A Jewish-Greek Eggplant Recipe That Found Its Way to Jamaica and Beyond

Shared by Annette Fromm

Recipe Roots: Ioannina, Greece > New York City > Providence, RI > Pittsburgh > Columbus and Cleveland, OH > Tulsa and Norman, OK > Miami Beach > Lopez Island, WA 

“Greek phrases were heard frequently at home,” writes retired museum professional Annette Fromm in the book “Jewish Mothers Tell Their Stories: Acts of Love and Courage.” “My mother spoke them in anger and in love, to hasten or caution us, or just to keep them alive in her mind.”

Annette’s maternal grandmother Esther, who she called Nona, was born in Ioannina, a town in the northwest corner of Greece, an hour south of the Albanian border. In Ioannina, “there were at least three to five mosques, numerous churches, and two synagogues, each of which had a small minyan” explains Annette, referring to a group that meets for prayer. Here, Esther was raised in a community of Romaniote Jews — though Annette prefers the term Greek-speaking Jews. “They’re Byzantine Jews,” she adds, part of a community whose roots pre-date the Sephardic Jews who moved to the Ottoman Empire during the Spanish Inquisition. 

By 1900, when Esther was little, there were 4,000 Jews living in Ioannina. Her family lived in a walled area of the city called the Kastro, which juts into Lake Pamvotis. But, after her father passed away, the family moved to the Lower East Side looking for new opportunities. In New York, Esther met Annette’s grandfather, a haberdasher and shoe shiner, whose family was from the town Filiates and the same community. 

Mollie in New York City, 1935.

Together, they lived deep within the Greek community in the U.S. “My Nona did not speak a lot of English. I don’t believe she could read or write… she lived in a cocoon of other Greek Jewish women around her,” Annette explains. “What they knew was to be Greek.” She listened to Greek records and Esther kept traditions from Greece alive at the family table. “She was always in the kitchen and there were always pots of stuff cooking with tomatoes, and onions, and garlic,” like okra with tomatoes, stuffed tomatoes and peppers.

Among the family recipes is patrigian mi tiri, an eggplant and cheese-laden casserole that’s unique to the Greek-spreaking Jewish community. “Over the years, I figured out… it’s a kosher moussaka because it has no meat in it,” says Annette.  

It was passed down to Annette’s mother Mollie who raised Annette and her brothers in a home where Greek culture was prized. Growing up in Pittsburgh, Annette attended both Hebrew school at a local synagogue and Greek school at a Greek Orthodox church, where she was excused from religious lessons. 

Mollie and Annette in Pittsburg, 1953.

Annette learned the recipe and carried it with her as an adult. In the mid 1970’s, she made it in her tiny home in Jamaica where she served in the Peace Corps, and she brought it to potlucks in Indiana where she lived later. She’s continued to make it for her family as she’s moved around the U.S. 

When tracing the roots of the recipe, Annette says: “There’s the source, who is our grandmother, our Nona in Greece and New York, then my mother took it….then my brother and I took it.” She adds: “It’s like a family tree.”

Patrigian Mi Tiri (Eggplant and Cheese Casserole)

Makes: 4 - 6 servings
Total Time: 2 hours

Ingredients
3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
2 large eggplants, about 1 ½ pounds
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
24 ounces (3 cups) cottage cheese
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup chopped feta
¼ cup matzo meal
½ teaspoon white pepper
2 eggs

Preparation
1. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees. Bring a large pot of water with 3 tablespoons of salt to boil. And, lightly grease a 10 to 12 inch round pie pan or baking dish with oil.

 2. Trim off the eggplant tops, then cut in half lengthwise. Cut each of the halves into quarters crosswise. Add to the pot of boiling water, and cook for 10 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.

 3. In a mixing bowl, combine the cheeses, matzo meal, 1 ½ teaspoons of salt, pepper, and eggs. Mix well with a spatula or fork to eliminate any lumps.

4. Once the eggplant is cool enough to handle, gently scoop out the meat from the skin, leaving the skin pieces about ½ inch thick. Line the bottom of the baking dish with skin pieces, peel side down.

5. Dice the eggplant meat into small pieces. Add it to the mixing bowl with the cheeses, add 1 teaspoon of salt and combine well. Then, spread the mixture evenly into the pie pan. 

6. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the top is a golden brown. Serve hot or cold.

Cook’s Note: In Annette's family it is traditional to boil the eggplants. You can feel free to roast the eggplants until they are tender on the inside and golden brown on the outside instead if you prefer.

Okra with Tomatoes

Photos by Armanda Rafael, Food Styling by Judy Haubert

Makes: 4 servings
Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients 
1 pound whole fresh okra, tops trimmed around the edges
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 - 8 large ripe tomatoes, finely chopped 
Juice from 1 lemon, about 2 tablespoons

Preparation
1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.

2. Add the onions and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally until they soften and start to brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. 

3. Add in the chopped tomatoes, allowing them to soften and release their juices. Cook until they start to reduce, about 8 to 10 minutes more.

4. Add in the okra and lemon juice, mixing well. Simmer the mixture on low heat until the okra has softened and the tomatoes have reduced into a thicker sauce, about 15 to 20 minutes.

5. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve warm.