Cookbook- Ela! Ela! To Turkey and Greece then Home by Ella Mittas

Ela! Ela! To Turkey and Greece then Home by Ella Mittas

A heartfelt journey of knowledge in food, culture and belonging, Ela! Ela! (meaning 'Come, come' in Greek) sees renowned writer and Melbourne born pop-up chef Ella Mittas sharing her first ever collection of food writing and personal essays, which speak to the origins and evolutions – and lead us to the recipes – of some of her most iconic dishes.

Through the stories and recipes in Ela! Ela! Ella explores her travels through Turkey and Greece, her relationship with her Anglo-Greek identity, and her desire to connect to culture through food.

Each chapter is dedicated to a different place, taking readers on a culinary journey from Istanbul to Alaçati and Crete with Ella’s own photos.

Cretan skillet pie with thyme honey, braised Roman beans with trahana, buttery
chicken pilaf – dishes inspired by traditional and regional food. Each chapter of
the book is based on a different region Mittas has worked in. “The recipes are a
mix of things I saw, ate and was taught,” she says. “Years of cooking them have
turned them into something more my own.”

Through the stories and recipes in Ela! Ela! Mittas explores her travels through
Turkey and Greece, her relationship with her Anglo-Greek identity, and her desire
to connect to culture through food.

The book’s introduction begins: “My father’s side of the family is Greek. They
all live on one street, in houses next door to each other. There are holes cut
between backyard fences, so everyone can be together easily. That one small
section of street has given me a sense of community and belonging I haven’t
been able to locate in the rest of my life. It seems separate from the rest of
Australia, but it’s a version of Greece abstracted from the real thing; its traditions
are built on distant memories.” Ella Mitas

About the Author - Ella Mittas is a chef and food writer. She has built her career in food working under Brigitte Hafner, Annie Smithers and Ismail Tosun in Australia, honing her skills in London at NOPI, in Tel Aviv at Romano and in Istanbul at Lokanta Maya.
Her recipes have been featured in The Design Files and Broadsheet, and her food writing published in The Saturday Paper.

A must for your cookbook collection. 

Hardcover 160 pages