There are definitely some odd (to those on the outside) rituals that have developed throughout the world. There's one ritual in Galaxidi, Greece that really takes the cake, or perhaps could make the cake.
In that Greek town, to celebrate the end of Carnival and the beginning of Lent, the citizens get together for a giant flour fight. According to Spiegel, the villagers go through roughly 3000 pounds of flour, and each one dyes his or her lot. The historic buildings are all covered in tarps, and by the end of the day the town is "covered in sticky, brightly colored flour." Goggles, windbreakers, and face masks are all popular apparel choices, and a lot of people take a dip in the ocean afterwards to clean off a bit before an evening of tavern-hopping.
This actually sounds like a lot of fun. I wouldn't be up for running with the bulls, but I would definitely throw some flour around. The tradition started at the beginning of the 19th century, but no one is really sure why except it had something to do with rebelling against the Turks (who were in charge at the time). Whatever the reason, this is my kind of party. What are some odd community traditions that you know about?
You're on vacation in Greece when your stomach gives a sudden lurch and you start to suspect that the grilled lamb you ate the night before might not have been as squeaky clean as you thought (this is not a scenario I've ever found myself in, but hey, it could happen). Instead of running out to a pharmacy for the local equivalent of Pepto-Bismol, head to the local cheese shop for a slab of raw milk feta.
According to Panagiotis Chanos, a researcher from the University of Lincoln, they've been able "to isolate lactic acid bacteria found in raw sheep milk from small farms in Macedonia, northern Greece. Several of these friendly bacteria naturally produce antibiotics that killed off dangerous food-poisoning bacteria like Listeria."
They are hoping to take this research and leverage it into new ways to fight Listeria, as it has been known to cause death in populations who have weakened immune systems.
Health magazine has picked the five healthiest foods that you can get from five different countries. The list isn't complete, of course (I'm not even sure if these are the healthiest foods in the world), but it's a quick guide to the healthy foods that a few different countries have given us.
Spain has given us olive oil, Japan soy, Greece has given us yogurt, and lentils come from India. I've never had kimchi, from Korea, but that's on the list too. You can get recipes for each food at the link above as well.
So readers, what about the United States? What healthy foods have we contributed to the world? And no, Ring Dings don't count.
I haven't seen too many Greek foods with bananas, but apparently, 2,000 tons of South American bananas made their way to Volos, Greece. Then they were dumped into a landfill.
The bananas were actually on their way from Ecuador to Turkey (wait, so are there bananas in Turkish cuisine?), but had become rotten after the refrigeration unit on the ship broke down. The ship docked in Volos. The local mayoral council decided to dump the cargo, but nearby residents have begun protesting, saying that it will harm the local environment.
They could have saved themselves all that trouble if they had just caught the bananas a little earlier in an over-ripe stage and made banana bread. Duh.
When Claudia Roden's Book of Middle Eastern Food was first published more than 30 years ago, it set a standard for Middle Eastern cuisine in the US. The foods of Morocco, Turkey and most Arabian countries were almost entirely unknown. As the tastes of American chefs grew to love and crave new flavors, Roden updated her book into The New Book of Middle Eastern Food. This volume contains most of the recipes set forth in the original, as well as many new ones. The recipes are divided by type and main ingredient, so there are chapters dedicated to soups, yogurt, meat dishes and vegetables, though there is a lot of crossover between the sections as some ingredients, like yogurt, are widely used. Roden's presentation of the material is very interesting, as she takes the time to explain a lot of the origins of dishes and ingredients and the lore that surrounds them in the Middle Eastern cultures she describes.
Whether you spell it baklava or baklawa, the layered dessert of sweetened layers of phyllo dough and nuts is nothing short of delicious. I've always been curious to know the the honey-laden treat's origins, especially since I've eaten it in Greek, Israeli and Turkish spots. But as with most delicacies, I'd rather celebrate it in all its diverse forms than stick to one type.
It seems that Turks and Cypriot Greeks take the pastry a tad more seriously, I read recently in Ya Libnan,a Lebanese newspaper. Turkish producers of the treat take issue with the Greeks' claim to have created it. There was even a protest in Istanbul earlier this week complete with banners reading, "Baklava is Turkish, we will not allow the Greek Cypriots to feed it to the world."
Californians are crazy for Spanish wines, especially since they are a good value; but SIV's Wine of the Week is a 2003 Berra Sassisto Langhe from Piedmont. It's "warm and earthy," and for $22, makes me warm and earthy, too.
There's a pretty good debate going on today at the blog Apartment
Therapy: The Kitchen about the best brand of olive oil. One of my favorite olive oils is Primo Olio, which is produced by
Montecastelli Farm, an olive oil farm in Tuscany. The oil is used in many New York restaurants, but I was lucky enough
to sample a batch of the oil when I was visiting Italy two years ago. It had a grassy, peppery taste, which I now
prefer to the taste of the more thick and buttery oils. For everyday cooking, I am happy with the Trader Joe's oil
options that come from both Spain and Italy. Some, like at least one poster at The Kitchen, prefer olive oils
from Greece.
Back when I roasted cauliflower with
curry, I thought that Indian raita, a minty cucumber yogurt sauce, would have been a nice accompaniment.
Raita is made by wrapping 1 seeded, grated cucumber in cheesecloth and squeezing out all
the moisture. In a bowl, whisk together 1c. whole milk yogurt, 1/2 tsp. cumin, a
pinch of cayenne. Add the cucumber, as well as 2-3 Tbsp. finely grated carrots, and
1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro or mint.
Raita is very similar to Greek tzatziki which is
yogurt, cucumber, lemon juice, and a lot of minced garlic. I have to say that even though the raita
sounds like it matches better with a roasted curried cauliflower, I'd rather have the garlicky tzatziki.
I don’t know why I find news about cheese so amusing…
Danish authorities recently intercepted a shipment of supposedly-Greek feta cheese traveling from Greece to Denmark. Greece has recently been trying to restrict the use of the term feta to only Greek products. The discovery of this Bulgarian cheese, being passed off for export as Greek feta, serves as a setback to those seeking to confine the use of the name. The EU recently ruled against the Danish dairy industry, saying that Greece should have the exclusive rights to the name feta.
“I’m very happy that the Greeks were caught in the act, said Dairy Board director Hans Bender, “bogus shipments are common knowledge.”
Health magazine has picked 
I haven't seen too many Greek foods with bananas, but apparently, 2,000 tons of South American bananas made their way to Volos, Greece. Then they were 
Whether you spell it 
Californians are 
There's a pretty good debate going on today at the blog 
Back when 
I don’t know why I find news about cheese so amusing…
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