C retan C uisine
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Vegetarian Delights
GEORGE VUTETAKIS
A
s my readers know, I love to frequent farmers markets to shop for vegetables, talk to the farmers and
participate in the age-old traditions of community marketplaces.
Here in Michigan, the heavy June rains delayed the
summer harvest. So, in a recent visit to one of my favorite
markets, the Royal Oak Farmers Market, I was delighted
to see the abundance of produce.
I made my way around the market juggling the heavy
bags bursting with the treasures of the earth and musing
over what to prepare with this wonderful bounty. It came
to me when a elderly woman brushed past me with her
arms full of produce. She reminded me of my Greek relatives, bringing back wonderful memories of eating traditionally prepared greens with them on the island of Crete.
Aunts and cousins would harvest their kitchen gardens
to prepare Horta—freshly picked greens simply cooked.
Some nights it seemed as though they invited the entire
village to join us for dinner; for those large events, they
journeyed into town to the agora in Chania, an early 20th
century structure built to resemble the ancient Greek marketplaces. They filled their baskets with dandelion greens,
lambs quarters, spinach, escarole just to mention a few.
—
Back in the busy kitchen, they dressed the greens with sea
salts harvested from coastal deposits, homemade olive oil
and lemons from their own trees.
Horta (also Horta Vrasta) can pertain to any green vegetable that is boiled in its own juices and dressed with olive oil and freshly squeezed lemon juice. The Cretan tradition of eating wild greens may be one of the longevity
secrets in the Mediterranean diet. In Greece, picking the
greens is almost a national pastime, which my grandparents brought with them when they came to America. They
often took me along to pick dandelion greens in their fa-
Chef George Vutetakis’ Great Aunt Yeorgia Stratigakis dressing
her horta with olive oil from her trees.
vorite spots around Canton, Ohio. (I recently read about
a Greek who was arrested in Chicago for picking them on
someone’s property!)
The key to making good horta is to use just enough water to cook the greens while ensuring a small amount for
bread dipping. This way, all the nutrients in the vegetables
are consumed.
Also, do not feel restricted by one or two greens; it’s fine
to mix and match a number of them, but, keep in mind the
various cooking times. Collard greens take much longer
than most greens and arugula cooks almost instantly.
The right choice of olive oil can make a significant difference to the taste of the horta. I prefer extra virgin oils
made with Greek Koroneiki olives. One organic brand that
stands out is from Theo Rallis’ family farm, Rallis Olive
Oil. Theo has developed a method for ice pressing the oil,
which preserves the nutritional integrity, often degraded
by the naturally hot environments of traditional olive
pressing.
The following recipe is from my book, Vegetarian Traditions. Feel free to adapt it to other greens. K
This homage to Crete previously appeared on Chef George’s blog,
which can be read at www.thevegetarianguy.com. A video of the accompanying recipe, along with many other Mediterranean recipes,
can also be found on his website.
Swiss Chard Horta (Serves 4)
INGREDIENTS:
6 cups, or 1 bunch red, multicolored or white chard, stemmed,
washed and coarsely chopped
½ cup water
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KPHTH | October 2013
For the Dressing:
1?3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon sea salt
DIRECTIONS:
• In a large saucepan on medium-low
heat, cover and simmer chard until
stems are soft.
• In a serving bowl, mix together all
dressing ingredients.
• Add cooked greens and broth. Gently mix the greens into the dressing
and serve.
• Serve warm, room temperature or
cold.