My Stupid Tooth and My Visits to Greece.

Once it was rather late to do anything on Monday, I realised I should have gone to the ‘on call’ dentist – oh well, I will phone my dentist this morning and hopefully they can see me soon. Would you believe I filed down the worst of the sharp point with an emery board!!! It worked though. Trouble is my tongue is sore from being scraped by the rough area. Its incredible how much one moves the tongue during the course of a day. Swallowing is the most painful and one swallows all the time. We had some pork chops for supper and I had one hell of a job eating mine. I cut tiny pieces off in order to deal with them but my tongue was still hurting like hell.

A guest post by Bex at A to Z posted some Common Misconceptions about Greece and I was interested to see what she wrote. However, my experience regarding the business of throwing plates wasn’t confined to one particular dance; we were on the island of Lefkas in the Ionian Sea – many years ago – and my family and I were dancing with a bunch of Greek friends; plates were being thrown all over the place. I had flip flops or thongs on and kept losing them and was worried I would cut my feet on the china. My particular friend kept calling them to sweep up the broken crockery, which they did. Luckily I never did any damage to my feet, but lost a gold earring instead!!! It was great fun. I love the Greek people they work hard and play hard. What absolutely fascinated me, one could be quietly sipping an ouzo in a taverna (at any of the towns or villages we visited) and suddenly someone, just an ordinary patron, would start singing, then everyone would join in either singing or getting up to dance. Someone always seemed to have a bouzouki.  In those days, it was usually a group of men who would get up and dance, don’t know if its changed. They did allow us visitors to join them though. This applied wherever we were and I travelled from Athens to Kerkira (Corfu) my parents having been sailing the Aegean prior to me flying out to join them in Athens. I never did spend any real time in Athens although I visited the Acropolis – still wearing flip flops, not recommended, there was lots of broken stone to climb around. Greece is one of the places I would like to visit again. I went there twice, spending about 6 weeks in total, and barely skimmed the available things to see and do. One of my favourite places was Delphi which was a delightful spot, apart from its historical significance. I still have the komboloi (worry beads) I bought there. If you watch this video you will see why we non Greeks call them worry beads.

My mother found a giant komboloi whilst they were in the Aegean, I saw one – in Delphi I think – and wanted to get it. I was told to bargain, so I did, I was then told to walk away, which I did, so much for that, I never did get my giant komboloi. I wonder what happened to the one my mother bought?

One thing that really interested me was the acoustics of the ancient Greek theatres. You can stand in the centre of a theatre and speak in a normal voice and be heard at the top of the auditorium. I see in the article mentioned above there is a picture of the theatre at Epidaurus which is in use today. The one I visited was at Delphi and certainly wasn’t in use then, but we tested the sound and it really worked. There was a museum there, may still be, with one particular statue, The Charioteer, which had the most incredible eyes, they followed you all round the room. It is postulated that he was part of a group driving the chariot of Apollo. Sadly, so many artifacts in Greece have been lost, broken or buried due to earthquakes, some, like the charioteer, have been found but how many have been hidden from view? This is one of my pictures, but as you can see, it is no longer very clear, it was, after all, taken some 43 years ago. On that particular trip we sailed (on my family’s yacht) from Piraeus which is really the port for Athens, through the Corinth Canal which was begun by the Romans, (there is a carving to commemorate that fact right on the canal wall) along the Gulf of Corinth into the Ionian sea stopping at various towns and villages on the way. One place, and I don’t remember the name, they actually had some Roman ruins, a beautiful mosaic floor onto which they threw a bucket of water so you could appreciate the colours. They were beautiful, but I still prefer the home grown ruins. The ancient Greeks always sited their important buildings somewhere so that one can enjoy the most beautiful scenery from them. Just look at the background of my Delphi Theatre picture. The great thing about being in your own yacht, you can stop where you want and visit for as long as you wish. Its also easy to “chat up the locals” as we used to call it. We made many friends that way.

Bex, who wrote the article mentioned above, is lucky enough to live there, as I said, I would love to go back. I am glad she says things are not as serious as portrayed in the news. But then reporters like to make mountains out of molehills don’t they? Gotta make it interesting.

I thought this sounded pretty refreshing, especially with our current heat wave. I have several Bobby Flay recipes which I use frequently.

Watermelon-Tequila Cocktails

Contributed by Bobby Flay

SERVINGS:Makes 8 drinks

When watermelon is in abundance, this is a great way to use it. Bobby Flay purees seedless watermelon chunks, then strains the juice through a sieve and mixes it with silver tequila, sugar syrup, blueberries, mint and fresh lime juice.

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup granulated sugar

8 cups diced seedless watermelon (1 pound)

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 3/4 cups blueberries

3/4 cup lightly packed fresh mint leaves, plus 8 sprigs for garnish

1 1/4 cups silver tequila

Ice

1. In a small saucepan, bring the water to a simmer with the sugar and stir over moderate heat until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute; let the sugar syrup cool.
2. In a blender, purée the watermelon until smooth. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl and strain the watermelon juice, pressing gently on the solids to extract as much juice as possible. Discard the pulp.
3. In a large pitcher, combine the sugar syrup with the lime juice, blueberries and mint leaves. Using a wooden spoon, lightly muddle the blueberries and mint. Add the watermelon juice and tequila. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.
4. Pour the cocktail into tall ice-filled glasses. Garnish with the mint sprigs and serve.

Have a great day

Bowling, Old Home Movies, Senior Cell Phones.

If it ain’t one thing, its another. I had to stop bowling yesterday because my back was hurting. Maybe it was because I hadn’t done much for two weeks and then bowled on Friday. Before I stopped I won my money back in the 50/50 draw, I had to bowl for a head pin and got it. Funny we have been pretty luck on the 50/50 lately, I have won it a couple of times and so has Matt. Makes for inexpensive bowling.

Just for a change, there was damn all on TV last night, so I decided to pull out a video which was made from a bunch of 8 mm film taken years ago. Unfortunately it chops and changes because I was unable to specify dates. There is a lot of film of Malta which I visited in the ‘60s with my first husband and friends, and then later when my parents lived there for a few years. It was great looking at the places we went to and the one of the pools we swam in a lot of the time. I was fascinated, in those days I wore the prettiest bathing caps, wonder where I got them? My three cousins didn’t bother and nor did my mother. I wonder why I did? We had some wonderful times in Malta and I really loved the island, I remember much of it fondly – oddly enough it was the first place I ever ate gazpacho although that is not a Maltese soup. The first time we visited we stayed in a hotel in Sliema and the food was pretty god awful, British cooking at its worst. There were not many decent places to eat, but eventually they built a Sheraton there which had a good restaurant – hence the gazpacho. Later a lot more decent eating places were opened because for a while there was a large influx of British retirees until a new Prime Minister was elected who didn’t like the Brits so they all left. Must have been a blow to the island’s economy for a while.

There was also film of my first wedding in 1962, almost 50 years ago, incredible that it is still viewable. I didn’t remember that one of my ex boyfriends was at the wedding, he was married by then mind you. It was wonderful to see so many pictures of old friends and relatives, many, if not most, of whom are no longer with us including my first husband although he died after we were divorced. There were pictures of our honeymoon trip to Devon in the south west of England. We stayed at, or near, Beer. We thought it was an odd name too. There are many films from trips on my parent’s boat with us in – what was then – Yugoslavia and Greece. Particularly visits to Dubrovnick (Yugoslavia) and Delphi (Greece) in those two countries. It all brought back some wonderful memories. Both countries are very mountainous and the views are spectacular, especially from the Greek ruins. Above is the theatre at Delphi with the temple ruins in the background. You can sit at the top of the theatre seats and hear someone talk quietly from centre stage. I know, we tried it. Brilliant acoustics.

I have decided to go with my ISP’s new phone system for seniors. I have mentioned before that technology and Matt don’t gel very well; he has one heck of a job with our present cell phone. The new cell phone which is on its way is supposed to be so very much easier and not only that, it has a one touch button on the outside for an emergency number. The package has 100 minutes which we will never use, we only carry it for emergencies and the emergency button will be a great feature to have. I have discovered that our old phone will still work for a) calling 911 and b) taking pictures, which is good. I could have bad both phones working with a different line for each, but that would have been an extra expense we don’t need. It not as though we are out and about all over the place without one another.

Here’s a recipe for a one dish meal. It seems typically American to me and I suspect it will appeal to several readers. I see it is even described as diner food.

Crispy Potatoes with Green Beans and Eggs

Source: © EatingWell Magazine

4 servings

This is a one-skillet meal, reminiscent of diner fare at roadside restaurants across the U.S. It can be made with either leftover or raw potatoes. Even while making dinner in a hurry, don't rush this dish: you want to cook the potato cubes until they are crispy outside but still creamy inside.
INGREDIENTS

1 cup fresh or cooked green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 pounds boiling potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice, or 5 cups diced cooked potatoes

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground pepper to taste

4 large eggs

Pinch of paprika (optional)

DIRECTIONS

If using fresh green beans, cook in a large saucepan of boiling water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold running water.

Heat oil in a large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over medium heat until hot enough to sizzle a piece of potato. Spread potatoes in an even layer and cook, turning every few minutes with a wide spatula, until tender and browned, 15 to 20 minutes for raw potatoes, 10 to 12 minutes for cooked. Stir in the green beans, garlic, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper.

Crack each egg into a small bowl and slip them one at a time into the pan on top of the vegetables, spacing evenly. Cover and cook over medium heat until the whites are set and the yolks are cooked to your taste, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle the eggs with paprika, if desired, and serve immediately.

Have a great day

Easter, UGG, Lamb

I have just eaten one of my home made Hot Cross Buns, I thought - when I made them yesterday - that they weren't all that successful. However, it tasted great. That's one of the problems with not cooking things with any regularity. I cannot remember the last time I made them. I just read an excerpt about Hot Cross Buns which told me they originated in ancient Greece and were often made as an offering to the gods although in those days, prior to Christianity, they might be stamped with the horns of a sacred ox. This picture is half of one which takes up two pages in my Time Life Cooking of the Middle East. These Greek men are cooking the Paschal Lamb at a street barbecue pit. Probably, the lamb has lived with the family for the last few months before they killed it. The whole event being symbolic of the sacrifice of Christ. The guys are having a bit of a party there, drinking a sip or two of retsina whilst they are cooking. The women, meanwhile, are baking all kinds of breads and pastries probably in the local baker's ovens as their own wouldn't be big enough for the Easter feast. This picture was taken on the slopes of Mount Parnassos near Delphi, but was, certainly at one time, repeated over many areas of Greece, particularly in the islands. There is another picture in the book showing the smoke from many such barbecue pits on Easter morning. The Greek women also prepare kebabs of liver and skewers of organ meats (offal) called kokoretsi, small pieces of which will be offered to anyone who calls at the home whilst the men are roasting the lambs. The delicious smells emanating from these barbecue pits are absolutely wonderful. I cannot speak with total authority, but I know some people from what used to be Yugoslavia (when I was young), practice the same way of cooking their Paschal lambs. I know a Yugoslavian friend of our had such a barbecue for his wedding some 20 years ago. On GMA this morning they revealed a new website where they have all the recipes prepared by their guest celebrity chefs such as Emeril Lagasse, Wolfgang Puck, Sara Moulton, etc. etc. there are, apparently, over 1,000 recipes. This morning Emeril prepared an Easter ham. This is something Matt and I have never understood even after 34 years or living in North America, buying a cooked ham and then cooking it. When we buy a cooked ham we slice it thinly and eat it with Coleman's mustard (very hot). I have never tried to buy an uncooked ham here, but we used to in the UK and then cook it having poked cloves into the skin and such. That was another thing I found confusing, where we lived in North Carolina they refer to a leg of pork, uncured, as a ham???? Churchill said it best, two nations divided by a common language. Another segment on GMA today was regarding UGG boots which are so very popular these days, they say. Apparently, because there is no arch support, the boots are not very good for you and wearing them a lot for long periods puts a strain on your heels and ankles and makes them work too hard which can then affect your knees and hips in later life. Same applies to flip flops, so said the Podiatrist. The report stated that people are wearing them even though there is no snow and it isn't cold. The problem can be alleviated by wearing an insert, either one you buy or a prescribed orthotic. As a note here, as a young woman I used to live in flip flops, I still wear them a lot and I have had a hip replacement. Any connection? Of course Matt has had two hip replacements and a knee replacement and has never worn a flip flop in his life. Go figure. As an alternative to ham, I am giving you a lamb recipe from The Best Three and Four Ingredient Cookbook. This is basically how I cook my lamb although I don't always include the rosemary. I also serve mine with homemade gravy which I have described in a previous blog and mint sauce - English style - NOT mint jelly nor that wishy washy stuff you can buy in a bottle but the stuff you get in a jar which is so thick you sometimes have to mix it with a bit more sugar and vinegar. One thing I would take issue with would be the roasting time, I would cook for 20 mins per lb. I think 25 mins. it would be somewhat overcooked Roast Leg of Lamb with Rosemary and Garlic This is a classic combination of flavours and always popular. Serve as a traditional Sunday lunch with roast potatoes and vegetables. Leaving the lamb to rest before carving ensures a tender result. Serves four to six 1 leg of lamb, approx. 4 lb. 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced leaves from 2 sprigs fresh Rosemary from the store cupboard 2 Tbs olive oil salt and ground black pepper Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F. Using a small sharp knife, make slices at 1 1/2 in. intervals over the lamb, deep enough to hold a piece of garlic. Push the garlic and rosemary leaves into the slits. Drizzle the olive oil over the top of the lamb and season with plenty of salt and pepper. Place in a roasting dish which is also oiled. Roast for 25 mins per lb. of lamb, plus another 25 minutes. Remove the lamb from the oven and leave to rest for about 15 minutes before carving. Happy Easter.