1. Greek coffee made with a briki (small, tapered pot) with thick kaimaki (foam) is a morning ritual I cherish. Having a small amount of strong coffee is good for the heart and for strong endothelial function according to a study featured in Diane Kochilasʻ book, Ikaria: Lessons on Food, Life, and Longevity from the Greek Island Where People Forget to Die. The book was inspired by the famous Blue Zones studies on pockets of high populations of centenarians in particular places. What I love about this ritual is that it calls me out of the morning hustle to work, shifting me out of my usual experience of time. Our perception of time is an important aspect of health and well-being. In Ikaria, it is said that watches are not necessary, meaning it is normalized to follow oneʻs own intrinsic sense of time and this is associated with longevity. Greek coffee cannot be made by “setting and forgetting,” the benefit of a coffee maker, instant coffee or French press. Boiling coffee to create a nice kaimaki requires a careful eye on the briki, with a split second between beautiful coffee and a burnt coffee mess. Often I find a podcast (lately, Great Greeks is a favorite, featuring interviews with the Greek diaspora) and take care of morning dishes with one eye on the stove top next to me so I can catch it frothing to the top and pour it into my favorite cup, decorated with mati (evil eye). This slowing down amidst the morning rush makes space for spiritual practice and clarity before diving into the workday. Switching to Greek coffee also alleviated heartburn and indigestion symptoms that had developed due to stress. Greek coffee centers me and I no longer feel the need for multiple cups of coffee throughout the day to be productive at work.

Greek language was not passed down in my family from my grandfatherʻs generation. DuoLingo has been a great way to start reacquainting my ears and tongue with Hellenic sounds. 

1. Chickpeas with a good Greek olive oil! My grandad said, “Feed a hungry child chickpeas.” He taught me to eat garlic regularly, use fascomilo (sage) tincture before bed and eat Greek yogurt to manage my asthma. He also believed feta creates the feminine form. Every day on the stove he had boiled horta (forgaged greens) primarily dandelion greens which he ate with dinner but he also drank the water they were boiled in for his kidneys. 
2. A recipe I can share is for horta. In Hawaiʻi in springtime, dandelion is easy to find in the garden as well as pōpolo (Solanum americanum). In Greece there is a pōpolo plant cousin, styfno (Solanum nigrum) that is foraged for horta. The most important part of making horta is good plant identification skills and thorough washing. Although horta is a boiled green salad, because of the risk of rat lungworm I use a three wash method when foraging greens: rinse well then (1) 20 minutes water bath, (2) 20 minutes water bath with a pinch of salt and capful of white vinegar and (3) 20 minutes water bath. Always gather from a place you have enough of a relationship with to know it is free of pesticides and far from regular exposure to cars and concrete run off. Although my Grandad would pull dandelion out of the sidewalk in Washington DC where he lived and pop it directly into his mouth.

Growing up in Connecticut, cultural practices in my family came from my French side, especially eating salad at the end of a meal with all of the goodness of previous courses still on the plate. French food is another approach to the Mediterranean diet that is very healthy and from that foundation I have enjoyed learning about the Greek diet and reclaiming some of my grandadʻs favorite recipes such as avgolemono soup, which he preferred with tripe. I also enjoy keeping a sourdough starter to make fresh pita bread and making hummus, melitzanosalata and tzatziki.