Breakfast is a non-paper?

Lovers enjoy it. Kids are oblidged to have it. Retirees sip it. Animals and birds never skip it.

Please don't tell me YOU actually have breakfast and if you do , please, don't try to convince me that you daily do so or that you daily enjoy it. Very few people have breakfast daily and anything on the go from Starbucks is not what I mean here.

In my books, cereals from a box is a non-option. Unless I have applied for a mini-mortgage to be able to buy the delicious swiss organic mix sold in selected few stores , I refuse to have cereal from a carton box because it tastes like...carton box and it doesn't fill you up, after an hour you are famished. Also, instantly, the food satisfaction level drops dramatically, there is no taste in cereals and no real nutrition.

Yes, breakfast is or should be considered one of the important food intakes of the day. You only value this when you actually start having breakfast. Then, you cannot do without it.

I have breakfast. I try to daily have some inspired breakfast. When I am my good self, I wake up, whip two egg whites (eggs a la Davide recipe availale in previous posts) , add some chillies in and happily live on that alone until late lunch.

When I am my lazy , indifferent to body goodness , exhausted or overworked self , I just sip my coffee greek style (alone) or with a cinnamon cookie dunked in, like a yiayia! In half an hour, I am starved or h-angry! I need to eat.

But , life is not either /or. There is also...the in between road! Breakfast yes, but quick and good for you with a little help from a wizzard machine : the blender!

Breakfast ladies and gentlemen, please bring up the blender on the kitchen counter now! Auntie Fillitsa didn't buy it at your wedding for nothing, she bought it for you to use and remember her every time you , well, blend! And you, dear Kitchen Aid collectors and worshippers , you didn't invest a zillion on this ultra cool chrome blender , just to look at it. You actually bought it be able to prepare...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE BREAKFAST SMOOTHIE

We have tons of apricots in Greece.
Most of them get canned and exported to northern countries for some canned sunshine to be enjoyed...

So, in the winter , the best thing you could do with canned apricots is to blend a can of halved apricots (strain from juice) with two tablespoons of good, honest oats from a producer you trust, two teaspoons of honey and a tub of plain greek yoghurt and have the fastest, yummiest, power breakfast smoothie.

Don't forget to blend well, really well until all ingredients are liquified.

Recipe makes just two glasses of smoothie. Ideal for lovers , kids and pensioners.

Goodmorning greek -canned- sunshine!

Viva La Cochinita

I had a funny dream last night. I was in New York , it was dark and very, very cold and I was walking in the streets of the city , already tired from what felt like a long dreary winter -although it wasn't even real winter yet but felt like two heavy winters in one - calculating the days, trying to figure out when could the next sunny holiday be. I had the sense in my dream that I was looking for warmth, for sun, for a break.

People were rushing around me but I was walking thoughtfully and slowly towards my house, enjoying my music through my headset. It was Neville brothers I listened to and somehow the song matched NY 's "Yellow moon". I was walking the streets of Brooklyn.

I bump into someone with a grocery bag and that someone turns out to be a friend! Of all people Adam Frank , the owner of a super mexican tacos joint in Brooklyn , La Cochinita. It opened last year, in real life, it did exceptionally well for some months , the neighborhood loved him , people enjoyed his exquisite tacos but , to everyone's horror , the restaurant caught fire and he had to close it. But, Adam -a real life friend and a foodie and please google him and his restaurant if you want to - is a fighter and La Cochinita will open soon again. In real life!

So, when he saw me -back in my dream- gloomy and lonely, wintery and hoping for Summer to come soon , he offered me to join him for a drink at a little cozy bar near his restaurant. And with the surprise drink he ordered for us , Adam Frank made me remember a very important thing : that summer is in us, babies. We just forget to visit it daily , suntan lotion in hand!

So, here is a recipe, coming all the way from a super restaurateur in Brooklyn , a fighter and a foodie that looks like he carries in him a lot of interior sunshine. Otherwise, I would not have named this drink...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE LOVES LA COCHINITA SPRITZER

Take a tall glass and measure 1/2 sauvignon blanc white wine and 1/2 soda (sparkling water) adding half a lemon juice. Drop the half lemon in for more taste and sunshine!

Sometimes , Adam likes to add lime or grapefruit soda and the Pellegrino sodas (limonata, etc) are his favorite addition to his spritzers.

Good luck Adam! Good luck La Cochinita! You' ll see me there soon, tacos and spritzers in hand, happily basking in my interior sunshine ...

Eat the Stinking Rose For a Dry Nose!

You can use it as an aphrodisiac, as a disinfectant, to strengthen your immune system, lower your high blood-pressure, cure earaches, increase endurance or even…keep vampires and unwanted suitors at bay!!

You may hate its taste and smell or be in love with it, but whatever your feelings, you cannot ignore it!

What is this incredible healer that Mother Nature has given us in abundance? Garlic, of course!

The ancient Greeks called it the ‘stinking rose’. Ancient Egyptians worshipped it, Olympic athletes ate it for strength and in medieval times it was used to ward off illnesses. It helps keep the skin looking young and has strong antibiotic and antifungal properties, to name but a few of its many, many properties!

But what is its best quality? You can use it in almost all of your cooking! Its tangy, strong taste always adds to any recipe and you can never have too much of it. Just add it to your vinaigrettes, or dip chunks of bread in garlic-soaked olive oil. Wonderful!

Now that winter is fast approaching, eating garlic raw is one of the best ways to keep colds and other pesky diseases at bay. Just peel a garlic clove, chop it into little bits, then place it in a tablespoon of yoghurt, swallow and…Voilà! Instant prevention! Simply! Magically! Effortlessly!

So, in honour of this miraculous gift of nature, here’s a quick recipe for Garlic Bread that can accompany all your Italian meals and I’m sure, everyone will enjoy!



TWO MINUTES ANNIA GARLIC BREAD*

1) Take 250g softened butter and mash it up with a fork.

2) Crush about 5-6 cloves of garlic and add to the butter. (You can add more or less garlic, depending on how 'garlic-y' you want it to taste)

3) Add some dried herbs (like oregano, rosemary, basil etc....), a squirt of lemon juice, pepper and salt into the garlic mixture and blend well.

4) Take a loaf of already baked bread and slice it all the way down, making sure you don't slice it right to the bottom. In the end, your bread should still be attached together at the bottom, like a harmonica.

5) Place a large dollop of butter between each slice, and spread.

6) Once the loaf of bread has been buttered between all slices, wrap it in silver foil, so that it's all covered.

7) Place in a preheated oven (150C degrees) for about 20 minutes.

8) Enjoy with any Italian meal!

*Written, generously submitted and wonderfully cooked by my multi- talented girlfriend and fellow yogini Annia , who raises a great family , won her short story competition just a couple of months ago and still has time to cook a garlic bread. Life takes only twominutes to be great!
For more info on Annia's story , or The Ifanca Helene James Short Story Competition , go to http://ifancahelenejames.wordpress.com/to-apply/

Girl selling Matchstick (salad).

I am humbled. My self confidence has reached the depths of the North Pole abyss and I swim in those unknown, frozen waters.

I cannot see anything ahead of me : my judgement is poor, my vision blurred and my limbs paralyzed. I must be aboard -nothing else- but ...F.e.a.r M/V. The universal , number one , human-paralyzing feeling.

Fear? Yes! Terror most likely. Why?

I have an invitation to cook at a restaurant. Mamaaaaaa!

Oh, please don't think I have been offered a full time dream job , superbly paid or that someone very quickly -through this blog- discovered my gastro talents or fell in love with my poor but fresh and exuberant writing style. Not at all. I have to still bribe people for a click...

If something like this had happened then agony wouldn't panic me anymore, anxiety wouldn't have swallowed me , my stress wouldn't now be measured in tangible tons and quick heart beats and insecurity would not sky rocket increasing , as we speak.

Me? Cook in a restaurant? Impossible. I cannot even think of a menu, let alone gather my bones to stand up and do it... What am I going to cook? How am I going to cook it? Are they going to like it? And most important , WHY AM I DOING THIS?

I think all this and instead of jumping into this in my birthday suit , because I love both cooking and trying new things in life, I undergo nights with sweat and dreams of scary oven disasters. The next morning I decide I' ll boil everything beforehand , all menu will be only safely boiled things warmed up in a microwave and if this doesn't work out either, then I' ll order and serve customers chinese take away. That would work.

Then slowly slowly the universe hugs me and rocks me, shakes me up and stands me on my two feet and foody friends offer to come over for some test cooking and help me with designing the menu and life is good again. Life is good to the point that I believe , if I am just a poor matchstick selling girl, left out in the cold to freeze alone, poor and unloved, then I might as well give this ONE night, this one single night that I'll cook for a restaurant a good freaking chance.

TWO MINUTES ANGIE MATCHSTICK SALAD

Choose your prettiest, organic and biggest beets, wash them well and peel them.

Likewise with one big or two medium sized parsnips. Wash and peel.

Likewise with two carrots. Wash and peel.

Take your mandolin (photo below) and grate these three vegetables into matchsticks, if you don't own a mandolin a simple grater will do.

Mix in a bowl , salt them well and use the juice of two oranges to soak them for an hour or two or , even better, overnight.

Before serving drizzle some olive oil and sprinkle some dry cranberries, if you fancy extra sweetness.

Ideal to serve with pork if you are a meat eater or enjoy by itself with perhaps, some fine roquefort .

The mandolin juliennes vegetables and fruits perfectly!

Fear no more! 

The most magical pumpkin (soup).

This is why I never stopped believing in miracles. Because miracles happen. In two minutes. Daily.

Pumpkins turn into carriages if you are Cinderella and you need to go to the dance urgently. You meet the prince. (After a while you find yourself discussing loan payments together and why the cellular phone bill is so high, but , hey, the pumpkin did its part, it took you to the dance).

Cinderella lived when I was , what, ten years old, but it didn't stop there: magic carried on and pumpkins kept on changing into carriages that took me to all sort of surprise destinations. Only now I had to ... cook them! And , here perhaps, a little dent into this text, my philosophy , cooking, for me, has nothing to do with pretentiousness , only with magic : a leek and an onion marry and with the help of butter they turn into this awsome food called Vichyssoise soup! Isn't this magic?

Fast forward to November , 2011, Athens , Greece : I know a guy from college days. Back then , he was a thinker and one of the most artistic students. Now he is an established journalist in a top greek newspaper and continues to breathe art and write about art. He writes, photographs and still does other super interesting things . He also lately inspires and invites Athenians , through Facebook , to weekly visits downtown Athens , so that this beautiful ancient city of ours doesn't fall into further decay , indifference and sadness. He photographs the city's beauties and reminds us of how precious our country's capital is and that only through our participation the city center will continue to be a magical place for all of us to enjoy!

His name is Nikos Vatopoulos and if I hadn't reconnected with him recently at an event , I wouldn't have won this ticket to the , well, not ball , but to Anoushka Shankar's concert (whom I genuinely like almost as much as her dad, Ravi Shankar, who made Indian music known to the world). How do these connect? Through magic! Pumpkin magic!

Nikos posted on his facebook wall yesterday ,generously offering a ticket to the concert to whomever would be interested and I rushed and wrote to him and got my name in the waiting list. I even offered to cook with his favorite ingredient in case I won. And I ...won! I am the girl that goes to the baaaaaall...

So, here is what Nikos asked for, in case I won, to cook a soup for him! And it so happens that this soup has the miracle ingredient in it, my favorite Fall star , the orange , filled with C-goodness Mrs. Magic , the pumpkin!

Now, all I need is to remember to wear sneakers to the ball, not any stupid easy to slip off my foot crystal pumps! Just in case , a silly prince looking for love finds it and then we take a house loan together , have kids , write blogs , and live ....

2x10 MINUTES ANGIE PUMPKIN MAGIC SOUP

Take 5 cups peeled ,seeded and chopped pumpkin, 2 sliced carrots and 1 sweet potato , 1 cup finely chopped onion , 90 grams of butter and some grated ginger and put them in a pot over high heat , stirring for five minutes.

Add 4 cups of hot water or home made chicken broth or half and half.

Let it simmer for ten to fifteen minutes , stirring occasionally and adding some more liquid if you have to.

Process soup in a blender , add some salt and pepper and enjoy with home-made coriander croutons ( please , find recipe in previous posts ). Or just some fresh bread.

Call it lunch! Dinner! Magic!

Η πιο δημοκρατική σαλάτα του χειμώνα

Είναι να τόχεις μέσα σου παιδί μου : να ερωτεύεσαι πάντα τον looser, τον χειρότερο μαθητή της τάξης από το δημοτικό κιόλας ενώ η κολλητή σου αναρωτιέται αν πρέπει απλά ... να αλλάξει κολλητή.

Να αναρωτιέσαι πόσο άσχημα πρέπει να αισθάνονται οι ποδοσφαιριστές που κάθονται στο πάγκο ενώ όλοι δίπλα σου πανηγυρίζουν για το γκολ.


Να διαλέγεις πάντα το κόμμα που ,αν δεν το ψηφίσεις , ο αρχηγός θα σου κρατάει μούτρα την ώρα που θα ανακοινώνονται τα αποτελέσματα.

Ολοι γελάνε επειδή η αγαπημένη σου παροιμία είναι "τρείς κι ο κούκος" ενώ εσύ την ίδια ώρα του προτείνεις δεκάδες φίλους στο facebook για να μη νιώθει μοναξιά.

 Να βάζει μπλουζ και να χορεύεις με τον "ένα και μοναδικό" και όταν μαζεύει τα κουράγια του και αποφασίζει να σε φιλήσει εσύ αναρωτιέσαι γιατί κανείς δεν σηκώνει και τη Σοφούλα να χορέψουν.


Αν όλοι λοιπόν αξίζουμε μια θέση στον Ήλιο , τότε γιατί τα ραπανάκια, η ρέβα, το ρόδι , το ξύσμα από πορτοκάλι , τα ψαχνάκια από το γκρέιπφρούτ , οι ξηροί καρποί , τα αποξηραμμένα φρούτα (σύκα, νεκταρίνια ιδιαίτερα) αλλά και οι σαρδελίτσες κονσέρβα, η λακέρδα, ο γαύρος , το σκουμπρί, λίγα περισσευούμενα ρεβύθια , τα βραστά αυγά , τα χθεσινό ψωμί σε χοντροκομμένα σκορδένια κρουτόν , αναρωτιέμαι , γιατί να τρώνε πόρτα από τις χειμωνιάτικες σαλάτες μας ; Ας τα καλωσορίσουμε κι' αυτά τα άμοιρα, άσημα και υπέροχα φρούτα και λαχανικά , ψαράκια και αυγουλάκια και ας τους προσφέρουμε μια ευκαιρία στη καθημερινή βαρετή χειμωνιάτικη σαλάτα μας μετατρέποντάς την με λίγο νόστιμο ελαιόλαδο σε ένα πλήρες μεσημεριανό γεύμα.

Για παράδειγμα : η σαλάτα λάχανο/καρότο γίνεται πιό ενδιαφέρουσα αν στίψουμε και μισό πορτοκάλι μαζί με το λεμόνι (ή μόνο πορτοκάλι) και τη στολίσουμε με λίγο κόκκινο λάχανο ακόμα πιό ψιλοκομμένο από το πράσινο και του προσθέσουμε το αλάτι καμμιά ωρίτσα πριν το σερβίρισμα για να μαλακώσει...

Η μαρουλοσαλάτα όταν είναι χονδροκομμένη , εκτός από άνιθο και φρέσκο κρεμμυδάκι ,σηκώνει και τριμμένη ρέβα στο τρίφτη. Και λεπτές φετούλες γραβιέρα , ναι, ναι Κρήτης!

Τα χόρτα καλωσορίζουν και λίγο τριμμένο ανθότυρο ή μυζήθρα στο τέλος πριν το σερβίρισμα.


Τα παντζάρια , επειδή θέλουν πολύ βράσιμο προτιμείστε τα ωμά, τριμμένα στον τρίφτη ή στο "μαντολίνο" σε "σπιρτόξυλα" μαζύ με τριμμένη ρέβα και καρότα. Για να μαλακώσουν τα αφήνουμε τουλάχιστον μιά ώρα σε χυμο πορτοκαλιού με λίγο αλάτι και πριν σερβίρουμε προσθέτουμε λάδι.

Οι σουλτανίνες και τα ψιλοκαβουρδισμένα αμύγδαλα φιλέ ταιριάζουν σε τριμμένα καρότα με χυμό πορτοκαλιού και ρόδι.

Το άνοστο iceberg και οι γαλλικές σαλάτες σηκώνουν ραπανάκια σε λεπτές , σχεδόν διαφανείς, φετούλες καθώς και καρότα σε λεπτές λωρίδες χρησιμοποιώντας τον αποφλειωτή λαχανικών (συνεχίζουμε δηλαδή να τα "καθαρίζουμε" αφού πετάξουμε τις εξωτερικές φλούδες), κράνα και νόστιμα αλμυρά τυριά σε φλούδες. Του πάει και ξερό κρεμμύδι κομμένο σε λεπτά δαχτυλίδια και μαριναρισμένο σε μπαλσάμικο καθώς και μια βινεγκρέτ με πετιμέζι.

Αντε, σας αφήνω. Πάω να ετοιμαστώ για να γιορτάσω έναν Αντώνη στο ΜΥΚΟΝΟΣ, το ουζερί πίσω από το Ιντερκοντινένταλ , που κάνει τους ωραιότερους μεζέδες. Και άν είμαι τυχερή, ένας θα ταιριάζει και για σάς στο αυριανό ποστ...

Secret weapons!

Daring ingredients and secret weapons!
That's what I would answer to anyone who asked me what is the secret to best ever salads.

Okay, you know by now how much I hate winter or to put it nicely how much I prefer summer to winter , its food included. But because winter is a -yet- unavoidable greek season and we got to do the best we can with it, I tried and managed to do the best I could with winter ingredients. Especially, salad ingredients.

The typical most usual greek winter salads are the romain lettuce/spring onions/dill , the shredded cabbage/ carrot , the boiled greens (horta) and the boiled cauliflower/broccoli/potatoes or red beets with olive oil and lemon or vinegar. Don't get me wrong, I love them and they are all delicious in their simplicity. Especially, if the vegetables are organic and the olive oil good, then these simple salads make for a great lunch with some eggs or cheese at the side or a perfect side dish.

But, once, twice, third time in the week you get bored and you look for something more. Or you want something special. And then it is when the daring ingredients and the secret kitchen weapons come marching in.

My daring salad vegetables are not super-daring but we tend to avoid them as cumbersome or difficult to deal with but I want to bring them in the dance floor now so they don't sit alone and get jealous at the swanky and popular and famous ones... Why, at a farmer's market, for every lettuce or broccoli there will only one parsnip sold, let's say.

Poor fellow, I am thinking, your time has come! People until now avoided you because they didn't know what to do with you! (Plus your mom didn't win any beauty pageants either, sorry...)

My best salad, full of goodness and vitamins and minerals and taste is when I dare to work a little bit extra and combine vegetables that in the greek kitchen aren't usually served raw, like red beets. Or when their shapes are unusual , like in matchsticks.

And my two secret weapons are the mandolin and the zest remover, along with the good old peeler.

The result is a crunchy and colorful , super healthy and politically correct winter salad delight! Every vegetable gets to dance!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE BEST WINTER SALAD

Choose a wide salad plate.

Chop romain lettuce to fill the base of the salad serving plate.

Discard skin from carrots and then peel them in long ribbons and top the lettuce.

Chop finely some fresh onions, radishes, rocket (arugula) , dill and parsley and add them to the salad to add the extra aroma.

Wash and peel the red beets and using a mandoline with a special cutter, cut them carefully in matchsticks. Do the same with the white parsnip.

Sprinkle them on salad.

Add in a handful of dried cranberries and some slivered almonds or sunflower seeds.

Take an orange and with the zest remover peel it and sprinkle your salad with it.

Just a minute before serving add your vinaigrette (see recipe in previous post under the title "La Madame Vinaigrette")

the mandolin will help you julienne

the zest remover will give you pretty citrus ribbons

THANK YOU CLICKS!

Thank you mom
Thank you dad
Thank you grandma
Thank you grandfather

Thank you husband
Thank you kids
Thank you yoga
Thank you miss

Thank you sunshine
Thank you moon
Thank you girlfriends and halfmoon

Thank you angels, demons and monsters
Gods, fairies and myths.
Thank you past and thank you present.

Thank you health and body and spirit
Thank you supreme and fears and dreams.

Thank you Greece, Mexico, Denmark, Korea ,
the world , the stars
Thank you revolutions and
Thank you serene lakes
And starfish and rain and blue of sea.

Animals and fish and
Imaginary supernatural creatures.

Thank you action and boredom
And poems and writers
And blues and laughs and tears.
And wrinkles.

Thank you clicks and paper and light
Machines and earth alike.

Thank you never and forever.
Thank you love and pots and pans,
Thank you all of you
Life is so much FUN!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE THANKSGIVING GREEK SIMPLICITY

On the exact antipode of the abundance of the Thanksgiving table, here comes the super simplicity, the olive oil and bread lunch or quick snack with only some natural thick flakes of salt on it and many genuine thanks for its ability to entertain, sustain and feed Greeks for centuries.

This is the base of our table, the rest is additional. It is the essence of the greek table, the greek food starts here and expands beautifully in other dishes and other blogs...

We chose freshly pressed 2011-harvested and organic KOKORAKI olive oil from the island of Zakynthos, Greece, produced by Daphne and Amalia Zepos and now proudly in the delivery catalog of Zingerman's mail order. Google them.

Scent it with some fresh rosemary and oregano , choose or bake your best bread and you have a lunch from heavenly , austerity-minimal and ready to live with the least , forever beautiful Greece!

(Thank you Amalia! )

Bonbons and chocolate

My boyfriend tried, my girlfriends have tried, my mom tried , even teachers and pets and strangers on the streets or passengers in planes, trains and automobiles tried , my councelor, my boss, my employer and my guru tried and then... they gave up! I gave up too!

I 'll say out clear and loud and publicly , the world's best kept gastro-secret : when I go into this dark hole , usually during winter months, and especially towards the end of the month , around those days of the month or before those days of the month, and sometimes even after those days of the month , all my cheerfulness is evacuated , the little self esteem is lost, negative thoughts throw a party and life smells, tastes and feels grey. Dark grey. And then is when I know , that it is time for this one thing , and this one thing only ,and that is -I am sure you guessed it- it is mademoiselle chocolate, you guessed it right, fellow depressed or slightly melancholic creatures.

Melancholic creatures , Basset Hounds included, are definitely more interesting and In a funny way -dogs aside- more sexy than happy go lucky fellows. Sad people make also less boring friends (they always have a horror story to share with you, usually their own). Sadmen , as a species, a sub category of humans, can also be considered a huge burden on national health systems and the reason why psychiatry was invented in the first place (or maybe second after madness, but somewhere there, high in percentage of glory).

When this weird danish cinema director Lars bon Trier last year decided to film "Melancholia", rumor had it that Kirsten Dunst carried two shopping bags full of Mars bars to work every day and shared it with the acclaimed but Prozac-infested director and innocent fellow actors. Everybody thanked her and I think I heard her once on tv , suggesting that if we ever went to see the movie we should carry with us bags of M&M's , or even better the entire 2011 chocolate production line of Jacobs Suchard.

Chocolate has a magic to it just like melancholy has a certain appeal to others but none at all on the bearer.

Grandparents sneak it tenderly to their kids' kids, feeling sorry after having guiltily banned their own kids from enjoying it. Lovers offer it in boxes and in fun shapes when it is Valentine's Day or they simply need to reconcile or ask forgiveness. Moms always make it seem like a treat even though they themselves consume more than a ton per year and sweat it off on bikes, hikes, jogging and treadmills.

Easter bunnies taste better if they are chocolate covered rather than not and nuts upgrade their existence when hidden in choco bars and chocolate brownies and travel unimaginable bonus miles.

So, before I reach for this last bit of bitter chocolate , let me give you an advice. You can give up a lot of things in life but chocolate should not be one of them. It is a matter of life and death. And the sweetest death is ...by chocolate!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE HOME-MADE CHOCOLATE DROPS WITH ALMONDS (and the lot...)

You may need a special tin form for this recipe. It is the same one that you may own, the one with small holes, for mini brownies. Otherwise, use the pettit four paper cases and simply place them on an oven tray to give them stability.

Buy your best brand of chocolate, either bitter or any flavor you like and melt it in microwave or in bain Marie.

Crush or leave whole the almonds (unsalted and raw) and place a little bit in each hole of the tin or in the paper cases.

Add a dry cranberry or raisin or chopped dates or dried apricots , one of each or a small combination of a few of these.

Pour the melted chocolate on top.

Let it harden a little bit and then place the tray in the refrigerator for an hour or two before you serve them.

Always serve chilled but not straight out of the refri.

They look their best on a white plate with its base dusted with some icing sugar and you -when serving them-wearing your best smile only because it was Kirsten who took the part in "Melancholia" and not you , although in the audition this happy go lucky- for what really-? Lars was looking at you while you were sobbing , pretending that a little thing got in your eye...

Maraschino cherry identity crisis

This blog has been going on for a month now and I am experiencing an identity crisis.

Who am I?

Who is this blog?

Why do I write in English although I am Greek?

I am not a professional cook , although I have cooked peofessionally and someone even trusted his summer holidays and took me in to cook for him and his friends.

Why do I propose recipes although I am not a gastro journalist or a food expert.

Why am I doing this at all, I didn't study to become a wine expert or a pastry chef.

My recipes is a medley of personal cooking experience, borrowed recipes , articles and cookbooks and lots of television cooking shows inspiration.

My idol chefs come from all walks of life my favorite being good ol' Jamie Oliver to whom I have repeatedly offered my services -and would gladly chop dill and parsley for the rest of my life - just to be next to him and enjoy his spontaneous homey gastro wisdom.

Gordon Ramsy must be my cousin and although he has repeatedly asked me to chop dill and parsley next to him, I repeatedly remind him that my dirty mouth is way dirtier than his, should I need it in emergency kitchen nightmares...

Equally important, unknown old greek "yiayiades" who live in remote beautiful Aegean islands , behind their blackened from use pans eternally peeling potatoes for crunchy french fries have inspired me and taught me how to best fry fish.

El Bulli scares me to death.

So, today, searching in my kitchen cabinets for some inspiration for today's blog, hidden behind all goods and long forgotten, I discovered a jar of maraschino cherries. And my identity!

Maraschino cherries! For decades they held the prime place in barmen's paraphernalia on the bar, brightly decorated Pina Coladas and Manhattans only to be excluded by trendy mojitos lately who replaced them with mint in VIP status.

Bright and red, almost without an expiry date, seriously out of fashion but quite jazzy in their youth, maraschino cherries were the final touch on my mom's home made birthday cakes and a stolen treat from my dad's perfectly equipped home bar, a must in the seventies!

Welcome back to my life, my little darlings. Unecessary in modern recipes and out fashioned by blueberries and cumquat as a decor to sweets, struggling for your own territory in super market shelves next to the horribly named angostura but still present in the kingdom of culinary abundance and web wealth of recipes.

One day, you and me my little maraschino cherries, we will load all our pans and pots and herbs and recipes and go and live together where they love us the most, even if this place ends up to be a greek woman's blog who writes in English.

TWO MINUTES ANGIE WINTER FRUIT SALAD AND AN IDENTITY CRISIS

If you belong to those of us that like fruits, even love some but find winter fruits like winter clothes terribly boring and uninspiring , then let me give you just a quick recipe so you and your children or friends can enjoy winter fruits a bit more.

Cut all winter fruits, red and green apples, pears, kiwis , bananas in small bite sized pieces in a bowl and add the juice of an orange or two and the juice of a pomegranate.

Drop in a red maraschino cherry and mix well. The juice must top the fruits.

Serve small quantities in small bowls throughout the day , unless hypervitamnation C is recommended by doctor or there is a national threat of scurvy.

Είμαι το κερασάκι μαρασκίνο;

Εχοντας κλείσει ένα μήνα στο μπλογκ μου, με έπιασε μιά κρίση ταυτότητας.

Γιατί γράφω αγγλικά αν και ελληνίδα;

Γιατι γράφω για φαγητό αν και δεν είμαι επαγγελματίας μαγείρισσα;

Γιατί λαμβάνω την ευθύνη να προτείνω συνταγές αν και δεν είμαι έμπειρος γευσιγνώστης ;

Δεν είμαι καν δημοσιογράφος γαστριμαργίας ή γαστρονόμος.

Ούτε σπούδασα μαγειρική , ούτε ζαχαροπλαστική και Οινολογία.

Οι αγαπημένοι μου μάγειροι είναι έλληνες αλλά και ξένοι, με ιδιαίτερη προτίμηση στον τρελλό-Τζέιμη Ολιβερ στον οποίο επανειλημμένως έχω προτείνει να ψιλοκόβω μαιντανά και άνιθα μόνο και μόνο για να απολαύσω την αυθόρμητη γαστριμαργική τρέλλα του δίπλα του.

Ο υπερκινητικός και αντιπαθέστατος Γκόρντον Ράμζι είναι ξάδερφός μου και αν και επανειλημμένα μου έχει προτείνει να ψιλοκόβω μαιντανά και άνιθα δίπλα του ξεχνώντας οτι του έχω επανειλημμένα εξηγήσει ότι το βρωμόστομά του δεν πιάνει μπάζα μπροστά στο δικό μου, είμαι "λιμάνι" και στη κουζίνα όταν μου ζητηθεί.

Δεν θα είχα κανένα θέμα με την κυρία Βέφα αν δεν φορούσε τόσα χρυσά και διαμάντια σε κάθε εκπομπή της προσπαθώντας να μας θυμίσει ότι εκτός από καταπληκτική μαγείρισα είναι και πολύ σικ.

Ο Παρλιάρος εκτός από μάγος της σοκολάτας μου θύμιζε και λίγο τον δάσκαλο Χημείας-Φυσικής που είχαμε στο γυμνάσιο και που μας κυττούσε με αυτό το ελαφρά ειρωνικό χαμογελάκι, παντογνώστης κρυφών συνταγών , εμάς τους ανίδεους και ανυποψίαστους μαθητές... Τον παρακολουθώ.

Ο Σκαρμούτσος πάλι... Ο Σκαρμούτσος με τα τατουάζ του , εκτός από φανατικό θύμα της γοητείας του και της ευγένειάς του υπήρξε για μένα (όπως υποθέτω για όλες τις γνήσιες εκπροσώπους της μαγειρικής μπουρζουαζίας) απλά θέμα χρόνου για να ανοίξουμε μαζύ ένα ταβερνάκι σ' ένα άγονο νησί όπου τα ελάχιστα αποφάγια θα τα ρίχναμε στους γλάρους ή θα τα καναμε λίπασμα με φύκια για να λιπάνουμε φυσικά τις υπέροχες ολοκόκκινες ντομάτες στο μποστανάκι μας...

Ψαχνοντας να βρώ την ταυτότητά μου και ψάχνοντας στα ντουλάπια της κουζίνας για μιά έμπνευση για το σημερινό μπλογκ , ξαφνικά πίσω πίσω ανακάλυψα ένα βαζάκι με κερασάκια μαρασκίνο. Και την ταυτότητά μου.

Στριμωγμένα στον κυβερνοχώρο των τροφών , δίπλα στην απαίσια ανγκοστούρα , ντεμοντέ πλέον αλλά έξαλλα στα νιάτα τους , τα ολοκόκκινα κερασάκια μαρασκίνο, χωρίς ημερομηνία λήξης, χωρίς λόγο ύπαρξης , περιττά αλλά παρόντα και αυτά ανάμεσα στο τεράστιο και αχανές βασίλειο των γαστριμαργικών προιόντων...

Αγαπημένο μου κερασάκι μαρασκίνο, τελευταίο στολιδάκι σε όλες τις μαμαδένιες τούρτες της παιδικής μου ηλικίας, μικρή κρυφή λιχουδιά από το μπαρ του μπαμπά, μην σκας καθόλου...

Ακόμα κι άν σε παραμέρισε από πρώτη κόκκινη μουρίτσα το μοχίτο (ενώ ήσουν ο πρωταγωνιστής για δεκαετίες στη μπαρα των μπαρ) για να διορίσει εκεί τον κολλητό του τον δυόσμο -σίγουρα με μέσον- εγώ σε αγαπώ πολύ και μιά μέρα θα φορτώσουμε συνταγές, κατσαρολικά, αντικολλητικά τηγάνια και όλα τα μπαχαρικά μας και θα βάλουμε πλώρη για ένα τόπο όπου όλοι θα μας αγαπούν γι' αυτό που πραγματικά είμαστε , έστω κι αν καταφέρουμε τελικά να φτάσουμε μόνο μέχρι ένα μπλογκ μιάς ελληνίδας που γράφει συνταγές στ' αγγλικά ...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE WINTER FRUIT SALAD AND AN IDENTITY CRISIS

If you belong to those of us that like fruits, even love some but find winter fruits like winter clothes terribly boring and uninspiring , then let me give you just a quick recipe so you and your children or friends can enjoy winter fruits a bit more.

Cut all winter fruits, red and green apples, pears, kiwis , bananas in small bite sized pieces in a bowl and add the juice of an orange or two and the juice of a pomegranate.

Drop in a red maraschino cherry and mix well. The juice must top the fruits.

Serve small quantities in small bowls throughout the day , unless hypervitamnation C is recommended by doctor or there is a national threat of scurvy.

Naked Sunday mornings

When I met you you were younger. I was prettier. You were athletic. I was inspired. You were all dreams, I was all fears.

On Sundays we slept in. We loved each other. We read the papers and the horoscopes. We laughed and quarelled and we never had breakfast, we went straight from coffee to lunch. At 7pm. Famished but full.

Sundays of the past were the days we hoped for miracles and saw some happening!

Because Sundays were naked. They wore nothing on them. No covers. No make up.

I want those Sundays back again...
I want youth and love and hope and dreams and even fears and I wouldn't say no to some more love, hope and more fears and dreams.


TWO MINUTES ANGIE NAKED SUNDAY CHOCO CROISSANTS.

Rrrrrroll out the puff pastry sheets !

On each square sheet draw with a knife the british flag on them (X them diagonally from corner to corner, then draw straight lines from the middle of upper square side to the bottom and left side to right side). You now have cut eight triangles.Keep them as part of flag still to avoid mismanagement and disfiguration. (Oh la la!)

With a brush , paint as much Nutella you can on each triangle and sprinkle them with chocolate bits, drops or flakes.

Start rolling each triangle from widest side towards narrowest in the shape of croissants! At the end, a little tail will stick up in the middle of each croissant!

Melt some butter and brush them.

Bake for twelve minutes or until golden brown and ask me why this recipe qualifies for a silly blog that is named twominutesangie.

Well, things change babies. Bodies change, faces change, feeeeelings change and Sundays change too.

Hopefully more towards the ...naked-est!

Two minutes H E L P !

It doesn't matter whom you help. You can help yourself or someone can help you. You can help out in general in a difficult situation or you can help someone out of trouble.

It doesn't matter why you help. You could help out of guilt, love or obligation, because you feel like it or because someone asked you to.

Because someone needs it or because you felt inspired to.

You can help once a year, once a day or once in a lifetime.

You can receive more help than you give or always help more than people have ever helped you.

You can ask for help or someone may offer it to you by luck.

One thing is for sure : help feels great! In any of its form.

Today ended up being a HELP DAY : my friend Eri and me helped Atenistas to collect food and medicine for the less fortunate. So many people came with a super market bag, or two, or a full carton or a mini van and offered food. It really doesn't matter how much was collected. The bottom line is some people will be helped. Please google Atenistas and join forces, offer to help.

Just an hour ago my daughter helped me set the table. I had to threaten her in order to do so -no more iPod for all her teen years- but she did it! It was a big help. Urged and imposed on , required and not offered but it was still valuable help! Moms out there, please ask for help.

Even my better half helped me today, jet-lagged and all... He helped by doing the best thing that he knows how to do best : a danish open sandwich ! It was with smoked salmon which looks prettier than it sounds and tastes a thousand times better than anything I would have cooked tonight simply because ... I didn't feel like cooking tonight. The day was spent enjoying the sun, helping others and it felt great coming home to some ready delicious food made by someone who knows the value of help.

Thanks for helping me out. Thank you so so much! It feels almost as good as when I help others.

TWO MINUTES SOREN DANISH OPEN SANDWICH WITH SMOKED SALMON

Choose your healthiest and nuttiest whole wheat flour bread. Smother with butter on one side. Place on serving dish.

Place gently the salmon slice on its bread bed in wavy fashion, not dead flat.

Decorate with finely chopped onions, capers, some home made mayonaise, dill and squeeze some lemon on it.

Eat with knife and fork. No kidding! Perfect with a green salad. Scandinavian simplicity!

And for dessert : Don't forget to thank when you receive help! Or when you offer it, because it gave you that great feeiling inside and the smile on your face.

Just like the sun today! That helped a lot too!

Pasta Carambola!

It is the queen of all family traditions.
The middle class occasional show off.
Television cooks' dream destination and multinational food companies' marketing target.
The battleground of ferocious teenagers and parents alike.
The sobbing mother's tears collector.
One of the tables where cease of fire is signed.
Treaties and threats and curses and ultimatums are negotiated on it or around it.
It is an infinite drawing canvas for babies and toddlers.
Unknown and untried waters of hormonally challenged young and a theatre of everyday marriage life.

Ladies and gentlemen, center stage ...
the DINNER TABLE!

At our house, probably yours too, if the dinner table could speak, it would tell stories of love , taste , laughs and memories and harmony , perhaps even sex in the style of The Postman Always Rings Twice film. But they could also recall some stories of war or terror!

That is if you are a normal person living with other normal persons and not a direct descendant of the Tudors who preferred a quiet death by hemlock rather than a dinner table argument.

It is also an all-permissive battleground with few rules, like kick boxing. Knives can be pointed at. Dishes accidentally slip of it. Cups bang. Glasses are held tight. Forks protest and scratch dishes. Pools of tears run in spaghetti dishes.

Let's admit it : Sometimes , sitting at the dinner table , politely put , is not the world's most exotic holiday destination.

The dinner table is outwinning the finesse of another home castle, i.e.the sofa infront of the television or the computer at the other end of the living room by far. There you can hide. Turn up the volume. Escape.

But who can escape at the dinner table? In a well lit kitchen? Where all actors are called to show up and ,horror, horror, improvise day after day after day...It is a tough challenge.

I will dedicate this recipe to all of us who have endured dinner tables. Who still sit down to eat together with people we have chosen (or are oblidged to live together for part of our lives). And who , fork and knife in hand, take the daily challenge to be there no matter if yesterday, at the dinner table, a whole fish mysteriously flew off the table , onto her lap , down on the floor, where the ever hoping cats looked at it in disbelief and we all started laughing forgetting you had just called me the world's biggest ...oh ... something, anyway...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE HOLLY MACKEREL PASTA

Mackerel is a funky fish.Tasty and versatile. This one is jarred and very very salty *. So, use 4 fillets salty from the jar and 4 in a bowl with raki, a greek alcoholic drink that washes saltiness away.

Boil a 500 gram. pack of pasta unsalted , preferably mini farfalle or penne. Keep a cup of hot pasta water.

Cut mackerel in 2-3 cm pieces.

Marinate half the fish in raki and the other half mix it with 2 dates (yes, dates), 2 red bell peppers , 1-2 small chillie peppers and 3-4 spring onions all finely cubed. Chop plenty of parsley and set aside with some red peppers for final garnish. Rinse one cup of capers and pat dry.

When pasta is ready, save a cup of its water and strain.

Mix the two fish together , throwing out the marinade.

In the pot you used for boiling the pasta , on high heat, put some oil, quickly stir in the fish mixes and add two shots of raki. Allow alcohol to evaporate for a minute.

Add pasta in pot and little by little add the water you saved until you have a little sauce. Add parsley.

Decorate with peppers and lots and lots of parsley.

Serve piping hot and bring the pepper mill to the dinner table.

From now on you are on your own at the dinner table! Just remember, the mackerel is innocent.

*We found this excellent greek jarred mackerel in the cutest greek deli shop, "Mina's Greece" and we thank Mina for her hospitality and her patience to explain the everyday, the rare and the delicious greek products to us. A true inspiration, a must visit. Find her on Facebook.

Also, thank you friend Katerina Saropoulou for thinking out with me, naming, cooking and tasting this recipe and for inviting me to your dinner table.

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Mina's Greece is located in P.Faliron marina called Flisvos

Mackerel is called "skoubri" in greek...

A cake for 5.000 hits!

Light the electronic candles!
Google-spray some perfume and an eBay dress! Or eshop jeans and fur flip flops.
Copy paste your best suit or your ... birthday suit!
Send digital flowers.
Invite electronic friends.
Like your comment.
Smile :)!

I am celebrating a month's blogs! And having a very personal and very public fiesta! An electronic party for my first 5.000 blog hits!

I decided to spend this first e-birthday at a real greek grocery store near the - not at all virtual - wonderful greek sea and photograph tomorow's blog. A breath of fresh air that hopefully will digitalize later on in the blog.

Then I'll write the blog, edit the blog, review the blog and publish the blog.

After a minute or two I'll correct the blog.
Look at the blog.
Click on the blog.
Adore the blog.
Doubt the blog.
Doubt me AND the blog.
Change the photo.
Put back the old one.
Ask friends if they like the blog. Ask them to visit the blog.
Check the statistics.
Wonder , why? Who is reading my blog in Australia? Austria?
How is the Facebook page doing?

But , wait a second! Today we 're celebrating! We forgot the cake!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE BLOG CAKE

If you bake or buy cakes or cupcakes you probably end up eating half of it and wonder what to do with the other half ! Save it! Chocolate or vanilla.

Crumble it in a Martini glass to cover one third of it.

Spray it or drizzle it with some Metaxa cognac or your favorite liqueur.

Put a tablespoon of lemon curd or strawberry jam on the crumbs.

Whip some cream and add it to the glass.

Cut a passion fruit in two (or alternatively chop fresh strawberries or canned pineapple) and empty it on the cream.

There! A cake in two minutes!

Thank you , thank you, thank you all my 5.000 clicks for making this Big Blue cyberspace a little bit more friendly, a little bit more personal and very, very rewarding!

On for the 10.000 ? Please click on http://twominutesangie.blogspot.com :)

Ode to Greek Yoghurt

There are few foods that have -apart from a nutritional or taste value - a political side to them . Socrates started this fad, in ancient Greece, drinking a poisonous hemlock protesting to his unfair death sentence , imposed on him by the Athenians who claimed he was corrupting its youth.

Millenia later, another drink , Cuba Libre (Coke with rum) rose to stardom around 1900 with troops wishing for a free Cuba during American Hispanic war or so the Bacardi site insists .

Nowdays, it is once again the greek yoghurt that enjoys days of political glory more than in the past : during these turbulent times in Greece , a plastic pot of greek white thick strained yoghurt (irrespective of fat %) is emptied on politicians , journalists and football moguls alike, uniting with its snowy whiteness all feelings of disagreement, disgust and feelings of treason stemming from the receiver. Some have named it "the kind version of a Molotov bomb" , a more personalized attack of any opposer towards any people's enemy who -after being snow-capped in an instant -is photographed as a stupefied and astonished statue of shame evidently leading to a catharsis for the thrower. It is an act of violence using the fluffiest of ingredients , a revolutionary expression of serious disagreement despite the product's inherent innocent nature and virginity.

Dedicated to these 200 grams of gastronomical weapon is the following recipe of a flavored option to whoever may want to taste or wear or throw... Needless to say, it wears better on grilled chicken or beef and not politicians, bankers , journalists or political commentators.

TWO MINUTES ANGIE START THE REVOLUTION WITHOUT ME YOGHURT SAUCE

Empty the content of two 200 grams greek unflavored yoghurt pots in a bowl (for a change) , either full fat or semi skimmed .

Add in it a handful of finely chopped mint, two tablespoons of olive oil, a teaspoon of sweet paprika , a teaspoon of finely chopped chillie peppers and few drops of lemon. Mix well and add a teaspoon of dijon mustard. Mix.

Refrigerate and use with grilled chicken , fish or meat or as a side dish next to a vegetable curry.

Vamos!

Απαραίτητο συνοδευτικό για τις ειδήσεις των 8, 9 κτλ...

Ode to Salt

This salt
in the saltcellar
I once saw in the salt mines.
I know
you won’t
believe me,
but
it sings,
salt sings, the skin
of the salt mines
sings
with a mouth smothered
by the earth.
I shivered in those solitudes
when I heard
the voice of
the salt
in the desert.
Near Antofagasta
the nitrous
pampa
resounds:
a broken
voice,
a mournful
song.

In its caves
the salt moans, mountain
of buried light,
translucent cathedral,
crystal of the sea, oblivion
of the waves.

And then on every table
in the world,
salt,
we see your piquant
powder
sprinkling
vital light
upon
our food. Preserver
of the ancient
holds of ships,
discoverer
on
the high seas,
earliest
sailor
of the unknown, shifting
byways of the foam.
Dust of the sea, in you
the tongue receives a kiss
from ocean night:
taste imparts to every seasoned
dish your ocean essence;
the smallest,
miniature
wave from the saltcellar
reveals to us
more than domestic whiteness;
in it, we taste infinitude.

Pablo Neruda

Blue

Is it winter blues? Less sun , more clouds. Fewer words , more bed hours. Few new ideas , more memories. Little inspiration , more calories. Less "do" , more "think". Less rush , more sink.

Umf!

Antidote: There is this silly line from a movie with silly but sweet Jennifer Aniston where a tango dance teacher corrects her and her partner saying "Head up , young person" commanding them -in a class full of inspired elder students- to actually drop all worries and dance the steps correct. Jen goes on to use this suggestion to her blue boyfriend several times throughout the movie. It is a catchy line : head up young person! I use it too, I say it to myself , to friends and family when I see them worry. And then I cook something that would feel like a little sympathy blanket on an otherwise boring dish. Just so ...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE BLUE CHEESE BURGER SAUCE

You can buy an average blue cheese for this recipe. You could also buy your best aged french Societe roquefort if you don't mind it being triple in price than its average counterpart.

Crumble cheese with a fork, add a drop or two of vinegar and a drop or two of Tabasco. Mix lightly keeping cheese crumbles.

Add some greek yoghurt and mix. If you are blue to the bone , you could add some mayonaise to the yoghurt mix. I don't suggest it. Over induldging is not a good friend to blues.

Drizzle mix with olive oil and dust with hot paprica.

Use it to cover boring burgers or greek biftekia or to top them and grill for a minute or two under very hot grill to melt. Delicious also on home cooked french fries.

IKEA food!

I will probably go and confess after I finish writing today's blog. Also , all my blogger friends, followers and readers will remove me from their favorites lists f o r e v e r  and I will end up lonely and miserable, forgotten and immersed in shame , life will loose its daily meaning and it will never give me another chance again!
I confess : I do buy food from IKEA! Once a year or so , especially around diet days!
And if this is not enough, I love it! I love its convenient packaging, its full list of ingredients and the strange    Scandinavian myth around it! Yes sir! I do!
I walk quickly past sofas and candles, pots with scarily identical plants , persian carpets that cost less than a sweater , turn with speed into corridors with rice paper lampshades and storage boxes , ignore lotus posters and grey curtains and momentarily marvel at the astonishing prices , the ridiculously uniformed staff and the exceptionally clean restaurant area. I rapidly try lying on flowery romantic double beds and rock on rocking chairs and avoid fluffing the occasional pink velvet cushion so I can faster reach my destination. Children's toys are always tempting me and I wonder how many teddy bears does IKEA really sell every day while I vainly try to recall the owner's name  (one of the richest people on earth) while adoring the towers of hundreds of white paper napkins!

And then I arrive!

I get really excited when I reach the IKEA food store. Jams of all sort of berries and frozen goods, cookies and crunchy chocolates with impossible names to pronounce all wrapped and bottled and jarred in simple industrial scandinavian style intrigue me more than ready to hang curtains or cheaper than cheap side tables in this Mecca of cheesy cheapness .

The food I loved to buy until recently was their bread mix , now unavailable , one more victim to the crisis and increasingly fewer imports. So, now I only buy the frozen salmon which comes in a transparent plastic pack of four identically cut servings. This is one of the reasons I buy it, because I can use it all when cooking for the family or friends (which are probably never going to come to dinner again now that they know , horror, horror, that the salmon was delicious but from IKEA ) or use just one serving when I cannot zip my jeans anymore (aka when I am on a diet). I also choose this salmon because it is a Twominutes Angie thing. No need to skin or debone. Just rinse , marinate and cook.

TWO MINUTES ANGIE IKEA MEETS NOBU 
Finely grate a good amount of ginger ,garlic and one orange and mix in bowl with some soy sauce and a tablespoon of olive oil.
Cut each salmon fillet in cubes of 3-4 cm.
Marinate in liquid mix for as long as you like.
Heat up well your wok and place salmon bits in. Allow them to brown on one side, then turn with spatula on the other side. About 2-3 minutes.
Serve with basmati rice or on a green salad with madame Vinaigrrrrette ( look in blog for earlier recipe).
Zip jeans.
Repeat next day.

Salmon , strangely orange , individually packaged and aaaall the way from Sweden! 

My jealous chef friend William Sala

We like teasing each other :

- Hey Angie, you like my vegetable soup?
- Mmmm, it could have some protein in it , beans , red lentils...
- I've put in 13 ingredients and you ask for beans?
- All I suggest is that you add some ptotein in the soup next time so I m not hungry in an hour!

Then he looks at my friends around the table, with lifted shoulders and they agree : I am impossible! I always ask for more , even beans in a vegetable soup !

From William I always ask a lot : I even ask for egg whites omelette when he is up to his neck with work during summer mornings! He makes fun of me (and rightfully so...) because I am tired from doing ...yoga and blogging , while he works full time at La Rosticceria, Mykonos, Greece . I remind him I do also gardening and take care of my family and then he reminds me he has four children , a full-time job and rolls on the floor laughing. My only excuse is that I am on holidays.

So , anyway, today again I challenged him : do you have a twominutes recipe? Every serious chef should have a two minutes recipe!

-There is no two minutes recipe!
-There are! Plenty! Just think! Find one for my blog today...

Well, William is a chef and actually there is an amazingly easy and tasty italian recipe he came up with, the delicious ...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE MOZZARELA CAROZZA!

(This is what only Italians could do out of white toast bread, a small miracle!)

Take two slices of white toast bread.

Slice two thin slices of mozzarella buffala and place them in the center of each toast slice with a basil leaf on top.

Sandwich them and press them well between them.

Remove crusts.

Whip two whole eggs and bathe the sandwich in it, soaking it slightly.

Place it carefully in hot oil and fry until golden.

Remove, allow to rest on kitchen paper and serve hot.

Thank you William! Now, this goes well with the vegetable soup! :)

Before...

...and after!

William, the man himself!

Croutons! Winter is here!

I know, I know... Me too! It's coooold!

I' m in bed all day with two boxes of handkerchiefs , nose dripping and morale low low low , friends are out , family has forgotten me, it's doomsday! So, refusing the news on tv, I have opened up all these glossy cookbooks and stained recipe notebooks and look for -what else?- hot soup recipes.

My favorite is pumpkin soup for this season. I buy it at the farmer's market and because I am an early bird there with only few customers around , I ask mr. Pumpkin to peel it with his good knife. Then , at home , it's ready to wash , cut and cook it.

The recipe for a good pumpkin soup is not a twominutesangie thing but the croutons that go with it qualify for
this blog. They are the little tasty sins , the added calories, the crunchy partners in crime for the gluten opponents, the golden exception for the dieting clan. And they are lovely. And comforting, like watching "When Harry met -bring me what she's having- Sallie"...

May I suggest this? Just for tonight, just for the sake of this cold night, when you didn't have yet time to bring down the winter clothes, buy a new winter pair of fur slippers, forgot to collect wood for the fireplace or just feel nobody loves you , just for tonight make these croutons and save the diet for tomorow? Baby, it's cold outside... Come on, excuses are a sobbing soul's best friend!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE EXCEPTION CROUTONS

Use toast bread , either white or whole wheat. Oh come on, allow the white!

Butter lightly all slices and sprinkle them with finely chopped fresh coriander or parsley or garlic butter (extra flavors optional but butter necessary).

Put the slices on top of each other , cut away the crust and then cut in 9 pieces,3 slices horizontally and 3 vertically.

Fluff up and separate the toast bits.

Heat up well a teflon pan , lower heat in half and put in the toast bids, fluffing up constantly to avoid burning them until you have the desired color, a deep golden toastie color.

Sprinkle on hot pumpkin soup and enjoy the coming of winter reading Nina Zolotow's -what other more suitable poem?- "Winter".

(I'll meet you in cozyland babies! X)

Distances and dates

He studied in Boston, I studied in Athens. Not Athens , Georgia but ...Athens, Greece!

If it was Athens, Georgia it wouldn't have been a problem, tickets are cheap there. But holly Mary, the transatlantic journey was e x p e n s i v e! I would have to travel to NY first and then on to Boston alone and the only transatlantic journey i had done until then when to my aunt's house two blocks down the street.

Family amore funding was out of the question , even amore was questionable. So, I had to work. I started asking around, called friends , offered to walk dogs , baby sit , carry groceries for elders and then a good friend suggested I should work for this hot paediatrician, which I did gladly and started asap!

Working with handsome paediatricians is nice but working with babies is FUN. miniature people, newborn people would come to have their small heads measured and weight and height and soft stomachs pressed and spines examined and ...have their shots ofcourse!
His private practice daily , mostly upper class parents with cute well dressed babies, in posh strollers wrapped in cashmere blankets.
And then one day, an arab lady walked in with this cutest of the cutest babies, dark haired and with extraordinary eyes. You looked at the baby and started smiling, you couldn't help it. He was lovely. An inspiring baby wrapped in a hand crochetted colorful shawl and rrready to conquer the world. A fighter really. I waited for their visit with anticipation every time...
Once, if I remember correctly it was for his vaccination, I brought a little toy for him, a purple furry doggie. I wondered how this would seem to the mother, she was aloof and quiet, very shy and I wasn't sure how this gesture would be interpreted... But i did go on and offered the doggie and then...a lovely pink picnic towel unwrapped infront of my very eyes and a ...date was offered to me by the mom!
I am not exaggerating : I wept, Iwas so touched. I didn't expect it at all. And that was also the first time that a mom allowed me to hold her baby in my arms , just for a minute really until the doctor came in, vaccine needle in hand...

After two, three months at the paediatrician's office, I gathered the money for my flight and made it to Boston. Amongst much love, tears and promises, two three days into the trip, I remembered anout the cute baby and said something like "I held a fab baby in my arms the other day and it felt grrrreat". I promise, nothing more than that! Jaws dropped, quick calculations zapped through his head, he sighed and he said to me , " you know how much i like you but there is something you should know, you know...the distance..."

TWO MINUTES ANGIE DISTANT DATE

Choose your fattest , fleshy , cute dates.
Combine some Philadelphia cream cheese with the rind of a whole orange and a drop of Metaxa cognac(optional).
With a knife , make a slid along the length of each date.
Fill dates with the mix.

Serve with cocktails or as a dessert locally and avoid any transatlantic mess...

Jorge does it cheaper!

...But, I sent you money last week.
-Mooom, I have only five euro left for food...

-I swear I left home with a twenty euro bill in my purse...
-Twenty euro? You can cook miracles (...or nothing at all these days) with twenty euro!

-What do you mean "cheap"?
-I mean cheeeap, costs next to nothing.
-How come?
-Local farmer!

-This is all I have...
-This will do!
-Thank you.

Food is expensive these days. Shopping bills escalate like never before. Super markets and open or farmers markets can easily cost you a good chunk of your salary. You more and more have to make your calculations, before you shop and we're talking about food here, not shoes. Weekly family menus need planning. Worldwide. I am not even bringing up the rising poverty and increasing famine issues here, in this post, now. I speak empirically as a mom, the daily cook of this family and as a consumer.

Eating out is a widespread non-option (even for the privileged few it is not so often as before).

Professional cooks , I am told, are challenged to create new cheaper versions of older costlier dishes . At best, they opt for local ingredients rather than imported , choose seasonal instead of more expensive exotic ones which is a good thing , but , at the same time, wholesale cheaper food proves increasingly suspicious with its unknown, uncertified and dubious origin and not ethically trading or harvesting methods.

With more and more people to be fed from and on this planet , a staggering seven billion, yes, 7.000.000.000 mouths to be fed daily , food economics is an increasingly serious political issue.

Let alone ...young students around the world -away from domestic food  and moms -who need to eat aaand eat cheap! Even college and university cafeterias are expensive nowadays!

Let's admit it, unless you talk about a deadly delicious filling souvlaki with french fries inside, now approaching two euros in Greece or a ... falafel moussaka pitta (difficult to understand what this is really but it costs .35 cents in touristy Luxor, Egypt), cheap and food are two notions that don't marry well together. Cheap food doesn't sound good at all, it reminds us of fast food or poverty. No one wants to think of these when he eats unless he meditates on these issues at the same time.

But on the other hand, on a lighter note, who can argue against the simplicity and glory of a fresh raw tomato (eaten whole as a fruit , like my kids ate it as a snack ) on a sunny greek beach , just sprinkled with sea salt drying on the nearby rock ? Not me! In my books, this is a gourmet dish that costs next to nothing but can rock your world , feed you, nourish you and satisfy you all at once! (And the ambience -for me- competes with that of a Michelin awarded restaurant !)

But back to budget and students. And ... cans ofcourse! I obviously dislike canned food but there are some SOS cans, for emergency only that can save lives.

It "saved my life" once , so to say , when studying abroad , when hungry and deadly off a paper deadline , when my room mate took control of the situation and decided to cook for us a delicious salad costing -back then- a british pound! One british pound. And that is WITH a candle in the middle of our shared desk/dining table .

Jorge, gracias for that evening back then when you , starved like me but more creative , walked out in the rain to the indian grocer round the corner , with our one shared pound and bought an onion, a can of corn , a cucumber and a pink candle . Thank goodness we had some soy sauce at home...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE "GRACIAS JORGE CHEAP SALAD"

Empty a corn can in sieve and rinse it from liquid under running water.

Chop finely an onion.

Cut cucumber in small dice.

Combine the three in bowl and add sufficient soy sauce to coat all ingredients but not excessively. Mix well. Drizzle with olive oil and let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.


Perfect for lunch if you can afford to slice in a boiled egg or add a can of tuna .

Light candle.

Return to books. Rapidamente!

Not your average gourmet...

La Madame Vinaigrrrrrette!

I hid myself behind living room curtains and slithered camouflaged under my childhood bed . Pretended to be ill, gravely ill with worrying temperatures rising and rising to the point of needing immediate hospitalization.

Once I remember, I attempted to bribe her with eleven kilos of bonbons. I often seriously contemplated abducting her. Even thought of paying the nearby handsome kiosk guy to seduce her and move abroad with her (offering him to run his kiosk while he was sunbathing in Cannes, him lucky fellow).

Proposed to my parents to learn German instead. Wore scarves around my neck to indicate laryngites and worried about permanent loss of voice due to a rare african epidemic. Threatened her straight in her face to pronounce every word with an american accent.

Nothing worked. Madame Vinaigrette was invinsible. All 120 kilos of her.

Every Monday afternoon at exactement 5 pm , her little DCV parked outside our house eradicating one by one the bushes of the fence. She looked seductively at her self in the mirror and corrected her orange lipstick and few orange hair and then entered our house in Coco style and with Arnold determination.

-Bonjour cherie!
-Bonjour madame Vinaigrette.
(Inspired by the recent greek junta , I even once dared to use the unfortunate political situation to get rid of her : )
-Hm, Madame Vinaigrette, unfortunately, both my parents fled to Brasil last night and I cannot afford private french lessons anymore. I can barely afford ... un peu du pain!

-Quelle horreur! Je peux vous offrir un peu de chocolat si vous voulez ... Allons ma chérie , she said and politely smiled at my poor escape attempt.

What did I get out of those childhood lazy afternoon French classes to use later on in life? Just the right pronunciation for two words : vinaigrrrrette and Jamais Jamais Jamais French again !!! But in honor of her perserverance alone , I named my favorite acidic green salad dressing after her. Voila!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE LA MADAME VINAIGRETTE

Squeeze your french teacher, oops excuse moi, I meant half a lemon (or orange or grapefruit, depending on desired acidity).
Combine it with some fresh pomegranade juice, a teaspoon of honey, olive oil and a teaspoon of dijon mustard , salt and a teaspoon of balsamico vinegar.
Stir but not shake. This is not an english pub, nor an american diner. This is a well respected european vanishing middle class house with french and piano classes and we stir our vinaigrette, lightly avec tendresse.
Dress your salad only a minute before serving and toss.

Alors mon bebes : what did you listen to back then? Albano or Joe Dassin? I went for the italiano and never looked back!

But, God bless madame Vinaigrette. She always dresses all those boring healthy lettuce or iceberg leaves with some of this french "je ne sais qua" ...

Saganaki! Salty and sour in one!

Well into the evening, into those hours where salt, calories, flour and frying are a rational individual's no no, there visits mrs. CRAVING!

It starts with a random, out of nowhere ,question as last night by my daughter :
-What s for supper mom?
-Supper?
-Well, not exactly supper, you know like...chips, is there any?
-Chips? God forbid! I never buy chips, I just have it when I go to the movies , either chips or pop corn...
-Well, I don t go to the movies, so I can have it at home, right?
-Why not?
-I go to bars mom, my friends and me want to talk, not sit mummified infront of a screen! Duh!

She has a point... Or none whatsoever... She s a teenager, everything I say is an op for her beautiful child mind to turn into an adult mind and she has to fight me and the world around her for that to happen, I am told. I ll take it. With salt, not a grain, but lots of salt!

TWO MINUTES ANGIE I WILL SURVIVE SAGANAKI

Choose your saltiest greek cheese, kefalotyri or a good aged kefalograviera from Peloponissos.

Slice it thickly, 1 -2 cm. Wet it under cold tap running water. Dust it into flour, shake excess flour from each slice.

Heat some olive oil in a non-stick pan and fry the cheese first in high heat and then in medium ,avoiding to burn the cheese. It's a two minute thing , so don't expect the cheese to melt.

Remove cheese from pan on absorbent kitchen paper for half a minute, serve in plate and drizzle some lemon on it.

The salt/sour contrast is what someone could call a daily mom-teenager daughter encounter experience.

"Yum, bring me more! It's also tastier than chips and has no artificial anything", I advise my daughter.

But she already is on the phone craving love more than salt...

I end up eating both slices.

Two types of greek cheese fit  for "saganaki", either a salty kefalograviera or a mature graviera. 

Sunday Morning Meditation Egg

As I emerge from the state of the unconscious into the state of awakedness , from darkness into light, from the dreamy state of sleep into the Present, and half asleep from my bedroom to the kitchen, after exactly two breaths, well , HUNGER strikes!

How hungry are you on Sunday mornings? I am starving all a.m. 24/7 really... But on Sundays I am more hungry.

And then I know it is time for a perfectly soft boiled ...

TWO MINUTES ANGIE MEDITATION EGG

The first basic question of an emerging cook and the guilty wondering of a cook or a mom is : how long does it take to soft boil an egg?

The jury is out, wonder no more : It takes a meditative two minutes. Exactly.

Leave eggs in room temperature from Saturday night. Boil some water and take meditative position infront of the stove.

Put the eggs in and count up to 120. Two minutes.

Drain water and fill up pot with cold running water until you serve.

If you use cold eggs from the refri, then, place eggs in pot in cold water and on to the stove, cover with lid and once water boils, count up to 120.

It is a mini Sunday meditation and a perfectly boiled egg. If you choose to accompany it with bread, then go for the toasted bread sticks and skip meditation process. (New generation toasters do it for you...)

A little bit of Jamie in my life...

...it was right after we came back from summer holidays in Spain, right?
We were driving most of the night, then took the ferry and arrived home late at night.

We lived in this cute little house in Chelsea, painted pistachio green, you made sure it was pistachio green, not just any green...

We woke up starving! What's for breakfast, I asked you... You went downstairs, looked into the refri and there was nothing, not even butter! Nor toast! "There's nothing but me for breakfast" you proposed...Well, there actually was an onion and the chives on the sill.
I knew already back then that the end was near and I proposed , perhaps, we can start eating the oranges, ten kilos of oranges we brought back from Spain with us in the car?

"At least let me dress them up for you baby " , you said smiling, although you knew... (And I knew that Jules was already waiting in the wings)
"NO! Today I' m cooking!", I said and hurried out of bed and while you showered, I flew down the staircase and bought some stilton from the fromagerie and a baguette. Just try a bit harder Jamie, I said to myself and went up to prepare what was to be named as ...

TWO MINUTES "ANGIE STILL LOVES JAMIE SALAD"

Slice these divine juicy oranges into thick slices, 2-3 per fruit. Discard skin keeping slices intact.
Arrange on serving plate.
Slice thickly a white or purple onion and keep shape intact. Alternatively , for a more manageable finale, chop onion finely and segment orange.
Top orange slices with the onion slices or dice and sprinkle with stilton cheese or your best roquefort cheese.
Garnish with parsley or chives and dress it with a dijon mustard based vinaigrette. Serve with freshest baguette.

Leave the goodbye note slightly touching the cuttlery and rrrrrun.

This wasn't meant to be ...

Strange but tasty combination, oranges and onions... 

Hello Handsome!

He is a heartbreaker! A stunner! Has been all his life! Stands out in the crowd and he knows it. We know it.
But we hesitate to ask him for a date... Like with radishes.

We see them , beautiful and ferocious, but we usually take a step back!
We find all sort of excuses, "bit spicy for my taste" , the most common of it all.

But today at the farmer's market, I dared not only to approach him, I even talked to him and promised to be , well, creative. No more excuses , I went for it girl!

So, I invite you all to step up! This pretty boy is full of goodness :vitamine C , calcium and ...iron , so also very healthy! Aaaaand NOT boring if you handle him properly ( instructions follow below :)

TWO MINUTES ANGIE "DARING DATE WITH A RADISH SALAD" .

Sponge well a purple radish under running cold water , to remove soil and leave skin on, rinse well, grate coarsely.

Grate coarsely two sweet carrots.

Chop finely a bunch of rocket.

Arrange on a plate in the exactly opposite than the above mentioned order (arugula being the first, then the carrots and then the pretty boy).

Shave some tasty cheese on top. A well-matured gruyere from my favorite greek island of Crete is best.

Drizzle with a light vinaigrette, preferably sweetened with one teaspoon honey and/or some balsamic. You may want to check the BIOLEA olive oil (pricey but top of the range)which is scented with fresh bitter oranges.

I am thinking while I devour this amazing salad : What on earth was I afraid of in the past? Radishes ???