One of the most traditional recipes of Greek cuisine: Fasolada (bean soup)

Fasolada is considered Greece’s national dish and is definitely one of the most traditional recipes of Greek cuisine. Every Greek family eats this dish at least once per month, especially during winter.

Serves: 6 Preparation time: 10 mins Cooking time:1.20 mins Ready in: 1.30 mins
INGREDIENTS
500 g beans
1 large onion, chopped
1 leek, chopped
2-3 carrots, sliced into small round pieces
1-2 tablespoon of tomato paste
½ cup chopped celery + some more for serving
½ red pepper
1 red chili pepper
1 cup of olive oil
salt, freshly ground pepper
PREPARATION METHOD
Step 1
Place the beans in a saucepan with plenty of cold water to cover them. Bring to the boil, turn the heat down to medium and parboil for 30-35 minutes, until slightly tender. Drain in colander and set aside.
Step 2
Fill the saucepan with water up to the middle. Boil the beans with the onion and leek until they are soften and then add the carrots.
Step 3
Add the parboiled beans and boil. Then add tomato paste, celery, red pepper, salt, pepper, chili pepper and continue cooking for about 15 minutes more or until the soup becomes thick and creamy soup.
Step 4
Serve this traditional Greek bean soup (fasolada) while still steaming hot with feta cheese and bread.
 Source: www.olivemagazine.gr

Save Greek nature! By WWF Greece.

Do you have a soft spot in your heart for Greece? If the answer is "yes", this probably has a lot to do with the magic of Greek nature! But what will Greece look like if it loses the most precious pieces of its natural heritage?

The campaign is organized by WWF Greece and invites people to participate to help WWC to fight for Greece’s future, Greek nature.

For more information, click here.

 

Greece ‘All Over’ Finland with ‘Ellada Pantou’ Fest

The 1st “Ellada Pantou” Festival, to take place in Helsinki, Finland, on October 23-24, aims to bring together diaspora Greeks through cooperative initiatives in efforts to better promote the country and its products abroad.
Held under the auspices of the culture ministry, the Embassy of Greece in Finland, and the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad, the “Ellada Pantou” (which translates into “Greece All Over”) festival will further enhance ties between the two countries, promote Greek products, services and culture, and pave the way for social entrepreneurship initiatives and collaborative projects in a social economy. In this direction, a workshop has been organized for October 23 at the European Commission’s Eurooppasali.
Parallel events include an art exhibit, a networking event for Greek food and trade professionals, a sampling event featuring Greek food and products, as well as a workshop focusing on the promotion of Greece as a tourist destination.
On October 24, Helsinki’s “Kaisaniemi” restaurant will host a song and dance event as part of celebrations for the 35-year anniversary of the Federation of Finnish-Greek Societies.
The 1st “Ellada Pantou” Festival will be aired live on public broadcaster ERT3 on the “Diaspora” program.
(source:gtp)

Photo of the day: Yes! the weather is wonderful, time for swim...

October.. at Plakias beach!

New Review on Tripadvisor: “Merveilleux souvenirs ...” 5 of 5 stars

Plakias is a very nice village in the southwest of Crete. Nearby, you can discover wonderful coves with fabulous underwater. Plakias Suites is located in the far east of the opposite station to a beautiful beach. Eleni & Giorge do everything to make the stay as pleasant as possible. Rentals are pleasant and we enjoyed the many services (free chairs and umbrellas on the beach, daily cleaning of the apartment, provision of towels, and the specialties offered on arrival). Rarely, we experienced a stay as perfect. These holidays leave us a lasting memory. Thank you Eleni and Giorge.

(see here: http://bit.ly/1Z4WK4Q)

Plakiassuites: Ranked #1 of 46 Speciality Lodging in Plakias 88 Reviews

Certificate of Excellence

Greek Tourism. An eternal journey: Awards for the new film of the Greek tourism

"Greek Tourism. An eternal journey" is the new film of the Greek Tourism Organization that has already won three awards in international touristic festivals.

The Greek video, produced by the Greek Tourism Organization and directed by Antonis Theocharis Kioukas, participated recently at the International Festival of Tourism and Ecological films SILAFEST 2015, held in Veliko Gradište, Servia, where it won the “Blue Danube” award for the best cultural tourism film.

The video has also won the first price at the “Country” category at the Festival of Berlin in the international tourism exhibition ITB, and also was the main winner at the “US International Fim and Video Festival”.

Enjoy...

Tourism sector group: 2015 will be record-breaking year for Greece

The Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) announced that 2015 expected to witness the arrivals of roughly 26 million tourists and related tourism revenue worth more than 14.5 billion euros, both record-breaking figures.
If the numbers prove true, it would mean that the Greek tourism sector persevered in the face of continued political instability in the country, ominous capital controls and de facto “open borders” in the eastern Aegean for refugees and undocumented migrants sailing over from Turkey.
International tourist arrivals at the country’s main airports increased 4.6 percent compared to the corresponding period of 2014, exceeding three million.
According to SETE’s figures, in the first eight months of the year tourist arrivals increased 6.3 percent to 11.7 million.