Informative

Thanksgiving is here. But what is thanksgiving? Food is one thing, Black Friday and sales is another, but these are just some of the ways to celebrate the oh-so-important holiday. One of the things that makes this one important is the absolute no relation to any religion. Catholic, Protestants, Jews, Evangelists, Orthodox, hindu and every other religion can celebrate this holiday with no reservations or regrets. There are of course other similar holidays like the 4th of July, the Veterans day but those are revolving around the American nation and not around the family. What was missing was a universal family oriented celebration. A day that we will bring the family around the table and take a moment to be thankful for all the good things that are happening. This became the quest of a woman to make this day, a day that we can use to cherish family and love. It was a quest to make a day that will stop the time; force us to sit and relax; be with those we love.

This is Sophie. Sophie was, and still is, at the registration front desk at my work. I met her almost 6 years ago when I first went to that building as a graduate student to use some of the equipment there. She is an amazing person, and being Polish and therefore a foreigner in this country she bonds very well with other foreigners just like me. I was very happy Sophie was there when I got a job at that building. She stayed with us, for a couple of months and then one days she didn ‘t come back. Soon after I heard she had a battle with cancer, Leukemia, that is trying to claim her life.

Two y...

Grilling is one of the most primitive forms of cooking. Well it was not always called grilling, but although we have evolved, and along side our cooking techniques, this particularly has changed very little. It still involves the three key ingredients: Fire, Meat, Time. We changed the raw wood fire to charcoal and gas, but the idea is still the same. We added new meats to the party, but the we still seek the same satisfaction. And we might, have less time to cook, but when the grill fires up, we have the time just stops.

Today I came across an interesting question on a reat blog I very often read (as often as they publish). It belongs to the pioneer woman, Ree, and it is the blog that gave me the idea for step by step photo shooting of the recipes I post. I talked in the past about that. She mentioned that where she lives it is hard to find milk some cold winter days, and she was wondering if you can freeze milk. I had tried to do that in the past with no success. I tried and I froze it, but upon thawing the result was miserable at least texture wise, with a lot of fat separation.

Well before I talk about the food in Greece, I would like to explain my absence from the blogging world. First of All on August 13th I went to Greece Where a friend of mine was getting married and I was the best man. He was getting married in Lesbos, the so famous island of the north Aegean sea, famous for the first ever Lesbian: Sappho. And I have said many time among circle of friends, that Sappho, was the  first woman to talk about desire for other women. She was from Lesbos so she was known as Sappho the Lesbian, and that ‘s how the name got started. I just mention that to get the laughter stop.

Anywa...

Since I was a kid, I remember a strange commercial. A man looking at the sunset with a glass of brandy next to him looking at the sun, without doing really anything. His eyes where just traveling like he was expecting something. And when the sun finally set, he grabs the brandy and enjoys it while the narrator was saying, “Metaxa, the only spirit that waits for you to mature.” Back then my taste buds where not as trained to very strong and earthy flavors, and I didn ‘t really liked the taste of it. And while the time was going by, I grew up and the taste of that Brandy became, from bitter, interesting, good, and finally complex and exceptional. It is a staple in the greek tradition with about 160 years history along side with the greek nation. It is my grandmothers favorite treat and the only spirit that still occasionally drinks. 

So I haven ‘t written anything a two months. So what is the deal about it? I know you wonder… Well you don ‘t but I just thing you should know prior to the wondering. I took the time that I went to Greece to take a break, but more important, to study the food of Greece.Not study in depth of course, but learn about it. See food is the one thing that unites people. Knowing your food heritage, is knowing yourself.  Many times when I meet someone new and food conversations are ideal to break the ice.

I wat...

I left for last the sauce that is the one closest to my heart. The sauce of the sauces. Well at least for me it is. I love this sauce as nothing in the world. It is a sauce that has only one way of making it and can accommodate everything, from veggies to cardboard.

Velouté is the next in line sauce of the five mother sauces of the french cousin. It is however in a slightly different category than the other two. While the other two were prepared separate and were blending with the food on the plate, velouté is one of the sauces that can be prepared with parts of the actual dish you are preparing. It has a very creamy texture and very smooth feel, like velvet, which I think véloute stand for in French.

This is probably the more common, and recognizable sauce. Every culture around the Mediterranean sea and in general the countries that have the tomato as a farm product. It is probably the one sauce that can be made in 1000 different ways; with meat, with veggies, with cheese, with sea food…. And can top everything from pasta to meat. It is the only sauce that can be used as cooking media to give flavor to roasts. It is actually the only sauce that is eaten cold as well. Yeah… cold like ketchup.

The Tomato ...