“We eat Niki’s flavour-rich dish in the dappled shade of her balcony, overlooking inky-blue water in the distance. The currants perfectly balance the salted cod, but if you’re not a fan of salt cod, I’ve also made this recipe with cod fillets and added salt myself. I’ve also made this into a plentiful vegan dish by omitting the fish and adding an extra potato and red capsicum.”
This book has been a whirlwind in the making. Along with a peppering of other ingredients, the journey I’ve been on to write this book is what makes this collection of recipes, stories and photos so special. These yiayiades (grandmothers) welcomed photographer Marco and me into their homes and were kind enough to show me first-hand how their time-perfected dishes were made. While each yiayia cooked with me, letting me into her memories, with nostalgia often triggered by the aromas of the kitchen, Marco took to snooping around (no one seemed to mind!), snapping away at ‘holy’ corners packed with iconography or pattern-on-pattern kitchens that have miraculously escaped the passing of time.
Of course, I could have researched these recipes remotely, but it felt imperative to meet the women in person. Nothing in this book has been photographed in a studio setting. We were at the mercy of each yiayia’s timings (and yiayiades can rarely be pinned down into a schedule) and of the weather.
Along with the recipes I picked up on my travels, this book also includes recipes. It is extra special that I have been able to include their cherished food memories within these pages.
