KROKOS,KOZANIGREECE

INTRODUCTION Hello!We are Dimitra,Evelyn,Maria,Eri

and Maria.We are in the 1st class of Junior

High School.We are from Greece.The name of our village is Krokos.It is situated in West Macedonia,near the city of Kozani.

OUR VILLAGE There are 5.000 people in our

village.Around the village there are a lot of mountains and the countryside is very beautiful.The people of Krokos live in houses with gardens and there aren’t any blocks of flats.

There are two Primary Schools and one Junior High School in our village.In the middle of the village there is the central square with a lot of small shops and cafés where people spend their time shopping and drinking Greek coffee.The big church of St.Nikolaos stands nearby and it looks spectacular.There are also a lot of small churches all around the village with which people honour their religion.

St. Paraskevi’s church St. Nikolaos church

St.Paraskevi’s park 1st Primary school

Our school The central square

In our village there is a Cultural Association which promotes culture and arts with the Dancing Club, the Drama Club,the Choir, the Music Club and the Folklore Club. A lot of people take part and organize a lot of festivals, concerts, contests. Our Dancing group was also awarded 1st prize in Romania’s European dancing contest in 2014.

Dancing club Choir

Folkrore club Music club

PEOPLE The residents of Krokos are hard

working, hospitable, friendly and very modern.They lead a rural life and they are mainly traditional people.Most of them grow and produce the famous “ crocus” or “saffron”.

Saffron cultivation Traditional celebration

SAFFRON It is called the Gold of Greek Earth and was among

the most popular and valuable spices of ancient civilizations for its flavour,colour pharmaceutical and aphrodisiac properties.The people plant saffron every summer and when autumn comes they harvest the precious flowers and they carefully separate the purple petals of the flower so they can take the delicate stamens and stigmas. After drying and sorting out the yellow stamens from the deep red stigmas nearly 50.000 stigmas are needed in order to produce 100 gr of red saffron.The Greek saffron belongs to the highest quality of saffron in the world.Our village was named after all “Krokos” because of this famous flower.

Harvesting saffron Sorting out

Red stigmas Saffron products

TIPS AND RECIPES Krokos Kozanis saffron gives to dishes a

delicate aroma,a subtle spicy flavour and a beautiful yellow colour.It goes perfectly with rice,pasta,sauses,chicken,fish soups,lamb,potatoes,bread and cakes,even ice-cream!Using Krokos Kozanis saffron is like using an expensive perfume;a little bit has an amazing effect,so it should be used sparingly,in the quantity stated in each recipe.

RECIPE:POTATOES WITH KROKOS KOZANIS (SAFFRON) AND GARLIC

INGREDIENTS1. A large pinch of Krokos Kozanis

(saffron) in stigmas2. 600ml hot vegetables broth3. 12 medium sized potatoes4. 4 tablespoons olive oil5. 2 chopped garlic cloves6. Salt and freshly ground pepper

INSTRUCTIONS Preheat the oven to 190 C.Soak the

stigmas in 2 tablespoons of broth for 10 minutes and then add the rest of the broth.Put the potatoes,chopped,in a baking dish.Add the oil,the garlic,some rosemary,salt and pepper and pour in the hot broth.Roast for 1-1 ½ hour,pouring broth from time to time until it absorbs the juices and the potatoes are crispy.Salt and serve at once.

Thank you for watching our small presentation of ourselves, our village and our life.We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did when we prepared it.You are welcome to visit us any time in the future.It will be our pleasure.