Cuisine is one of the many things that brings people together and experience human connection. Good food is capable of providing all with a myriad of emotions and sensations, such as satisfaction, pleasure, and love to name a few. Not only that, it is the basis of all living life forms: we need food to keep us alive; to provide us the nutrients, fuel, and time to gather our strength and keep going in life. And every culture has its own unique dishes to present, made with love, the desire to create and share. 

The reason I chose to write about Greek cuisine is because, in my family, I tend to cook with my mother or am the one who cooks for the family. In other words, I am the second chef of the house and choosing the topic of foods feels most familiar to me. Furthermore, when I'm cooking I always look for new things to cook and new ways to add different flavors, or find great substitues of spices, ingredients, and other things in the dishes I make. By exploring Greek cuisine, I become open to a new set of options for dishes to make since I always bother my mother to help me buy ingredients to indulge my enthusiasm for cooking new dishes. I'm also very keen at detecting certain tastes and flavors as well as judging whether my dishes feel suitable to serve or could use improvement, which I'm also very open to discovering. Though, even if I may not be the biggest history geek, I always tend to be curious about the origins of my ingredients, the sources of the food I make, how they came to be, and the best ways people have preserved and grown the tray of ingredients we have in the world. Below is an image of only 7 spices that most people can name, but did you know that there are at least 80 spices in the world?

During week 13 of this course, we were able to explore a piece of what cuisine is like in Greece, as well as some popular or well known dishes from there. Thus, in this article, it would be appropriate to dive further into the history of Greek Cuisine, Greek food in the current day, the properties it provides to the people and a few Greek dishes that I have found to be most appealing for me to try out. The reason why these topics relate to the course content is because they will explain how modern Greek cuisine came to be and how it takes place in todays world in Greece.

History of Greek Cuisine

When it comes to the history of Ancient Greece, the first thing that comes to mind is their mythology, yet what is mythology without food? Food kept people alive to tell and write the stories about their mythical creatures and Greek gods that we know today. Not only that, food would be made even for the gods as offerings and tributes. The foods that would be offered to the gods consisted of Ambrosia and Nectar which would be reserved only for the divine due to the fact that it was believed to reduce or completely stop a body from aging and provide a sort of immortality. Though, the origins of Greek cuisine itself dates back as far as four thousand years ago where the native palate for Greece would consist of olive oil, grapes, fish, and legumes due to the geographical features the land would provide its inhabitants. Futher down the line, in time, came the relationship between Greece and the Roman Empire where the empire had somewhat tied itself to Greece and eventually took part in adding things such as oysters and truffles to the Greek palate. From there on came the Byzantine Empire which introduced the creation of wine from the grapes and sauces using the olive oil Greece had, all while adding vinegar, more herbs, and spices to the food palate. Furthermore, the Byzantine empire also added the creation of pastries into play for Greece. When it came time to be under the Ottoman empire, things became a little more 'spiced up' both due to adding of spices like cinnamon, cloves, allspice, as well as spices with strong aromas like mint and oregano to name a few. A triditional dish that is still made these days is known as Moussaka (pronounced: moo-sa-KAh; emphasis on the "ka").

However, just like Greece had its history with other Empires, the Ottoman Empire had the biggest impact due to Greece having a war for independence against the empire (which was successful) that is now celebrated in the current day on March 25. The holiday is known as Greek Independence Day where many people come together to reignite and celebrate culinary traditions, as well as dishes from the past, celebrating their reign against the Ottoman rule

Greek Food Today and Recommended Dishes

Today, Greek food is best known for its rich flavors, use of fresh ingredients, and long history rooted in Mediterranean culture. Not only that, Greek cuisine continues to be popular worldwide, offering a combination of simple yet very delicious dishes that reflect the country's agricultural abundancy and its cultural influences over the centuries. The gastronomy of Greece consists of 6 things:

- Freshly picked or non-processed produce

- Olive oil as it is used in most dishes (just like in the past)

- No fast food

- Properly made and well cooked

- Use of natural herbs

- Is given plenty of time to enjoy the completed dish

In Greece, the precense of fast food may often be looked down upon due to the fact that it is believed that food should be given the time to be enjoyed and shared among people. Thus, during meal times like lunch and dinner, meals are thoroughly prepared, slow cooked and practically made with love. There is no dish that is not done without care, demonstrating the importance of each meal time in Greece. Furthermore, because there is no fast food, it encourages the consumption of produce (fruits, vegetables, and other naturally grown items), causing people to eat healthier. There is also a greater variety of meats offered in Greece, grating them a myriad of ways to make any dish containing meat. When researching Greek food, I found a few dishes that most appealed to me.

The first dish is the Spanakopita (pronounced: span-ah-koh-pEe-tah) which is considered a spinach pie. The dish consists of spinach cooked with garlic and onions and crumbled feta cheese wrapped around with phyllo dough, then baked until golden or somewhat brown.

The second dish I found appealing is the Tiropita (pronounced: thee-ro-PEEta), which consists of feta cheese, ricotta cheese, eggs, and herbs. It is prepared by mixing crumbled feta and ricotta cheese together in a bowl, adding egg, chopped mint and black pepper and mixing it all together. Afterwards, make layers by switching between the cheese mix and phyllo dough (starting and ending with a phyllo dough layer) and then bake until golden.

Final Thoughts and Critiques

Greece's food and culinary culture is most definitely acknowledgable for its diversity and richness. However, it appears that due to the rise of fast food industries taking place worldwide, Greece is no exception to this takeover, causing Greece to slowly lose the authenticity and enrichment it always maintained. Not only that, despite having a major variety in meat choices, the most prominent are beef, pork, and chicken, neglecting the use of other meats, further shrinking diversity in recipes. The idea of modernization has begun to practically infect Greece, which should be prevented or be fought against in order to preserve the healthier, diverse, and culturally rich history of the nation's gastronomy. 

Overall, Greek food is able to be considered a grand culmination of history, culture, and community. The evolution of cuisine over thousands of years has been developed and changed by Greece's geography, history, and interactions with other civilizations and empires. Thus, from the ancient Greeks to the present day, food has been and always will be a central part of Greek life, just like any place, not only as sustenance but also as a means of connection and identity. Today, Greek cuisine continues to grow in popularity due to its emphasis on using fresh ingredients, bold flavors, and maintaining a deep respect for tradition. It does not matter where Greek cuisine may be shared and enjoyed, the food alone provides a strong reflection of the country's rich culinary heritage and its food culture.