“We eat the best food here and that’s why we’re all still fighting fit. It’s why I’m still on my knees picking olives every November. The fish here is the best, fresh from the sea. It’s caught in the morning then it’s on my plate by the afternoon. That’s real food that will keep you alive for years.
“I’ve been cooking this dish for so long. We used to joke that skordalia isn’t for a young girl that wants to be kissed. My husband, George, loved it. He would want fish every mealtime, so I learned to cook it as soon as we married. Back then, we didn’t just stick it in the oven. I learned to cook on an open flame and I still only cook this way. My mother never taught me how to do any of this—it was more about putting me to work out in the fields. I had nine other siblings and we couldn’t all go to school so I never learned to read or write. Cooking and looking after my family is what I learned to do best.
