Monday, October 1, 2007

Go Greek!

Our family went to the 51st Annual Greek Food Festival this weekend. The boys had been looking forward to it for a week, so after Saturday morning's soccer, we came home, changed clothes, and headed out for our much-anticipated lunch.

The boys and I each got Chicken Souvlaki - chunks of marinated chicken grilled on skewers, placed in a fresh pita with tzatziki (cucumber yogurt) sauce, diced tomatoes, and chopped red onion (mine only). Billy had a Greek Sausage in a pita with tzatziki and onions, and for "dessert", a Tiropita (baked phyllo dough filled with feta cheese, eggs, and seasonings). I enjoyed a few bites of his tiropita, but the boys didn't want any. They didn't like it last year.

I really enjoyed listening to the live music while I ate. I told the boys it made me want to get up and dance, but they begged me not to - not that I would have! I just chair-danced instead. I'd like to find a CD with some catchy Greek music on it, but not any singing. (Oh, Billy said the instruments they were playing were called "bouzoukis". I never knew that's what my mom meant when she would tell me, "Get your bouzouki in here!")

On our way to tour the church again, we stopped to watch the dancers on stage. The boys had just finished and we missed seeing them, but one of them kept standing on the stage near the steps and dancing while the instructor was trying to shoo him down. No, this wasn't a preschooler or kindergartner, either. He looked to be about 10! A few minutes later, the girls took to the stage and danced.

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church is beautiful. The sanctuary is in the shape of a cross and has biblical murals and mosaics on the upper walls, ceiling, and domes. Unfortunately my camera batteries were dead, so I'll have to wait until next year to take any pictures of it. We talked briefly with one of the priests there. He said their Saturday evening services are done in English and the Sunday liturgy services are in Greek. We may go to one so we can experience the different culture and worship style. Billy went to a few Orthodox services while on Patmos.

We bought some homemade baklava to bring home and will probably have some of it for dessert tonight after eating our Mediterranean Hummus Pizza. Billy bought a new bouriki (Greek coffeepot) and some imported Greek coffee. I'm glad I got my "Opa!" apron last year because they didn't have any this year. They either said "Yia Yia's Cooking" (Grandma's cooking") or "51st Annual Greek Food Festival". I did see some nice wall plaques for the kitchen that said different things in Greek, but they were too expensive.

What's Cooking?

I found a new meme that's just perfect for me on Mondays: Menu Plan Monday. Now I can share my weekly menus with other people who post theirs on their blogs. I'm hoping to find some interesting new recipes to try - and to continue sharing some of my favorites.

Here's the plan for this week:
Monday: Mediterranean Hummus Pizza (I've had to put this off twice, but I will make it tonight! Sorry for those who recommended I make my own hummus, but I've had a heck of a time trying to find chickpeas and tahini paste. Wal-Mart doesn't carry it - and my Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market seems to have quit carrying hummus as well! Hopefully Billy can pick some up from Fadi's today; if not, I'll call a few local grocery stores to see who has it.)

Tuesday: leftovers or sandwiches (I have a meeting, Billy has class, and the boys will have a sitter.)

Wednesday: Vegetable Soup (Yes, the temperature probably be in the 90s that day, but I'm so ready for soup. And if I don't start soup nights this week, cold weather will be over before I get to make all the ones I want!)

Thursday: leftover soup (I need a minimum of cooking and cleaning on Thursday nights. That's when I park in front of the TV for the night: Survivor, CSI, and ER.)

Friday: ??? (Billy's parents are coming this weekend and we'll probably get take-out or have sandwiches.)

Saturday: OUT! (We'll pick a fun restaurant to go to. There's a new Japanese restaurant called "Iron Chefs" nearby, but I don't know if it has officially opened yet. We've got tons of places to choose from, though.)

Sunday: sandwiches (When we get home from AWANA around 7:00, it's too late and I'm too tired to cook!)

Not a very inspiring menu this week. Next week will be better.

7 comments:

Lori ~ The Simple Life at Home said...

Hi Ashley,
Thanks for the $ saving tips you left on my blog. Can I ask a question? I've tried cooking for a month, but Hubby and I both felt that the texture of the food suffered after it had been frozen. How do you prevent that?

And as far as making hummous, I do make my own. Chickpeas are available at Wal-Mart (at least the one I shop at), but you may need to look for them under the name of Garbanzo Beans. But, no, they don't usually have tahini. I am able to find it at my local Publix - don't know if you have that there. If not, your best bet is to find a Middle Eastern market.
Good luck!

Anonymous said...

that hummus pizza sounds delicious! wonderful plan this week.

Sandra said...

Great looking menu, everything looks yummy!!!

Happy MPM!

Sandra

Tami said...

Your menu looks great. My husband would love the pizza. He is on a hummus kick lately and has been making his own.

Sonya said...

I love Menu Plan Monday but I haven't made my menus in weeks. I've been in a rut! It is very helpful to do them each week though! Plus, I love browsing everyone else's recipes!

Cindy Swanson said...

My maternal grandfather was full-blooded Greek, but he was born here and was pretty Americanized...also I never had any real contact with his branch of the family, so I'm not as familiar with Greek culture and cooking as I might have been. I do like the things I've tried, though. Love baklava!

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