Greek fasting season - My favorite foods!

A lot of people are surprised when I tell them that I fast for 49 days before the Christian Orthodox Easter. They cannot imagine what just how many choices I have even though I do not eat any meat, milk products or fish with the exception of shellfish like shrimps, crabs, octopus and calamari. I therefore made a list with just some of my favorite foods during the fasting season since they are also suited for vegetarians just to give you all an idea! (Just a disclaimer: Photos are not mine!)

1. Veggie burger

I can keep it frozen and cook it in the oven in 20 minutes when I don't have time to cook anything else. All I need to do is buy myself a burger bun and add some ketchup!

2. Spaghetti with sauce in UNDER 7 minutes!

I fill the electric kettle with water. While it boils I get my pot, throw a vegetable stock cube in it and put it aside. I get my small frying pan, drizzle with oil and put it on the stove. While it gets hot I cut an onion and put the water from the kettle in the pot and add the spaghetti (which only need 5 minutes) and keep an eye on them stirring occasionally. In the meantime I add the onion and mushrooms to the pan (I buy them cut not whole to save time), and wait until they are softened. I add some tomato juice, stir, check the spaghetti  if they are cooked and once the sauce is hot and bubbling I serve them!

3. Vegetable soup.

I do this in the Thermomix in just 25 minutes and I just add croutons!

4. Falafel.

Also in the Thermomix but I can order them in restaurants as well!

5. Fried calamari.

6. Rice with shrimps.

Water, vegetable stock cube, shrimps and rice. Just boil them until cooked!

7. Avocado.

Peel the avocado, smash it with a fork, add lemon, salt and pepper and done! You can use it as a bread spread as well.

8. Salads.

My favorite is lettuce, pine nuts, dried figs, avocado and mushrooms.

9. Lentils - as we make them in Cyprus.

A fried onion, rice and lentils all cooked to perfection!

10. Sushi with shrimps and maki with avocado and cucumber!

Ordered in restaurants of course!!!

Should you buy a thermomix?

When I tell people that I own a thermomix I get mixed responses. Some people get excited and share their recipes or tips with me and some others look down to me as if I am cheating at cooking! And I believe that that is one of the main reasons that people don't like it, they feel that it takes away the "creativity" and hard-work of cooking. But why blame a product that does what it was made for? Of course it makes it easier for someone whose cooking skills are not so good to cook something that you could eat at a restaurant! And as for the "creative" factor once you get to know it and can improvise with it then you can be as creative with it! So here are my reasons why I love my thermomix:

1. Less things to wash!

If I make for example a soup with vegetables I will peel them, put them in the thermomix and it will cut them, boil them with rice and vegetable stock and if I want the soup to be veloute then it can do that as well. All these in the same bucket so I only have one thing to wash. If I was to do it in the traditional way I would have to peel them, use a grater or a mixer to cut them into smaller pieces, use a pot to cook them in and if I want a veloute soup use again a mixer to do so.

2. More time to do other things! 

If I am expecting guests to arrive or need to clean the house at the same time it really helps that I don't need to be constantly there stirring or tasting so I can have time to cook something else, set the table or clean the house while it does all the work!

3. I can cook difficult things easily!

So I may not be the most skilled cook! The thermomix can cook bechamel sauce, pork fillets with plums in honey sauce and nutella ice cream easily and I can serve them to my family and friends and enjoy a lovely meal! 

4. It can cook baby food.

I know a mother of two who uses it to cook for her kids homemade puree with meat and vegetable or apples. Much cheaper, has a lot of variety and is sure that all the ingredients are fresh and that there are no preservatives or sugar in them.

Blue - the Color Trend for 2015!

Spring is finally here and even though the weather isn't always sunny our mood definitely is! It is time therefore to make some changes in your decoration to reflect that mood! Get your inspiration from the following pictures!

Blue is gaining more and more fans right now! In fashion, denim is the biggest trend right now and it is only natural that this trend would be passed on to the furniture industry!

Since blue is a neutral color you can combine it with a number of colors and textures to achieve the look you want:

Happy decorating!!!!

Pallets and their uses!

For the past few years one of the main trends in furniture and interior design is the re-appropriation and recycling of things. Old carved chairs are painted in bright colors, wine glasses are turned into chandeliers and ladders used as bookcases!

Pallets are among the numerous things that fall under this category and the reasons that they are so popular are mainly because they are easy to find, cheap, of good quality (since they are solid wood and can be used outside) and versatile.

Here are a few examples of what they can be used for:

A christmas tree:

A corner sofa:

An armchair:

A coaster:

A lamp:

And of course the flower pot that my fiance made me in a previous article!!!

All it takes is some skill in crafting and a lot of imagination!

What bed size fits in your bedroom

The furniture industry lacks no imagination when it comes to design. So when it comes to choosing furniture for your house by going in to just one shop, the amount of options you have can be confusing. In this article I will explain to you what you should know before you make a decision!

First of all, you should measure your space both length and width. Take into consideration any doors either from the wardrobes, bathroom or entrance that need to have free space to open. Subtract those from the total size you have measured.

For example, in the following plan the bedroom is 4 m x 4 m but the wardrobe doors are 60 cm each so essentially the real space we have is 4 m x 3.40 m.

Once you have the "real" measurements it becomes easier for the sales assistant or you to make a decision for a bed. The nightstands are usually between 40-60 cm in width. The beds also come in many sizes so if you want a double one the choices you have for the mattress are:

140 x 200 cm - Perfect for a guest room or 1 person. For 2 people it might be too small.

152 or 160 x 200 cm - Most common double bed sizes. Ideal for 2 people.

180 x 200 cm - Great for two people when one or both is tall and wide, or they just like to have their own space!

What you should know however when you see a bed that you like is the actual size not of the mattress but of the furniture itself. There are beds that look like this:

(Naia bed truffle color by tvilum)

And there are beds that look like this:

(Diana bed by IdDesign)

So when you find the bed of your dreams just by having measured your space you know if it fits. In our case for example if we want the bed to be opposite the wardrobe then we can have 2 nightstands 50 cm each, a bed with a mattress 160 x 200 cm (if it's like the one on the first picture then its size is 168 x 208 cm. So in total we need 268 cm in width and 208 in length. 

You can also have a bigger bed just keep in mind that you need to have minimum 50 cm corridor on each side of the bed as well as 60 cm in front of the bed.

Additionally if you want to have a chest of drawers or a dressing table here is what you need to calculate:

For the chest of drawers: Apart from the width, you also need to know its depth. If for example the depth is 50 cm then you need extra 50 cm for when you open the drawers and an additional 40 cm to stand in front of it. So in the above case you could have the chest of drawers on the walls either left or right of the bed. 

For the dressing table you need again its width and depth in case it has any drawers. If however you do not have much space for one then here you will find a solution! 

Kitchen design Ideas - What you should know

When building or renovating a house or a flat there are so many things that you need to oversee and choose that it can be overwhelming. The kitchen is one of them and unfortunately there are many people out there designing houses and kitchens that it can be hard to find a good one. In this article (with help from George who has a lot of experience in designing kitchens) I am giving you some helpful tips on what to look for when someone hands you a design of your kitchen:

1. Keep your friends close and your appliances closer!

(photo source here)

Make sure that your basic appliances for cooking are all in the same area. These include the oven, the stove, fridge or even a thermomix. It will be more convenient this way when you cook.

2. Up and above(n)!

(photo source here)

If possible make sure that the oven is above the ground facing you. It therefore becomes much easier to put in or take out the food or check it while it is being cooked.

3. Drawing Under!!

(photo source here)

Following step number 2, it is also helpful to have drawers underneath the oven and the stove to keep all the essentials needed close to you!

3. Hide and don't see(k)!

For all the other small appliances  like a hand mixer, teapot, grills or toaster it is nice to have them behind a shutter so that you can pull it and hide them behind it. You can also store the sugar, tea and coffee if you use them often.

4. The pantry drawer (out of puns!)

(photo source here)

Your food / spices / sauces etc needs to be very organized so you can keep track of it and know what to shop and what has expired. For that reason a pantry drawer is necessary!

5. Give me some space!

Last but not least what you must remember is to always leave around 80-90 cm space between the counters themselves or them and the island or table. You need it to move around freely, open the cabinets or pull out the drawers.

Here is a kitchen designed by George for a couple's house:

So remember that you need to take into account all of the above when deciding your kitchen! It's not only the design but the practicality of it!

Clever ways for extra storage space in the house

There are houses which are too small. And there are also people who have too many things! Imagine those two combined! Truth is that we never seem to have enough storage space no matter what! Clothes, books, accessories, kitchen and bath stuff they all take some space. Here are a few ways to have extra space in your house:

1. A coffee table with storage space.

(Soley coffee table from Actona company)

(Supper coffee table by Ducal)

The last one is the one I have in my living room but in white color:

Whether it has a lift top or just a drawer having a coffee table that you can store items like magazines, books, controls, cd's or even coasters for the drinks it can be very helpful. Especially of you have unexpected guests and just want to look tidy within 3 seconds!

2. A narrow and tall chest of drawers in the bathroom:

(Buffer chest by Tvilum)

In the flat I live in there is only one bathroom and literally no storage space. It doesn't even have a cupboard under the sink! So we got ourselves a chest of drawers that is 116 cm height, 40 cm width and 50 cm depth. With 5 drawers, 4 of which very deep it has helped a lot.

The first drawer is our "pharmacy". Pain killers, sore throat sprays etc... In the second we keep all the shampoos, shower gels and "lady's stuff". The third and fourth keep our hand and bath towels respectively whereas the last but not least has our toilet papers which are a lot thanks to my mother-in-law who keeps providing us!!!

3. Stools with storage space.

These stools are convenient for 3 main reasons: they can be used in all sorts of rooms from the living room to the bedroom, they can store cushions, blankets or anything else you don't want lying around AND they are light to carry around so you can move them easily from one place to another!

You can also read here the article on how to organize your wardrobe to save space!