Warm September brings the fruit,
Sportsmen then begin to shoot.
September 14, the Day of the Holy Cross, is considered an important date for farming activities in Greece. The priest gives basil leaves to the faithful and farmers take a mixture of all the seeds they intend to sow, to have then blessed by the priest.
This is the time of the grape harvest and the best bunches are offered to St Riginos or to the dead. With the grape must, housewives make traditional 'moustocouloura' biscuits. They taste and smell a little like gingerbread, but they are cooked as a biscuit, even though they remain soft after being cooked; they are more like a crusted bun with a soft centre. They are very easy to make, but require quick work once the flour is added. The dough becomes stiff quite quickly, so it must be kneaded to a soft and pliable consistency, difficult when it contains no butter or margarine. These biscuits are made with olive oil, and they are classically used during a fasting period. They keep up to three weeks in an airtight container.
Moustalevria dessert made from grape must is probably one of the most ancient cooked desserts known in Greece. It is made with two main ingredients: grape must and flour. The addition of nuts, sesame seeds and cinnamon came along over time, making a more attractive sweet. This sweet was very important in ancient times, as it is a sweet produced at the end of summer, and can be eaten freshly cooked, or sun-dried and stored appropriately as a dry sweet (like a hard jelly) for the winter.
Moustalevria and moustokouloura are very important during fasting periods in the Greek Orthodox church, as they are made without butter, eggs and milk; they are some of the few sweets that can be eaten during this period, along with halva.
Public holidays in September:
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MANY YEARS! XRONIA POLLA! MANY YEARS! XRONIA POLLA!
Name Days in September:
(Where it is known, the meaning of the name is given in brackets)
September 1 Thaleia, Ourania, Xariklea (joyous bounty)
September 3 Arxondios, Erasmia
September 5 Zaxarias, Petros
September 6 Romulos
September 9 Theofanis (God's revelation)
September 11 Euavthia
September 12 Okeanos
September 13 Aristeidis
September 16 Eufymia
September 17 Eplis, Sofia
September 18 Ariadne
September 25 Eufrosini
September 20 Eustathios
September 23 Poluzeni
September 26 Ioannis