Food and cooking can provide us with connections to the past, and old family recipes help pass traditions between generations.
Eugene Maurakis, the former chief scientist at the Science Museum of Virginia, revisits his childhood by sharing his family’s old Greek recipes. Now, he’s compiled them in a cookbook called Foods are Memories. In the book, Maurakis not only explains how to cook traditional Greek dishes, but captures images of that food through his own artwork.
Morning Edition host Phil Liles spoke with Maurakis about the book and family memories.
The interview below has been edited for length and clarity.
Phil Liles: Eugene, give us a bit of background on yourself.
Eugene Maurakis: I had a career in environmental science and biology. I still teach a course or two at University of Richmond. I retired from the Science Museum of Virginia. I was the chief scientist there for about 25 years, and at that point, I began to think back about some of the stories between my mom, my grandmothers, and dad and I of cooking and growing herbs and vegetables in our gardens.
Stories began to fall into place, and I said, “Why don't I just go ahead and start a cookbook?” And so I looked at all of the recipes that I had gathered from my mother, my father and my two grandmothers, from various parts of Greece. I began to put those together and tried to recall what I could. That's how this book came about.
Talk a little bit about your home in Greece, where your family is originally from.
My father's people are from the island of Crete. My mother's family is from Constantinople. And my grandfather was from a little town on the coast in Peloponnese, which is southwest of Athens, called Leonidio. Between Leonidian recipes, and those from Constantinople from my maternal grandmother, and then all the ones from Crete, there's a blend of different seasonings for different dishes based on whose recipe it is.
Now, do you have any favorite recipes?
I think koulourakia, the little twisted butter cookies. They can also be made with cinnamon and clove, as well. I remember I was four or five years old. My mother asked in Greek, “Do you want to make a koulourakia?” I said, “Yes.”
I had really small, little hands, and she gave me a dollop of dough. I began to rub it between my hands and palms, just mimicking what she was doing. And I don't remember the outcome of my particular shape, but all I remember is when they came out of the oven, I remember the aroma of vanilla — and of cinnamon for the other koulourakia — just …permeating the room … and butter!
Those are my first memories, and I cherish that forever.
One of the other things that I enjoy — and it's part of your epilogue — is a word for friendliness.
It’s a Greek custom. It's called philoxenia.“Philo” comes from the Greek word for friend. And “xenia” is Greek for foreigner or stranger. So, it's a “friend to the stranger.”
When you see a foreigner or a stranger in need, you help them without doubt. You welcome them, and you assist them and help them [with] whatever they need. It instills a sense of joy, of happiness, of empathy. And the receiver feels the empathy from the giver and also feels joy and happiness.
Eugene, thank you so much for coming in this morning and speaking with me.
Phil, thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it.
Disclosure: Mr. Maurakis served as a board member for VPM’s “Science Matters” initiative.
