Monday Celebration

Fantaousakis, Public Affairs sauce or dressed with vinegar

• Boiled leafy greens, with olive oil and lemon. These are collectively labeled in Greek cuisine as “horta”

• Fried potatoes and olives as accompaniments

• “Taramosalata” is a dip traditionally made from “taramas”, the salted and cured roe of the cod or the carp, though blends based on other forms of fish roe have become more common. The roe is mixed with either bread crumbs or mashed potato and lemon juice, vinegar and olive oil.

It is usually eaten as a dip, with bread and/or raw vegetables. The color can vary from creamy beige to pink, depending on the type of roe used. Ready-made taramosalata is often colored bright pink due to the addition of food coloring. It is definitely worth a try for those who love dips.

• For a dessert, an oil-based semolina called “halva” is appropriate, as it contains no milk or eggs. Another popular option in Crete is “xerotigana”, a type of fried dough drenched in syrup and sprinkled with nuts.

Kite Flying

Kite flying on Clean Monday is a family tradition in Greece. Greek kites are different from the ones used in the United States. They are usually shaped like a hexagon and use a single kite string. In the past, a senior family member would teach the kids how to make their kite using bamboo reeds, newspapers and glue created with flour and water. They had to cut the bamboo reed with a paring knife without breaking it and without cutting it unevenly close to the knots. This enabled them to construct a light wooden frame, the tail of the kite and the paper body. If bamboos was not available, they would use wooden sticks. This has changed slightly over the years because kites are so inexpensive.

Sometimes the families will have a picnic on the spot after or during the kite flying process.