Cockerel marinated in muscat wine and slowly cooked in tomato and cinnamon sauce -- The ideal comfort food for a cold Sunday

This is a classic traditional recipe which you can find around the country and in some areas it is considered as the local speciality. We could think of it as the Greek version of the classic "coq au vin" but it's not really. Anyway, the thing is that it is a rich and hearty dish for a Winter Sunday meal to enjoy with friends and family! Those who live in big cities but have friends or relatives living in villages must feel privileged because they might have the chance to enjoy a free range bird at their tables and then..... big smiles all around!!!

Ingredients (for 4-6 people):
1 whole cockerel (about 3 ½ Kg), preferably a free range one
2-3 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of butter (preferably cow's milk)
700 gr. of ripe tomatoes, grated (or tomato passata)
2 tbsp of sugar
salt
pepper
1/2-1 tsp of ground cinnamon

For the marinade:
1 bottle of sweet Muscat wine
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
3 cloves of garlic, cut in half
6 clove buds
3 bay leaves

Method:
Ask your butcher to cut the cockerel into 12 portions (6 from each side). Discard the fatty bits between the legs and the neck. Wash the cockerel well with warm water to discard the outer fat and to allow the skin to "fluffen up" a bit. Using a knife thoroughly clean the skin of the cockerel.

Place the cockerel in a large bowl in not more than two layers and pour over with the wine. Add the onions, the garlic and the rest of the marinade ingredients. Cover with cling film and leave the cockerel to marinate in the fridge for at least 12-14 hours.

Take the meat out of the marinade, drain and pat dry with kitchen paper. Strain, keep the marinade ingredients aside but throw the wine.

Warm 1-2 tbsp of the olive oil along with 1 tbsp of the butter in a large pot in high heat. Quickly sauté half of the cockerel pieces on all sides until they get nicely coloured. Transfer the meat on a plate and clean the bottom of the pot with some kitchen paper. Warm the rest of the butter and the oil and continue with the second lot of the cockerel pieces in the same way. *** Do this as fast as possible so not to allow the meat to free it's juices.

Just before finishing the sautéing (of the second lot of the bird) add in the pot the ingredients of the marinade you saved earlier. Stir well until they get soft and then add the rest of the cockerel pieces in the pot.

Then add the tomato, the sugar, the cinnamon and season with salt and pepper. If it is needed add some warm water. *** The food should be covered almost completely with liquid.

Turn the heat to low and simmer the food for 2-3 hours (totally or semi covered with the lid) until the meat is cooked through and very tender. Two-three times during cooking take off the fat that the food gathers on the surface using a ladle and discard it.

Traditionally this dish is served along with thick macaroni pasta (a speciality of Corfu island) or "hylopites", an egg based type of homemade noodles.