Inpendence Day, Greek Style

I feel awkward blogging without a recipe, a photo. Naked, actually. In fact I have been cooking nonstop, nonstop I tell you. Never ending parade of meals and snacks and breads and cookies. How did I get sucked into this relentless vortex? But sometimes it is just too crazy to stop and get your camera, then at night download photos, when you are just too weary to do anything but lie prostrate on your mattress.

Today we went to the Danforth. The Greeks were celebrating independence from Turkey with a truly unremarkable parade in the biting cold. Felt sorry for those boys in their pleated white skirts and tights - shivering as they shuffled down the street. Jack Layton was there in finest of form, looking like he just stepped off the boat from Sparti.

We went for lunch at a cute little counter that sold only pittas - spanikopita, tyropita, kretopita.....I was the only non greek there. After, we went and spent god knows what on Greek cheese - feta, kefaloteri, graviera, manouri (?)...

Pitsa is still here - I don't know where she gets her energy. She is always up for something with the girls, a song, a book, a game. Meanwhile, Im sending down roots on this mattress ( I am lying down, of course. Have I mentioned I'm tired?)

Multigrain Rye

Feeling a bit thwarted artistically, hence the moody-bread shot. This bread was good, but I'm not crazy about Rye flour...very sticky, a bit heavy. I don't really see the point of it. It was easy, though. A 12 hour sponge, followed by a simple 2 hour room temp ferment, then 1 hour rise.

I'm predicting a palpable shift/cessation in these blogs once the weather (if the weather...) turns. I'm starting to get tired of cooking cooking cooking. But I have a marathon, studied list of meals for the duration of Pitsa's visit...maybe I should catalogue these, here. I have no pictures, but today we had capricosa spring salad with a basil emulsion, and fresh halibut.

Today Artemis and I went grocery shopping while Y and A picked Yiayia up at the airport. I loaded the buggy so full of groceries that it kept flipping backwards. Had to push it home, while pushing it up. Poor Artemis almost was launched into the atmosphere. Her favourite thing now is to sing Happy Birthday. I'll hear her singing to herself, substituting various names: Jen, Evan.... She also likes to say actually, as in, "actually, yes [I would like some soup]" or "actually no [I don't have a poo poo]".

Down and out

The terrible gastro-bug has us all in a vice. As a result I cannot look at food - so here is an opportunity to post a photo of the power bars that are so fantastic.

My girls are both unwell - fevers, stomach, and very lethargic. It's been several days and I'm worried about them. I was sick so sick last night, but am recovering rightly.

Desperate for spring. Just desperate. The mountains of snow are caving in - I am suffocating. Or maybe, its just the bipolar?

On a lighter note, here are the two model sisters, giving me their best poses.

Potato dill bread - or what to do with patates lemonata that no one ate even though they were perfect

OK so here is a picture from my front window and


one from my back door. Whipped cream nation. Sidewalks are sliced through 50 cm of fluff. Everything sparkles as though sprinkled with diamonds. Breathtaking. For January.

So though the world is thinking of spring, I'm still deeply entrenched in winter pursuits, i.e. baking baking baking.

Today we have, and I'm not exaggerating, probably my best loaf ever (what fun is a hobby if you don't enjoy the fruits?).



Potato dill bread- it had a dense, but light crumb which was very moist.



While it had a complex flavour there was not a hint of sourness. This I attribute to my sped-up feeding schedule. I fed it three times a day for almost two days. By the time I used it (about 5 hours after last feeding) it was a frothing frenzy. That is the key Theresa, a very vigorous, well and regularly fed culture.

Now, still DEEPLY in winter, I have the latest LCBO mag (my favourite foodie mag along with Cooks Illustrated) and the latest Gourmet which is about my other fave, French bistro food.

Good lord - I know this is a food blog but I have got to start thinking about something else.

This just in:

I have just registered for a short course at the Guelph Food Technology Centre. Who knew we had a world-class food research centre across the street? Anyhow, will be taking Cuilinology - an international course sponsered by the Professional Research Chefs Association. Its a food science course for chefs!! What fun! It is three days - April 2-4. They also have cheese making courses and breads, too. I think I might take them all........

The secret to Kotopoulo psito lemonata and Imam bayaldi

The secret to lemon potatoes is.... chicken stock. Potatoes, olive oil, lemon juice, herbs, and chicken stock. And plenty of it. The resulting potatoes were moist, flavoured through, and perfect in every way. The chicken is incredibly tender, too, when you do this.






The secret to Imam bayaldi is....don't make too many. People are afraid of eggplant, even Greeks! I loved it, but no one else touched them, and now I have a good 1/2 dozen in the fridge, two days later.




The secret to happiness is....stop inviting people over and working like a Spartan! No, the real secret is to stimulate the economy by hiring someone to clean your house for you. Had I understood what my legacy, as a female, was to be....hell, I didn't even have a choice. But let it be known that NONE of the great thinkers, the great leaders, the great artists, were shackled by the quotidien, herculean effort of domestic chore.

I really never had a chance.

Girls, Artemis, Anemone, if you're reading this - rage rage against your fate.

Sunday brunch

This was taken on Saturday after a heady, steam afternoon of non stop cooking. Why does this happen every weekend?
I was trying to sort everthing out for Sunday, but it quickly overwhelmed: Pain au levain, chocolate beet cake, shepherd's pie, carrot cashew loaf, cheese bread.

Anyhow. That is in the past. This is what it looked like on Sunday at lunch.



Has anyone out there learned how to better manipulate photos on this thing? I feel I have very little artistic control. The pain au levain turned out well....a series of three days and multiple feeds of the dough, not the starter. I wished I'd photographed the seed, but I only have two photos of feedings, and the finished product (upper right in group photo)...



After one feeding....




After two feedings....

These definitely weren't worth posting. I am to be much more selective in the future, and use only the large photos.

The brunch went well.. the Pryces and the Baldwin/Seretti's. The girls played upstairs shrieking, Artemis orbited between the 'girlies' in the attic and the adults downstairs. And Evan slept through the whole event on my bed. We tried to convince N and J to keep their house and rent it. Nadia was thoughtful but noncommittal.

Spent 3 #$%^#@$%#@%$!^%@!^&*@%&^*#@ hours in the salon on Saturday. Please, there has got to be a better way!! I don't think I can handle it yet can't handle my own heavy-handed attempts at home hair colour. What is the solution to this? Does everyone LOATHE the salon experience as I do?

Feeling very restless -its March but fully winter still. Went on a walk through the forest at Homewood and sank up to my knees in snow.

The beet cake in the photo was very good...and it had 3 cups of pureed beets in it...only 1/2 c oil and 1 c. sugar, but had I more time I could whittle that out.

I think Im being too ambitious here. I can't possibly chronicle everything I cook. I must be more selective.