I love "olive" them! The delicious olive

Being of Greek heritage, yia-yia (grandmother) was from Kalamata, Greece, I have eaten a lot of olives. I honestly don't remember any occasion with family where there wasn't a plate of kalamata olives and feta cheese on the table. 

The Kalamata Olive has to be one of my favorites... it's tangy just to perfection.  I like other olives too... the basic black olive, the Spanish olive, and another favorite is the Italian Castelvetrano olive.  I always have no less than 10 jars of various olives and pickles in my fridge.  At Christmas Eve dinner at my son's house, I saw a bowl of Kalamata olives and green olives.  Of course, I had to have a few.  Now, I'm not a person who likes spicy foods (medium salsa can be too hot for me), but I grabbed the green olive and expected the "standard" green olive taste.  It was stuffed with jalapeno.  It caught me by surprise!  It wasn't that hot (ok.. it was a tad spicy for me) and I think it would be a great addition to a Mexican meal.  I could eat them again.  

I put olives on pizza, with pasta, in salad, with meatballs, as they truly go with just about anything.  They are best with cheese, good bread, and a bowl of olive oil.  That is a meal in itself.

Imagine the surprise of this olive aficionado when I went to the food market in Aix en Provence.  Sure, I had heard of the Niçoise olive, but my heart literally skipped a beat when I saw the variety of olives available at the market!  Oh my goodness, if I lived there my refrigerator would be packed with different olives from the market.  

We ate so many delicious foods from the Mediterranean region.  Of course, with the delicious olive, comes the most fruity olive oil.  It was so nice to have a bowl of olive oil and fresh bread.  So many of the foods were standard fare when I was a little girl.  With 2 grandparents from Greece and one from Cyprus, olives and olive oil are pretty much a daily addition to our meals.  

Having written all of this, I think that I might have to get out my Lebanese and Greek cookbooks and get some ideas for dinner. 

This is a photo of delicious paella, stuffed grape leaves (domathes in Greek).  It was from the market that was about a 10 minute walk from the airbnb.  Shopping for the day, not week is something I love to do when there... at home, not so easy to do.                                                                                                               

Look at the variety of olives!  This isn't even all of them.  There were more but I wanted this photo.

One of our many meals from the market.  We tried so many different middle eastern spreads.  I like them all.  The Greek Tzatziki is one of my favorites.  I could eat it by the spoonful.  I might make it today!

Olive oil is so delicious.  If you have never been to an olive oil tasting, I suggest you try it.  You might be surprised at the different varieties.  Plus, it is so healthy for you too!

Coca Cola

 I'm trying to be more consistant with writing on my blog... This is one of many that I hope to post about my recent vacation to France and Italy.

I am a native of Atlanta, Georgia.  Coca cola has always been my favorite soft drink.  My dad had a Coke every day for breakfast as long as I can remember.  He might have had hot tea, but a Coke was definitely consumed around breakfast time as well as during the day.

It seems to run in the family.  No diet coke for us!  We want the real thing.  

During my travels, I have to have a coca cola no matter where I visit.  I paid $6.50 for a Coke near the Eiffel Tower in Paris.  I must admit it was delicious!  How could it not be great.  Coke goes great naturally with all foods in my honest opinion.  It is especially delicious with a burger and fries or pizza!  Was that Italian pizza really that delicious or did the coke just compliment the taste so well.  I think it's a bit of both.

My cousin, Katie, loves coke as much as I do.  She will send me a photo of her drinking a coke while she is on vacation.  I happily return the gesture and send her a photo or two.  

I have a collection of  Coca-Cola memorabilia.  I didn't think to bring back an empty bottle of some of them.  I was too busy enjoying the scenery, dinners, and the adventure.  I will try to remember for next time.  I'm already thinking of where to go next!

Photos:  During the soccer tournaments, the teams were represented on the coke bottles.  A chilled selection of Coke products in an Italian grocery store. Side note:  I love going to foreign grocery stores!  So much fun!  Me enjoying a coke in the courtyard of our airbnb in Florence. The coca-cola umbrellas at a cafe in Aix en Provence. Me holding the $6.50 coke near the Champs-Elysee in Paris. and ... what goes better with coke than french fries!  That was my lunch.  Reminded me of homemade french fries my Papa Jimmy would make for us every Wednesday when I was a child.  That was our dinner on Wednesday... French fries and a coke!