almost a red, red rose

Inevitably, being Scottish, my mind turns to all things Burns-related at this time of year. I find myself humming old favourites we (reluctantly at the time) sang along to at school, flicking through a book of his poems I was given, snatches of which come back to me as I turn the pages.

The Selkirk Grace (not actually written by Rabbie, though attributed to him) will be recited wherever Scots are gathered for Burns Night and I feel  it’s particularly poignant, especially in these days of recession.

I recently read a thought-provoking article referring to how households in N Europe are cutting back on fruit and veg and filling up on cheaper, generally unhealthier foods. Yes, that makes sense.  That’s where we differ in S Europe. We may also be spending less on food but it means in many cases that we are eating healthier than a few years ago, since fruit, veg and pulses are cheap staples of the Mediterranean diet. “Frugal food”,  a “buzzword” in magazines in these times has a different connotation here. I think of  courgette burgers, stuffed cabbage or vineleaves , spinach pie, salad made from fresh wild greens…….

As I’ve mentioned previously, our menu follows the seasons, but there is always salad on the table and where possible, fresh fruit.  Fish plays an important role and admittedly some kinds are expensive, but who can resist a plate of chargrilled sardines or tiny fried anchovies? Healthy and at the cheaper end of the scale.  Or how about succulent salted cod, another staple in winter. Mouth-watering when fried in a light batter (with chips if you fancy) or  just as tempting baked in the oven in a tomato sauce.

I didn’t have haggis to commemorate Burns Night, but compensated with another Scottish traditional dish – Cock-a-leekie soup and a couple of oatcakes. Afraid I didn’t toast Burns with whisky, either  – I had a cup of Scottish blend tea instead whilst playing in the background was one of my all-time favourite cds -” Eddi Reader sings The Songs Of Robert Burns”, with its evocative melodies and Eddi providing the little something that was lacking all those years ago in the classroom!

We hae meat and we can eat, so yes, we have to be thankful.

enjoying the view

What could I be referring to? Olive oil, of course!

Having quite a few litres of our own olive oil at my disposal I’ve been replacing other fats with it over the years. Mostly it’s successful, not only in savoury dishes but in baking as well.

It’s a New Years tradition here in Greece that each household has a cake (vasilopita) in which is hidden a coin. This cake is ceremoniously divided between the members of the family and the person who finds the coin will have good luck all year. There are no hardfast rules as to what type of cake it must be. Some families prefer fragrant tsoureki, others bake a spicy version, spiked with fruit and nuts. The vasilopita I make is similar in texture to madeira cake and instead of butter or veg oil, I now use olive oil. It stays lovely and moist and if there is any left it has been known to end up as a base for trifle!

Pancakes/crepes, and even chappit tattties (mashed potatoes) are tasty. Toasties come out a treat when oil’s been drizzled over them.

A  favourite recipe for a rich chocolate cake which is gooey in the middle works well with olive oil instead of the recommended vegetable oil. And since it is healthy I don’t feel so guilty smothering it with cream and sour cherries in syrup – my version of Black Forest.

Maybe this should be titled “Ode to Oil” but I’m constantly realising how versatile it is, apart from its obvious uses. And some not so obvious. I was recently given  traditional Scottish oatcakes which were made with olive oil. Truly scrumptious!

Patches of frost cover the grass, crackling underfoot as I venture out to feed the cats and gather logs to light the fire. The pool was frozen over for the first time on Christmas morning, which was quite magical.

I’m not convinced the children who were out carol singing on Christmas Eve had the same opinion. They were well wrapped-up against the cold as they made their way round town, visiting friends and family. But still, they would have much preferred to have been knee-deep in snow!

little robin redbreast

…….that’s what melomakarona are made of!

These are the traditional Greek biscuits found in every home during the Christmas holidays. Baking them signals the start of the festive season. Cloves and cinnamon, orange and brandy, aromas that remind us of Christmas, combine to make  a delight that not only tastes good, but is fairly healthy too! (as far as sweets go)

No butter or eggs in these – they are made with olive oil, the above-mentioned ingredients and then dipped in a honey-based syrup and coated with chopped walnuts.

These ingredients are all readily available, making these biscuits reasonably economical too. I use our own oil and oranges, local pine honey and walnuts and for me they are the  perfect start to the  Christmas celebrations.

An added bonus – if I’ve eaten healthy melomakarona over Christmas, surely I can indulge in creamy galaktoboureko(custard-pie wrapped in filo pastry and drenched in syrup) and even some all-butter shortbread at New Year?!

ready to press

Nothing else for it, it’s that time of the year again….when the island beats, not to  intense summer rhythms  …… but to  slower, less urgent sounds – olives being knocked down off the trees, branches being chopped and cut into firewood.

Thassos is diverse, that’s one of the reasons I don’t get bored here. The island is quiet as we get on with our work. It offers a different charm to to anyone visiting this time of year.

We started harvesting in mid Nov and because we’d no rain delays, got the crop in and the oil pressed in record time. I needed  my woolly toorie on the odd occasion, but most of the time I’d on a sun hat!  Even now it’s sunny during the day, more like Oct than a few days away from Christmas. Patches of frost early morning remind us it’s winter and in the evenings you smell wood from fires and stoves. Now that the olives are in, it’s a bonus being able to sit out, enjoying a cup of coffee in the sun – though we do really need rain. If I could order it for night-time that would be perfect!

Our oil is pressed locally in a family-run factory which still uses tried-and- trusted traditional methods, ensuring the end product is of the highest quality – and taste. I wish I could bottle the aroma! When fresh, it’s dense and so fruity -flavoured, whereas in a few weeks it’ll mellow and turn more fluid and golden.

Time to go and enjoy the fruits of our labour now…..

Aberdeen's olives

]]> http://aberdeenstudios.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/well-oiled/feed/ 0 aberdeenstudios OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA http://aberdeenstudios.wordpress.com/2011/08/07/christmas-is-coming/ http://aberdeenstudios.wordpress.com/2011/08/07/christmas-is-coming/#comments Sun, 07 Aug 2011 22:11:25 +0000 aberdeenstudios http://aberdeenstudios.wordpress.com/?p=329 ]]> Tinsel, trees, bells, baubles, stockings and even Santa – the guests have been hard at work and we’re ready to party!

It’s been talked about  for a year and at last it’s here – the Aberdeen August Christmas Day, which we’re celebrating along with our guests.

We’ve decorated the tree and it has pride of place out by the pool. The stockings are hanging up, so all in all it’s looking quite festive! A bit of contention though, as to what we leave Santa to drink. Milk or a glass of our finest malt?

Obviously it’ll be early to bed tomorrow night as said guests will be up at the crack of dawn to open their presents! Or maybe not…..

During the day we’ll be singing along to a selection of carols and some of our favourite seasonal pop songs; it’ll make a change from our normal 60s and 70s faves! Perhaps we’ll watch a “Christmassy” film too.

By popular request, we’ll be playing charades and we can’t forget pass-the-parcel. Of course the dress-code for the day will be slightly “different”.

I’m not sure how the day will end but I do know it’ll be one to remember!

Only one thing missing – we’ve got the pear tree but no partridge…….

The first brief sighting, in our neighbours grove, was about a week ago. As I approached, he/she flew off, wings flapping  like a giant butterfly, so though I was pretty convinced of what I’d seen I had to keep looking  just to make sure. It became my mission for the past few days!

I’d been hearing the distinct piercing call ( almost like a smoke alarm going off) for a good while now, so was quite  excited when I saw “the proof of the pudding”.

Since then hoopoe has been around regularly, digging for food in amongst the olives. The ground is moist now after the showers we’ve had, so I’m  sure he’s being well fed at Aberdeen!

But, unlike last year, I haven’t yet managed to get close up without him flying off. I don’t want to scare him, with it being breeding time. Maybe he’ll be bolder later on in the year.

Nonetheless,  it’s nice having our first “repeat” guest of the summer with us!

little nut tree

Yes, in the last couple of weeks, I think we’ve been treated to them all – sleet for a few days, followed by temperatures of nearly 20c and now most definitely Spring. Wakening up to the sun shining makes for a good start to the day and better still, it’s warm.  Chilly enough for a jacket in the evenings, but during the day I can go around in a t-shirt. Time to store away the winter woollies and get my sun hat out. And the sunblock to hopefully prevent the “Rudolph-effect” red nose! 

Hard to believe that the carnival revellers had to either wear an extra layer under their outfits or take the other option - more tsipouro to warm them up!

 For the past week we’ve been hearing frogs chattering away in the evenings, their mating call, more a trill than croak, confirming that we really are into Spring. 

Birds are chirping, well hidden high up in the olive trees, happy to feel the warmth as well, maybe.

The olive grove is colourful, with forget-me-nots dotted around,  delicate wafer-thin anenomies swaying gently and bright cheery buttercups appear where only a week ago was bare ground. The “lambs tails” on our hazelnut trees have fallen to the ground, making way for new leaves,  bursting into life.

The most surprising thing, though is that the first flowers are already appearing on the orange trees, tiny little pin-pricks but they generally blossom in May, so are quite advanced.

Alongside the wild flowers we also have the wild greens growing in abundance – time to start foraging and making the pies and salads.

The only downside - the grass is growing too, so will need cutting regularly from now on…..

Any volunteers?

blossom and blue sky - bliss

The mountains are shrouded in mist when I open the shutters and peer out today. It’s quite chilly, the snow-covered peaks reminding us that winter hasn’t deserted us yet. But does is really matter, it’s still fine enough to go for a walk into town after lunch. It’s sunny, the sky is blue, so really it’s all relative isn’t it, this cold. If I were living in the frozen north I’d be thinking it was a beautiful day!

The shops are bustling, mostly children,those still looking for just the right outfit, getting prepared for this the final weekend of carnival celebrations. Confetti and streamers are also in demand, as are masks, hats, beards and wigs, a real mix-and-match.

The island will play host to a fair few visitors this weekend, so cafes and tavernas are spruced up, ready for any passing trade.

Then once carnival is over, it’s full steam ahead with Easter preparations and since it falls near the end of April, the summer season which starts beginning of May.

St Davids Day today and by coincidence it’s leeks for dinner. They’re simmered in olive oil along with potatoes, carrots, onion and celery. (Almost like a vegetarian cock-a-leekie soup, a real Scottish favourite) We have rice, cheese, salads, dips and olives along with ours.

Ever the optimist – but I’ve lived here long enough to see it happen - the month will bound out like a frolicking lamb. And before you can say “April Fool” we’re basking in the sun.

robin keeps an eye on things

Butchers  all over Greece will be busy this week as folks prepare to celebrate  Tsiknopempti on Thursday.  Meat-eating is the order of the day, washed down with tsipouro, ouzo or retsina. It’s a day when people  let their hair down – or should I say get their wigs on!

 Locals and visitors to the island can be seen in costumes of all description, each enjoying the day (and night) in his/her own way, carrying on a tradition that goes back  a long time.

 There will be parties for all ages in the next couple of weeks, till the final day of Carnival, Kathera Theftera ( Ash Monday). Not only parties, but street parades and kite-flying, children proudly carrying their kites to the highest points on the island, the one day in the year when a strong gust of wind is preferable to a gentle breeze.

But now that the shops are bursting with all things glitz and kitsch,  it’s a chance for us to stock up on false beards and moustaches, wigs and the like – items which may come in useful for our “theatrical” evenings later on in summer……the show only begins in May at aberdeen - we like to do things a little differently…