrably Greek)
Salt and pepper

Preparation

Chop the cabbage, mint, spring onions and carrots into thin slices.

Mix them in a large bowl , along with the raisins, chopped almonds and some salt.

For the sauce

In a bowl, beat the yoghurt together with the honey, salt and pepper with a fork.

Add the sauce to the other ingredients and stir lightly.

Ideally, put the salad in the fridge for 1-2 hours.

Eat and Enjoy!

Greek Pastitsada From Corfu

Pastitsada is a speciality from the island of Corfu. It is traditionally made with rooster, but can also be cooked with veal. However, if these meats are not to someone's taste, it can easily be made with beef and is also tasty and we find that children usually prefer it this way.

Ingredients

1kg veal cut in cubes portion size or a rooster cut in individual portions.
½ cup olive oil
4 medium size onions cut in small pieces
5-6 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
¼ of teaspoon red chili powder
salt & pepper
1 full tablespoon tomato-paste
1 cup drained tomato cubes
1 cup red wine
½ kg pasta number 10
1 cup grated cheese (preferrably Greek kefalotiri)

Preparation

Clean the meat under cold water and drain it with absorbent paper.

In a large frying pan, warm up the oil and fry the meat until it has a golden colour outside but is not cooked inside.

Transfer the meat to a large saucepan and leave half the oil in the frying pan (the rest of the oil you don’t need)

Add the onions to the hot oil and fry them until golden brown.

Transfer them to the saucepan where the meat is.

Stir the meat with the onions and add the wine, cloves, chili powder, salt and pepper.

Boil until the wine has been absorbed.

Add the tomato paste and turn the meat to seal it somehow in the paste, and boil it with the paste for a few seconds (that helps the meat to soften and preserve the colour).

Add the tomato cubes and cinnamon sticks.

Add warm water to cover the meat.

Leave it to simmer for about 1 ¼ hours or until the meat is really tender and the sauce has absorbed the liquids and is thickened.

Remove the cloves and cinnamon sticks.

Fill up a long bottom pan with water.

Add a tablespoon of salt and half tablespoon of olive oil (the oil prevents the pasta sticking).

Bring the water to boil.

Add the pasta cut in half.

When it is cooked (al dente) add one glass of cold water to the pan.

Drain the pasta.

Remove the meat from the saucepan, leaving the sauce.

Add the pasta to the sauce.

Serve it with some meat on top of the pasta on each plate.

Garnish it with a spoonful of grated cheese.


If you've tried this recipe please rate it!   

Eat and Enjoy!