He and his mother Sia have created A Seat at My Table: Philoxenia to celebrate growing and making your own food, of living sustainably and of eating food that nurtures your body.
"This cookbook is the celebration of filotimo, the foundation of Greek culture. It means being ‘a friend of honour’, it is about the power and importance of love, kindness and generosity, and how we can experience and share this through food and enjoying a meal together.
"It’s like breathing to us Greeks."
Alongside this is philoxenia — being a friend to a stranger, extending kindness and generosity to a stranger in need of help and a place to rest.
"I truly believe food humanises us, tearing down the walls of prejudice and fear and creating a social scaffolding that allows us to embrace each other."
So he has donated 100% of the proceeds from this book to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.
"When you invite people around your table to share a meal from this book, you are also creating a seat at the table for people seeking assylum."
He says his parents taught him filotimo and philoxenia through food as a way to open the door to his family’s stories and culture.
How to make your own mezedakia (mezze) platter
Greeks love to eat mezze, sampling and sharing a little bit of everything. It is something fun and simple you can do. There are literally dozens of different things you can add to your platter. No need to spend a fortune at a deli, you can make a beautiful mezze platter for yourself, your family and friends or a party of guests with these simple steps.
Make it colourful
Make your platter look beautiful by using lots of different-coloured vegetables, fruits and nuts to contrast. Choose a neutral platter, be it white or a wooden serving board.
It really is a mix and match experience that you can curate to your tastes, dietary needs and budget. Pick from any of the following iterations and the ones you and your friends and family enjoy.
Choose your vegetarian or vegan cheese
Thinly slice kasseri, kefalograviera, graviera, kefalotiri, manouri cheese, mizithra or cube some Greek feta, grill some halloumi, or make some saganaki bites using the kefalograviera or graviera.
Add some grilled or roasted vegetables
Sliced zucchini (courgette), pumpkin (winter squash), eggplant (aubergine), grilled or roasted capsicum (bell pepper), whole garlic cloves or artichokes dressed with a mixture of extra-virgin olive oil, chopped parsley, white wine vinegar and salt and pepper.
Add some raw and pickled vegetables
Sliced celery and carrot sticks, strips of bell peppers, fennel and radishes or toursi, cucumbers and lemon wedges
Add some nuts
Walnuts, pistachios, sunflower seeds, almonds, cashews, pepitas (pumpkin seeds) and pine nuts
Add some small dip bowls
Tzatziki, melitzanosalata, tirokafteri, hummus, beetroot (beet) dip, spicy Greek feta dip, fava dip, skordalia, whipped Greek feta, labneh, butter bean dip, olive paste, garlic sauce and honey
Add some dairy if you like
Boiled eggs, Greek-style yoghurt, marinated Greek feta
Add fruits
Sliced melon, apricots, nectarines, cherries, watermelon, lemons, apples, peaches, grapes, mandarins, cherry tomatoes, rockmelon, persimmon, fresh figs, dates, prunes and dried figs
Add something a little more substantial
Fritters (dill, chickpea, onion, pumpkin/ winter squash, zucchini/courgette, tomato, split pea, fennel), dolmades, pita bread, horta, eggplant (aubergine) and zucchini rolls with ricotta or feta, zucchini flowers, mini Greek pizzas, Greek tomato feta bites, Greek chips, lahanodolmades, halloumi chips, soutzoukakia, Greek feta balls, mini Greek omelette tarts, mini feta and zucchini quiches, spinach and feta puff pastry triangles, feta baked in phyllo and honey, pita chips
Add mini pastries
Halloumi/ricotta pastry cigars, halloumi skewers, tiropitakia, mini spanakopita triangles
Add fresh herbs and oils for colour and taste
Mint, basil, dill, Greek oregano, parsley, Greek extra-virgin olive oil
The Book
A Seat at My Table: Philoxenia
Vegetarian and Vegan Greek Kitchen Recipes
Kon Karapanagiotidis
Hardie Grant Books, RRP: $45
Marinated grilled vegetable platter
You do not need to spend a small fortune at your local deli to enjoy delicious grilled vegetables such as eggplant (aubergine), zucchini (courgette), mushrooms, capsicums (bell peppers), cherry tomatoes and asparagus.
Serves 8
Ingredients
2 eggplants (aubergines), thinly sliced
2 zucchinis (courgettes), thinly sliced
2 red capsicums (bell peppers), thickly sliced
400g asparagus (about 2 bunches)
250g mushrooms
250g cherry tomatoes
freshly chopped parsley, to serve
Marinade
375ml (1½ cups) extra virgin olive oil
4 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp dill seeds
1 Tbsp sherry vinegar
2 tsp white vinegar
1 tsp Greek oregano
1 sprig fresh rosemary, leaves picked
1 sprig fresh lemon thyme, leaves picked
salt and pepper, to taste
Preheat the oven to 180°C or preheat the barbecue grill to high.
To make the marinade, combine olive oil, garlic, dill seeds, sherry vinegar, white vinegar, Greek oregano, rosemary, lemon thyme and salt and pepper in a large bowl.
Add vegetables and toss to combine.
Leave the vegetables to marinate for an hour in the fridge before roasting.
If you are using an oven, place eggplant, zucchini and capsicum in a roasting tin with the leftover marinade juices and cook for 20 minutes.
Add the asparagus, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes and cook for a further 15-20 minutes, or until vegetables are golden brown.
If you are using a barbecue, grill the vegetables. These vegetables take different times to grill so add them at different times.
The capsicum will take about 15 minutes, the eggplant and zucchini 8-10 minutes, the asparagus, cherry tomatoes and mushrooms about 5 minutes (ensure you turn them halfway through cooking so they cook evenly).
Top with freshly chopped parsley.
MAKE IT VEGAN
It already is!
MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE
It already is!
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVERS
They make a terrific pizza topping or as part of a moussaka.
Silver beet and feta patties
Silverbeet (Swiss chard) is the Greek green goddess of the garden, growing all year round, and so cheap and easy to grow. In winter, spring and summer, I’ve gone to my garden each day to cut these leafy temples of goodness, filled with vitamin A and K, folate and potassium, to make all my favourite dishes. From spanakorizo, spanakopita and black-eyed pea stews to dolmades and these fantastic fritters with feta, all love silverbeet.
Serves 4
Ingredients
600g silverbeet (Swiss chard), chopped
1 egg, beaten
200g Greek feta
½ tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp Greek oregano
2 Tbsp plain (all purpose) flour
3 Tbsp breadcrumbs
30g (½ cup) dill, chopped
10g (½ cup) mint, chopped
15g (½ cup) flat-leaf
(Italian) parsley, chopped
1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 spring onions (scallions), diced
salt and pepper, to taste
250ml (1 cup) canola oil
extra 150g (1 cup) plain (all purpose) flour
Method
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil and cook silverbeet for 5 minutes, or until tender. Drain and set aside.
Combine egg, feta, paprika, Greek oregano, flour, breadcrumbs, herbs, olive oil, onion and spring onion in a large bowl. Add silverbeet and mix to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour to allow the mixture to firm.
You have two options: to dip patties in flour before cooking or opt to cook without flour. Fry without dipping into flour and you will get patties that best showcase the colours of the feta and silverbeet. If you use flour, you will get more of a golden colour.
Heat a few tablespoons of the canola oil in a large frying pan until hot. Add patties and fry, in batches, and adding more oil as absorbed, for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until golden.
MAKE IT VEGAN
By using vegan feta and vegan egg mix instead of eggs.
MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE
By using gluten-free flour and breadcrumbs.
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVERS
The leftover patties go great in a veggie burger or as filling for your next spanakopita (just freeze till then).
Halloumi chips/Mezze dish
I do not have the space in this cookbook to share all my halloumi recipes but here are some tips to get the imagination going. Try filling little puff pastry cigars with halloumi and deep frying them. Or simply try frying large, thick slices of halloumi and finish with lemon, olive oil, mint and pomegranate seeds. Grated halloumi goes wonderfully on top of Greek fries. And finally, grilled halloumi goes beautifully in a roasted vegetable salad or even a fresh tomato, lettuce and onion salad.
Ingredients
500g halloumi
2 eggs, beaten
150g (1 cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
100g (1 cup) breadcrumbs
250ml (1 cup) canola oil
90g cherry tomatoes, halved
4 Tbsp Greek-style yoghurt
1 tsp za’atar or sumac
2 Tbsp tahini
1 Tbsp roughly chopped mint
2 Tbsp pomegranate molasses
1 lemon, quartered
4 Tbsp crushed pistachios
finely chopped mint, to serve
Place egg in one bowl, flour in a separate bowl and breadcrumbs in a third bowl.
Dip each halloumi chip first in the egg, then the flour, then the breadcrumbs and transfer to a plate.
Fill a small-medium frying pan with enough canola oil to come 3 cm up the side of the pan.
Add halloumi chips, in batches, and topping up the canola oil as the chips absorb the oil, and cook for about 2 minutes, or until golden.
Take care not to overcrowd the pan otherwise the chips won’t cook properly, and fry on each side until golden.
Transfer to a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb the excess oil. Transfer to a serving plate and arrange alongside cherry tomatoes.
Combine yoghurt, sumac or za’atar and tahini in a small bowl.
Serve halloumi chips with tahini dip, pomegranate molasses for drizzling and lemon wedges for squeezing over.
Sprinkle with pistachios and mint.
MAKE IT VEGAN
By using a vegan halloumi and by using a Greek-style soy yoghurt, plant-based Greek-style yoghurt or coconut yoghurt and a vegan egg mix.
MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE
Use gluten-free breadcrumbs and gluten-free flour.
WHAT TO DO WITH LEFTOVERS
The words ‘halloumi’ and ‘leftovers’ — never the twain shall meet.
