Are you confused by all the apocalyptic talk about the turn of the millennium? How should a sensible person prepare to feed their family after 12 o'clock midnight, December 31st , 1999, while maintaining their sanity, not breaking the bank, and providing sound nutrition that pleases the palate.
In ancient times, the Greeks lived close to the land and sea, creating a cuisine that dealt with hot temperatures coupled with no refrigeration. Though Bulgarian society is rapidly modernizing, Bulgarians grew accustomed to food shortages and power-supply disruptions during almost fifty years of communist rule, surviving on a sophisticated cuisine that is intrinsically Y2K friendly.
Drawing from the ancient wisdom of the 4,000-year-old healthy Greek meze (``little nibbles'') tradition and the delicious, but relatively unknown Bulgarian table, here is a list of foods recommended to stock your Y2K cellar.
Olive oils--extra-virgin, garlic-scented
Other oils--sunflower and walnut
Mayonnaise
Olives--Kalamatas, Nafplions, Alphonsos, etc.
Vinegar--apple cider, red wine, Balsamic
Sea salt
Dried herbs--bay leaves, mints, rosemary, saffron, thyme, other
mints
Spices--assorted dried sweet and hot peppers, cinnamon, cloves,
cumin, peppercorns
Honey--any kind (Hymettus from Greece is excellent)
Flours--white, garbanzo, spelt, whole wheat
Bread substitutes--Rye vita and Lavosh
Sugars--white, organic Sucanat
Preserved fish--tuna, sardines, salmon
Preserved meats--dry cured sausages like loukanka, salamis, Spam
Canned feta cheese (Turkish)--2 lb. tins, found in ethnic stores
Canned beans--garbanzos
Sesame seeds and tahini paste
Canned/bottled foods--tomatoes, tomato paste, sweet red peppers,
turshiya (pickled vegetables), grape vine leaves, capers, sun-dried
tomatoes in olive oil, artichokes, potatoes, beans, lyutenitsa (spicy
red pepper paste), assorted fruit compotes
Flours--white, garbanzo, spelt, whole wheat
Sugars--white, organic Sucanat
Pickles--homemade or store bought
Sauerkraut--homemade or store bought
Dried fruits--apples, currants, raisins, dates, figs (strung with bay
leaves), apricots, prunes
Nuts and seeds--walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, peanuts, pumpkin
Braid of garlic
Bag of lemons
Bag of onions
Coffee--1 5-lb. can (or tea)
Dairy--canned evaporated milk or table cream (by Nestle from New
Zealand), dried milk
Sweets--chocolate (a few of your favorite) and rose-flavored lokum
(Turkish delight)
Wine--a few bottles of your favorite
Champagne--at least one bottle to toast the new millennium
Bottled water
Dried beans--lentils (green French), Great Northerns and other
white beans, garbanzos, favas White rice
Pasta
Yogurt
Mexico--corn meal (masa)
India--canned Alphonso mango puree
Scotland--Steel-cut oats (Scottish pinhead oatmeal)
Korea--Kimchi (spicy pickled cabbage)
Mother Linda's Bulgarian Rhapsody: The Best of Balkan
Cuisine, Linda Joyce Forristal, Sunrise Pine Press, Bladensburg,
Maryland, 1998.
Flavors of Greece, Rosemary Barron, William Morrow, New
York, 1991. (Also Penguin, London, 1991.)
The Greek Meze Table, Rosemary Barron, a work in
progress, see Mother Linda's web site for two of Rosemary's Y2K
friendly recipes at www.motherlindas.com. (forthcoming)
Mother Linda's Bulgarian Rhapsody: The Best of Balkan Cuisine is available from Amazon.com or through this web site.
1. Don't buy anything you won't use and enjoy if there isn't a Y2K crisis. What could you possibly do with a year's worth of dehydrated emergency rations for a family of four?
2. Buy healthy stores that are versatile with a relatively long shelf life.
3. Look for items that do not have to be refrigerated or cooked.
4. Be sure to toss in a few treats like coffee, chocolate, and your favorite wine.
5. Buy enough to feed your family for a month, which even in the worst conditions would give the country or region you live in time to stabilize. If everybody has this rational response, there will be no need to panic.
6. Think now about provisions you can raise in your garden this summer and preserve the old-fashioned way to bring quality and flavor to the table during the first winter of the new millennium.
7. Throw a pre-Y2K party for your friends to practice ways to use the items you've stored in the basement ahead of time.
Recipes from Rosemary Barron's work in progress entitled
The Greek Meze Table. Used by permission of the
author.
In autumn, all throughout the Mediterranean and the Balkans, dried
figs are sold in laurels strung with bay leaves. For the fullest
flavor, choose plump Calimyrna figs.
8 large plump dried figs, stems trimmed, and each cut lengthwise
in half
8 whole almonds, blanched, and each split lengthwise in half
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
8 bay leaves
1 Tbsp. honey, Greek Hymettus is great
2 Tbsp. aged red-wine vinegar
1 tsp. dried savory or thyme, crumbled between fingers and palm
Gently push a half almond into the center of each half fig and
sprinkle figs with pepper. Cover the figs with bay leaves in a clean
glass jar or bowl; cover tightly and store in a cool, dark spot for
up to a week.
For serving, spread the bay leaves over a platter and arrange the figs on top; sprinkle with any remaining pepper from the jar. In a small bowl, combine the honey, vinegar, and savory or thyme and pour over the figs. Serve within 1 hour.
Greek islanders make this summer meze with island-grown tomatoes which are tiny, sweet deep-crimson colored and unique flavored, but cherry tomatoes are a great substitute. The classic country sauce of green olives and capers is pleasantly tangy. This serving method keeps the sweet and sharp flavors separate until the last minute, preserving the full individual depth of each, until they are combined harmoniously on eating.
1 dozen green olives (Tsakistes or Nafplion), blanched, pitted,
patted dry, and coarsely chopped
1 Tbsp. capers, rinsed and patted dry
tsp. red-wine vinegar, or to taste
6 Tbsp. garlic-scented or extra virgin olive oil
16 ripe cherry tomatoes
To serve:
1 Tbsp. coarsely chopped fresh fennel or parsley, or dried
parsley
8 2-inch squares of toast
Place the olives and capers in a wooden mortar or nonreactive bowl and mash with a wooden spoon. Add the vinegar, drop by drop, and 3-4 Tbsp. olive oil (to taste) in a steady stream, mashing constantly. Stop when you like the flavor. At this stage the sauce has a country character. For a smooth sauce, set a nonreactive sieve over the bowl and push through with a wooden spoon.
Set a small heavy skillet over low heat and warm the remaining 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil. Add the tomatoes, cover the skillet, and sweat the tomatoes until their skins split, about 3 minutes. Set side to cool in the skillet.
Spread the sauce over a small platter, arrange the tomatoes on top, and garnish with fennel or parsley. Sprinkle the olive oil you used to sweat the tomatoes over the toasted bread and serve as an accompaniment.
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