The people of Arnea celebrate the earth’s products with every chance they get. They have separate feasts for tsipouro, wine, mushrooms, wheat, honey and fir trees. The roots of all these have been lost in the past, yet they continue to live on in the local recipes.
the Cuisine
Recipes
Ingredients: 1½ kg zucchinis, 1 cup rice, 5 eggs, some sugar, ½ litre milk, 1 cup frumenty (trahanas), flour (approximately 1½ cups), salt.
Preparation: Wash the zucchinis, grate them and sprinkle salt over. Thoroughly mix the eggs, sugar, frumenty, rice and milk in a bowl. Oil and flour the pan. Pour the mixture into the pan. Sprinkle flour over the mixture and then pour some melted butter on top. Bake at 200°C for one hour.
Wine accompaniment: Paspalopita goes perfectly with the estate’s fresh white wines and particularly with the aromas of ALEXANDRA-MALAGOUZIA and EX ARNON.
Ingredients: ½ a bundle of string beans, 3 onions, 2 garlic cloves, 1 cup olive oil, 1 cup tomato sauce, 2 teaspoons red pepper, 2 teaspoons coarse salt.
Preparation: Louvidia are local string beans. The locals dry them, divide them into bundles and preserve them throughout the winter.Soak the string beans in warm water for 10-12 hours. Drain them and boil them for an hour until soft.
Prepare the salad as follows: pour a generous amount of olive oil in a pan and brown three onions. Coarsely chop two of the onions and puree the third in a blender so that the food can go thicker. Add 2 finely chopped garlic cloves, 2 teaspoons red pepper and 1 cup tomato sauce, followed by 1 teaspoons coarse salt and a little water. Pour the sauce you have prepared into the pot of string beans. Stir carefully without breaking the string beans until they are covered in sauce. Boil for about 20 minutes until the food is thicker.
Tip: Do not add the red pepper in the beginning when browning the onions to avoid burning it.
Wine accompaniment: “Claudia Papayianni Rosé” and “Ex Arnon” (non barrel-aged) are the ideal accompaniments to string beans.
Traditionally, string beans are accompanied by garlic sauce.
Ingredients: 600g fresh mushrooms or 1 large tin of mushrooms, 1 bunch of finely chopped spring onions, 2 spoons of finely chopped dill, salt, 2 squeezed lemons, 1 medium-sized lettuce finely chopped, some finely chopped raw spinach (optional), 4 cups water, 4 spoons tahini (or one egg), 1 cup oil.
Preparation: If the mushrooms are large, cut them in half, wash them and sauté them in oil until they release all their juices. Add some spinach, lettuce, spring onions and stir. Add water and salt and let them boil. Just before they are fully boiled, add the dill, stir and remove the food from the stove. Let the soup cool down thoroughly. Put the tahini in a bowl, add the lemon juice and beat by hand. Continue by adding some soup stock. When the tahini becomes lighter in colour, pour it into the pot, stir and serve.
Wine accompaniment: Soups are the hardest to pair with wine. We have tried the mushroom soup with “Ex Arnon White” and “CP White”, two rather interesting choices.
Ingredients: 1 goat weighing approximately 8kg, finely chopped livers and entrails, caul fat, 2kg spinach or 2kg wild greens, 4 bunches of spring onions, 3 cups short grain white rice, 1 cup raisins, 1 cup oil, red pepper, mint, some cinnamon, salt, black pepper.
Preparation: Wash and clean the greens and spring onions. Pour oil into a pot and throw in the spring onions, liver, mint, pepper, cinnamon and salt and sauté. Then add the greens, rice and raisins. After having cleaned the goat, season it with salt and pepper and spoon the above stuffing into the cavity. Sew up the cavity and place it in a pan along with two cups of water. Wrap the goat in its caul fat. Spread butter over and cover it in greaseproof paper. Roast in a low-heat oven for more than three hours.
Wine accompaniment: “Claudia Papayianni White” is the best accompaniment to this dish, but if you prefer red wine “Claudia Papayianni Red”, “CP Red” and “NIKOLAS-MERLOT” will surely complement this culinary delight.
Ingredients: 1kg beef for stew (round), Portobello mushrooms, dried porcini mushrooms, 2-3 sprigs of parsley, 2-3 sprigs of dill, 2 onions, 1 tomato, 2 cups tomato puree, 1½ tsp sweet red pepper, 1 spoon salt, 1 cup olive oil.
Preparation: Wash the Portobello mushrooms in plenty of water. Put the porcini mushrooms in lukewarm water for 1-2 hours until they swell. Cut the meat in pieces. Chop the tomato and onions in cubes. Brown the onions in a pot. Roast the red pepper until it releases its aroma. Throw in the meat and let it cook for 1-2 minutes. Throw in the finely chopped tomato, the puree, 1 cup of water and a spoon of salt.
Let the meat boil for 20 minutes. Once it has boiled, remove it from the pot and place it in a casserole dish. Properly drain the porcini mushrooms and throw them into the liquid in the pot to boil. Add the parsley and dill and let it boil for 5 minutes. Then fill the remaining space at bottom of the casserole dish with the Portobello mushrooms. Place the porcini mushrooms on top of the Portobello mushrooms and pour the liquid in the pot over. Put the casserole dish in the oven for 20 minutes until the Portobello mushrooms boil. Roast at 200°C.
Wine accompaniment: Try pairing this recipe with red wines such as “Claudia Papayianni Red”, “CP Red” or “NIKOLAS-MERLOT”.
This is a very old traditional Easter recipe from Chalkidiki. Choose a shoulder and leg of lamb (or goat) and cut them into pieces. Boil them in plenty of salt water for 30 minutes. Remove them with a slotted spoon and place them in a large earthenware casserole dish. Continue by roasting the meat in the oven and add some butter and a small amount of broth. Sauté some spring onions and dill in two spoons of butter. Add 2-3 cups of rice and sauté until it becomes translucent and acquires a roasted taste. Remove the lamb just before it is completely roasted and spread the rice mixture along with 10-12 finely chopped plums at the bottom of the earthenware dish. Make a small hollow in the rice and put the meat back into the dish. Pour 7-8 cups of broth over and spice it up with a few grains of guinea pepper. Cover the dish and let it roast slowly.
Wine accompaniment: The “Claudia Papayianni Red” and “Claudia Papayianni White” – both barrel-aged – are the perfect accompaniment to this roast.
Ingredients: 300g sugar, 250g Chalkidiki green olives with no pips, 200g water, 1 grated lemon rind, 1 squeezed lemon, 2-3 shoots of garden cress
Execution: Boil the sugar in the water for 5 minutes. Thinly slice the olives and throw them in the syrup. Slightly lower the heat and add the lemon rind, lemon juice and garden cress. Boil until the mixture thickens (102°C).
Enjoy it with some cool water from the many springs in the area.
