What can you expect? The Dodecanese represent a dream of abundance for any chef, overflowing with simple natural products and flavours, inexhaustible ingenuity and clever twists on culinary practices handed down through time from generation to generation and across the water from island to island. Close your eyes and imagine all the produce, recipes, know-how and influences at the disposal of Andreas and Konstantinos and the wonders they can, and will, work with them: A plentitude of sea goodies, among which are sardines, bonitos, anchovies, shrimps, octopus, lobster, sea squirt, squid, razor fish, is a testament to vibrant fishing communities. An array of homemade pasta and noodles recipes using fresh eggs, wheat and potatoes reveals a proud agrarian legacy along with a strong Italian influence. And who else but our cousins in Italy could account for the extra special love affair between pasta and pulses and the fact that you can find Greece’s answer to lasagna here too? An enthusiasm for spices such as cumin and saffron which you don’t find in the rest of Greece display the considerable impact of the East on daily living. You can even find guava on one of the islands originally brought from Egypt. Sublime cheeses of all descriptions are often made with pre-refrigeration techniques and the use of wood-fired ovens to cook lamb, goat, rabbit and pork in so many different ways continues to stoke the embers of tradition. The islands’ flora offers up rosemary, thyme, mint, parsley, oregano, capers, olive oil, fibre-rich cereals, sweet potatoes, green beans, samphire, purslane, amaranthus, rice and chickpeas, the key ingredient in the famed fritters of Rhodes. After basking for hours in the Mediterranean sun, tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes, onions and aubergines come to you in strikingly radiant colours to match their taste. As for those with a sweet tooth, you’ll discover desserts abound with honey, sesame, citrus fruit, cream, cinnamon and rosewater, providing added zest to joyful family occasions.
