It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas …..

The Ladies of the Church have done it again! There is no stopping them and we all hope they carry on.

On Sunday 15 December we were treated to a typical “nistisimo” or fasting lunch to raise funds in our church hall after the Divine Liturgy at our St George’s Cathedral. 

The tables were simply but beautifully decked out and the hall looked so inviting and cosy. 

In the meantime the children were getting into the Christmas spirit by decorating the Christmas Tree on the stage and making some truly inspired and fancy Christmas  wreaths with Hellen Carambassis.  

 It was a hive of happy activity with mouth-watering aromas wafting out of the kitchen. 

Then the trays of “yemista orphana “ and potatoes, made the quintessential way that only Greeks seem to know. 

Accompanied by a crunchy fresh cabbage slaw it was a simple but superb meal that we all know and love to bits. 

First of all let’s figure why the stuffed veggies are called “orphana“ or orphans.

For this traditional Greek recipe, they used tomatoes, green bell peppers and  eggplants but nothing stops you from trying other vegetables, such as zucchini and onions! 

Gemista can be prepared with or without meat, in which case the Greeks call them ‘orphans’, and that’s what was  prepared for today. 

That’s because they are strictly vegetarian, stuffed with aromatic rice and herbs, so they are bereft of their usual mince meat mates.

We are right in the middle of our Christmas fasting period so that means no meat or dairy until Christmas Day. 

Even our delicious dessert halvas was a special fasting one made with semolina, dried fruits and honey . 

Halvas  or “Χαλβάς “is one of our favourite  Orthodox Lenten desserts, which is cooked on the stove top and then drenched in syrup.

The semolina is then molded and cut into pieces.

Due to Lent we make it “nistisimo” as it does not contain any dairy, so oil is used instead of butter. 

Trust me the yum factor was way above 100% for this special 

Sunday  lunch and was much appreciated by the 120 people there who rendered  the dishwasher useless as they left their plates totally naked ! 

We are now truly geared up for a glorious and festive Christmas. 

Huge thanks to the Hellenic Committee and The Ladies of the Church and their team of helpers – God bless your hands for making this lovely lunch. 

Greeks say “Gia sta heria su”which is translated as God bless your hands. 

It is offered as a compliment for someone’s cooking or handiwork, and shows one’s deep 

appreciation for the skill and effort that goes into creating something delicious or well-made. 

It’s a loving way to praise the work someone has done with their hands and also implies that the good work is blessed by God. 

Watch this space …… the domestic goddesses are on a roll! 

( Text and photos: Pepe Sofianos)