Naxos Potatoes

 Potatoes have been growing on the greek island of Naxos since the 1700's.  The official Naxos Island web site says 'these are not just potatoes.  These are Naxos potatoes'.  They certainly have a great reputation around here for tastiness though most of the potatoes in our grocers are from northern Greece, Cyprus or even Egypt.

They have two crops a year, a winter crop and a summer one.  The varieties, for those who are growers, are Liseta, Spunta, Marfona, Vivaldi and Alaska.

You can bake them, boil them, stuff them and they are celebrated in a Potato Festival in August.  8 million kilos of potatoes a year are grown just on that one island, thanks to the abundant water supply.  The fertile soil and its warm climate make for a potato of excellent quality and taste.

Greek Potato Salad

2 whole potatoes boiled and peeled and cut into cubes

Sliced onion 

Or chopped fresh onion 

2 tbsps of capers 

Chopped olives - if you like olives 

Chopped tomatoes and cucumber 

Dried oregano

Dressing ... 

1/4 cup Olive oil 

1/4 cup Vinegar balsamic or apple cider vinegar

1 tsp mustard 

You could add.. 

Boiled eggs 

Anchovies 

Green pepper 

Feta cheese 

We eat a lot of this potato salad in the summer

................... 

Oven Cooked Potato Omelette 

 Slice A potato and fry .  Remove from the frying pan.

Cut slices of your favourite sausage and fry lightly in the same frying pan.    Pour away any extra fat that has come out of the sausages.  

Return the potatoes to the pan with the sausage.

Beat 4-6 eggs and about 100ml of milk.

Grease a small pan.    Layer the potato and sausage.

Pour the eggs and milk over the sausage and potato and add a handful of grated cheese.   Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes, till brown on top 

I make this now and again in the winter. It is cooked in the oven which is over our wood stove

.....................................................

Lemon Potatoes - Greek Style

I peel and cut the potatoes into large chunks.  I then put the potatoes into boiling water for about 10 minutes.  Strain them and put them in a bowl.  Toss the potatoes with olive oil, the juice of a lemon,  fresh thyme, a spoon of mustard and some chopped garlic.  Don't forget the salt, but not too much,  and pepper.

Put the potatoes in a baking dish.  I find that the potatoes will inevitably stick to the bottom and there won't be much oil and lemon left.  So I add a cup of boiling  water with half a stock cube, or a whole one depending on the quantity. The stock has salt in it remember. This gives it a bit of extra moisture.  Drizzle with more olive oil before you put them in the oven.

Dina, my greek sister in law makes the perfect potatoes but then she is usually roasting them alongside a leg of lamb or goat or even a chicken which gives that little bit more grease.  She also uses twice as much olive oil as I do.  Hers never stick.

My traditional greek person does them very well too with the aforementioned goat or chicken but tends to add too much garlic and overdoes the lemon.  Traditonal greek family and friends love them, half-greek-kiwi-family do not.  A bit too much garlic and lemon for our taste.  Don't overdo the lemon.  Added lemon zest gives a lemony flavour without that sourness.

Let them get nicely brown before eating.

Make a bowl tzatziki, bbq a few lamb chops or chicken pieces and fix a greek salad.    The best for a Sunday lunch or any day of the week.