In my kitchen January 2015: Purslane salad, Toursi (Τουρσί), Hilopites (χιλοπίτες)

Καλή Χρονια! Kali Xronia – happy new year!!

Καλή Χρονια to Celia, In My Kitchen bloggers and lovely readers! I hope your 2015 is full of good health, happiness.....and loads of new kitchen discoveries and inspiration from all my fellow IMK bloggers.


In My Kitchen this January...

we are enjoying plenty of refreshing summer salads packed with one of my favourite summer greens - purslane. We have a little crop growing in our garden, but my parents in law have an abundance. My mother in law calls purslane andrakla (αντράκλα) - as it is called in her home island of Zakynthos and my father in law calls it by its Peloponnesian name - glystrida (γλυστρίδα). By either name, it is delicious and packed to the brim with potent antioxidants - a happy relief after I enjoyed perhaps a little too much wonderful Christmas feasting. Purslane is lemony tart, but sweet and crunchy all at the same time. It is hard to substitute and if you don't have any growing in your garden, but you might find some available at Farmer's markets.

Purslane, tomato and olive salad with yoghurt dressing

3-4 juicy summer tomatoes, cut into thin wedges
1 bunch purslane
1/2 cup of marinated kalamata olives
2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves & flowers only

For the dressing:

1 cup strained Greek yoghurt
2 cloves garlic (or to taste crushed)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 tablespoon of wine vinegar
Pinch of sea salt

Method:

Thoroughly wash the purslane, removing the leaves and chopping the stems into bite sized pieces. Place in a large bowl with the wedges of tomatoes, olives and oregano leaves. To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients well and either dollop onto of the salad or serve alongside.

In my kitchen this January...

I also have mountains of incredible cherries. We really are having one of the best cherry seasons this year and I can't get enough of them. I can't wait to use the cherries - and some purslane - to make this Purslane Salad with Cherries and Feta in the NY Times.

In my kitchen this January...

Are another favourite summer stone fruit, white peaches. We picked this beauties from a local orchard after picnicking and swimming in the clear waters at Coledale beach, on Sydney's south coast.

In my kitchen this January...

...it's not all just salads and stone fruits, there is some starchy goodness too - by way of some locally grown Pontiac and Maranca potatoes. I used them to make a super garlicky skordalia (recipe here). They also were sprinkled liberally with fennel pollen, which was growing in my mum's garden and mixed well with dried Greek rigani, homegrown garlic and rosemary and roasted in olive oil. They were heavenly - and I cannot believe the delicate flavours of the fennel pollen. Perhaps it will be sprinkled over a roasting chicken next?

In my kitchen this January...

...the other starchy treat are homemade hilopites (χιλοπίτες). These are a traditional Greek pasta made with sheep or goats yoghurt. Normally, they are made into little squares - I used my husbands architectural scale ruler (after being thoroughly sterilized!) and ended up more with little rectangles than squares. These went into homemade gift bags for my family this Christmas, along with jars of Toursi (Τουρσί) pickled vegetables in a spiced vinegar.

Hilopites are usually served along with melted goats butter and plenty of grated aged mizithra cheese - or a chicken or rooster, which has been slow cooked in a fresh tomato sauce - again along with plenty of sharp Mizithra cheese. I'll post a recipe for this soon - and hopefully my local butcher can find me a rooster!!

Toursi, on the other hand,  is often served alongside bowls of warming lentil soup in the cooler months.

Toursi (Τουρσί)

5 cups water
3 tablespoons rock salt
750g of selected vegetables, cleaned and chopped into pieces
2 garlic cloves, sliced
Dill or fennel tops
Dried chilli peppers

Spicy Vinegar:

5 cups white vinegar
A handful of whole cloves and peppercorns (or to taste)
5 bay leaves
½ cup sugar (or to taste, optional)

Method

1. Make a brine by stirring the salt into water and bring to the boil. Leave until cool. Then place cleaned, chopped vegetables into in a large bowl and cover with cooled brine. Leave to stand for 24 hours.

2. The next day, draine and rinse the vegetables thoroughly with cold water. I usually do this a few times.

3. To make Spicy Vinegar: Place all the ingredients into a pan, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Strain and then reheat to boiling point just before you add to the jars.

4. Place vegetables into sterilised jars adding a slice of garlic, a piece of dill or fennel and a dried chilli pepper to each jar. Cover peppers with strained, boiling hot vinegar and seal. Store for 1 month (or more) before using.

Hilopites (χιλοπίτες)

4 large eggs
2/3 cup of goat’s or sheep's milk yoghurt
2 teaspoons of cold water
1/4 tbsp. salt
5 cups whole wheat flour (plus a little extra to get the dough to the right consistency and for rolling out and cutting the dough)

Method:

1. In a large mixing bowl. Add the eggs, yoghurt, water and salt.

2. Combine the ingredients, by bringing them together stirring with a fork. Continue to stir, gradually adding the 5 cups of flour as you stir to make a dough that is stiff, but not dry.

3. Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a clean work surface dusted with flour. Knead the dough, incorporating flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands. Continue kneading until the dough is elastic and springy to the touch, about 10-15 minutes.

4. Cut the dough into three or four pieces. Lightly oil your hands and then shape the pieces into balls.

5. Place the balls into an oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let the dough rest, unrefrigerated, for 30 minutes.

6. Lightly sprinkle a large workspace with flour. Flatten a ball of dough and then dust it with flour.

7. Next, roll into a thin sheet with a rolling pin or a pasta roller. At this point you can also use the pasta roller to cut the sheets into long strips. Hang the sheets over a clothes rack to dry a little, about 20 minutes.

8. Afterwards, cut the strips of pasta or sheets of dough into tiny squares.

9. Place the pasta squares on top of a cloth sprinkled with flour and boil fresh or dry for 2-3 days in the shade.


In my kitchen this January....

Last but not least, I have a big tray of tomatoes yemista - ripe juicy summer tomatoes filled with rice and herbs and roasted until they have lovely caramelised edges. Perfect for a healthy summer feast after a day at the beach. You can find the recipe here.

I'd love to know what is in your kitchen for the start of 2015. Again, Happy New Year to all and a big thanks to Celia, at Fig Jam and Lime Cordial, our lovely host of this fantastic monthly series.