348 : koulourakia

When I was younger and before my grandma's Alzheimer's paid it's toll, every year at Christmas we'd get a tin full of greek cookies, called Koulourakia. These ring shaped, slightly sweet cookies are so synonymous with my yiayia and are my most consistent childhood memory of Christmas.

It has been quite a few years since the passing of my grandma, and even longer since she last baked a tin. But last year I had a craving for these little guys and decided to hunt down the recipe...my little attempt at keeping a tradition alive, and hopefully bringing back some happy memories.

This year, I hemmed and hawed over whether to bake my little heart out or not (diets and tons o' butter/sugar don't mix well). But in the end, I decided I needed to. As I get older, I realize the importance of traditions, culture and family memories... of keeping memories of loved ones alive, and never forgetting who you are, where you came from, and the people that have been there and helped you along the way.

So, yiayia, these are for you.