In My Kitchen

You know that feeling when you pick up a really, really good book to read  - and you just can't put it down? Whenever I log onto the fantastic and inspirational blog, Fig Jam and Lime Cordial I have a similar sensation! What's more, when I log on to read the monthly post,  "In My Kitchen" I not only get a sneak peek in Celia's kitchen, but also that of some of my very favourite bloggers, like Lizzy, creator of Bizzy Lizzy's Good Things (who celebrates her first anniversary - congrats Lizzy!!!) and the very lovely Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella - another two blogs that I find are hugely inspirational and addictive! 

So this month, I've decided to have a crack at sharing what is in my kitchen..... 

In my kitchen...

...there is my Nana's wedding service. 

I love to use these beautiful cream plates, with their hints of gold and deep red whenever I can, but particularly on special occasions. 

As a little girl, when I was being babysat at Nana's house she would often tell me the story of how she carefully picked out her wedding service in the harsh, rationed conditions of 1942 wartime Sydney. Nana adored her beautiful wedding service and I think whenever she used the setting, it would take her right back to the days leading up to her wedding in 1942 - a brief interlude between my grandfather's postings with the Australian Army in the Middle East  and then the Pacific. While there is no doubt that they were very, very happy memories, Nana must have also remembered a slight sadness too, as after a 2 day honeymoon, my Grandfather was sent back to war and Nana did not get to see her new husband for nearly 2 years, when he was finally given a few days leave from the war in the Pacific. 

Clearly, my Nana had good taste because my maternal grandmother also had exactly the same wedding service! On the family occasions where both my grandmothers caught up, I can often remember them sharing a little joke about their excellent taste in dinner services! They also shared a great love of the tunes of Bing Crosby - so whenever I am preparing a family dinner to be served on these treasured plates, I love to turn Bing up nice and loud and toast my two Nanas and their good taste.... 

In my kitchen....

there hangs on the wall the Camargue Cross, sometimes known as the Cross of the Cowherds. 

On our honeymoon, Mr K and I spent a number of days in the Camargue, a seaside area in the South of France, which is know for its wild and unspoilt beauty. During our stay, we  joined the crowds participating in the annual Gypsy festival. During the Festival, Gypsies from throughout Europe travel to the church of Saintes Maries de la Mer to join with the rugged horseman of the Camargue, to honour the legend of Sarah the Kali,  a woman who is said to have helped the three Mary's related to Christ make their pilgrimage across the Mediterranean. It is really the most amazing festival, filled with the incredible sounds of traditional Gypsy music - and food! The festival reaches its climax as the crowds and horsemen lead statues of the Mary's out into the sea. A truly amazing sight. 

In terms of the cross itself, it is comprised of three emblems - an anchor, a cross, and a heart. These symbols are said to represent the virtues of hope, faith, and charity. Also, the shape of the upper cross is said to represent the trident-shaped tool used by the horsemen of the region, while the anchor is also representative of the fishermen of the region. While we are a world away from cowherds - we do have a few fishermen around our part of town, and there is certainly a lot of fish cooked in our little Greek kitchen -  and the symbol itself was a nice one, we think, for starting off married life.....

In my kitchen...

there is also, from the Camargue, jars of amazing fleur de sel. Another discovery from our honeymoon, Mr K and I could not get over the flavour of this salt - and the transformation it has on such simple foods, like a quartered summer tomato or a boiled egg!! 

Fleur De Sel de Camargue is hand raked and harvested, with only the premium, top layer of the salt bed being used. The back-breaking process was featured late last year on an episode of Global Village (screened by the SBS channel in Australia). After seeing this documentary, I now certainly savour every single flake, knowing how much love, care and effort is taken to create this fantastic product. 

Our love for this salt certainly knows no bounds. When the jar starts getting low - fights have been known to break out in our kitchen. So on our recent trip to France, while we did not quite make it back to the Camargue, we certainly made it to the OMG, OMG floor (that would be the food floor) of Galleries Lafayette in Paris, which of course stocked this fantastic product.  Knowing the utter pain that it is of running out of this amazing salt, we filled up our little baskets with jar after jar - the cardboard, corked topped jars, the larger plastic jars with the screw top lids... costing only around 3 - 5 euros a container (depending on the side). As we walked through customs back in Australia, I'm sure Mr K and I sounded like some kind of tap dancing, mariachi band - the shake, shake, shake of the jars of salt could be heard a mile away... 

In my kitchen....

there is always, whatever the season, a huge, huge bowl of lemons. As the classic saying goes, "lemons and cinnamon make it Greek".... or the other, less PC saying, " a (sic Greek) meal without lemon is like a woman without high heels...". While I'm not so sure about the old school high heels quote, I am certainly sure about how often we use lemons in Greek cooking - from marinating meats, to squeezing over fish or freshly grilled octopus to adding the tang to the taramasalata. Running out of lemons in our kitchen is nearly, if not more disastrous as running out of the precious fleur de sel.....And what's more, with working up a body of paintings to place in a shared exhibition later this year - a bowl of lemons provides great drawing practice - and daily still life inspiration! 

In my kitchen...

there are traditional Greek folk puppets, usually found on the fridge. The gentleman on the right is known as Karagiozis, a poor Greek, his clothes are always ragged and mended with patches, and his feet are always bare. Karagiozis is a trickster and the things he loves most in life are eating and sleeping. While Karagoiozis often comes in different guises (fisherman, scholar, poet...etc), Mr K and I liked the idea of him presiding over our kitchen as a chef. On the left is Karagiozis wife, Aglaia. By all accounts, she is a bit of a nagger. Mr K and I bought these little wooden puppets on our last trip to Greece - and each time we go back, we try to add to our collection. While this folk tradition is new to me, it is well known to Mr K - and is like having a little bit of his childhood in our kitchen....

I hope you enjoyed a sneak peek into my kitchen! I'd like to say a huge thanks to Celia for coming up with this great concept and for hosting!!!! I look forward to sharing more with you next month...