Archive for the ‘Greek’ Category
Sunday, August 30th, 2009
Tags:
baking,
fanouropita,
greek food,
metaxa,
φανουρόπιτα
Needless to say, I was in some peril recently and a path was revealed to me. That's why I baked this fanouropita.
There are a lot of cool/weird/complex/funny Greek traditions out there, some of which are rooted in the ancient days and have since been amalgamated in Orthodox rituals. One nice and simple tradition says that when you need help recovering a lost item or help finding your way out of a problem, you pray to Saint Fanourios (whose name is similar to the ancient Greek verb “faino,” which means “to reveal,” as in “revealing a path”). If you find your lost item or successfully find your way out of a problem or troubled times, you bake an offering food to the Saint as a thank-you.
Food offerings go way, way back and no doubt this has roots in ancient traditions. And who doesn’t like an excuse to bake a delicious cake that has alcohol in it? :) This fanouropita (a cake for St. Fanourios) has half a cup of Metaxa (Greek brandy) and a splash of French orange cognac in it. Best of all, fanouropita is Lenten fast-friendly, meaning it’s totally vegan!
Friday, July 3rd, 2009
Tags:
greece,
messene,
messini,
peleponnese,
ruins,
sparta
I've been scanning some prints of photos I took on a big vacation to Greece in summer 2000. Print scans are sub-optimal to film scans, but I'm working with what I've got.
This trip was one of the last times I worked with a proper SLR, and I really miss it.
Sunday, May 10th, 2009
Tags:
british museum,
greece,
Greek,
london,
museum,
parthenon marbles
While in London, my top priority was to visit the British Museum to see the Parthenon Marbles (also called the Elgin Marbles depending on your loyalties). I grew up hearing about how these precious pieces were taken by Lord Elgin while he was ambassador to the Ottoman Empire.
Anyone who has had a decent art history course knows why these pieces are significant both in the context of Greek/classical history and to art history in general. I was very very glad I got to see these masterpieces in person, despite the fact they were not in Greece.
Monday, April 20th, 2009
Tags:
Easter,
Greek,
Πάσχα
Yesterday was Easter (Πάσχα) for Greek Orthodox, so we had a little meal at my parents' house early Sunday afternoon. It's a bittersweet occasion as my older brother will be moving away on Wednesday—he's going somewhere new and fun, but he'll be really far. As excited as we are for him, we're going to miss him too.
Fresh cut flowers from my mother’s garden, including fragrant daffodils and (my favorite) hinodoxa.
Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
Tags:
baklava,
cooking
There's a good reason baklava's a delicacy only for special occasions. I spent a good five hours just on one batch. Exhausting!
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