Biloxi’s Greek festival has Christmas treats and pastries that sell out quickly

Trinity Greek Orthodox Church puts the merry in Christmas with its annual International Christmas Festival with plenty of merry-making, dancing, music, Greek and Russian foods and pastries. The fun will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 14, at the church, 255 Beauvoir Road, Biloxi.

Women and men of the church have been baking and cooking for weeks to get ready for the gastronomical feast.

The fun never stops (even at last year’s event with its deluge of rain). Greek dancers and singers come from New York, Birmingham and Mobile, and New Orleans, plus attendees can join in the line dances. All law enforcement officers, military and first responders will be honored as well as offered lunch or dinner discounts.

While the dancing and singing is fun, the pastries and food take center stage.

Pastries do sell out quickly, so George Yurchak suggests placing pastry orders in advance by calling him at 228-860-3376, emailing him at georgeyurchak@yahoo.com or go to Holy Trinity’s web page, www.holytrinitybiloxi.org. The site is easy to navigate. Orders may be picked up from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday.

The Greek pastries are worth every calorie. Back as favorites are the almond cookies; baklava; kourambiedes, covered in powdered sugar; koulourakia, a buttery twist cookie that makes a good dipper for coffee or tea; and finekia, a cookie made with almond meal, nuts and cinnamon. Not to be forgotten is the ouzo cake; Greek cannoli tsoureki, Greek sweet almond bread; and tiramisu. Russian and Ukrainian include lekvar, plum roll; cognac cake, rye bread, vareniki, potato and cheese pierogies. Two offerings from Hungary are makos beigli, poppy seed rolls, and Dios beigli, walnut roll.

For those who prefer savory treats, there will be spanakopita or spinach pies and tyropita, cheese pies.

All of this is just the tip of the food feast. In addition to the sweet and savory treats are Romanian sausage, stuffed cabbages, sauerkraut and kielbasa, Hungarian goulash and, of course, gyros, dolmades and other Greek foods.

Both the late Helen Taylor and the late Irene Stevens used to tell me that the Greek pastries and food take practice to get just right.

Stevens said, “The koulourakia look like a simple cookie, but they are harder to make than they look.”

I have the recipe from the church’s cookbook, “Family Traditions,” a treasure for cookbook collectors.

Food is front and center, but kids are not forgotten. Santa and Mrs. Claus will make appearances, and parents or grandparents can take free pictures of their children with the Clauses. Kids will also get free hot chocolate and a candy cane. An inflatable climbing wall and 17-foot slide will be set up. Copycats Face Painting will be turning faces into fanciful designs and characters.

Performing will be The Victory Belles of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. Nick Trivelas will be back on the bouzouki and will be joined by Megan Jensen singing traditional Greek songs. Jensen also will sing selections from “Mama Mia.”

New to the festival will be 14-year-old Ukrainian singer Polina. The Fasebi Dance Ensemble comes to the Cost from New York City. Back again will be the Greek Kefi Dancers from Birmingham and Gulf Coast Hellenic Greek and Ukrainian folk dances.

Readers who want to try their hands at two Greek cookies, here are the recipes.

FINEKIA

8 ounces Crisco oil

1/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup water, mixed together

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon cloves

1/2 teaspoon walnuts, ground

1 1/2 pounds flour

12 ounces honey

8 ounces water

10 teaspoons sugar

Ground pecans

Combine oil, orange juice, 1/4 cup sugar and water mixture, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves and walnuts and mix well.

Slowly add flour. Work it until you get a smooth dough to form cookies. Get a little dough, flatten in your hand and then roll it. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-35 minutes. Set aside and let cool. To make syrup for dipping combine honey, 8 ounces water and 10 teaspoons sugar and boil for 10 minutes. Dip cookies in syrup and sprinkle with ground pecans.

— Libby Marodis from “Family Traditions”

KOULOURAKIA

1 pound sweet butter, softened

2 1/2 cups sugar

8 eggs

1/2 cup orange juice or milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

8 to 9 cups flour

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well. Add vanilla, orange juice or milk, baking powder, baking soda, mixing well. Add flour, mixing with your hands, until dough is well mixed but not too hard. For each cookie, use a walnut-sized portion of dough and roll it into a rope shape about 6 inches long. Fold rope in half then twist each half together. Pinch ends. Place on baking sheet. Repeat until all the dough is used. Brush each cookie with an egg wash and baking for 40-45 minutes in a 350-degree oven.

— Nicoletta Conner from “Family Traditions”

This story was originally published December 8, 2019 at 5:00 AM.