Berry Skorthato: New England Summer Twist on a Greek Favorite

Skorthato is a traditional Greek Chicken and Potato dish. In a flavorful explosion of Mediterranean flavor, one mixes lemon, garlic and oregano over chicken and potatoes. Only the Ionian favorite, Stifatho, can challenge as my most loved Greek dish.

However, the use of the lemon seems incompatible with New England Summer for me. In Kefalonia, we had a lemon tree outside out house and in Corinth, lemon and orange trees lined the main roads and the town square. The use of lemon and the dish are distinctively tied to the area. So I asked, what New England summer flavor can challenge this. Blackberries and raspberries are the answer!

Berry Skorthato

Ingredients
1.5 lb of Gourmet Red Potatoes (These PEI perfect sized potatoes replace the Greek yellow finger potatoes
Half pint of raspberries
Half pint of blackberries
3 Tablespoons of Pomegranate molasses
1 Tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup of Shiraz
1 shot Sour Cranberry Schnapps
1 Medium red chili pepper - chopped
2 lbs of chicken - in pieces
1/2 - 1 lb chopped vegetables - chopped

1. Bring potatoes to a boil; continue to boil for 15-20 minutes
2. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C)
3. In a bowl grind together blackberries and raspberries
4. Add molasses, balsamic, Shiraz, schnapps and chili pepper to berries
5. Lay pieces of chicken about a 9x13 baking pan
6. Rub chicken with half of berry mixture
7. Halve potatoes and place about the chicken - filling up the pan
8. Place chapped vegetables atop chicken and potatoes
9. Pour remainder of berry mixture evenly over the top of potatoes
10. Cover in tin foil
11. Bake 35-45 minutes