Lemon & Olives Turns 3

This is a very special day for both Jane and I. Lemon & Olives turns 3 years old today!

Neither of us can even begin to comprehend that fact. 3 years. Wow.

What started as a personal project we wanted to do, documenting family recipes and exploring one’s roots, has turned into something so much more. We’ve heard from so many people who share our love for Greek food and their stories…the stories have been our favorite part.

Food is a powerful thing. It not only brings people together, but it also encapsulates memories that often seem forgotten until we smell or taste a dish. When that happens, we’re transported back in time. Maybe we’re reminiscing about a conversation we had with a relative who is no longer with us, or of a significant celebration, or that one family christmas where someone had too much ouzo and decided it was the perfect time to explain why democrats belong in the white house…

Where we end up with our thoughts doesn’t matter, it’s the nostalgia that overcomes us that’s the true treasure. It’s something no one can take away and with every bite of baklava, we can smile with our thoughts.

That’s what this Greek food blog has taught Jane and I. The Lemon & Olives community is just that – a community. Maybe you found us because you married a Greek. Maybe Google brought you here because you just love Greek food. Or if you’re like me, you’re interested in learning more about your roots and recreating family recipes. Whatever it may be, we’re glad you’re here. The bond we have through Greek food is something special and we love it.

So as we turn 3 this year, we’d ask that you create your favorite Greek dish and share it with your family/closest friends. Create memories that will be tied to a dish for the rest of your life. Either introduce people to this amazing cuisine, or if you’re a Greek household, simply enjoy a traditional dinner, something yia yia would be proud of.

Now, onto our little survey.

Survey Results

As you may recall, we posted a survey asking all of you amazing fellow Greek food lovers for your input. The exact question being:

Are you interested in seeing a wider variety of Mediterranean recipes as well as read tips about how to live a healthy lifestyle using the Mediterranean diet ?

We were happy to see over 500 people partake in this and we got some really great feedback!

We received 75.4% in favor of expanding to other recipes, 21.3% wanted to stay Greek focused, and 3.3% were listed as other. For the latter, 2% went to yes, and the remaining to no.

Thus, both Jane and I thought, perfect, we know most people want to see other recipes. However, we then begin to read what all of you had written in addition to your answer. In all, over 200 people had something to say.

This is where things got interesting.

It seems that most of you who voted “Yes” actually wanted us to stay Greek focused, but add in healthy Mediterranean tips here and there. Overall, you wanted us to stay Greek focused while learning more about the Mediterranean lifestyle.

For the ones who had voted “No,” there were some very interesting and compelling reasons as to why we shouldn’t stray. However, overall, the No’s also said they wanted to see how to follow a Med lifestyle but keep it via a path of Greek food.

So, we had to decipher everything.

The Results

We’ve decided to expand a bit, but not so much with recipes from other Mediterranean areas, but rather with how one can follow a healthy Mediterranean lifestyle diet with Greek cuisine. Moving forward, we’re going to focus more on the healthy aspect of what eating Greek food has to offer and how it ties into a healthy life.

We’re going to start doing Lemon & Olives Mediterranean Monday’s (#LOmedmondays), where we’ll share a healthy Greek dish, along with how it fits into a healthy Mediterranean diet lifestyle and or other Mediterranean lifestyle tips. We will remain recipe focused with health tips sprinkled in.

We feel this is the best course of action given all of your wonderful comments and votes. Additionally, we’ll highlight other Mediterranean dishes in our recipe posts so you can get an idea of similar dishes across the Mediterranean region. For example, if we show you the delicious Cretan Dakos we’ll also mention something like Italian Bruschetta.

Overall, Greek food is so much more than what you’d experience at a Greek festival.

We’re going to show you how to follow a healthy Mediterranean diet lifestyle, which is proven to be one of the best in the world, with a focus on Greek food.

The Winner

What we did is take everyone’s email and enter it into Random.ORG. This site will take a list and randomize it. We simply picked the person whose email came up as #1.

The winner is one of our faithful participants…Kathy!! Congrats!! We’ll be sending you an email to the address you’ve provided. Thank you for taking the time to chime in on our survey and share your valued thoughts. We’re celebrating for you today with a glass of Metaxa! Opa!

What’s Next

Well, we’re working hard on fixing our eCookBook: Cooking Like A Greek.

Version 2 is coming soon. It will be adding meal plans, shopping lists, and a few other features to help focus you towards a healthy and planned out lifestyle. Very important for those who are looking to either follow the doctor’s orders or navigate through a busy week. Most importantly, we’ll be fixing all those lovely spelling mistakes 🙂

We’re also going to be changing the format of it and making it look pretty, so we’re very excited about all that. This is coming to you from us taking the time to learn new programs and software that help make eBooks like ours very user friendly. We’re trying to expand our skills while serving all of you in the best way possible. 🙂

We’ve also got a few other product ideas we’re kicking around, so stay tuned for that!

Additionally, we’re going to be adding some things people requested: Greek vegetarian recipes, Greek gluten free recipes, Greek regional recipes and Greek holiday recipes!!

Overall, we’re excited to start on year #4 and provide not only delicious Greek recipes, but also highlight how valuable the Mediterranean diet lifestyle is and how simple it is to follow.

I’ll leave you with our new motto:

Lemon & Olives is a Greek food blog dedicated to providing delicious recipes and healthy Mediterranean lifestyle tips

Thanks for reading all of this!

– Kenton & Jane

PS. To get all the latest and stay informed of what’s going on with Lemon & Olives (new recipes, contests, feedback, etc.,) make sure you sign up for our newsletter below!