Glimpses of the Greek Islands

Aeneas said to Achilles "A man's tongue is a glib and twisty thing...plenty of words there are, all kinds at its command--with all the room in the world for talk to range and stray."











Friends always Liven and Spice up your life. On our holiday in Turkey we met an amazing couple who wanted to show us around, we drove up about 300 km from Didim where we were staying, to a small village on a hill called Syringe. We arrived and saw the most beautiful landscaping, its beauty breathtaking!

Syringe is known for its vineyards and olive oil trees, the olive oil is preciously handmade. We parked the car and walked across the city which had open thatched shops on both sides of the narrow curved road, the beauty became engraved in the mind as we drove back to our resting place in Didim.

our place in Didim is a small holiday resort along the Aegean  coast about 150 km from Izmer and about 100 km from Bodrum. Didim is known for its sandy beaches and the Apollo temple. Those of you who have seen the movie Troy would remember the temple that Prince Hector tried to save but was destroyed by the Greeks in search of the famous Helen of Troy,  they told us that the entire film was shot just about 80 kms from Didim!

There were these Greek islands that are visible from Didim called Kos Patmos and Samos, all of which are within a radius of 30 miles and easily reached in 60-90 minutes. What about visiting Patmos? I asked the couple, even though this couple did not speak any English and we knew no Turkish, we understood each other perfectly ... amazing! they said that they were too tired for another trip, that we can take it up next time.

We saw the street vendors selling local food and stopped at once, it reminding me of the Dhabas' back home in India. We tried their famous Greek 'Dolmas' which is a popular dish and means stuffed rolls, and the famous Turkish tea 'CAY' prepared in a special way, by brewing it over boiling water with a pot called 'Caydanlik' and served in delicate, tullip shape small clear glasses (no handle) to show it's deep red color and to drink it hot as possible.We saw pretty Turkish women dressed in thier traditional dresses who were squatting down and makin fresh hand made bread on 'Bhattis' an open fire with very large iron griddles or tavas, they also had clay ovens in which they had a type of bread called Ekmek, almost like a French 'Baguette' only thicker. 

Here is the recipie of the Greek bread Ekmuk which  Subassh my Turkish friend gave me (not tried)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups bread flour, divided
3/4 cup water, divided
5 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
6 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons salt

Method
To make the starter: Place 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water in a coverable bowl; stir well. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight. The next day, add 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water to the bowl. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight. On the third day, add 1/2 cup flour and 1/4 cup water to the bowl. Cover and let sit at room temperature overnight.
To make the dough: In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
Break the starter into small pieces and add it to the yeast mixture. Stir in 4 cups of flour and the salt. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle a little flour over the dough and then cover it with a dry cloth. Let it raise until double in size.
Put the dough back onto a lightly floured work surface and punch out the air. Divide the dough in half and knead each piece for 2 to 3 minutes. Shape each piece into a tight oval loaf. Sprinkle two sheet pans with corn meal. Roll and stretch two loaf until they are 15x12 inch ovals. Dust the tops of the loaves with flour. Cover with a dry cloth and let raise in a warm place until doubled in size. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Mist with water 3 times in the first 15 minutes. Loaves are done when their bottoms sound hollow when tapped. Let cool on wire racks before serving.

Happy Baking !!