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The grape vine was just bare branches a few weeks ago. Now it is thick and lush and the leaves just the right size for picking and making dolmathes. This year we are going to have a bumper crop of grapes, if we're lucky. There are small newly formed bunches all over the vine. Once I had picked the leaves the vine was dusted with sulfur to stop disease
To help the grapes develop we 'prune' grape leaves and I blanch and freeze a few batches. I froze two batches of 40 leaves and made a pile of dolmathes, these with minced meat and rice with lots of mint, parsley and dill and an egg and lemon sauce. Visiting daughter polished off the last half dozen and declared them delicious. I'll have to make some more for her. She works in an accountants office and this is the busiest time of the year. No time for fiddly rolling up of stuffed vine leaves.
Coming back on the car ferry after a very early morning 3 year memorial service at St Nikolas church on the mainland town of Galatas. This large load backed on with ease
This car ferry is home to half a dozen pairs of swallows. They were swooping and flying around the deck and when the ferry started to move they continued flying and chirping, not put out at all by the movement of the boat. They nest on the iron girders every year.
View from the car ferry looking towards the village of Galatas
Another view from the car ferry.
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People here also make the dolmathes,I never did but i like to eat them.
ReplyDeleteThe tavernas here make nice dolmathes but the tinned ones are terrible. Nothing like home made
DeleteI have had dolmathes a couple of times at a restaurant, but never homemade. I'll bet yours are delicious! We've had swallows build mud nests in our carport where they raise their young. Swallows are lovely birds, but it is rather messy having them nest there. -Jenn
ReplyDeleteDolmathes need a good egg and lemon sauce. That makes them great.
DeleteSwallows are wonderful to watch, swooping and chirping. Can imagine the mess
Last week at the sea we came across swallow nests under the portico of a shopping area. The owners of the shops hung a white box under each nest to keep the area below clean and to prevent swallow mess to fall on customers' heads. Each box had the bird's names on them: Romeo and Juliette. Antony and Cleopatra, Bonnie and Clyde...
ReplyDeleteThe same couple return to the same nest every year.
Greetings Maria x
Cute! Love the idea of names if they come back year after year. I suppose these same ones must come back to the car ferry. They seem to be very much at ease there with the people and the cars
DeleteBetcha' those stuffed grape leaves are delicious! ---- Pruning leaves to give "more," to producing grapes. Wisdom.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful area you live in! Love to see the enlarged pictures of the area.
I'd fry in the sun though. I know I would. -sigh-
With Northern European heritage, and no warm region blood in my veins, guess I just "can't do" really warm/sunny weather. :-)
Born in northern part of US. Still rooted here. :-) But I LOVE the 4 Seasons.
I don't do well here either lol . I hate the heat and it seems to get worse every year - or my suffering does. July and August I'm a zombie.
DeleteGrape growers here de-leaf their vineyards around this time. If you've got a lot of vines it is a hard job. Gives the grapes air but you have to be careful to leave some shade for the growing bunches. Also strengthens the vines so they say
The eaves of our house are perfect for Swallows nests, but they choose to go elsewhere. I wonder if there's some way I could encourage them?
ReplyDeleteOur neighbour built a nest under the eaves of their porch but I don't know if it has been used. You must have swallows around your swimming pool in the evening. Try building a fake nest or two around that area
DeleteSpring. A time of year when there is so much promise of new life everywhere
ReplyDeleteHere we have autumn leaves blowing everywhere making messes and blowing into the house if the wind is the right way and someone leaves the door open grrrrr
Beautiful pics as always xx
That is why I don't like vines around our terrace. I seem to spend forever sweeping up leaves. When we first came here the whole terrace was shaded by the vine. I made K cut down the vine overhead it was just so annoying.
DeleteI plan to follow your example, the grape vine is a few weeks behind yours, but it is getting there. Sunshine and blue sky here - happiness!
ReplyDeleteSome of the leaves we picked were a bit big and tough but they cooked up nicely thank goodness. Good luck with yours.
DeleteI bet you got a great view from the ferry over the landscape too.
ReplyDeleteAlways love watching what's on the water and picking out the family house on the island
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