Greek-Inspired Olive Crusted Roast Beef with Potatoes and Homemade Tzakiki

Tzakiki dip made from homemade yogurt (top) with olive-crusted roast beef (bottom)

This year Easter came twice. One weekend after the Anglo Easter weekend, it’s now the Greek’s turn to celebrate Orthodox Easter.

Now, if I didn’t have my little accident and hadn’t hurt my ankle, we were supposed to be watching the madness of Orthodox Easter festivities in a small island in Chios, Greece. We would have seen this insane festival called Rouketopolemos. The festival goes between Easter eve until Easter day, this year it is held between April 15 - 16. It involves the congregation of two (traditionally) neighbouring rival churches of St Mark’s and Panaghia Ereithiani, shooting makeshift firecrackers made out of wooden sticks stuck to a whole heap of gun powder. Hence the term “Rocket War”! The goal of the game is to hit the bell tower of the rival church using these rockets. Coming from Australia, where the sale of firecrackers are strictly prohibited in most states, the idea of Rouketopolemos is totally amusing!