Closing my eyes a little, I bring to mind the scents from mom’s kitchen, the chicken with the potatoes in the oven, my grandmother’s, the spaghetti with “Syglino” and eggs, aunt Marika in the village kneaded bread, even from the neighbor Aleka in Athens, her pizza and brioche. I still remember the aroma of fresh tomato and pepper in the salad (I cut the peppers, smelled them, and ate them directly from the garden), the scent of the stuffed with fresh vegetables, the aroma of the sauce with the Italian tomatoes and the baby eggplant sweet of my mom are some of the characteristics of those years. All these smells and flavors are full of images and emotions, which make me feel prosperous and blessed.
Starting from the aunt in the village, who, thanks to her, I tasted and met authentic ingredients. Puffy egg directly from the hen, hot goat milk straight from the milking, fresh watermelon, which we crushed in the field and ate only the heart, french fries in the fire of the fireplace, fried egg in the fresh butter that she had made herself. This last one was put on us in a deep dish. She smelled out on the street with her kneaded bread, which she prepared in the particular tub and baked in the fireplace. We ate the eggs and thought we were eating at God’s table. What fats and calories?
At the same time, I was blessed to live half the year in a country, seaside estate, where we cultivated all the fruit and vegetables of the summer. We had a two-storey lemon tree and many beautiful flowers in all colors. Any visitor who came left with a crate of tomatoes and a second one that contained gherkins, zucchini, eggplants, aromatics, etc.
All these smells and flavors have been imprinted in my memory and bring me back to those wonderful years and are a valuable dowry. I suggest you dream a little bit in those years. And if you didn’t have a garden, you surely had someone of your own, who made the best pastitsio, meatballs or french fries, as simple as that. Some people “have charisma” and make everything delicious. So it was my aunt and grandmother, but my mom didn’t return either. She surpassed her mother and perfected the spinach pie that has brought her to the upper level, in the handmade phyllo, in the aromatics, in everything. She was preparing us unforgettable parties with handmade goodies for kids and adults, which impressed the guests and children.
With this mental journey, I filled my mind with beauty, and with the revival of aromas and images, I did not feel the need to eat something but to experience something so beautiful again. My feeling and need have gone from my stomach and has filled my whole being with love, warmth, tenderness, authenticity, and beauty. I have offered myself the “meal” I needed, so physical hunger has become a spiritual longing.
Observe what happens to the body when nourishing your mind and soul.
