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FOOD AND COOKING OF GREECE

Greek meals, whether enjoyed at home, in a taverna or in a restaurant, are a joyful celebration of local ingredients, history and culinary tradition that spans generations of ingenious cooks.

Islanders rejoice at the prospect of all those shining courgettes and regal purple aubergines; the green beans of all kinds; the okra; the fat, sweet tomatoes; and the light-green long peppers that are indispensable for that Pelion speciality, spetzofai.

Greek cuisine is centred around vegetables and other simple, fresh ingredients - and quality produce is at its heart. This shared gastronomic culture explains the emotional significance of Greek food for Greeks.

In Rena's words, "We have all eaten the same food; our mothers and grandmothers all cooked the same food. And now, probably, we cook the same food!"

This glorious new book, an updated and expanded edition of her best-selling original, explores the classic regional dishes of Greece and the islands through the changing seasons.