Throughout Europe, Covid changed almost every aspect of daily life, most notably the venerated ‘Summer Holiday’. “Stay-cation” became a buzzword with 23 million Brits opting to stay home in 2021 and we were not the only ones pumping cash back in the local economy, Germany, Spain, France, too were exploring their countries without a renewed sense of pride of what could be found within their own borders.
So did we form new habits? Have we shunned the short haul sunseeker break in favour of countryside walks, cabins, days on the river? Well we may have to wait until summer 2022 to know for sure. But this year, as the last of the measly summer sun morphed into downpours and greyness and as travel restrictions lifted across the rest of Europe in mid October, just in time for half term, thousands of Brits and Germans neatly slipped back into their normal routines and jetted off to chase the last of the sun’s warmth in southern Greece and Turkey.
I was one of them. Hit hard by the waning light, the mandate of returning to the office and a general lack of sense of purpose, my mental health had taken a nosedive and I convinced myself that it was Vitamin D that my body needed. So I joined the throngs of people sending ‘hotdogs or legs’ poolside selfies to friends shivering in northernly European climes and buggered off to Greece in mid October.
The Greeks were keen to be open for business so late in the season, even if it did mean that the locals were bundled up in warm jackets while the tourists braved spaghetti strap tops regardless of the goose pimples or wind chill factor.
While the midday sun was warm, it took longer in the morning to warm up and by 4pm you really did need to think about packing up from the beach and heading back to your temporary dwelling to remove the not-quite-warm-enough-to-dry swimsuit before pneumonia set in.
What I loved most about the cooler evenings that accompany the later season was the fact that my appetite yearned more towards warming bowls of food and hearty glasses of red wine, enjoyed under an outdoor heater and often a blanket that a thoughtful restaurateur slung in your general direction. For the first time in my life while in Greece, I ignored cold mezze dishes, grilled fish and chilled white wine for slow cooked stews and meats, one of which I have tried to recreate with the recipe below.
On Kos, my favourite dish was slow cooked goat leg in honey and thyme. It stood out for me as an alternative to Kleftiko, using less tomatoes and no wine. My version uses lamb but as goat is lower in sat fats and generally healthier, it’s a good alternative if you want to swap it. Cook the same way, low and slow. This dish is perfect for a Sunday as it requires about 20 minutes of prep browning the meat and onions, then you put it in a very low oven, go outside and enjoy the golden light on an Autumn afternoon walk. Head home after a few hours or so and this meal will be waiting for you. You can serve it with rice, orzo, buttery polenta or more vegetables, but as it's already quite hearty from the potatoes, I serve it as it is and mop up the sauce with a chunk of warm bread. Do whatever makes you happy, but this is best eaten outside in the UK in November huddled under a patio heater, scroll through Spotify for a playlist entitled “Ubiquitous herd of Greek stray cats mewing” for suitable ambient background noise, open up a bottle of Limniona and enjoy.
Recipe
500g diced lamb leg (or goat)
2 large banana shallots
2 carrots
3 or 4 cloves of garlic (you do you here!)
500ml good stock (lamb ideally but I’ve used chicken and it works)
2 large baking potatoes
Tin of anchovies
2 tablespoons honey
10 sprigs of fresh thyme
Black olives (optional)
From your store cupboard
Salt and pepper
Tablespoon of plain flour
Oil
Method
Slice the shallots and caramelise in the pan with some of the whole thyme sprigs, you want the flavour of thyme to really develop throughout the dish so adding here starts to build that flavour.
When shallots are browning, not burning, remove from the pan and set aside.
Dice the lamb into 3cm sized pieces, lightly dredge in flour, salt and pepper. This will help thicken the sauce.
Oil the pan and add lamb, browning all over, it's important to get a good deep colour on the meat at this stage.
Once the lamb has a good colour, return the onions to the pan along with the rest of the vegetables. Add stock and top up the pan with around 500ml water.
Add a squeeze of tomato paste, a whole tin of anchovies and honey. This amount of honey will result in the dish being quite sweet. This is how I enjoyed it in Kos but feel free to go easier on the honey and add more later to taste. The anchovies are acting as a seasoning here so you don’t need to add too much salt at this stage. Wait and adjust later.
Add the rest of the thyme here.
Cover and put in a low oven if you are going to be out for four to six hours 60C or 100C if you prefer it to be done in 2 to 3 hours.
30 minutes before serving, throw in a handful of black olives if using, again these work as a seasoning, so you really won’t need to add a lot of salt.
When ready, serve in bowls to capture the sauce. Sprinkle on fresh thyme leaves and eat.
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