Ingredients >
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 package active dry yeast
3 cups warm water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tbs honey
1 tbs cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp anise
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbs olive oil
oil for brushing
6 whole nuts

Method >
The night before baking, mix the yeast with some warm water and 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour. Stir well, and set aside, covered, in a warm place. The next morning, in a bowl sift the remaining flour. Make a well in the center and pour in the starter, sugar, honey, spices, salt, oil and water.

Knead well till the dough becomes elastic and shiny. Cover it and let it rise for 2 hours. When the dough is doubled in size, divide it in seven pieces. One of them must be larger than the others. Roll the six smaller pieces into cords.

Stick a nut in one end of each cord. Cut the larger piece of dough in 12 ropes. Stick the ends of 2 ropes near each nut and braid forming an ancient shroud. Place the breads on an oiled baking pan and cover them. Let them rise for 2 hours. Brush the Lazarakia with olive oil and bake them in a pre-heated oven of 200 for 20 to 25 minutes.

Lamb is the meat most associated with Easter. In the Greek Orthodox religion, lamb certainly plays a central part in proceedings.

After the traditional midnight mass on Holy Saturday, congregations will eat mageiritsa, a soup made from the liver, lungs, heart and intestines of a lamb - with wild greens, herbs and an egg and lemon sauce thrown in for good measure.

Then, on Easter Sunday, they will burn an effigy of Judas on a bonfire and gather to roast a lamb on a spit. The resulting dish is called arni pashalino tis souvlas. The Greeks will also eat tsoureki, a sweet Easter bread baked on Maundy Thursday, braided into long loaves, laced with orange zest and black cumin seeds and then studded with hard-boiled eggs that have been dyed red. The bread’s origins go back to Byzantine times and it has remained more or less unchanged since.

Ingredients >
3 each eggs
1 each egg yolk
5 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons mastic
1 teaspoon mahlepi
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 each egg
water as needed
sesame seeds for garnish

Method >
Mix eggs, egg yolk, one cup of flour, yeast, mastic and mahlepi in a mixer with a whip attachment until everything is well incorporated. Take off the mixer, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, the yeast mixture should have increased in size and look bubbly.
Once this has been achieved, put the bowl back on the mixer, and add the sugar, butter and the rest of the flour. Mix until incorporated and a dough begins to form. If necessary, stop the machine and scrape the sides with a spatula. Once the dough begins to pull of the sides of the bowl, scrape the mixture onto a clean surface. Knead until gluten is fully developed and let rest covered for 10 minutes. Flour a clean surface and roll dough to desired shape. Once rolled, place on a buttered pan and let rest at room temperature to proof for 1 - 1.5 hours. Brush dough with an egg wash, sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake at 320 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool. 

Happy Easter, the Greek way!

While many Christians celebrated Easter last March, members of the Greek Orthodox Church still have less than a month a Lent before Easter celebration can begin.

Father George Zervos, who has been a priest for 40 years, has spent the last four years of his service at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Jamestown. ‘‘The Great Lent is a spiritual preparation for all those who are Orthodox Christians to receive the resurrection of Christ,’’ Zervos explained. ‘‘That includes fasting, attending more services, doing more good deeds and the greatest challenge of all, to show love to our fellow man as Christ has loved us.’’

The Sunday prior to the beginning of Lent, is called Forgiveness Sunday. The idea is to embrace one another and ask for reconciliation. Following the beginning of Lent, each Sunday service has a different theme to celebrate Christ’s resurrection. ‘‘The first week emphasizes Jesus’ assuming human flesh, and this is a mystery only known by God,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘So he remains God, but also becomes the perfect man, meaning he is sinless. The second week we emphasize when the son of God came to earth and reunited us with God in his divine love.’’

The second week follows parts of the Bible’s Book of Genesis, where Adam and Eve fell from paradise for eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. However, Zervos explained Christ came to redeem humans, which leads into the third week, the celebration of the Holy Cross. ‘‘When Christ was on the cross he washed away our sins, today we make the sign of the cross to use as a weapon against evil,’’ Zervos explained. ‘‘The fourth week calls our attention to the necessity of personal forgiveness. Lastly the fifth and final week, we practice the joy of experiencing forgiveness through good works and the grace of God, which leads us into Holy Week.’’

Additionally, each Friday in Lent is celebrated with a special service dedicated to Mary, which the church refers to as Salutations to the Mother of God. Throughout the 40 days, there are also strict rules regarding fasting, meaning no meat, cheese, dairy or eggs. On Saturdays, with the exception of Holy Saturday, wine and oil are allowed. Confession is also practiced at this time, and members are encouraged to come to church and use confession as a spiritual medicine.

During Holy Week, services are held every day and every evening. The Greek Orthodox refer to each day as Great Monday, Great Tuesday and so on, because Christ went through great suffering to redeem his people. ‘‘The first two days of the Holy Week we have the bridegroom services, because Jesus was the bridegroom of the Church,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘Just like the love a husband and wife should have for one another, Christ had for the church, so we use that idea.’’

During the Thursday morning of Holy Week, the Church has a Divine Liturgy service. Zervos explained that emergency Holy Communion is prepared and kept throughout the entire year in celebration of Christ’s own Holy Communion. It is hardened to ensure it lasts, and is distributed to the sick or others who are unable to attend service. Following the morning service, Thursday afternoon the wooden icon of Jesus is removed from the cross inside the church. ‘‘Congregation members will walk around the church with an empty cross, symbolizing Christ’s entry into the tomb,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘Our services are very show-and-tell, Jesus is taken down Thursday, wrapped in a sheet and put in the tomb, and we leave the empty cross to tell people the story. We then read Gospel readings referring to his suffering and crucifixion.’’

Finally on Friday a Lamentations Service is held, and readings from the prophets of the Old Testament are read, which are called the Royal Hours. Zervos said now Christ has been put in the tomb and the congregation sings lamentations hymns while holding candles. ‘‘The Saturday liturgy in the morning is called the First Resurrection, and we throw out flowers,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘We believe Christ is in Hades and is preaching salvation to those who have died. Then at midnight we have the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, which we celebrate with lighted candles and by singing hymns.’’

The traditional hymn sung by the Greek Orthodox Church at this time reads as follows: “Christ is risen from the grave, and through death he has trampled on death, and to those in the tombs he has bestowed.” This hymn is also sung throughout the pentecostal season, the 50 days following the resurrection of Christ. ‘‘On Easter morning, we have our Pascha service at 11:30 a.m., our Agape service, which is the Greek word for Christ’s Love,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘This signifies the unity of all races and people, there is no division. We pass out Easter Eggs during this service which are dyed red to symbolize Christ’s blood. After the final service, members crack the eggs with one another, representing Jesus escaping from the tomb.’’

From Easter on for the next 40 days, strick Greek Orthodox members will replace their common greeting of ‘‘hello’’ with ‘‘Christ has risen,’’ and the proper response is ‘‘truly he has risen.’’ This is practiced throughout the Pentecostal season. Also, during the renewal week, which starts the Monday after Easter, there is no fasting allowed. ‘‘After resurrection our body will be reunited with our soul and we will be one again,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘Our goal is to go to heaven by following the commandments of God. This is an ancient service of which all churches are an off-shoot of. If we, during the Great Lent, are fasting it is because we are trying to become more holy.’’

He explained that from the ancient times, the Greek Orthodox church practiced a wholeness or totality. ‘‘The whole source of the Orthodox Christian faith is the holy tradition in which scripture is written. The words of Christ are maintained and kept in the Bible. It’s both the written and unwritten tradition the church keeps. We use the same Bible as other Christian religions, the communion of saints, sacraments of the church are all interrelated and the purpose is to obtain ones salvation.’’

Pentecost Day marks the ending of the post-Easter season, and is the day when the holy spirit ascends to Earth. The following day the church has a liturgy just for God, the father, son and holy spirit, or the Holy Trinity. Zervos said in today’s world, sometimes keeping up with the traditions can be difficult, but it is important to have a form of religion in one’s life. He urges anybody interested in learning more about the Greek Orthodox Church to attend one of their services.

‘‘Everybody is more than welcome,’’ Zervos said. ‘‘Throughout Holy Week services are at 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and we would love to have people at the 11:30 a.m. service on Easter Day. We pass out eggs and read the Bible in different languages. If anybody can speak a different language, be it German or Arabic, they’re welcome to come and share in the light of Christ.’’ For more information, contact St. Nicholas’ at 483-0022.

Last week, many western Christians observed Easter, the celebration of Jesus Christ’s resurrection three days after being crucified. However, for followers of Orthodox Christianity, Easter is still less than a month away, with this year’s celebration falling on April 27.

The disparity in dates lies in the different calendars followed by each faith. The Orthodox Church and Roman Church split from each other in the Great Schism of 1054, mostly over both Churches disagreement with increasing papal authority.

The Orthodox church is not headed by a pontiff but rather an organization of self-governing churches that believe “no one but Christ himself is the real head of the Church,” according to Orthodoxy in America. The Othodox Eastern Church is headed by His All Holiness, Bartholomew, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople.

The Eastern Orthodox Church, as well as many Eastern Catholic churches, follow the Julian calendar established by Julius Caesar.

The Western church uses the Gregorian calendar, which was established in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a reformed version of the earlier calendar. The Gregorian calendar is 13 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which, coupled with differing definitions of a full moon and an equinox, account for the date disparity.

Although the date of Easter is a matter of differing faiths, Orthodox and western Christians share many Easter traditions.

One is the practice of painting Easter eggs, which originated in the 13th century out of an earlier Christian tradition in which eggs were forbidden to be eaten during Holy Week. As a symbol of their faith, Christians marked the Holy Week eggs by dying or painting them.

Eastern Orthodox Christians also observe Lent, a 40-day fasting period excluding Sundays that culminates during the week before Easter, or Holy Week.

Sources: britannica.com, The Religion Newswriters Association, Orthodoxy in America

Traditionally, this lamb would be prepared in a wood-burning oven. I’ve taken the liberty of adapting Aglaia’s recipe to the grill, but you can certainly use the oven if you don’t have a grill.

Oak chips, for cooking
Water
2 tablespoons coarsely chopped garlic (about 6 cloves)
1 tablespoon dried oregano (preferably Greek)
1 tablespoon dried savory or thyme
2 teaspoons salt, plus salt for seasoning
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (a hot red pepper from Syria) or ½ to 1 teaspoon hot paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus pepper for seasoning
½ cup Greek extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 bone-in leg of lamb (5 to 6 pounds)
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 bunch of rosemary to use as a basting brush
Roasted fingerling potatoes, zucchini, red bell peppers and garlic cloves, optional

Soak 1½ cups oak chips or chunks in water for 1 hour, drain.
To make the herb paste, mix together chopped garlic, oregano, savory or thyme, 2 teaspoons salt, Aleppo pepper or hot paprika, and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and stir to make a thick paste.
Place lamb in a roasting pan. Using the tip of a paring knife, make a dozen deep slits (each about 1-inch wide) in leg of lamb. Into each of these slits, place a spoonful of the garlic paste, pushing it in with your finger. Use about a third of the paste.
Add 2 tablespoons additional olive oil to remaining garlic paste. Spread half of this mixture over lamb on all sides. Marinate seasoned lamb in the refrigerator for at least 1 or as long as 6 hours — the longer, the richer the flavor.
Add remaining olive oil, lemon juice and wine to remaining garlic paste. Set mixture aside for basting.
Set up grill for indirect grilling and heat to high (about 400 degrees). If using a charcoal grill, toss wood chips on the mounds of coals and a foil drip pan in the center. If using a gas grill, place chips in smoker box or wrap in foil to make a smoker pouch. Poke holes in top of pouch with a skewer and place smoker pouch under grate over one of the burners.
Season leg of lamb on all sides with salt and pepper. Arrange lamb, fat side up, on grate over drip pan away from heat. Roast lamb until cooked to taste, about 1½ to 2 hours for medium-rare — Greeks tend to eat lamb cooked medium to medium-well. Start basting lamb with oil, lemon juice, wine mixture after 20 minutes, using a sprig of rosemary as a basting brush.
Continue basting every 20 minutes. Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check for doneness: medium-rare lamb will be about 145 degrees; medium lamb about 160 degrees. If there are any juices in the drip pan, you can spoon them over the lamb for serving. Serve with roasted fingerling potatoes, zucchini, red bell peppers and garlic cloves on the side, if desired. Makes 6 servings.

It’s a cold winter day and I’m dreaming of lamb. Not the dark red, full-flavored meat most Americans associate with leg of lamb or loin chops. No, I’m dreaming about the sweet, tender, delicately flavored lamb with crackling crisp skin that shatters into a million buttery shards when you take a bite. I’m thinking about the sort of lamb I last ate with my friends Aglaia and Costas in Greece.

Aglaia Kremezi is one of Greece’s foremost cooking authorities and author of “The Foods of Greece” (Stewart, Tabori and Chang) and “The Foods of the Greek Islands” (Houghton Mifflin). Costas Moraitis is her husband, a biblical scholar turned epicurean and general partner in culinary crime. Together they live on the island of Kea in the Cyclades, where they run the cooking school Kea Artisanal. Oh, and they just happen to have introduced me to the best lamb I’ve ever tasted.

The Greeks make, perhaps, the best lamb on the planet. Other countries may dispute this claim, but if you’ve been to Greece, you know what I mean. They’ve certainly had practice. Greeks have been grilling lamb for thousands of years, possibly 9,000, if we are to believe archeologists who have found charred lamb bones at Neolithic settlement sites there. “The Iliad” abounds with stories laced with references to barbecuing and spit-roasting, often as gastro-religious preludes to marching into battle.

The best Greek lamb is reputed to come from the islands, particularly from Folegandros and Astypalaia. According to Aglaia, in the days before Easter, the ferries arriving from the islands to the mainland are packed with slaughtered lambs destined for impatient customers waiting in cars and taxis. We’re not talking neat plastic-wrapped, Styrofoam-backed packages here, but whole lambs with heads and feet.

So what makes Greek lamb so special? Well, for starters, it’s age. Greeks slaughter lambs at 6 months or less, when they’re still milk-fed or close to it. Those lambs that are grass-fed are often raised on a diet of wild greens and local herbs. Believe me, there’s nary a growth hormone in sight.

A typical Greek lamb weighs 20 to 25 pounds, but that’s 20 to 25 pounds of tenderness and exquisite flavor. American lambs are typically slaughtered at one year, by which time the meat is darker, tougher and much stronger-tasting.

How did lamb come to be associated with Easter and Passover? Here Costas, the biblical scholar, weighs in. As the Israelites were preparing to flee Egypt (Exodus 12:5-13), they were instructed to slaughter an unblemished lamb and mark the door posts of their houses with the blood. When the Angel of Death flew over Egypt, slaying the firstborn sons, he passed over the homes marked with blood. The Hebrews were spared the massacre. Sephardic Jews still eat lamb at Passover.

“Thus, from biblical times, lamb has been associated with deliverance from slavery and death and salvation,” Costas said. Christians liken Christ to God’s lamb, whose blood delivers his followers from sin. It didn’t hurt that lambs are by nature mild-mannered, the perfect Easter symbol for Christ, who advocated turning the other cheek. Of course, there’s a more pragmatic reason why lamb was eaten in spring. That’s when the lambs conceived in summer and born in fall first reach eating size.

What’s the best way to eat lamb? Well, if you happen to be in Greece, any way you can: Roasted whole on a spit at a taverna in the town of Vari outside Athens. Sliced into thin sheets that have been roasted on an ingenious vertical rotisserie and shaved off to make gyro, Greece’s ubiquitous fast food, which is served on pita. Souvlaki-style (shish kebab), grilled over charcoal and served with tzatziki (thick Greek yogurt with garlic and cucumber). In the form of paidakia, those tiny, crusty, amazingly tender Greek lamb chops, which are seasoned with nothing more elaborate than oregano and sea salt.
In many Greek villages, lamb is baked whole or in large sections in a communal wood-burning oven, sometimes stuffed with wild greens and cheese, other times with cinnamon, sultanas and rice.

There are any number of Greek lamb stews, such as the combination of lamb, fresh dill, romaine lettuce leaves and lemon juice my Greek aunt, Rosa Miller, used to serve.
Even the innards are prepared as kokoretsi, which is heart, lung, spleen and other unmentionables impaled on a spit, wrapped in lamb small intestines and spit-roasted over charcoal. (It tastes much better than it sounds.) Next you’ll find a recipe for village-style roast leg of lamb, courtesy of Aglaia and Costas.

I wish I could tell you that Greek lamb can be faithfully reproduced in the United States. It cannot. The animals are different. Their diet is different, and so is the age at which they’re processed.

If you’re lucky enough to live near a large Greek community (such as Astoria in Queens, N.Y.), you can approach the glory that is Greek lamb by buying it at a Greek butcher shop. Even if you don’t live near such a community, do not despair. An equal part of what makes Greek lamb Greek is the seasoning, which is simple but compelling combinations of sea salt, oregano and garlic that you can readily find.

Of course, the best thing would be to experience a traditional village lamb feast with Aglaia and Costas. Upcoming sessions at Kea Artisanal are scheduled for May 25 through June 2, June 23 through July 1 and Sept. 17 through 25. For information, visit www.keartisanal.com.