Eleni N. Gage - North of Ithaka: A Journey Home Through a Familys Extraordinary Past

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Table of Contents

Thank you to everyone who made my life in Greece full of adventure, full of knowledge, especially my friends and family in Lia, Ioannina, Corfu, Athens, and all over Epiros. And to everyone in the United States who shared in my experience, whether they visited, listened to my stories, read my e-mails, or offered their unsolicited opinions on my stay: my incredibly involved parents, NickGage and Joanie, my fearless sister Marina, the tantalizing trio of Katherine, Kay, and Arlene, the peripatetic duo of Elsa and Anna, the larger-than-life-sized Thitsas and their husbands, and the unfailingly supportive Eleni, Efrosini, and Themis Nikolaides.

Many thanks to the people who wanted to hear the story of my idyll in Epiros in the first place: Andy McNicol and Joni Evans. To Katherine Fausset, Nathan Lump, Natasha Wimmer, and my parents for reading early drafts and making invaluable suggestions with as much diligence as if it had been their jobs to do so. And to Nichole Argyres for editing the book with as much care and affection as if it had been a friendly favor and not another day at work.

To everyone who offered their support with such generosity, I wish I could give you all a place as exciting and welcoming as Lia to call home.

Spiridoulas Wine-y Rooster

As a contractor, Thomas may do the heavy lifting in the family, but I have to hand it to Spiridoula for turning a skinny old fowl into a nutritious, delicious, celebratory meal. This dish is worth eating even if you havent watched the rooster being beheaded yourself.

One rooster, plucked, cleaned, and cut into pieces
One large onion, finely chopped
Oil
Butter
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
One glass red wine
1/2 can diced tomatoes, or 2 large tomatoes, finely chopped

Stirring continuously, saute rooster and onion in oil, butter, salt, and pepper until onion is melted and rooster is browned. Throw in the red wine and turn down the heat to simmer. Add tomatoes (cither canned, diced tomatoes or fresh, chopped ones, whichever you have handySpiridoula does not judge). Add enough water so that the rooster is covered, and let simmer over a low flame until most of the water is absorbed by the rooster, with just a little juice remaining.

Serve over macaroni, and youll find that the occasional rooster sacrifice is good for the body and the soul.

Marcias Kosher-for-Passover Spanakopita

Romaniote Jews traditionally prepare this dish for the Pesach holiday, but its delicious any time of the year. Spinach and matzotwo great tastes that taste great together. Who knew?

Marcia Ikonomopoulos, the president of the Association for Friends of Greek Jewry, knew. Along with Isaac, she led the tour group I spent time with in Ioannina. Marcia gave me this recipe and very kindly allowed me to reproduce it.

3 lbs. fresh spinach
1/2 lb. fresh dill
1/2 cup olive oil
4 onions, finely chopped
6 cups matzo meal
Salt and pepper
15 eggs
Juice of 2 lemons
Additional matzo broken into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350. Clean spinach and dill well and chop very fine. Combine. Heat oil in heavy trying pan and saute onions until soft. Then add spinach mixture and stir until wilted and well mixed with the onions. Stir in matzo meal. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and put in large bowl. Beat eggs with lemon juice and add to spinach. Stir in well.

Oil bottom of large baking dish (10 14 inches). Line bottom with broken matzo pieces and sprinkle with oil. Pour in spinach mixture. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, until brown on top.

Serves 68.

Mmm-mmm, matzolicious!

Dinas Kollyva in Memory of Andreass Son

I hope you never have to make kollyva, because it is served by people who are hosting a funeral or memorial service. But if the time comes, heres what you need to know: The wheat berries symbolize the resurrection of the soul. With all the advice about reaping what youve sown, wheat is a common image in the Bible. But it has symbolized resurrection since pre-Christian times, as Demeter would let the wheat grow only in the spring, once Persephone had reemerged from the underworld. Similarly, the pomegranate seeds represent Persephones time spent in the underworld and, therefore, life after death.

All the other trimmings are there to make the kollyva sweet and encourage people to eat it, as accepting the treat indicates that youve forgiven the dead for any trespasses he may have committed against you in life. I wish I could give you a recipe for garnering forgiveness while youre still alive, but Im still looking for that one.

At the service, several sympathetic ladies should spoon the kollyva into a cup and pass it out along with plastic spoons. When Dina made kollyva for the one-year memorial service of Andreass son, this recipe easily served forty Liotes.

If youre on the receiving end of kollyva, and its handed out by a family member of the deceased, say, Long life to you, or May you live to remember him.

2 lbs. boiled wheat berries
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup raisins
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup sugar
1 cup finely chopped parsley
1 cup pomegranate seeds
2 cups toasted breadcrumbs
2 lbs. powdered sugar

White or silver Jordan almonds, and assorted spun sugar decorations for trim.

Bring a large pot of water to boil, then add the wheat berries, reduce heat, and simmer for about 2 hours.

Drain the wheat berries and mix in a large bowl all of the other ingredients except the breadcrumbs, the Jordan almonds, and the powdered sugar. Once mixture has cooled, arrange it on a silver tray so that it rises into a slight mound, like an ancient grave tumulus, in the center.

Shortly before the service, cover this mound with a thin layer of toasted breadcrumbs, then a thick, smooth layer of the powdered sugar (the crumbs prevent moisture from seeping through the powdered sugar in ugly wet splotches).

You can decorate the mound with the Jordan almonds (usually placed around the border and in the shape of a cross in the center) or with a cross or leaves made of spun sugar, which are sold at pastry shops for this purpose.

Long life to you.

PatsavouropitaDinas Dishrag Pie

This recipe is easy and funit is to pita as Rice Krispie Squares are to dessert. Its called dishrag pie because it involves scrunching storebought phyllo up into balls that resemble wadded-up dishrags. You want to be careful when tossing around the term dishrag, however; it can also be used to refer to a lady who is not so skilled at the domestic arts but has other, more salacious talents. Another word of caution: this pita cant be made with homemade phyllo (its too thick), so dont get all ambitious and start rolling out dough. And its rather oilydont eat it if you dont want to leave telltale fingerprints anywhere.

500 grams (just over a pound) feta cheese (in the United States I have been known to use half regular feta, half lowfatnot that Dina would approve)

500 grams (one box) of store-bought phyllo dough

Oil

200 grams (almost a cup) melted butter

5 eggs

1 can club soda

Grate a scattered, thin layer of feta over one sheet of phyllo. (If you run out of feta, you can use other salted cheeses insteadgo crazy!) Fold the sheet in half, then scrunch it up so it resembles a discarded dishrag or deformed Cinnabon. Repeat with the other sheets of phyllo.

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