Hi, my name is Donika! It is an Albanian name…as a kid I wasn’t too fond of it, as it was so different from everyone else at school, but now I love it…especially because it’s so different from everyone else. 🙂
When Feta met Olive…
Two of my favourite ingredients. Growing up, those two things were always at the table. My grandfather Haxhi (pronounced Hajji) loved feta cheese with watermelon and olives with bread, it was a staple food at our house. I don’t remember a time in my life where there wasn’t a big 3 litre bucket of feta cheese in the fridge, and a variety of olives on the table.
Now that you know where the name came from, I will tell you a little about myself.
I’m Canadian born and raised, with Albanian roots.
My mom’s side was in the restaurant business for a long time. There was a time when my grandmother Roubia was known as the best pizza and pie maker in the county. I am blessed that she taught me how to make both! I was still young when my grandparents closed down their last restaurant to retire, but my family continued working in the business. It has always been a dream of mine to continue that legacy, but until then I shall share my recipes from here.
The recipes I share on the blog are from a variety of cultures. First off the Albanian recipes come from my grandparents and my mom. Some recipes have a Macedonian flare as that is where my mom grew up. The Turkish inspiration comes from my husbands family and my grandfather, who specialized in Turkish delights and baklava.
My inspiration and love for Italian food comes from my Aunt Angela. The love for Middle Eastern food comes from my childhood, my Lebanese and Palestinian neighbours and friends. Of course we must not leave out my love for South Asian food, the many recipes I learned from different regions of Pakistan and India over the years. You will also find Canadian and or American recipes, mostly desserts, recipes I grew up with and others that I came up with over the years, that comes from, well, being Canadian eh!
Thanks to my friends over the years I have learned new techniques and recipes from around the world. My recipes have grown to be so bright, colourful and full of flavour. My recipes are unique as they are so different from one another. You will find a variety of recipes, I am always trying new things and mixing it up!
The best part of growing up in such a diverse city like Windsor, you grow up with different cultures and learn about different foods from around the world. I can go anywhere and find ingredients that I need for my dishes, it’s wonderful!
I started writing my recipes in 2008 on a food group on Facebook. It was just for fun and written quickly in the comment section that went along with a photo. It was a group effort. When I switched over to my blog in 2010 I just added those recipes with the same old photos, so many old posts are in need of updating, but you can see how far I’ve come from when I first started, especially with the photographs! I have you to thank for keeping me going and continuing in writing and sharing, and improving as a food blogger.
Thank you for your support, and I hope you enjoy your visit at When Feta met Olive.
~ Enjoy Your Meal – Ju Befte Mire – Afiyet Olsun – Bon Appetit ~
To contact me you can email me at whenfetametolive@hotmail.com.
hello new to your site and your pictures are beautiful, Dor sent me and told me to introduce myself. Well done for a lovely site