Baklava
My Favorite Dessert - Cathy Riley
It seems Greek to me!
This famous Greek dessert describes who I am. I do not have any Greek ancestory, a lot of what I learn initially seems very Greek. The idiom - "it seems Greek to me" is when you don't know what a word means and you guess that it is Greek because most words relate all the way back to Greece. As a lifelong learner I like to be able to find answers to questions or concepts so therefore I am always learning. In the words of the famous Greek philospher, Pythagoras, I like to "choose what seems best, however rough it may be." Selecting Baklava as a dessert, there is a balance in working with the 3 main parts - the filling, syrup, and phlyo dough. It can be a challenge forming the right mix and consistency. If there is too much filling, and not enough syrup to hold the ingredients together, the baklava can fall apart and become a mess. Working with the layers of phyllo dough is tricky, because it is very thin, and can break easily. One can't take the phyllo dough for granted as it is an ingredient that is not always available. My similarities are that I try to balance my time between students and colleagues, friends and family. The students and colleagues are my filling, my friends are the syrup and my family is the layers that guide me on my values and decisions in what I like to do.
Lots of Calories - Rich tasting - Can Never have enough
For the filling
I blend with a lot of different ingredients.As a teacher and working with exceptional students, there is a variety of nuts, sugar, crumbs, cinnamon, and clove. They all blend together to learn. I enjoy the combination of sweet and salty. Just like my students I can be pleasing and sweet, but prefer the salty and nutty taste. I think the same holds true with my colleagues. I work with a variety of people, but the blend of all these ingredients fulfills me! Overall, I would rather have nuts than chocolate! The nuts make me laugh!
The Syrup
The syrup holds the filling together. It is a combination of sugar, water, cinamon, honey, and a squeeze of lemon. The syrup is my friends and activities that I enjoy to be with. While I believe that you can catch more flies with honey, this mixture is what sticks it together. While a zest of lemon can cause me to be a sucker, and if overused it can leave a sour taste. The sweet and sour combination turns into Love! Afterall, opposites attract.
The Layers
There are 10 layers of thin phyllo dough that is used to create the crunchy outside of this dessert. Each layer is coated in butter,then the filling, then the syrup is sprinkled. The layers are my family, and they hold me together. This process is repeated and is the bond that makes this dessert. When making this dessert one must learn to be patient with every layer. While I have a lot of layers, as you bite into this yummy dessert, the layers hold the filling and syrup together. It creates a trilogy for me, as I like to Laugh, Love, and Learn.
Baking requires Time
The final step is to bake the Baklava. For it to be golden brown, time is involved. One must learn to balance the temperature and the time, to produce this final product. I have always thought that time is precious, and you must watch it carefully and wisely. If you spend too much time on something, you can get burned! When baking the baklava, be careful that your oven is not too hot, and that you have spent just the right amount of time in the oven. If you do this, your results will be golden!
Pythagoras was Greek! A little bit about me -
The only Greek connection I have, is that I like math! I am an Interrelated Resource Teacher at Haynes Bridge Middles School. I am the department chair for Special Education. I co - teach 8th Grade Math and a resource class. I also co teach 8th grade Physical Science. I am married to a nut, Kevin, and our three children fill me with Love along with our two dogs. I enjoy the outdoors, both the heat and the cold. Like the phyllo dough in baklava, I have experienced many layers of education, but it relates to my family. My mother was a school nurse, and my father a chemist. I have three "rich" brothers. One named Rich, one lived in Rich-mond, and one is Rich!
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