Local recipies of Kefalonia

Despite its size Kithira island has many quality products like honey and oil.

Important local products

Fatourada

The well known traditional drink of Kithirians made of local tsipouro scented by mandarin skins and cinnamon. The name fatourada is of Italian origin and it means made, that is processed tsipouro (or raki) in which some ingredients are added.

Honey

One of the key traditional products of Kithira is thyme honey, famous for its quality and flavour.

Olive oil

Maybe the principal product of the island is olive oil. In the whole island there are endless olive groves of the Koroneiki variety which thrives on the island.

Wine

Another remarkable kithirian product is wine. The most common varieties are petrolanos, roditis and arikaras and its colour is usually while or rose.

Other local products are cheese, the famous rusks, pears of many varieties, traditional sweets and many herbs.

Recipes of Kythira

Mylos pastry

Ingredients:

For the filling:

• 170 gr. semolina
• 4 egg whites
• 700 gr sugar
• ½ kg almond, without skin and grated

Make them a homogenous mixture.

For the phyllo dough:

• 2 eggs
• 80 gr. butter
• sugar
• flour

For the crème:

• 1 kg milk
• 250 gr. semolina
• 500 gr sugar
• 2 eggs, and the 4 yolks remaining from the egg whites

Make the crème in a casserole over low heat.

Execution:

Make the phyllo dough and spread it in a baking pan. Then prepare a mixture with the crème and the filling. Pour the mixture over the phyllo. Put it in the oven and when it browns take it out. Garnish with vanilla (the sweet) dissolved in bain-marie.

Pumpkin pie with xinochondros

Ingredients:

• 1 kg pumpkin
• 1 cup xinochondros (a kind of trachanas)
• 2 cups water

For the dough:

• 5-6 eggs
• 5 cups flour
• ½ kg feta cheese
• 4 tablespoons oil
• 1 onion, a bit dry
• 1 glass water
• ½ cup oil
• Pepper

Execution:

Clean the pumpkin and grate it. Put xinochondros in the casserole with 2 glasses of water and boil it until it absorbs all the water.

Leave it to cool. In a bowl put the grated pumpkin, the grated feta cheese, the onion, after fine chopping it, and oil. Add xinochondros after mixing it with the eggs and stir.

Prepare the dough in a bowl. Flour, oil and water. Work them and roll out two phyllo doughs. And another one smaller. After oiling the baking pan and spreading in the first phyllo, pour over it half the filling. The put in the small phyllo and on top of it the rest filling. Put in the last phyllo an pour over it a mixture of one egg and ½ cup of oil. Cut it in pieces with a knife and bake it for an hour.

Fried louvia

Ingredients:

• 1 kg fresh broad beans (with their skin)
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup water
• salt
• oil

Execution:

Put in a pot water and salt. Pour in the broad beans and boil them for about 15 minutes. Then strain them in the strainer. Prepare a thick mixture with flour and water. Pour the broad beans in the mixture and one by one put them in hot oil and fry them.

Kithirian pudding

Ingredients:

• 5 cups milk
• 1 cup semolina
• 4 battered eggs
• 1.5 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup sultana raisins
• 1 cup clean coarsely chopped almonds

Execution:

Preheat the oven in 200ο C. Mildly heat the milk and pour in the semolina. Stir over low heat until the mixture thickens. Leave it to cool and then pour in the battered eggs and the rest ingredients. Put in a buttered vessel and bake for about one hour.

Fatourada

Ingredients:

• 1,300 gr. tsipouro
• 800 gr. water
• 800 gr sugar
• Skins of 6-8 mandarins
• Cinnamon, clove

Execution:

Put in a vase the tsipouro along with the mandarin skins and leave them for 7-10 days. Periodically shake the vase. In a small casserole pour the water with the sugar and make a syrup adding ground cinnamon and clove and stir well. Instead of syrup you may use honey.