At the end of summer 2008, I left the
Greek country roads of my family's village behind.
Thinking about it, I already miss the ancient-styled homes, the fresh scent of the ocean coming off the
harbour, strolling through the town's square full of daydreams and, of course, the food.
The kitchen always opens up a floodgate of memories for me. Before the trip, some of my fondest times are of
me as a young girl, being put to help as someone's culinary assistant.
Growing up, my love affair with food began at an early age. In my early twenties, the time came for me to
return to my roots. While there, I got to learn about family, history and recipes that today still deeply
influence my taste buds.
In this way, a whole food tourism industry is booming. With choices like gourmet cooking classes in Tuscany
and tours of the best wineries in France, who wouldn't dare to dream?
More significantly, being raised in a cultural mosaic such as Canada has taught me food choices do not come
only from exposure to trying new ethnic dishes at home, but also by travel.
From the way it's prepared to those we share it with, I believe every dish has its story.
During the last week of my visit to Greece, a particularly hectic memory stands out. It was my cousin's
wedding and women from both families crammed our house in order to prepare a traditional pastry to hand out
during the wedding celebration.
Like their name suggests, deiples come from the sentiment of deep love. They are meant to be shared during
numerous happy occasions, including weddings, baptisms and birthdays.
It was the single moment I remember being nervous while standing behind a stove. The ladies formed an
assembly line around our cramped counter. Everything had to be timed to perfection. Making deiples
(pronounced “deepless”), as they're called, was an elaborate task.
Starting at one corner, I rolled out dough while another cousin fried the dough. Once the pieces hardened, it
was another lady's job to dip the batter in beautiful, golden honey. At the last second, ground cinnamon and
caster sugar are sprinkled on top. This process was repeated until we had enough pastries to feed more than
200 guests.
The results were worth the hard work and whenever I enjoy this treat today, I am reminded of that day and how
I got to make this sweet all because two people fell in love.•
Images Copyrighted by Historylink101.com & found at Greek Picture
Gallery
