ich Kalliope

Γιαγιάς Olives

My desert island food of choice might be the potato, but I think I'd miss olives more. 

My yiayia made the best olives, and for 25 years I haven't had more than the memory of just how delicious they were.  Thank God I have a good memory... green, with lots of lemon... a little spicy, not too much, and really good olive oil keeping them so juicy.  Mouthwatering, even just remembering.  They were just a distant memory until my good friend from Lebanon brought some of his olives to a party. 

These were yiayia's olives.  So I ate as many as possible at that party, without drawing attention to myself.  Or causing an olive debacle, similar to the one I was accused of back in 1969 with my cousin who shares my yiayia's name with me.  

One Saturday, he taught me how to make them.  And although we didn't start with fresh olives that we had to hammer and soak in brine, but simple canned green olives... I'm in olive heaven once again.

Drain and wash a large can of olives.

Toss in enough olive oil to lightly coat.

Add a couple of tablespoons Greek oregano, and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

Add the juice of 1/2 lemon.  Slice the remainder of the lemon in very think slices.

Toss and place in air tight container.  Leave in refrigerator for 4-5 days, tossing gently once a day.

Gadgetmania

I've got two kitchen gadgets that I couldn't live without.  Both of them I was skeptical of, until I had them in my kitchen drawer... now I can't imagine my kitchen without them. 

The first, an apple slicer.  I thought ahhhhhhhhhhh, what do I need with this.  I can just as easily cut up an apple myself.  But my friend convinced me this would be worth it, and it is.  Less waste, easy to clean up and more apple munching, a win, Win, WIN!  I chose the one from OXO, an great company who places function and form at the same priority.

Second is the citrus juicer.  For a Greek girl who uses lemon in just about everything, this is priceless.  Heavy in the hand, and gets as much juice out of a lemon as I've ever seen.  My sweet husband came home with the big orange one on the right, and it works for everything.  Try it!

What else can't we live without in our kitchens?

Cherished Book

Last month I added a sidebar here on my site with books I think are great.  One that didn't get mentioned, but admittedly is #1 on Kalliope's Bestsellers is FACEBOOK.  And there is no indication that it will drop in the ratings in the near future. 

Facebook has allowed me to connect with so many friends, near and far.  Unlike the privacy and relative anonymity that my blog ich Kalliope offers me, Facebook gives my friends a glimpse into my day and me into theirs. 

Reconnecting with lost friends, deepening connections with those closer to me and staying in touch with family, Facebook gives me what the best of intentions, the most updated address/email book and love of travel never could - an easy way to do it!  Sometimes the connections are more deep, sometimes it's just a quick read of what my friends are up to at that moment.

Where else could I learn in the course of a day that:

An old friend was running her first half-marathon

Another was considering getting a teeny, tiny tattoo, which I had been considering too

Someone I hadn't seen in twenty years liked the same music and artists I had listed as my favorites

As I sat drinking a glass of wine, another friend cracked open a bottle too, cheers!

My friend's husband wasn't sharing the guitar with her when they played Rock Band on the Playstation

And so it goes, the little things, and sometimes the big ones too!  This is one book I'll be carrying with me for a long time, no matter what city I call home.

Ritual + Holiday + Snow

 

One of the things I look forward to over the holidays is digging into the New York Times Magazine "Year in Ideas".  It usually takes me the whole break to read every entry, it has become a ritual.  It's distributed with the Sunday paper, the second week in December, but I don't usually crack it open until I'm officially on holiday vacation.  Another ritual.  The link here, will get you to the web version, but I prefer to camp in front of the fire with the magazine, highlighter and bookmarks in hand.  And yes, I read it in alphabetical order, one more of those important rituals.  A glass of red wine or sherry is good too, if it's after 3 pm... somewhere.

This year it has been made so much easier by the record amount of snow we're getting here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, and the fact we can't get anywhere.

Here's to new ideas and tradition!

Mark it with a P

I think a person can consider themselves pretty blessed when they have favorite places around the world, truly favorites.  Count me in with the blessed!  Now this one may appear trivial, afterall, butter cookies are pretty much found everywhere.  Just a couple of months back I wrote about my favorite Greek butter cookie, but I may have still been under the spell of my sabbatical back then.  Because my truly, absolute, favorite butter cookie AND place to buy them is at Poilâne in Paris at Rue du Cherchi Midi 6.  This special bakery is famous for it's bread and punitions (butter cookies).  They mark the bread with an enormous script P, branded and delicious!

The first time I visited this special place was about nine years ago, I was with a colleague who had lived in Paris and knew it well.  She was able to get the ok for us to go down in the basement of the small storefront shop to see the baker and the oven where the magic happened.  It was beautiful.  Small space, enormous oven, and table where the dough was being kneaded and the punitions rolled out.  Warmed by the oven, everything seemed to be a light golden color.  That day there was only one person working there, I'm not sure there's room for two.  He was busy.  Afterall you have to make a lot of those bite-size cookies to satisfy.

  

Of course if I'm in Paris I visit Poilâne, which is not often enough.  I buy a bag of cookies to sustain me during my "tough" travels, and a bag to bring home to my dear husband.  Bringing these home to husbands is more common than I thought.  Very shortly after the 9/11 attacks here in the United States, I was on a flight from New York back home to Portland, Oregon.  Shortly after takeoff I began chatting with the woman in the seat next to me, who said she was on her final leg home from Paris.  She had gone there to celebrate a milestone birthday with her girlfriends.  Somehow, I brought up Poilâne...  and low and behold she reached into her carryon bag and... voila a small bag of the famous cookies appeared.  She was bringing them home to her dear husband.

  

The shock of 9/11 was still very fresh, and so when our plane began to descend less than an hour into the flight we all became nervous.  It took quite sometime for the pilot to announce the reason for the sudden descent, and there was a lot of commotion in the back of plane.  My new "friend" and I finished our glasses of wine, trying to stay calm.  She then reached into her bag, pulled out the sealed bag of the little Poilâne treasures, looked at me and said "what the hell", and we proceeded to polish off half the bag before the pilot announced we needed to land in Detroit because of a medical emergency. 

Unfortunately, not everyone had the benefit of the little treats from Paris, and 3 other passengers had to be removed from the flight because of panic related issues they experienced during the initial descent. 

By the time we reached Portland 8 hours later, there were only crumbs in the bag, which was left in the seat pocket, and two very calm women walked off the plane to greet their dear husbands.  Thank you Poilâne!

Run don't walk

Just as I stopped looking for that delicious frozen Spanakopita at my local Costco... drum roll please... there it was.  Stacked high, and ready to fly!  Run don't walk to your nearest Costco to stock up on what I still believe to be the best frozen Spanakopita I've found, from a Canadian company named Cuisine Adventures. 

So here it is, 2 boxes of 48 sitting all safe and snug in my freezer, ready to brought out for my unsuspecting guests, who probably think anyone named Kalliope would be making it from scratch.  Ha!

Annual Sweet Tooth

  

 

Halloween is upon us here in the US, and with it comes all the temptations of little mini-versions of favorite candy showing up everywhere!  I don't have much of a sweet tooth, and pass on most desserts easily, except my mom's Lemon Chiffon Pie and my husband's Panna Cotta, but even I have a hard time not grabbing the little sweets this time of year.

We'll get ready for trick-or-treaters with some goodies, and if I did have children of my own, these would be the items I would be sneaking out of their bags after they were asleep.  Candy Corn, Mike & Ike's, Butterfingers and Good & Plenty!  My dad used to go for my Bit-O-Honey's and Butterfingers, we're still "fighting" over Butterfingers today. 

National Biscuit

These Papadopoulos biscuits are the best!  The first time I visited Greece in 1974 I discovered them, and until last week, only was able to enjoy them there.  Or maybe I didn't look anywhere but Greece for the quintessential simple, official looking, national Greek biscuit.  Check out the stamp on the top of each cookie.  It's more official than a lot of currency. 

When I returned from what was the most fabulous visit to Greece this past summer, filled with great food, including these biscuits, I finally realized that I needed to find a source for my new addictions.  A source for great Greek feta, yogurt, olive oil, Kalamata olives and yes... Papadopoulos biscuits, and good prices.  I found it all and more at Barbur Foods in SW Portland.  Great produce, great meats, an international selection that keeps our little family going. 

As I was finishing up my shopping this week, I headed down the last aisle, always hoping to get lucky and find the biscuits.  There they were.  Packaged neatly in their sleeves, I grabbed one, ok two... alright three packages.  And am savoring every morsel.  Anyone know the history of these little treasures?

Down Home

What exactly does "down home" mean?  I'm not certain, but it's the words that came bubbling up when I decided to go public with one of my favorite restaurants.  Not just my favorite restaurant because it's close by, to go to on a Friday evening after a long work week, where I wanted to go to kick off and end my sabbatical, or where I would love to convince my husband to go tonight. 

It's all that, but it ranks in my top five restaurants in the world. 

Tad's Chicken 'n Dumplins, located on the Sandy River in Troutdale, Oregon.  We had lived in Oregon for almost 7 years before we discovered it.  Everyone has seen it who travels the historic Columbia River highway.  As did we, but we never stopped.  Now it's a destination, and one that is well worth it.  Their signature neon sign is nestled in the trees, on your right hand side as you head east on the old highway.

I did get a passport before I was forty something, and don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I'm qualified to be vice-president of the United States, and realize that having a passport isn't a prerequisite for VP of the USA.  Just stating the facts.  The travel bug bit me, hard.  I am lucky to have visited many countries in the world, lived in Germany for many years, and have had the luck to eat at many wonderful restaurants.  I am a confessed foodie, so trust me on this one.

Tad's is the perfect place to go and unwind, enjoy an amazing meal, drink a nice glass of wine, and slow down with the perfect balance of past and present. Depending on your mood, the weather, or how hungry you are (there can be a wait), there are three distinct rooms where you can enjoy your meal.  Our favorite is the large "open air" room, no A.C., just large floor to ceiling windows that open up to views of the river. 

 

Open Air Room                                       Dining Room                                           Fireplace Room

Everytime we go, we open the menu, look through it and order the same thing.  I am sure we are not alone in this habit are we?  The portions are hearty, and you'll have enough to take home a nice doggie bag.  We usually split the dinner, which is perfect.  Here's what I recommend:

1. Glass, or two, of Firesteed Pinot Noir (served in a juice glass... was Tad Greek?)
2. Relish tray (comes automatically- fresh, crisp veggies and a dill dip)
3. Fried chicken livers for appetizer
4. House salad (their cole slaw is pretty good too)
5. Fried Chicken with Baked Potato
6. Peppermint ice cream (if there's room)

So there you have it, one of my top 5 restaurants.  If you're ever in Oregon, it's only 20 miles east of Portland.  Check it out!

Did somebody say donut?

And pub? 

Imagine my sheer excitement and awe, in the back of a cab, stuck in a bit of New York City rush hour traffic, when I spotted The Donut Pub, located on W 14th at 7th Ave.  Traffic was slow enough for me to snap a quick photo, which I'm considering printing, framing and hanging somewhere important.  Maybe even giving as gifts.

Convergence of so many things I consider to be wonderful. 

First, donut.  Really, there's not much better than a good fresh donut.  The traditional cake-type are my favorite, I'm not a big fan of the airy-melt-in-your-mouth Crispy Cremes.  Although if put in front of me, they'll do in a pinch.

Second, neon lights.  I love neon signs.  The simpler the better, and it doesn't get more simple than this.  They call out to me, and give me a feeling of authenticity.  I trust neon.

Last, a pub.  A small, cozy place to get together with the like-minded.  In this case, donut lovers.  I'm a bit skeptical of what this crowd might look like, gathered in one place, but I'm planning on giving it a try on my next visit!  The online reviews are raving. 

Cuisine Adventures?

I've been back to Costco at least 4 times looking for their frozen Spanakopita, still with no luck.  For the time I've spent going there, I could have made it homemade and frozen it many times over!  This does not include the shopping I do there, even though they don't have what I went there looking for.  It goes something like this... go in the superstore, go to the frozen food case to look for the Spanakopita, check out for $150.00, no Spanakopita.  Repeat.  Repeat.  Repeat. 

It's not that difficult to make, my mom's recipe is delicious, it just takes time.  But so does going to Costco. But I love the idea that someone has made them for me, the little handmade triangles, that I just pull out of my freezer and bake.  I've even searched the internet for it, and now have a brand name "Cuisine Adventures".  Searching for them yields me nothing. Where are these master chefs selling their Spanakopita now?  Help!

Happens in 3's

   

At the moment I am happily making my way through three great books, all for three very different reasons.

"Made to Stick"  Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.  It's about communicating ideas, in business and life.  And probably the best book of it's kind since Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point".  Not to mention, the cover design is fabulous.

"The Kite Runner" One of the flight attendant's on my flight to Japan was reading it, and a fellow passenger told her it was the BEST book ever written.  It's also going to be a movie soon, and I would like to read the book before the movie comes out.  The last time that happened was the "The Hours" in 2002.

"YOU Staying Young", the third in the YOU series by Oprah's docs, Mehmet Oz and Michael Roizen.  The title says it all, it's an idea that STICKS!

Friday Night Lights

I am really loving the TV show "Friday Night Lights" on NBC.   It's replaced Grey's Anatomy as my favorite, which last season became utterly ridiculous (ok I still watch it), but it's down on my short list. 

"Friday Night Lights" is exotic and simple at the same time.  It takes place in Texas, where I've only been three times.  London and Milan, not so exotic.  Dillon, Texas...exotic.   The characters are real, the stories keep getting better.  It's just good TV.  I need more good TV like this.

Can "Hoosier Hysteria" be far behind??  This Indiana girl would love to see high school basketball brought to the little screen. 

Favorite BOOK

My favorite book of all time is The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand.  I read it for the first time in 1978 and related to the main character Howard Roark in a most aspirational way.  As an idealistic, young industrial designer, Roark was one of my heroes, albeit fictional.

I bought the centennial version, hardback, LARGE type (yes... LARGE type), I plan to reread it to celebrate 30 years since this book became and still is my favorite of all time. 

Kitty, Jesse, your tagged yet again.  Favorite book of all time?

Favorite COLOR

This should be fun, a weekly favorite.  This week, it's favorite color.

Mine, Chartreuse.  Kitty, tag you're it.