Aliza Green

Art of Food, produced by Monica Rogozinski Segment:  The Fishmonger’s Apprentice

Have you ever wondered how the pros learn to take a fish from the boat to the table?  Aliza Green studied with the masters to write her new book, “The Fishmonger’s Apprentice” to be published in January 2011 by Quarry Books. She will go inside Samuel D’Angelo’s Samuels and Son Seafood Company to learn how to clean and prepare a variety of seafood species. During the program, Green will demonstrate how to purchase and prepare the lesser-known species of fish.  Joe Lasprogata, Samuel’s director of purchasing and a marine biologist, will take you on a tour of their new state-of-the-art facility and discuss the wholesaler’s investment in the future of fisheries, oceans and waterways.  According to Green, Lasprogata and D’Angelo sustainability requires a commitment from both the suppliers and the consumers.  Knowledge is the key.

 Friday Arts, a 30-minute monthly arts, culture and entertainment magazine with a strong online component, will spotlight Greater Philadelphia’s arts on WHYY-TV at 8:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3.

 “Friday Arts gives us the opportunity to cast a light on some of Philadelphia’s best-kept secrets in the arts,” said Trudi Brown, executive producer. “We’re looking at paying appropriate homage to the established arts in our region, but most important, we want to bring to our audiences arts, culture and entertainment stories that are off the beaten path. This region is bustling with a vibrant and sometimes even quirky art scene in the visual and performing arts. Our challenge is to present the best stories in the most artistic way possible.”

 Friday Arts features three segments — “Art”, “Art of Life” and “Art of Food” — and a rotation of Creative Campus and Experience video segments. WHYY produces all five segments.

 “Art” features local visual performing artists along with pieces on museum and gallery exhibits. “Art of Life” profiles everyday people accomplishing extraordinary social goals through art. “Art of Food” highlights innovative local food entrepreneurs who are environmentally conscious about food preparation and consumption.

 Friday Arts is broadcast on WHYY-TV the first Friday of each month at 8:30 p.m. Each episode is rebroadcast the following Saturday at 11:30 p.m., Monday at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. on WHYY-TV. Each episode of the program is also rebroadcast on WHYY’s Y Arts channel the following Monday at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday at 8:30 p.m., Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. and Thursday at 10:30 p.m. Episodes may also be viewed at WHYY.org/video. Additionally, regularly updated complementary and supplementary content to the program are available at WHYY.org/fridayarts.

I am pleased to announce new dates for my small group Culinary Turkey Experience!  Please join me and other food lovers on this extraordinary journey May 25 – June 8, 2011.

Turkey straddles East and West culturally, historically and literally. It’s the only country to sit on two continents, Europe and Asia. The whole country is like an open-air museum with remains of successive empires and cultural movements on display at every turn. Turkey is a modern, secular country with an old soul, the meeting place not only of East and West but of past and future as well.

The surest way to capture the essence of a country’s culture is through its cuisine. Turkey, like no other country, is the crossroads of many cuisines. Turkish cuisine features lamb, eggplant, and pilafs. Vegetables are often stuffed with aromatic meat preparations, and desserts usually combine fruits, nuts, and pastry.

I am working with Epicopia Culinary Journeys to offer you this  incomparable Turkish Culinary Experience. Fragrant Fields and Turkish Delights: Exploring Aegean & Ottoman Flavors II features the western region of Turkey as well as the extraordinary city of Istanbul.

We begin our culinary experience on the Greek Island of Chios. Located only seven miles off the coast of Turkey, Chios is the only place on the planet where mastic is cultivated, harvested and sent throughout the Mediterranean countries.

From Chios we follow this precious product into Turkey spending several days in the Çesme – Alaçati and Ephesus region where we visit markets, archaeological sites, dine in traditional local restaurants, stroll the back streets of villages and towns, visit organic farms, meet artisanal craftsmen, enjoy cooking classes with local chefs and share lunches and dinners in private homes of friends and culinary authors.

Behind every door we discover exactly what makes Turkey the “exotic culinary destination.” From the fruit wines of Sirince and the Aydin Valley, the exceptional wines of Bozcaada and Tekirdag, to the sweet, heavy coffees, we will drink Turkey. We gather herbs from the mountainside of Mt. Ida for our cooking class of regional specialties and in Istanbul we learn from the Master Culinary Engineer himself, Musa Dagdeviren the passionate mind behind the famous Ciya Restaurant.

Greece and Turkey have exchanged cultures and peoples for centuries and this explosion of flavors is just one reason I am eager to share her passion and love of this complex and stimulating region. Aliza’s knowledge of regional foods will enhance the hands-on and behind the scenes visits and the cultural and archaeological sites become a seamless adventure along with the local cuisine as we explore the Aegean and Ottoman influences on Turkish Cuisine.

Please join me for this uniquely adventurous Turkish Culinary Experience May 25 – June 8, 2011.

Call today 972.771.3510 or 877.661.3844 for detailed itinerary

Land Package Price: $5995* per person based on two sharing
Single Supplement: $ 1359.00* (Limited availability)

_{*Price based on exchange rate as of October 1, 2010. Subject to revision at 90 days prior to travel date. Rate is based on a minimum of 10 guests traveling together throughout and a maximum of 15 guests.}

Includes:

• 13 nights’ accommodation (hotels listed or similar)
• Daily breakfasts, 10 lunches and 7 dinners
• Welcome coffee and snacks on first day
• Limited local alcoholic drinks (some meals) or non-alcoholic beverages lunches and dinners
• 13 days of sightseeing in a deluxe air-conditioned vehicle with a professional driver
• Walking on Chios with qualified guide
• Bicycles and special bicycle guide for the Kampos bicycling tour (optional participation)
• Participation in all activities described in the itinerary
• Herb gathering from Mt Ida with a professional chef
• 3 very special cooking classes
• Chios – Cesme one way ferry tickets
• Ferry tickets to & from Bozcaada Island
• Olive Oil tasting in Adatepe Olive Museum
• Corvus wine experience and tasting in Bozcaada
• Licensed professional guide in English language
• Wine tasting by Gulor Vineyards
• Private boat to Asian Side of Istanbul
• All transfers and baggage handling
• Entrance fees to museums and sites per itinerary
• Bottled water provided throughout the tours
• VAT and other taxes
• Welcome package
• Hosted throughout by Epicopia Experience Director, Aliza Green

Not included:

• Gratuities to guide and driver
• Meals that are not indicated on the itinerary
• International airfares to Chios and return from Istanbul
• Recommended dinners/lunches and transportation to & from the restaurants not included in itinerary
• Travel Protection and Cancellation Insurance (Must provide proof of coverage)
• Optional night in Athens pre-tour
• Transportation required with Athens stopover

Pierre Wolfe Sipping Wine and Talking Food

Pierre Wolfe, host of the nationally syndicated show, America’s Dining and Travel Guide for more than twenty years, interviewed me about my international baking book, Starting with Ingredients: Baking and my exciting upcoming small group Culinary Tour of Chios, Greece, Aegean Turkey and Istanbul. (Note new dates, May 25th to June 9th 2011). Wolfe shares with listeners his choices for the best lodging, finest dining, and most exciting tourist sites in the country–and around the world. Authors, chefs, travel planners, hotel concierges, and cruise directors are among the guests on the show.

I was honored to be a guest on this popular show and happy to talk about some of the stories behind the making of the book and my extensive travels to gather the recipes. This big fat book is organized by ingredient. Each chapter covers background, history, and culture along with more than 350 international recipes from Apples to Alcohol and Walnuts to Wheat.

If you’re looking to expand your repertoire beyond chocolate chip cookies and brownies, this book is crammed with exciting recipes for savory and sweet baked goods. Mr. Wolfe, a native of Alsace, France was especially taken by some of the Alsatian specialties like Black Kugelhopf and Alsatian Plum Muerbeteig. Some of my personal favorites are Torta Sbrisolona alla Lombarda (Lombardian Crumbly Cake), Spanish Orange and Olive Oil Cake, Lor Kurabiyesi (Turkish Ricotta Cheese Cookies Scented with Mastic), Brazil Nut Cake with Espresso, Spanish Tuna Empanadas with Sofrito, and Sardinian Potato Torta with Sheep’s Milk Cheese and Mint.

Listen to the Interview with Pierre Wolfe on America’s Dining and Travel Guide

Fisherman Thea Thomas with Copper River Sockeye Salmon

To learn more about the complex biology and economics of the Pacific wild salmon industry, I traveled to Cordova, Alaska with a small group of food writers and chefs. It was my first visit to this magnificent state and, though much too short, I came away with a much better understanding of the culture, economics and traditions of its wild salmon. The best part was going fishing in groups of two and three with some of the local fishermen who mostly work solo in small boats just beyond the barrier islands that protect the entrance to the Copper River Delta. Copper River salmon are rightly prized worldwide because of the high fat content developed by these fish that must swim an astonishing 300 miles upstream without feeding at all to reach their spawning grounds.

As a life-long wild salmon lover, it was  my pleasure to get to go out on a fishing boat to see for myself how the fish are caught, handled, and then processed for shipping to happy  customers like myself.  I went out on fisherwoman Thea Thomas’ small cheery turquoise painted boat. Like most people fishing in the area, Thomas uses a gillnet to catch her fish. This is her 24th season fishing for salmon. A few larger boats fish with purse seines and a larger crew to handle the larger, heavier purse seine nets. A gillnet is similar to a badminton net with lead weights all along the bottom and resting on the ocean floor, which is shallow in the bay, and floats along the top edge, the net is held in place at either end with buoys. The fish swim into the net and are caught by their gills. She will do a number of sets in a day, each time catching some of the salmon that are running–in our case it was sockeye and pinks, though the sockeyes are worth much more money.

During the carefully regulated salmon season, Thomas, like other fishermen, will stay on her boat overnight to catch as many fish as possible. However, in order to keep stocks healthy, Alaska uses “regulated inefficiency.” Fishing is permitted only at certain times and in certain areas so that one area might open for 6 or 36 hours. The numbers of fishing permits are strictly limited as well.

When I asked Thomas about the material her nets are made from, she told me that they are only allowed to use multiple filament line because mono-filament is almost invisible to the fish and too many are caught. Sustainability is written into the state of Alaska’s constitution and only 570 gillnet permits are available in the area. Large tender boats wait out in the bay and pick up the fish, supply the fishermen with that all-important ice, and bring them food to eat. This year, there were few king salmon, the salmon species that fetches the highest price because of its large size and super-high fat content. However, sockeyes and pinks were running well with the season for Coho (or silver) salmon still to come.

We also met with Bert Lewis, a biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, who explained to us how the state is working to maintain healthy, sustainable stocks of wild salmon in the Copper River Delta, the adjacent Prince William Sound, and elsewhere in the state. Because the lifecycle of salmon is so complex, this is not an easy job. The salmon start their life in fresh water, live and feed in salt water and then return to their freshwater birthplace to spawn. The Department maintains fish hatcheries and releases them as needed to bring to stock levels up. However, there is no hatchery for king salmon, because they grow so slowly. We also visited one of the town’s salmon processing plants, Copper River Seafoods, where we saw those same firm, deep orange-red sockeyes being filleted, mostly by machine, and then cold and hot-smoked over alderwood–delicious!

Fishing vessels in Cordova, Alaska

Though the small town of Cordova, Alaska has a population of just 2, 372,  it is ranked among the top ten US ports in value of the fish landed there. This was my view from my hotel window–hundreds of small fishing boats with the dramatic low, gray clouds typical of Cordova’s weather. I’m so glad I brought my warm jacket–with weather in Philadelphia topping 100 degrees, it was difficult to imagine cold and damp.

After an all-too-short visit, I traveled home with a box of filleted and vacuum-packed sockeye salmon from those fish we had caught, frozen and boxed with freezer gel-packs that kept the fish in pristine condition all the way to my home in Philadelphia almost 24 hours later. Now I have the fun of cooking the salmon and sharing it with friends. I’ve already grilled it, made salmon salad, and salmon cakes. Next on my list: Scandinavian gravlax with dill, ground coriander, brown sugar, and sea salt.

Listen to “The Mystique of Mastic”: Podcast with Aliza Green and Mark Tafoya of Culinary Media Network

By Aliza Green

“Mastic has the mysterious virtue and power to bring on Aphrodite’s excitements,” claimed seventeenth-century Italian geographer, Francesco Piacenza. The fifteenth century Arabic love manual The Perfumed Garden of Sensual Delight advises men to pound mastic berries with oil and honey, and drink the liquid first thing in the morning: “You will thus become vigorous for the coitus.” Although mastic’s benefits may not all be quite so tangible, it is the most valuable spice, cosmetic, and cure-all in Greece, Turkey, and from Atlantic Morocco to the Arabian Peninsula. Used as a seasoning, mastic is haunting and slightly sweet in flavor with hints of rosemary, mint, and fennel, a mild, cleansing bitter undertone, and an earthy aroma like a pine forest.

For more than 2,500 years, the people of Chios, Greece, a large island close enough to Turkey for it to be clearly visible, have been “hurting” the island’s wild pistachio “crying trees,” tapping them for clear tears of mastic. Also known as lentisk, the trees grow elsewhere, but only in Chios do they give up their sap–over 120 tons each year‑-perhaps because of underwater volcanoes, perhaps as a favor of the gods. The 5,000 families that garner their living from mastic have an intimately intertwined relationship with their cherished trees.

Once a week in the cool of early morning, villagers skillfully “hurt” each tree, which rewards them by releasing its clear drops of resin. In the past, families would sleep near their trees to start the collection before sunrise. Pirates raided Mesta for its valuable crystals. During the Genoan period of control, .stealing even one crystals was punished by the loss of the thief’s ear, hand, nose, or even his life. This thirsty work is best quenched by a Chios specialty: “submarine” (honey-sweetened mastic cream submerged in a glass of cool well water).

With the goal of reinvigorating the Mastichohoria (traditional mastic villages) through sustainable tourism, Roula and Vassilis Ballas, two young escapees from the IT world and the diesel fumes of Athens, moved to tiny medieval Mesta to begin a new life as organic farmers and guides. Together with the help of the villagers, they created Masticulture, an organization specializing in ecotourism that promotes Chios’s rich cultural and agricultural heritage. “Vassilis and Roula are the faces of a new kind of tourism in Greece…Their programs are for people who are not satisfied with lying out on a beach like lizards,” says Matt Barrett of Greecetravel.com.

For Mastic Mystique, knowledgeable (and English-speaking) guides help eco-enthusiasts collect the mysteriously beneficial sap. After hiking to a small oasis-like mastic grove, the group learns to brush away debris then spread special white clay under the trees to keep the crystals clean as they fall to the ground. Using traditional needle-like tools, they prick the bark, piercing it small cuts called kentima, or embroidering, suggesting the delicate nature of the task. Slowly, slowly the precious resin begins to flow onto the white ground, which participants collect, sort, and clean.

For refreshment, the group draws cool water from an ancient well then picnics on local tomatoes and cucumbers, Mastelo cheese, bread from the “zymoto” (wood-fired oven), salty olives, sweet Mesta wine, and soumada (mastic-infused bitter almond juice). Next, they stroll through villages where residents have adorned their houses with bold geometric scrafitti designs (like graffiti) scratched into the walls using a method unique to the mastic region.

Masticulture’s walking tours last two hours to a full day and run year-round, but visitors from July through October can see villagers harvest the mastic from thousands of trees that they call “schinos”. In springtime wild tulips carpet the meadows in riotous colors while tangerine and almond tree blossoms give off their heady perfume. In winter, the air is redolent with mastic, because villagers burn mastic wood in their fireplaces. Visitors in autumn can learn to pick edible wild mushrooms and anyone that helps prune the olive and mastic trees may end up carrying back enough wood to burn in that fireplace in the room.

Greek culinary authority, Aglaia Kremezi, told me, “”I prefer mastic in the foods that traditionally were scented with it–the ice cream, some festive breads, cookies and a few cakes. Its elusive sweet flavor and aroma, with a somewhat bitter undertone, is an acquired taste, I found. I, as most Greeks of my generation love it, but I have seen that our visitors and some younger Greeks are divided. For example, after just tasting it, many reject kaimaki, preferring vanilla ice cream, something I find totally incomprehensible…”

Chew on the clear amber-like crystals and they soften into pliable chewing gum that freshens the breath, whitens the teeth, and soothes the stomach. Beyond seasoning food, mastic has myriad benefits for body and hair care, as an aid in reducing ulcers, and for relaxing aromatherapy. Mastic is the secret ingredient in silky-smooth Turkish ice cream, dondurma, and in its Greek equivalent, pagoto kaimaki. Crushed mastic crystals go into shish kebab and shwarma marinades, rustic breads, sesame halvah, cakes, cookies, and Chios’ ouzo-like Mastichato. Mixed with rosewater and cardamom, mastic flavors puffy loukoumades fritters and creamy white pudding. The same berries said to enhance male vigor add their potent flavor to sausage, while burning its leaves and stems imbues meats with resinous smoke. Mastic may be a bit exotic at first but given a chance, it’s utterly beguiling, so stock up on the small tins of tears before leaving this fragrant island.

Culinary tour to Chios and Beyond:

Fragrant Fields and Turkish Delights: Exploring Aegean and Ottoman Cuisines, a small group Greek and Turkish culinary tour hosted by Aliza Green, for more information visit www.epicopia.com.

Chios Masticulture Tours and Accommodation:

Masticulture, based in the mastic village of Mesta, specializes in ecotourism, with activities relating to Chios’ natural resources, traditions, and culture. Join organized tours led by a professional guide where they demonstrate traditional agricultural practices like mastic harvesting, olive and grape pressing, fermenting figs into souma, a local alcoholic beverage, and harvesting wheat and then making it into flour and wood-oven fired bread. Tours can be done by car, bicycle, a donkey, or boat, but most are by foot. They will also arrange accommodations in a variety of locations for all budgets, including rooms in private houses.

Telephone / fax: (+30) 22710 76084

Mobile: (+30) 6976 113 007, (+30) 6973 55 8881

www.masticulture.com

info@masticulture.com

Where to buy mastic:

The Chios Gum Mastic Grower’s Association sponsors stores that sell all mastic, all the time in New York and in various locations in Greece, including Athens Airport.

• Mastica Shop New York

145 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
Tel: 212-253-0895

www.mastihashopny.com

www.mastihashop.com

info@ mastihashop

• Elixir Spices & Herbs

41, Evripidou Street (near the Central Market)

Athens, Greece

Tel.: (+30) 210 3215141

www.elixir.com.gr

info@elixir.com.gr

• Kalustyan’s Fine Specialty Foods

123 Lexington Avenue

New York, NY

Tel: 212-685-3451

www.kalustyans.com

Left to mature, an artichoke reveals its purple center

Together with top culinary tour specialist, Epicopia, Aliza will be leading  an incomparable Turkish Culinary Experience, Fragrant Fields and Turkish Delights: Exploring Aegean & Ottoman Flavors featuring Chios, Greece, Aegean Turkey and  the fabulous city of Istanbul.

We begin our memorable two week experience on the fascinating Greek Island of Chios, the only place on the planet where delicious mastic resin is cultivated, harvested for use throughout the Mediterranean and Arab world world as a secret ingredient in pastries, breads, confections like halva, and marinades.

From Chios we follow the precious resin into Turkey, only seven miles away, spending several days in the Çesme (named one of the New York Times 31 Places to Go in 2010 ) and nearby Alaçati. We’ll visit the extraordinary ancient sites of  Ephesus and Troy. We’ll visit markets full of lush fruit, fresh-harvested pistachios, piles of grape leaves, and encinara (Turkish for artichoke) ready for the pot. We’ll share meals in traditional local restaurants, stroll the back streets of villages, visit organic farms, meet artisanal craftsmen, enjoy exclusive cooking classes with local chefs , and enjoy several meals in the private homes of friends and culinary authors.

We’ll discover exactly why Turkey is THE “exotic culinary destination.” From the fruit wines of Şirince and the Aydin Valley and the exceptional wines of Bozcaada and Doluca, to the sweet, dark coffee, we’ll imbibe the best of Turkey.  We’ll gather herbs from the mountainside of Mt. Ida for a cooking class of regional specialties. In Istanbul we’ll learn about the marvelous culinary specialties of Eastern Turkey from a master, Chef Musa Dagdeviran, the passionate mind behind his justly famed Ciya Restaurant–where Aliza would be happy eating every day!

As Tour Director,  Aliza is eager to share her passion and love of this complex and stimulating region with participants on this small group tour.  Her extensive knowledge of regional foods  will enhance hands-on events and behind the scenes visits while excursions to cultural and archaeological sites will enhance our adventure as we explore Aegean and Ottoman influences on Turkish Cuisine.

View a sampling of the itinerary by following the link below for pricing and contact information.  Space is quite limited so don’t delay!

Condensed Fragrant Fields and Turkish Delights flyer

Saturday, February 27, 2010
TIME: 9:00 a.m. to 5:45 p.m
PLACE: The Universities at Shady Grove, Rockville, Maryland
COST: $95 inclusive. Free Parking

The multi-sensory program is part of the Les Dames d’Escoffier Washington, DC Chapter’s 7th Bi-Annual Symposium called Celebrating FOOD! Cooking Careers s Communications, the Seventh Salute to Women in Gastronomy.

In Aliza’s program, Cooking with Uncommon Herbs and Spices: A Smelling,Tasting,and Learning Session, attendees will learn about fennel pollen, asafetida, mastic, nigella seeds, grains of paradise, Australian wattleseed, black cumin, and more.

Presenters are Dame Aliza Green (Philadelphia), Author of nine cookbooks; and K.N. Vinod, Chef/Co-owner of Indique Heights, Indique, and Bombay Bistro. Chair: Dame Gail Forman, Consultant, Smithsonian Associates.

For more information or to register:

Les Dames d’Escoffier
P. O. Box 1617
Washington, D.C. 20013
(202) 973-2168
lesdamesdc@aol.com

Aliza will be Guest Chef on a Holland-America cruise on the Statendam to the Eastern Caribbean from December 11th to December 21st. She will be doing two demonstration classes and one hands-on class during the cruise in the ship’s Culinary Arts Center. Guests will learn to prepare delicious Caribbean recipes adapted from her books. Chef Green will also be available throughout the cruise to talk food, restaurants, markets and ingredients and to answer guest’s culinary questions. In her work as co-author of Ceviche and of Aruba Tastes & Tales and in her other books including Field Guide to Herbs & Spices, Green has researched Caribbean food traditions extensively.

Firestone Winery is sponsoring a once-in-a-lifetime cooking and wine tasting trip to Macchu Picchu with a guest chef. I’m hoping to be chosen as that guest chef. To do so, I need your help because the finalists will be chosen by the number of viewers who look at my YouTube video. It’s a one minute video in which I explain why I should be the chef chosen out of a field of worthy candidates. For me it’s about the ingredients–so many of the foods we eat originated in Peru including tomatoes, chiles, corn and potatoes for starters! Here’s a link to the video (be sure to click on Aliza Green!):

www.youtube.com/firestonediscoveries. To learn more about the trip, please visit www.firestonediscoveries.com .

Large and lumpy, green to yellow, citrons are the oldest cultivated citrus fruit with a fascinating history that dates back to their place as a Biblical symbol of perfection. The finicky fruits grow on thorny trees that live only about 15 years and thrive in the Mediterranean.  Some of these plantings, which may be as much as 2,000 years old,  date back to ancient places of Jewish migration to the Mediterranean and to Yemen, where the football-sized citrons may date to the time of King Solomon’s Temple (completed in 960 BCE).

Expensive even in Amalfi, fragrant citrons for sale

Find out more about citrons (esrog or etrog in Hebrew), what makes them suitable for Jewish ritual use, what the different varieties look and smell like and how citrons are used in the kitchen at this multi-sensory program. The program, which is co-sponsored by Or Hadash Synagogue and the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia’s Kehillah of Bux-Mont, will be held at Or Hadash in Fort Washington, PA on October 6th at 7:30 pm. Please send a me a message to find out about registration or go to the synagogue website.

Or Hadash Synagogue

Order your own etrogs from the Esrog Farm. Go to the photo album page to see some beautiful images of the fruits and plants.

The Esrog Farm