The Fruit of the Dead

My absolute favorite place on this Earth is Greece. Have you ever been? It's both breathtaking and beautiful. It's rich in culture and history. The people are the nicest and most vivacious people I've ever met. Oh! And meals are such a big deal! Every time we'd go out for a meal, at first we thought it was bad service, but we realized the two to three hours were to allow for you to enjoy your meal and your company. What a wonderful way to think of food!

Skopelos, Greece

My Paradise

I loved it when we would all get together for dinner! It was an enormous spread with fresh foods and herbs. Best of all, it always felt like a celebration, enjoying the food, the company, and the dancing!

Live music and great company!

Dancing ALWAYS followed dinner!

For years, I had dreamed of going to Greece and I finally went for a study abroad in 2005. However, this all started in 5th grade when we were assigned a Greek god/goddess to present in front of the class. So, in Miss Glass's class, 1995, I dressed up as the goddess Demeter, walked to the front of the class, and presented the sad story of Demeter and her daughter Persephone:

Demeter was the goddess of Harvest and brought flowering, fruits and vegetables to the earth. However, one day, Hades, king of the underworld, in love with Demeter's daughter, stole Persephone away. Demeter, heartbroken by her loss, wandered the earth searching for her daughter, refusing to allow the Earth to blossom and harvest. Zeus, king of the gods, realizing the devastation of a barren Earth, asked Demeter to return to her duties, but she refused until her daughter would be returned. Zeus convinced Hades to return Persephone to Demeter. He begrudgingly agreed but not until after he convinced Persephone to eat seeds from the pomegranate, the fruit of the dead. Because Persephone ate seeds from the fruit of the dead, half the year, she is to return to the underworld, during which Demeter wanders in grief, laying waste to the land (fall and winter), and when Persephone reunites with Demeter, the earth is blessed with harvest (spring and summer).

So, ten years after I fall in love with Greece I visit it, and now fifteen years after my presentation, I follow the footsteps of Persephone and finally try a pomegranate! And they're in season! Right at the start of fall.

Fruit of the Dead

Oh my gosh! Delicious! Good thing I'm not Persephone or I'd never leave and just eat the fruit all day. It's both sweet and tart.  Plus, pomegranates have been in the spotlight for the past few years as the new superfood. And why shouldn't they be? They're rich in phytochemicals, specifically flavenoids. Phytochemicals are a type of antioxidant. They help in the prevention and treatment of certain chronic diseases, including cancer and heart disease, by blocking free radicals, which damage our tissues. Flavenoids found in pomegranates help lower our LDL (low-density lipoprotein), which is the bad cholesterol that results in the clogging of arteries. The amount of flavenoids found in pomegranates is more than that of red wine or green tea! However, it should be mentioned that the juice of pomegranates, much like grapefruits, can interfere with certain medications.

You don't have to eat pomegranate seeds alone. You can add them as accents to salads and desserts. There's plenty of recipes using pomegranates as well. Last night I tried one of them out!

Musical selection for food preparation: Led Zeppelin's BBC Sessions

Dinner: Roast Pork with Pomegranate Sauce via allrecipes, with a side of green beans and chopped almonds and half an english muffin

I think you have to give Persephone some credit here for eating pomegranates!