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STOCKTON — When faced with the impossible decision whether to select the almond baklava or the walnut baklava, the best decision is — choose both.
That’s the kind of advice being offered Sunday on the third and final day of the annual St. Basil Greek Festival at the church along West March Lane in north Stockton.
The long-established community festival, celebrating its 60th year, benefits Stockton’s Greek Orthodox Church and the many programs it supports. The church itself will be recognizing its 90th year in Stockton in 2020.
“We love the community,” said the Rev. Pete Sotiras, pastor at St. Basil the past seven years, as he greeted folks at the festival entrance Sunday.
And it’s obvious the community loves St. Basil, based on the crowds all three days who can’t get enough gyros, keftethes, spanakopita and, yes, kourabiethes and any variety of baklava. Anyone who leaves the festival hungry just doesn’t get it.
“We come every year for the food,” Stockton teacher Lisa Maldonado-Meek said as she set off with her family to enjoy the day.
Bill Bestolarides was supervising one of the busiest food stands, offering savory pasta and Greek-marinated tri-tip. The secret to the pasta, he explained, is what it goes through after it’s already cooked. Using a hot cast-iron pan on an open flame, start with a half-pound of butter cooked until it just starts to burn, then add the spaghetti pasta and fry that up until it just starts to burn. Remove from the heat, saturate in parmesan and mizithra goat cheese, and serve.
“We go through about 15 pots of pasta an hour during the entire festival,” said Bestolarides, assisted Sunday by his family, co-cook Kenny Carrillo, and about 10 students from Lincoln High School who volunteered for community service credit.
In addition to the food, there was traditional Greek dancing, live music by Mythos and Sparkles the Clown & Ravioli for the kids.
Sotiras took interested parties on a tour of the church itself, giving the annual festival credit for attracting new members to the parish.
“The festival is really important for exposing people to orthodox Christianity and teaching them about our faith,” Sotiras said. “It’s a great outreach opportunity.”
Contact reporter Joe Goldeen at (209) 546-8278 or jgoldeen@recordnet.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoeGoldeen.
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