A Greek God meets Bill Murray

22

Jul

After my trip to Columbian soil tonight I wade the Mediterranean and head to the storied land of Greece. Wandering Mt. Olympus with Zeus Dionysus Aphrodite and Demeter I drink wine throw thunderbolts make love and eat the fresh harvest. As the laughter grows the light dims and the wine jugs empty Zeus is dragged away by a furious Hera Dionysus lays snoring passed out on the couch and Aphrodite has wandered to her bedroom with a gaggle of wide eyed men (and/or women). Strong DemeterGoddess of the Harvest takes my hand and leads me to the kitchen table. As we sit on high white stools her soft voice bounces off the high ceiling regaling me with stories of the soil wheat and vegetation. She whispers of her land the bountiful country of fresh healthy flavors cancient-pressed olive oil warm pita crumbled feta juicy lamb and grilled souvlaki. The Aegean sea blows a cool breeze like her whispers grow softer my head grows fuzzier and suddenly&& Im far from Mt. Olympus in my kitchen with Clean Eating magazine July/August 2009 flipped open to a sumptuous recipe of Greek Salad with Baked Pita.

At any restaurant if there is selection of caesar home or greek salad I often select greek. Kalamata olives greek dressing lettuce and onions leave a sharp delicious tang in my mouth and a thirst for more. I gather my ingredients one by one- entire wheat pita cucumber tomato onion chickpeas parsly olive oil lemon feta and paprika. Wait I read in term of the list again entire wheat pita cucumber tomato.. except where is the lettuce? The dressing? The olives? I flip the page suspiciously except instead of more ingredients Im greeted with a photo of a stacked turcrucial sandwich. I turn back to the previous page and grit my teeth. My excitement for greek salad waning I set the oven to pre-heat. A whole wheat pita is slices into four then each slice is cut into long triangles disentangled from its matching side and placed evenly on a baking sheet. Once the oven hits 350 degrees I slide the baking sheet inside its warm confines and eat a snap of pita that didnt quite make it. Next its time to slice chop de-seed and rinse. Cucumber primarily is cut in half then chopped in pieces. My spoon dissects the tomato removing the watery seeded inside then cut into sections. Red Onion and parsley are sliced and diced and a can of chickpeas is rinsed and drained. Note: Chickpeas are also called garbanzo beans. This I study behind scouring the grocery stores vegetable beans canned peas and lentil sections. Grrr..

Ding! Five minutes pass and its time to flip the pitas. I creak open the oven door slide my pot hancienter under the rack then employ/utilize my fingers to spin each pita triangle unto its back. Oven door shuts again and five more minutes on the clock. I return to my sparkling vegetables and slide them into a bowl. I achieve inside with my fingers and toss the sharp cucumber clever tomatoes and wet beans. Tick tock and five minutes later its time to remove my warm pita bread from the confines of the oven. I glide in term of once more flip the door quickly open and.. COUGH COUGH!! Smoke seeps into the kitchen like I seem down onto the dark brown burnt shards of bread. In academy you study to follow directions: A+B=C. Follow the rules and youll master the skill. But tonight I followed the direction word by word and am left only with hard chunks of bread. Cooking lesson: time and temperature are not the same kitchen to kitchen. Especially if you live in an ancient 19502s apartment structure with retro yellow tile in the kitchen and pink tile in the bath check your food in the oven frequently your timer is not a God. Pita into the trash can.