# Arni me Anginares ke Spanaki Avgolemono



## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Greeces long time connection with venetion republic accounts for some of the culinary influences that appear Italian. But it doet seem the Venetians learned a thing or two from Greece. For example,the Venetian manzo alla grecca derives from the Greek original as seen in (besides the name) the basic avgolemono , or lemon and egg yolf sauce. This sauce was popular in Venice and was also used in another preparation known as bollito alla cortigiana, courtesans boiled beef, however, at least one schoar believes the inflience on both the Greek and venetain dishes may come much later, from the French cuisine, because because of the use of egg in the sauce derived from French style compound sauces.

This recipe is from the highly recommended restaurant in Athens Greece “Costayannis”

Arni me Anginares ke Spanaki Avgolemono.

¼ cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon evoo
2 # lamb shoulder on the bone, then boned, trimmed of fat and cut into large pieces
1 medium onion chopped
½ cup dry white wine
1 ½ cups water
10 baby carrots
S&P
8 medium artichoke hearts quarterd
juice from 1 ½ lemons
10 oz trimmed and washed spinach
2 tablespoons fresh chopped dill
2 large eggs

1, In a large cassorole, melt the butter in the olive oil over medium high heat, then brown the meat for about 8 minutes turning as you brown, add the onion and cook until soft. Add the vino and cook until evaporated. Reduce the heat to medium low, add the water and carrots, season with S&P and cook till carrots are tender.

2, Add the artichoke hearts and one third of the lemon juice to the cassarole, reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, add the spinach and dill and cook until the artichokes are tender.

3, Meanwhile, beat the eggs together in a bowl until frothy. Pour in the remaining lemon juice, beating as you pour. Slowly beat about a ½ cup of the broth to the egg mixture. Pour then lemon sauce over the meat in the cassarole and shake until it thickens….

I was thinking about the avgolemono thread a while back, found this recipe in one of my books
enjoy
CC


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

CC~ what is evoo?


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## mezzaluna (Aug 29, 2000)

Thank you, Cape Chef, for the great post. It never occurred to me that avgolemono sauce could be anything but Greek, but you've got me thinking. It seems to be a cousin of a custard, with broth instead of milk or cream- or broth in place of oil in a mayonnaise-type sauce. Hmmm....

Luckily, my local Greek restaurant makes this dish (minus the carrots). It's delicious, and your recipe looks pretty easy to make. Thanks! :lips:


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## cape chef (Jul 31, 2000)

Shroom,

EVOO or XVOO Extra Virgin Olive Oil 

Mezz, the history behind food never stops teaching us


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## pongi (Jan 11, 2002)

Avgolemono-like dishes, made with meat and/or vegetables cut in pieces, braised and completed with a lemon/egg sauce, are very diffused in Italy and called "Fricassea".
One of these dishes is typical of my region, Liguria, and it's made with lamb meat and artichokes, looking a lot like the dish quoted by CC. It's a typical Easter dish.

FRICASSEA D'AGNELLO E CARCIOFI

Ingredients:
2 lb lamb meat, cut in small pieces
6-8 artichokes, each cut in 8 pieces
1-2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 whole eggs or 3-4 yolks (I usually choose the 2nd option
)
juice from 1-1 1/2 lemon
1 handful chopped fresh parsley
150 ml dry white wine
Salt, pepper, EVOO ) !!! I spared 16 letters! )
1 1/2 cups water

Heat the oil in a large pan, add the meat and brown it for about 10 mins, then lower the heat, add the garlic and and cook until soft. Add the wine, cook at a brisk heat until evaporated, add the artichokes and the water, season with salt and pepper, lower the heat and cook until the artichokes are tender and the water is almost evaporated. Beat in a bowl the eggs with the lemon juice and the parsley and pour them in the pan. Cook few mins more, shaking the pan, until it's thick.

Another "Avgolemono-like" traditional Italian recipe comes from Emilia Romagna and it's a rice soup, called "Riso e Tridura (or Terdura)". Briefly, it's made with rice, boiled in meat stock, to whom beaten eggs and grated Parmesan are added just before serving. A more basic version, made without rice or pasta, is called "Stracciatella". As you can see, "lemono" is lacking, being substituted with parmesan.

Which recipes come first?
Looking forward the answer from our historians...Greek or not! 

Pongi


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