...more Greek comfort food: Spanakorizo

Spanakorizo

One more Greek comfort foods to add to the list of cool weather meals.

2 c. medium grain (arborio) rice
6 c. water
3 chicken boullion cubes
1 chopped onion
2 minced cloves of garlic
1 package of frozen chopped spinach
2 TBL tomato paste
1/4 c. olive oil
plain yogurt

In a large pot, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil. Add the water and boullion cubes and bring to a boil. Add rice, tomato paste and frozen spinach. Simmer until all is done. You may need to add water now and then. The mixture is not soupy. To serve, spoon into a shallow bowl for each person and top with a large dollop (or two) of cold, plain yogurt. Yumola, y'all!

Cool Weather Dish

Lima-Pea-Potato Pot

In a large pot, brown one chopped onion and 1-2 minced cloves of garlic in some olive oil. Add one can (or fresh) chopped tomatoes, one can chicken broth (or 2 c. water + 2 chicken boullion cubes), one package frozen baby lima beans, and about 3-4 potatoes cut into 1-2 inch chunks. Bring to a boil and cook until the lima beans and potatoes are done. Add more water to adjust. Add one can of drained peas into the pot. Simmer for another 5-10 minutes. There you have it--one tummy-warming and satisfying meal. Serve with feta cheese on the side. Yikers!

The Domino Effect and the Berlin Wall

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEpDUp8rGSc

Lech Walesa pushed the first of the 7.5 ft. tall styrofoam dominoes that continued for over a mile. The last domino decorated with Chinese characters did not fall.

Read http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_Wall for more about the history of the Berlin wall.

Lahanodolmades or Lahanosarmades with Avgolemono

It's a cool and gray October day--perfect for some cabbage rolls with avgolemono sauce. The correct term for these lovely pillows of deliciousness in northern Greece is lahanosarmades, but in other parts of Greece, they're called lahanodolmades (lahano is cabbage in Greek).

Really easy to make:

1 large head of cabbage
1 pound of ground beef
1 grated onion
1/2 c. of arborio or medium grain rice
1 egg
1/2 c. fresh or 2 TBL dried parsley
1 TBL dried dill
salt/pepper

Core out a fairly large hole in the cabbage and place hole-side down in a large pot with about 2 inches of water. Boil 15-20 minutes. Then lift out, cool, and pull the leaves apart to cool further.

You WILL burn your fingers because who can wait? Place about 1-2 TBL of the meat/rice mixture at the base of each leaf and roll away from you. Place in a large pot even making two layers. Fill the pot with enough water and/or chicken broth to cover the rolls and above about 1-2 inches. Place a clean plate on top so they won't open up. Put a lid on and let them simmer for about 30-40 minutes.

Avgolemono: Beat 3 eggs and the juice of 2 lemons in a large bowl. When the sarmades are done, turn the pot a bit to ladle out the hot broth. As you make a sucking sound (yes, this is VERY important) with your mouth, ladle the hot broth into the egg mixture. Gather your children or friends around you to assist in making these sounds. Otherwise, the egg mixture will curdle. When the egg/lemon mixture is very hot, pour it back into the pot with the sarmades. Shake the pot to distribute well. Replace the lid and let the sarmades rest while you get out the bowls and set the table. (avgo=egg; lemono=lemon)

The Knoxville Writers' Guild Poetry Group is delighted to announce their first chapbook, Bleeding Hearts: A Sampling of Poems from the Poetry Workshop of the Knoxville Writers' Guild published by Tellico Books, owned by Guild member Bob Cumming.

Edited by Cathy Kodra and Scott Savage, this 72-page anthology contains 48 poems written by 16 Guild members of the poetry group within the Guild. The book is designed by Beto Cumming, also a Guild member.

Scott Savage writes in the Preface about the group: "And just as the alchemy of earth is plowing, weeding, and watering, ours is the alchemy of words--deleting, inserting, and arranging--until something grows as beautiful as a stem of red flowers."

The poets in Bleeding Hearts include: Cathy Kodra, Beto Cumming, Bob Cumming, Cat D-Arcy, Peggy Douglas, Judith Duvall, Ruth Faulkner Grubbs, Vickie M. Jordan, Austin Kodra, Phil Lowe, John C. Mannone, Jo Ann Pantanizopoulos, Scott Savage, Jenny Weisent, J.A. Wilkins, and Martha Davies Yarnell.

This anthology can be purchased from any of the published poets in Bleeding Hearts. It will also be available for purchase online from http://www.tellicobooks.com soon. Guild members: $10. Non-members: $12.