Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Heavenly Tiramisù

Well readers, tiramisu's history is almost as foggy as the espresso that gives it its amazing flavor. At the heart of some vigorous debate among Italian dessert lovers, tiramisu definitely got its start in Italy sometime between the early 18 th century and the mid 20 th century. Some say its first incarnation was made to celebrate a visit by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo III, to the city of Siena . Since Cosimo passed away in 1723, we can only guess he was fed the cake sometime before that year.

However, other culinary websites and Italian cookbooks place tiramisu's origins as relatively recent as 1971. Tiramisu as we know it today is said to have been created that year in the northern Italian town of Treviso . Even still, the first reference to the dessert doesn't appear in print until 1983.



Ancient origins, modern sweets

Perhaps it's simpler to break down tiramisu's ingredients and examine the dessert's history from a slightly more defined angle. The savoiardi cookies at the heart of this treat have been around since the 15 th century. They get the nickname “ladyfingers” from their long cylindrical shape and are often used as a base for desserts such as fruit or custard trifles.

Savoiardi are said to be named for the northern Italian court where they originated, the Duchy of Savoy. This principality now shares much of its territory with modern-day France , and appropriately enough, the cookies are said to have been first prepared to celebrate a visit to the Duchy by the king of France . Because of their leaven-free nature, ladyfingers became a popular treat for Orthodox Jewish families at Passover.

Espresso also has a storied past. While coffee itself can be traced back hundreds of years, espresso is a relatively recent invention. Created in 1903, when the world seemed to be turning to the modern inclination of wanting everything done better and faster, an Italian businessman named Luigi Bezzera was looking for a way to make coffee brewing less time consuming.

Bezzera created a machine that added intense pressure to the brewing process and extracted more flavor from the beans at the same time. Thanks to the quick brewing process, the liquid that resulted from using this “Fast Coffee Machine”, took on the name espresso, which is Italian for “fast”. It signaled a permanent change to the way Italians drink coffee.

As you're likely already aware, the popularity of espresso has exploded in the United States in the last 20 years. From discount espresso machines like the Bialetti moka pots that are seen in nearly every kitchen in Italy to the ultra-modern Jura Capresso , a freshly made espresso will be the perfect finish to any tiramisu.

A tasty pick me up

One thing we can know for sure about tiramisu is that the Italians have always been aware of the buzz-inducing properties that come with the combination of espresso and sugar. The origins of the word "tiramisu" itself come from two Italian words that literally mean "pull me up" or “pick me up”, Tiramisu. It is thought that the cakes, sans alcohol, were originally made into round shapes and meant for children and the elderly.


Recipe

INGREDIENTS
  • 2 cups boiling-hot water
  • 3 tablespoons instant-espresso powder
  • 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
  • 3 tablespoons Tia Maria (coffee liqueur)
  • 4 large egg yolks
  • 1/3 cup dry Marsala
  • 1 pound mascarpone (2 1/2 cups)
  • 1 cup chilled heavy cream
  • 36 savoiardi (crisp Italian ladyfingers; from two 7-ounce packages)
  • Unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

PREPARATION
  • Stir together water, espresso powder, 1 tablespoon sugar, and Tia Maria in a shallow bowl until sugar has dissolved, then cool.
  • Beat egg yolks, Marsala, and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water using a whisk or handheld electric mixer until tripled in volume, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. 
  • Beat in mascarpone until just combined.
  • Beat cream in a large bowl until it holds stiff peaks.
  • Fold mascarpone mixture into whipped cream gently but thoroughly.
  • Dipping both sides of each ladyfinger into coffee mixture, line bottom of a 13- by 9- by 3-inch baking pan with 18 ladyfingers in 3 rows, trimming edges to fit if necessary. 
  • Spread half of mascarpone filling on top. Dip remaining 18 ladyfingers in coffee and arrange over filling in pan.
  • Spread remaining mascarpone filling on top and dust with cocoa. Chill, covered, at least 6 hours.
  • Let tiramisu stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving, then dust with more cocoa.
Note:

You can substitute 2 cups freshly brewed espresso for the water and instant-espresso powder.
Tiramisu can be chilled up to 2 days.
  • Quote of this post: whether you're in need of a "pick me up", or the perfect finish to a great meal, you can't go wrong with this mysterious, yet heavenly, dessert!
  • source: http://www.epicurious.com 


I Love Travelling - Vol1

Hello readers!

A Greek poet once wrote:
It's all about the journey, not the destination!

And he was absolutely right!

One of my favorite activities is travelling. Either for professional reasons or for holidays or even because there are cheap tickets, I absolutely adore travelling and when possible, I graaaap the chance!


Along with this, I also adore smelling new scents, trying new tastes,meeting different people, knowing new cultures and of course, going shopping!


One of the trips I took, was in Le Mans-France.Did you know that some episodes from the series "Game of Thrones" took place in Le Mans?Yes indeed.
Le Mans has such a Medieval identity that creates a uniquely picturesque town.
It feels as if you're transferred centuries back.


Referring to the France Cuisine is a must!
Where should I begin? The foods or the desserts?
Hm... tough choice.
The reputation of the French Chefs and Pastry Cooks is justifiably so widely spread.

Take a look at this velvet-looking potato- soup!


And of course, the main dish: pork meat coated with milk-cream and mushrooms along with vegetables and rice accompanying this delight! 
As for the wine...original red dry French wine.
Yeap!


As far as the dessert concerns, my oh my!
Just look at the dish...Under this whipped cream, there is a chocolate-lava with hot,liquid chocolate within. Absolutely tasteful French fruit-cookies aside and some fruits syrup.



Beautiful traditional restaurant!


After this unique gastronomic delight, it's shopping time :)




Quote of this post: Travel as Much as You Can!



Monday, September 4, 2017

Alexander Poeluev, a Musical Diamond

Hello readers!
Today, a tribute to the brilliant accordionist Alexander Poeluev is the least I can do.
He is an excellent young musician and a great person.
I'm honored to have met him!


Alexander has a wide concert activity. He is a prizewinner of international competitions and in actively touring in different countries of the world.
He is a member of the jury of numerous international competitions.

Art director of the International Festival “Accordion Plus” in Rostov-on-Don- Russia, Alexander Poeluev has graduated from Moscow State Institute of Music named after  Alfred Schnittke ( class of People’s Artist of Russia, laureate of international competitions, professor V.A.Semёnov), made PG at RAM. named after Gnessin. 

In 1997 and in 2000. A. Poeluev was twice prizewinner of the All-Russian Accordion Competition and accordionists in Belgorod.

In 2002 he was the prizewinner of the international competition of accordionists and bayan “World Cup”, held in Copenhagen (Denmark), winning the competition in two categories: COUPE MONDIALE – SENIORS and PIANO ACCORDION CLASS.

In 2005 he became the winner of the international competition in Detroit (USA).

In 2006 he received the first prize at the International Competition “Shanghai Spring” in Shanghai (China).

Alexander went on tour in New Zealand, Australia and the United States, China, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey, France, Italy, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Belarus, Bulgaria, thankfully in my hometown in Volos-Greece,  and in many Russian cities.

Currently Alexander has a wide concert activity, takes part in juries of international accordion and bayan competitions, master classes.

He is the art director of the International Festival “Accordion Plus” in Rostov-on-Don.  His repertoire includes works from the Baroque to modern music, classical, folk, pop and jazz styles.

He performs recitals, plays as soloist with a symphony orchestra, and with various ensembles.

What's this video with one of my favorite musical compositions and get a "taste" of Alexander's talent!


Best Regards my dear friend!

Sunday, September 3, 2017

"Mentora" an Ancient Greek to English dictionary app

Greek Philologist and Linguist Thomais Sioura (1986) had an innovative idea for a mobile app which was recently brought to life: an Ancient Greek to English mobile app dictionary.


After four years of research, and a wealth of information from a thorough and comprehensive study of many outstanding auxiliary tools in respecting to the Ancient Greek language, Sioura composed an ongoing Ancient Greek to English database. It includes 120.000 lemmata, 2.000 words and phrases, 10.000 conjugated verbs, 30.000 multiple choice questions for grammar practice, basic language theory and more. That database is the core of “Mentora”, an ancient Greek to English dictionary app, created by Sioura and a team of experts, for both Android and iOS mobile devices.

How does the app work?

Mentora is divided in four sections: Search, Phraseology, Basics and Practice

S e a r c h: Mentora offers basic and important information for over 120.000 words in poetic texts of the Archaic and Classical periods, prose Classical texts, poetry and prose from the Hellenistic until the late antiquity.

P h r a s e o l o g y: The subscriber can see common phrases of the Ancient Greek language by browsing through a catalogue of over 2.000 Words and Phrases with their specific, idiomatic or metaphoric meaning.

B a s i c language theory allows the subscriber to study the basics for the alphabet, phonemes, letters, accents, breathing, words, syllabification, accentuation rules and punctuation marks.

P r a c t i c e: The subscriber can take Ancient Greek tests and practice through multiple choice questions in the accentuation, vocabulary and grammar.

“Mentora” aims to be an educational tool for the study of the Ancient Greek, Christian and early Byzantine language and literature. “Mentora” will be marketed as of September.



Quote of this post: Learn the Ancient Greek Language!

Source:http://www.greeknewsagenda.gr

Cheese, Olive, and Sun-dried Tomato Muffins

Hello readers!

I think it's a good idea to post some Greek Traditional Recipes from time to time.
So, I'll start with one which contains 3 of the most popular and extremely tasteful Greek products: cheese,olives and tomatoes.

Don't worry, it won't take long. It's easy, fast and deliciousssss!




Ingredients

  • 250g self-raising flour
  • 160g butter at room temperature
  • 100g sundried tomatoes, chopped
  • 200g kefalograviera (or any other mature cheese), grated
  • 50g regato cheese, grated
  • 100g ham, cut into cubes
  • 12 olives, pitted and chopped
  • 2-3 eggs
  • salt and pepper


Directions

  • Mix the butter and eggs using a wooden spoon, then add the flour, little by little. Then add the ham, cheeses, sun-dried tomato, olives, and salt and pepper.
  • Pour the mixture into a muffin tin and bake for about 50 minutes at 160°-180° C, until golden.
Good Luck and "Kali Orexi!"

Source: http://www.icookgreek.com


Friday, September 1, 2017

Puppy vs Cat

Hello readers!

Let me introduce to you my pets Locky and Merlin.


Locky is a 3 months old x-strain puppy which I adopted a month ago.
My cat Merlin is with me for 6,5 years now. Both are males.
Merlin loves cappuccino, is obedient, quite, clean,sterilized and always hungry.


Locky loves to sleep, is disobedient, hyperactive and adores to bite anything that can be bitten....



I'm sure Merlin would love to take Locky's eyes out with his claws. He is soooooo jealous of him. The funny thing is that, Locky, although still a puppy, is bullying the cat all the time!

Believe it or not, Merlin always pulls back when Locky demands to eat his food. Like a good, older and wiser pet, he waits until Locky finishes eating and then he goes to his bowl.
However, the rest of the day, when Locky approaches Merlin, he gets furious and roars at him threatening and resolutely.

I think it's a matter of time for both of them to get used to each other and be best friends!

Quote of this post: Animals are adorable and they deserve our love!

Nikola Tesla’s Original 1875 Plan


Tesla’s original vision, in his 1870’s student days, of his “ideal flying machine”, was of an electropulsive one, the realization of which is why he said he originally entered the field of electrical science in 1875 in the first place. This was the problem which he had assigned to himself as his main lifelong work. (Frank Parker Stockbridge, The Tesla Turbine. The World’s Work, march, 1912, pp. 543-48.)

Originally anticipating that the electrical power needs for an electropropulsive craft would be too great for an on-board power plant (since his ship was to be devoid of sustaining planes), he initially embarked on developing his “wireless transmission of power” system, so as to transmit the anticipated power needed from ground-based power generators and stations. Some of these earlier Tesla ideas turned out to be unnecessary for his flying machine, so he turned them for intended commercial purposes.

Since his conception of the ether was of a relatively low-density one, and his conception of the electromagnetic force not nearly so much stronger than the gravitational one, his later discovery that his prior anticipation of greater electrical power needs than actually required, led to changes in his electropropulsive craft, and produced plenty of surplus “spin-off’ technology.

During the 1920’s, at a time when he was in great need of money to complete his electropropulsive ship, he unsuccessfully attempted to interest the U.S. government in some of this surplus “spin off’ technology. In an unpublished article prepared but never published, Tesla said:
“…we should push the development of flying machines and wireless transmission of energy without an instant’s delay and with all the power and resources of the nation”.
The immediate association here is between “flying machines” (not “aeroplanes”) and “wireless transmission of energy”. Tesla had piles of patents which produced him no money, because the Morgans and Rockefellers had declared them off limits. No one could borrow money from the banks to put one of these systems into practice, and anyone who was foolish enough to do so on their own money could expect the wrath of the gods to come down on them like lightening bolts from Zeus.

Due to his imminent discovery that his on-board power needs would not be so great, and a failure to interest anyone in the development of his wireless energy transmission system, Tesla obtained a patent in 1913 on a remarkable turbine he had invented about 1909.

This was probably in view of encouraging developments and awareness which showed that the electromagnetic interaction is 1040 times stronger than the gravitational interaction (George Gamow, Gravity, Anchor Books, N.Y. [1962], p. 138). According to Hendrick Lorenz, the electrical attractive force is 2 x 1039 times stronger than the gravitational attractive force.

The change in Tesla’s strategy seems to have occurred between his 1915 test of an electropropulsive missile using wireless energy projected to it by a power beam from the ground, and his 1934 birthday announcement. These new developments were probably spurred on by the mother of invention, since without a wireless energy system, the prior conception would be rather useless. The power monopolists could fight that off forever, so Tesla was left to his own devices, unable to count on anyone else.

The earlier misconceptions were still somewhat in Tesla’s mind when he developed the turbine commercially under the Tesla Propulsion Company slogan, “20 Horsepower Per Pound”, with the undisclosed intention of also using the turbine to drive one of his specially designed high frequency alternators to power the ship.

After having developed such a light and powerful turbine, which could turn upwards of 30,000 rpm., with a twenty pound unit producing over 200 brake horsepower on gasoline, he also designed and received a patent in 1928 for a new kind of “VTOL”-type propellor-driven airplane, to be powered by two turbines mounted in tandem, which would counteract the torque of the prop, and eliminate the need for the stabilizing props that helicoptors have on their back fuselages. This aircraft, if built, would have had a superior weight to-horsepower ratio—perhaps three-to-one—and would have been very fast in level flight, taking off vertically.

Tesla, on seeing the inefficient use of heavier aircraft engines then in use, and the requirements of more cumbersome aircraft with greater wing area, apparently wished to commercialize on the turbine by designing and patenting the new airplane, which specifically used his turbine, to raise needed capital to complete his more expensive electropropulsive project.

In his experiences with prior patents, he had learned that a patent would be worthless unless he could get the needed capital to carry the project out before the patent period expired, and that the disclosure in a patent would allow others to do so only 17 years after a patent might be granted to him, during which time his invention could languish for lack of funding on his part, because the monolithic financial interests were set against him.

While in the initial stages of development, Tesla seemed quite unaware of the true power of “the force”, until his early field tests of 1915 proved that it was “tremendous”. In the years 1893 and 1894, Tesla had “completely worked out” his Dynamic Theory of Gravity, that is, at least in “theory”. Inherent to that theory, was his electropropulsion system, yet in the formative and theoretical stages.

To publish his theory however, would have been tantamount to disclosing the basic technology as well, which would have allowed his competitors with the money and resources, to complete and take credit for the most important work of Tesla’s life, and the greatest invention of mankind. Tesla lacked the necessary money, and could not raise it. He could not protect himself by patent, until he completed and tested a working model of large enough scale to impress the aircraft industry and the government.

Fatefully, it was during this time of greatest financial need, when he still had the physical stamina to carry the project out, that he was run ragged by bill collections and foreclosures, at the behest of J.P. Morgan and his cohorts, all with the intent of crushing Tesla because he kept coming up with new electric power systems which made his prior systems obsolete.
Since the systems would have ruined Morgan and Rockefeller, and since any invention which Tesla marketed for great profit would have allowed him the resources to build his energy systems, he had to be crushed.

Tesla never seemed to fully realize that Morgan’s pseudo-philantropism was nothing more than a scheme to compromise Tesla’s contract with himself, and a way of falsely inducing Tesla’s reliance on others rather than on his own self-reliance. This treatment set Tesla back emotionally as well as financially and technically, and reduced him at one point to a heap of groveling nerves, literally begging Morgan to make good on his promises, to no avail, but like all truly tragic figures, there was a peripides —a reassertion of the tragic hero’s excellent and untarnished Arturian powers—before he passed heroically into the oblivion of death, as his discoveries, like the sword Excalibur, sank beneath the waters of the lake of ’national security’ lies, to the inurement of corporate greed, coercion and extortion.

The only power that Tesla seemed to have left, was that of withholding his discoveries from the world, to protect his secrets from the pilfering paws of the looters, unless he could receive the compensation and credit which he deserved, but that didn’t matter, because they got it all before his corpse was cool, and never paid him so much as a dime for his trouble.

After becoming aware of the true power of “the force”—one hundred billion thousand trillion thousand trillion times stronger than gravity—Tesla began to pursue the idea of an “on-board” power system for a manned craft to be used for transportation, with his “wireless transmission of power” to be relegated to a robotic, remote controlled, electropropulsive “missile”, for use in warfare, with electric power to be transmitted to missiles from the ground.

After a long period of silence following his field testing of a working model of the electrically propelled missile in 1915, Tesla began referring to the propelling force as “tremendous” in his later announcements which began in the ‘30’s. “Tremendous” does not mean something which reacts feebly, to barely get off the ground, but to something which rises with great and astounding force, such as the way I saw a flying saucer perform in 1953… only ten years after Tesla’s death.

If “tremendous” meant something like an airplane or conventional rocket—as the CIA/NASA misinformationists have idiotically attempted to misconstrue—then what would be the word to describe a force which propels a flying saucer at 9,000 mph in three seconds?
The words “means of propulsion”, used by Tesla in his 1940 interview with William L. Laurence of the New York Times, are of the utmost importance for those interested in understanding both the misinformational conspiracy, as well as the scanty documentation of Tesla’s concealed discoveries.

In their context, these words denoted an onboard electropropulsive means to be used on his “ideal” flying machine, either manned or unmanned, controlled “mechanically” by a pilot on board, or “remotely by wireless energy” by a controller from the ground. It did not refer to a “projectile” such as a “pellet” or “bullet”, which had no “propulsion system”, and was merely “repelled” by a gun of some sort, and it did not refer to any kind of “airplane”—hence “flying machine”—since his machine was to have no wings, ailerons, propellors, or outer appurtenances of any kind.

“Propulsion” here means an on-board system for perpetuation of motion, by electromagnetic means, supplied with electrical power by either on-board generator, or by electrical energy and control signals transmitted by power beam from the ground. The idea of interplanetary travel appealed to Tesla, with the idea that, so long as the electrical energy for propulsion could be transmitted from the earth, a space ship would require no fuel tanks.
In a letter to his friend and financial supporter B.A. Behrend in the 1930’s, Tesla referred cryptically to his electropropulsive discovery:

“What I shall accomplish by that other invention I came specially to see you about, I do not dare to tell you. This is stated in all seriousness.”

Tesla apparently was inferring a plan to discover “other worlds” in outer space with his electrical machines.
Tesla realized that all solid bodies contain “electrical content”, and that they behave as resonant cavities, which interact electromagnetically with rapidly varying electrostatic forces and ether to determine their gravitational interactions and movements in space. These theories were tested and confirmed to some degree in his 1899 Colorado Springs experiments.

The U.S. government never gave Tesla the time of day, and his great electropropulsive discovery slipped into the eager hands of the Nazi elite, when Wernher von Braun acquired and began development of the “p2” project at Los Alamos, New Mexico in 1936, taking the project back to Germany in the fall of 1937, where it was developed at Peenemunde in the Baltic, until these secrets and others were traded to American corporations and the U.S. government in exchange, under Operation Paperclip, just after the armistice, for amnesty for many war criminals, along with an agreement for several thousand people to work for the U.S. government and American corporations. Anyone having important technical information was protected.

source:http://terrapapers.com/

https://lifegleams.blogspot.gr/2017/09/mentora-ancient-greek-to-english.html