Mediterranean Cooking: Beetroot leaves, artichoke and celeriac salad

By: Elias Mamalakis | 12.01.2018 |

Make this nutritious salad, add some fresh cheese if you like and enjoy it as a light dinner along with crusty bread.

Serves 4 Prep. Time: 15′ Cooks in: 10′ Ready in: 25′

Ingredients
200 g beetroot leaves, washed, dry, chopped
4 artichoke hearts, sliced
1 medium celeriac, peeled, diced

For the dressing
1 tbsp grape molasses
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 tbsp fresh pomegranate juice
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
salt, black pepper

Method

Step 1
Bring 500 ml water in a small pan to a boil. Add 1 tsp salt and boil artichoke and celeriac for 7-10′. Drain and dry.

Step 2
Toss all salad ingredients in a bowl and arrange on a serving platter.

Step 3
Prepare the dressing by whisking all ingredients with salt and pepper. Drizzle salad and serve.

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GfK Study: Greece Among World’s Top 5 for Tourism Reputation

Greece is ranked fifth among the top five countries in terms of global perception for tourism in the latest Anholt-GfK Nation Brands IndexSM (NBISM) study, after Italy, France, the UK, and Spain.

According to the same study – which measures 50 countries as perceived in terms of culture, governance, people, exports, tourism, and immigration-investment – France has jumped to second place for the first time since 2009, the UK is third, Japan entered the top five for the first time since 2011 with the US dropping significantly in global perception.

Meanwhile, despite the perception of Germany improving across all six categories with higher ratings for its culture (+1.07), governance (+1.28), and people (+1.34), it still hasn’t made it into the top five countries for tourism. Germany’s overall score was boosted by improved perceptions among Egyptians (+5.92), Russians (+2.26), Chinese (+2.17) and Italians (+2.06).


Global perception of the UK has also improved after it lost ground following the Brexit vote with its overall index score back to 2015 levels marking improvement across all six categories. The UK’s largest gains were for governance and people.

“The Nation Brands Index allows our clients to understand where – and why – their nation stands in terms of their current image, momentum and potential,” said Vadim Volos, GfK’s senior VP of public affairs and consulting, adding that “Changing global perception of a national brand is challenging and slow – but countries can influence biased or outdated perceptions by understanding the negative views and actively communicating actions and changes that address those.”
(Source: Gtp)

Ouzo Appetizers: a Flavourful Ritual

 Cheers, or as we say in Greek “Ya mas!”

Ouzo is Greece’s national spirit, a strong anise flavoured drink, reminiscent of Greek summer.

Greeks drink it along with good friends, either straight or watered down, with plenty of ice and always accompanied by delicious appetizers, called ‘meze’ in Greek.

The strong flavour of the spirit actually ‘begs’ for a spicy, salty, or even sourish ‘meze’, usually served on little plates decorating the table’s surface right before you start eating and drinking. 

Ouzo is served bulk or in a carafe, in tall spindly glasses.

With its stimulating and strong anise aroma it promises to tickle your taste buds. Greeks are very fond of gathering with friends around a table eating, drinking, laughing and toasting each other.

Ouzo simply completes the picture and helps out in getting the spirits higher and higher. Traditionally restaurants will bring you another meze every time you order a new carafe of ouzo.

First servings usually consist of olives, cured sardines, some cheese, pickles or cold sliced meats pinned with toothpicks and at every round of ouzo the appetisers differ.

Of course the variety of the meze may vary from one location to the other and from one season to the next.
Flavours will differ between a mountainous village in winter and the ones you’ll taste in a seaside village in summer.

 Ouzo drink is much better when it is accompanied by the little plates filled with delicious tidbits!

Taste the seafood plates such as octopus (which are first hanged in the sun and then grilled on the barbeque), saganaki shrimps (tomato sauce, cheese and shrimps cooked in a pan,) steamed mussels, marinated anchovies with parsley and garlic, fried calamari (squid) and a variety of shellfish served with lemon juice.

Next on the menu is anything that is cured: sardines, mackerel, sliced meats (such as salamaki or pastourmas,) strong cheese (such as ladotyri, kefalotyri and grilled feta with tomato and hot pepper.) This ‘drinking-spree’ is without a doubt incomplete if you don’t accompany it with tzatziki (a creamy appetiser made with yogurt, cucumber and garlic), eggplant salad or tyrokafteri (creamed feta cheese with kerato spicy peppers.)

If you can’t decide which one of all you want you can order a variety of the above mentioned ‘mezes’ and savour a little bit of everything!
(source: Visit Greece)

Short film from Greece wins at the 2017 World Tourism Organisation Awards (VIDEO)

A wonderful short film about Greece in all four seasons won the top prize in the European category of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation’s (UNWTO) international video competition. 

The film was submitted by the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO) and was directed by Andonis Theocharis Kioukas.

With visitor numbers to Greece at an all time high, the video and award is a timely reminder that Greece is at the forefront of tourism and cultural experiences in Europe.

Watch the award winning film here:

Greek Food Products Take Center Stage at Anuga Fair

Over 260 Greek food product companies participated in this year’s Anuga food fair held last week in Cologne, Germany, where the world’s finest delicacies went on show.

The Greek companies participated in the exhibition under the umbrella of Enterprise Greece with the aim to expand into new markets and boost their exports.

The event was attended by some 7,500 food and beverage ventures from 110 countries featuring the largest range of gourmet and delicatessen products on the market.

Under the motto “Invest in Taste”, companies, SMEs and cooperatives offering everything, from Greek olive oil and honey to herbs, cheese and raisins met with international buyers with the aim to forge alliances and strategic partnerships.


According to Enterprise Greece CEO Elias Athanasiou, the Anuga meetings paved the way for Greek products – to be branded under a new 35 million euro branding program – to enter markets outside the EU via the catering industry, specialty stores, restaurants and special menus.
The next Anuga fair will be held on October 5, 2019 in Cologne.
(source:gtp)