A cake for your heart!

Nowadays, the fear of cholesterol makes us try healthier food and prepare less fatty meals. Cakes have always been most people's favorites, so , a recipe of a lighter cake can be quite popular and no less tasty! I have tried the following recipe and I recommend it to all those who avoid eggs. Here it is: The Egg-free cake A light cake for those who avoid eggs and butter. Ingredients ¾ -1 cup sugar ½ cup olive oil 1 low fat yoghurt 1 cup semolina (fine) 1-2 cups self-raising flour 1 vanilla essence 11/2 teaspoon baking powder 1 orange(juice) ¼ cup brandy ½ cup sultanas soaked in water ½ cup chopped walnuts Some olive oil to grease the tin ------------------------------------------------ Mix well sugar and olive oil. Add yoghurt and semolina . Add some of the flour and the rest of the ingredients till the mixture is smooth and thick. Pour into a baking dish previously greased with olive oil. Bake at 150C for about 45 minutes or until golden. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ You can put less sugar or replace it with honey or fructose. Also, you can put chocolate chips (dark chocolate) inside before baking. Dark chocolate is good for the body and has got no cholesterol. Sometimes I add chopped dried figs and apricots, leaving out sultanas and even nuts. You can create your own recipe! It's fun, give it a try!

Talking about Music

The Melos Brass ensemble was created in 1989 within the framework of the Philippos Nakas conservatory. Its members also belong to the National Symphonic Orchestras of Greece, and as a quintet have established themselves as a formidable presence in the area of brass chamber music, performing concerts in Greece and Europe. In 2003 they established the annual Ionian Summer Music Academy in Corfu, in partnership with the Music Department of the Ionian University and the Municipality of Corfu. The goal of Melos Brass is to promote brass chamber music by interpreting works from the international repertoire, and to encourage Greek composers to write for brass instruments. A number of contemporary Greek composers have created outstanding works for the ensemble. "Melos" is the Ancient Greek word for melody. CALENDAR

20 September
Concert in Ilioupolis, Athens. Ilioupolis Municipal Festival

11 November
Concert in Ilioupolis, in memoriam of Yannis Zouganelis (tuba) (Venue soon to be announced)

4-13 December
Tour in Japan

7 December
Concert at Yotsuya Civic Hall, Shinjuku, Tokyo, with the Ochiai Boys and Girls Choir. Conductor, Moriyama Takashi

9 December
Concert and masterclasses at the Tokai University Sagami High School, Kanagawa

10 December
Concert at Yamaha Headquarters, Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka

12 December
Concert and open lessons at the Senjoku Gakuen College of Music

To learn more about the team go to
www.melosbrass.gr

A day in the life of a Corfiot

Anastasia runs a bakery. Her shop is located in Corfu town, in Alexandras Avenue. It’s a small bakery but it’s got practically everything a customer would expect and a lot more! Her products include bread and cakes, pies and biscuits of all kinds. She also sells milk and a small range of dairy products as well as soft drinks and water. Her day starts at 6.00 am. Anastasia has to cook and do some housework before she gets ready to go to her shop, which is just a hundred meters away from her house. She’s got a family and two kids and she also takes care of her elderly mother. “I have to get up early and start moving around to tidy up and cook” she says. “My kids are still sleeping when I leave for the shop. I must be there at 7.30, just when my first customer arrives. He is an old man who likes going out early in the morning to do his shopping. The other customers come a bit later on. Nearly the whole neighborhood comes to my bakery to get their fresh bread every day. In Greece we love fresh bread and people buy lots of it. The best selling product is brown bread, especially the handmade one. It is made in a village stove and is sold very fast. I’ve got a big variety of bread. Some customers like smooth bread, white bread or toast bread. This is soft and suitable for the old who have a problem with their teeth! The fresh croissants vanish in a few hours, kids love them! I also bring some spinach and cheese pies every morning. Sometimes people want cakes with chocolate or fruit. The apple cake is my favorite. It comes from a village bakery, as well as other homemade cookies and ‘pasta flora’, which is Corfiot pastry filled with jam. At Easter, and then all the months that follow, I sell the traditional ‘fogatsa; which is a Corfiot sweet bread made from eggs, flour and masticha essence, and is puffy and sweet. It can be eaten at breakfast or for dessert at all times. I close the shop at 4 pm and I go home. I am exhausted by then, I only have something light to eat and go to bed to have a nap. At 6, I do my housework, see my mother and sleep, not later than ten. I sometimes watch some TV, but when I am very tired I just go to bed and sleep. On Saturdays I keep the shop open only till 2 at noon, and then I have a free weekend. But sometimes I have to open the shop in the afternoons to refill it with products. My husband helps whenever he can , but this is my bakery and I love it!”

Are you hungry?

You are tired of walking around the town, so now, the only thing you really want is to find a cosy place to sit down and have a delicious Corfiot meal. That’s easy! There are so many nice places around to have a rest and enjoy a fresh meal at any time of the day, or even at night! If you are downtown, near the square, the best place to stop by is a good taverna. You can have anything you like, from meat to fish and vegetables, but I suggest fresh fish, which is their specialty. So, the taverna is called BARBAS and is located at the PLATI KADOUNI area, which is a wide side street leading to the square. You can sit outside, under the plants or inside. See the top picture to get a taste of it. If you feel like drinking something cool or hot, find CHEVALIER café which is in the same area, PLATI KADOUNI. Cool bar with a cosmopolitan atmosphere, good for every taste. For a quick meal, why not try a pitta? Popular for all ages, this Greek take away is the perfect meal for hungry kids and …parents! You can get a pitta and go or sit at the pitta center at EMPORIKO, by the new port. You have a view to the sea and enjoy not only fresh pittas but ice cream as well! You see, you’ve got a lot of choice. You can find the right place for you and your family and enjoy a drink or a meal at reasonable prices. For more information about places to eat and drink, visit the following site and then click on the right red banner called: My Guide. http://www.aggelia-online.com/ Enjoy yourself!