Marina’s chicken casserole

in Savoury, Taste -

Along with stories about food and personal preferences, Marina also shared her chicken casserole recipe. Enjoy!

‘During the winter, I make a chicken casserole on the stovetop, at least once a week- It helps to keep the winter colds at bay!

Place an organic chicken in a large pot

Add the following:

a couple of roughly chopped carrots

3 or 4 shallots peeled and cut in half

2 sticks of celery roughly chopped

1 peeled garlic clove

a few thick slices of ginger

several black peppercorns, Maldon sea salt and a bunch of flat parsley, roughly chopped

Cover with water, bring to the boil and then turn down heat and simmer with the lid on for around an hour and a half.

Remove the chicken to a plate to cool and strain the broth, discarding all the vegetables.

Pour the clean broth back into the pan and add a couple peeled, more finely chopped carrots and if you like some kale, and simmer until cooked through.

I sometimes add some tiny pasta pieces at the same time as the carrot and then all the white meat from the chicken shredded or cut into small pieces.

Serve with just a squeeze of lemon juice, some more salt and pepper if needed and some chopped coriander or parsley.’

Marina Spyropoulos

in The Others -

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Jeweller, British/ Greek, lives in Westbourne Park Road, London

I first met Marina a couple years back; she was one of my brightest and most dedicated students, as well as one of the most stylish and warm people I have ever met. We kept in touch and the first time I visited her gorgeous home on Westbourne Park and spent some time talking about food in her beautiful white kitchen, I knew I had to have a proper foodie sit down with her. So, soon after, over delicious pastries and freshly brewed coffee, we talked about favourite stores and ingredients, food memories from the time she spent in Greece as a kid, as well as her attitude towards food as a mom to Luca, 12 and Pia, 10. [READ MORE]

Marinated anchovies

in Small bites, Taste -

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My mother grew up in a city by the sea, where fish was not only in abundance, but you could also buy it daily from the docks, straight after it came out of the water. One of her fondest childhood memories was from her father coming home, early in the morning, post fish shopping. He would toss the fresh fish on the kitchen sink, clean and gut it, while updating my grandma on the equally fresh news of the day. He then made preparations to cook it when he’d come back from work, since my grandma’s charm and effervescence was equal to her lack of enthusiasm or willingness to be involved in any kind of house chore. As the eldest, my mom had to learn to cook from a very early age, and since then, fish has been quite predominant in her repertoire.

[READ MORE]

Swiss chard, almond & cream cheese tart

in Savoury, Taste -

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I grew up eating savoury pies. Both my grandmothers were excellent pie makers- even my mom’s mom, the non-domestic goddess one, could make a mean cheese pie with her eyes closed.  When most of my friends had some sort of roast meat on Sunday, we often had pie. Filled with salty cheese or fresh greens or a combination of both, all wrapped in homemade crust bursting with olive oil.  [READ MORE]

Spicy date spread

in Small bites, Taste -

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I’ve been under a California spall recently. Ever since I got my hands on this beautiful book, I’ve been day-dreaming of palm trees, sandy beaches, vineyards and houses on hills; I’ve been blasting The Beach Boys all day on my iPod and, going through photos from Coachella festivals, I’ve been wishing I were there.

As it happens, many of my wishes come true through food. I’ve been living vicariously through dishes, mine and others’ for a long time now, and even though this often only adds to my longing of visiting places, it also makes me appreciate food’s ability to minimize distances and help us appreciate what we have here, now. So while I am here, now, I can pay homage to the Golden State the best way I know how: through food. [READ MORE]