A Greek Feast on Naxos, by Vanessa Gordon
Currently short-listed for the ‘Guild of Food Writers First Book Award 2024’
A small book that celebrates the generous cuisine of the Cyclades.
A combination of fiction and non-fiction that is all about Greek food and drink.
This is a very personal book from a writer whose love of Greece, and of Paros and Naxos in particular, is often expressed through food.
“It was a joy to write,” she says. “My characters’ love of Greek food is mostly autobiographical. I wrote the book because my British friends asked me to: they wanted to recreate Cycladic food at home and understand more about it.”
Among the recipes in the book, some were generously given to the author by renowned Greek cooks Aglaia Kremezi (The Foods of the Greek Islands) and Yannis Vassilas (Around The Cooking Pot of Axiotissa), and others by her good friends on Paros and Naxos.
The unique ingredients of the Cyclades are described with mouth-watering enthusiasm and shown in colour photographs taken by the author. Specialities such as Kitron liqueur of Naxos, and sun-dried gouna from Paros, are featured. She talks about the difference between Greek rigani and non-Greek oregano, the stubbornness of capers, the mystery of mastiha, and the perfumed sweet geranium arbaroriza that is almost unknown beyond Greece.
There is also a short story. It sits after the fifth book in the Naxos Mysteries series, The Reach of the Past, and is set at a Greek feast in a sensational island location. Food-related excerpts from the author’s Cyclades-based books are also included, illustrating the famously indulgent delight of her main characters in the cuisine of Greece.
‘An ideal gift for lovers of the Cyclades and anyone who enjoys Greek food’
A Greek Feast on Naxos is available on Paros at Paria Lexis in Naoussa, at Papyrus Books on Naxos, and from your choice of Amazon supplier in the EU.
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