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​Cretan Nutrition​

Crete has produced olives and olive oil since 2.800 B.C. The olive oil produced in Crete and in certain areas of the Hania Prefecture in particular, is still of the same quality as it has been for many years. This is mainly due to the geology of the land, which is poor in organic substances and calcium. Therefore, the olive oil produced in this area has a special, mature and aromatic flavor and can be eaten both raw and cooked.
The varieties of the olive trees are lianolia and tsunati. The olive oil produced in Hania is virgin, has a dark golden-green color, a full taste and pleasant flavor, and is also of high density and low acidity. It is used both in cooking and in the preparation of sweets, replacing the various butters of animal origin and the “vegetable” margarine. Its’ consumption contributes to maintaining good health.

Olive Oil

The difference between Cretan cuisine and nu- trition and that found in other parts of Greece can be attributed to many different factors:


1. Consumption of many raw vegetables and greens (artichokes, stamnagathi, glistrida etc.) with lots of olive oil and lemon juice but also boiled, cooked. Greens can be eaten dried in the wintertime.


2. The extensive use of olive oil (raw, cooked and even used in sweets).


3. The consumption of all types of rusks either on their own or with grated tomatoes and mizithra cheese (dakos).


4. The mix of "cuisines" from the different in- vaders (Romans, Byzantines, Saracens, Vene- tians, Turks, Italians, English, French...) com- bined with the imagination of the Cretan women created delicious dishes. It is mainly the Venetian influence that acquainted the Cretans with the nutritional habits of other countries.


5. The Cretan cuisine today is at times simple and at other times complicated as a result of the cultural interactions we have mentioned. However, it is always extremely in- novative and imaginative. The Cretans do not want to eat the same food every day or even twice a day. Therefore, through varia- tions that do not offend the palate for example they may have chickpeas for lunch and in the evening with the addition of rice make chickpea rice. Vegetables and greens, raw, cooked, boiled or with meat, or in pies never have exactly the same taste.
To sum it up, we would say that Cretan cuisine is characterized by the intensity and unique- ness of it's tastes, the exclusive use of virgin olive oil and the plethora of fresh vegetables that cannot be found in other parts of Greece (stamnagathi, askrolibri, a sort of onion 'bolbi', wild asparagus, wild mushrooms etc.). The meat used is almost exclusively produced on the island and is mainly goat, lamb, rabbit, and poultry, as the production in beef and pork is very small. Seafood is abundant (how- ever no oysters, clams etc.) and are eaten in the traditional Greek way, that is fried, grilled, cooked in the oven and made into soups.

​Anthotyros xeros 
When anthotyros is dried you get anthotyros xeros. While drying it is heavily salted and therefore it is rather salty. It is a wonderful cheese, eaten plain as well as grated over pasta. It can also be turned into the delicious ladotyri (cut in cubes and packed in olive oil).

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Anthotyros
It is made of either sheep or goat's milk. It is a very tasty, soft, sweet, white cheese. Since it is not rich in fat, it is very healthy. It is eaten in the same way as myzithra. Myzithra glykia (sweet myzithra) It is made of either sheep or goat's milk (sometimes mixed as well). The best myzithra comes from goat's milk. It is delicious and light.

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Xynomyzithra 
It is made of either sheep or goat's milk (sometimes a combination of both). It is an excellent kind of cheese, very tasty but rather rich in fat. Both cheeses are eaten in numerous ways, for example; plain, or with paximadi (hard bread) in salads or as a filling in kaltsounia (traditional cheese pies) etc.

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Graviera (gruyere)
It is made of sheep's milk or mixed with goat's milk. We should say that it is not only famous locally but internationally as well.

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Kephalograviera
It is made exactly the same way as graviera however kephalograviera is aged more and therefore it is more salty (due to the larger quantity of salt it has absorbed). Of course, the quality remains the same.

​Stakovoutyro
It is made from staka when it is processed and of course, it is equally as rich. See our recipe section about its use.​

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Feta
Although a typical Greek cheese it cannot be classified as a traditional product of West- ern Crete as its production started only re- cently here. It is made from sheep’s or goat's milk or a mixture of both​

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Traditional Yogurt
It is made of top quality sheep’s milk hours fresh and because of this yaourti has a high content of fresh milk fat that makes it delicious.​

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Ladotiri
Any cheese like graviera, kephalograviera or anthotyros xeros can be turned into ladotyri provided it is aged and dried for over a year. It is then cut into cubes and packed in virgin olive oil. This very old process originated in harsh times, when refrigeration was not available.​

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Staka or Anthogalo
It is the cream of the milk, the first product of the milk process. When beaten, we get fresh butter and naturally, it has a high fat content.​

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Malaka or Tyromalaka
It is a fresh cheese (tyromaza) and is used as a filling in kaltsounia.

Cheese

Cretan Rusk

Crete is a mountainous island and its’ economy was mainly dependant on stock-breeding and agriculture. The lifestyle of the Cretan people was hard, yet fully adapted to the island’s geological and financial framework. Therefore, the general conditions, the products available on the island and the geological difficulties combined to create special nutritional habits adapted to the needs and capabilities of the Cretan people. One of these habits and probably the most characteristic in Crete is the Rusk. It was created due to the need, of stock-breeders in particular, to eat bread that would be kept in good condition and would be tasty and nutritious at the same time. Therefore, the Cretan Rusk became an inseparable friend for all those who had to be away from home for long periods. Due to its particularly good taste and the many varieties that were created over time, the Rusk can always be found on the Cretan table alongside the bread and has taken a special place in all the social and festive events of the island’s residents. There are many varieties of rusks that have many similarities, such as the cereals they are made of, their dry, hard, harsh texture, the fact that they are extremely tasty and easy to digest and above all their origin, to which they owe their name = Cretan Rusk. We have the following rusks: uhoriatika and eftazima, the barley, wheat and rye rusks, the sweet rusks and the very special “bookies” (bites) with their pleasant, neutral taste - a fine sweet which is ideal for accompanying tea and coffee. A first-class Cretan rusk is the rusk called Eftazimo, which is made of chickpeas wheaten flour, salt, pepper, red peppers and bay leaves. It has a very special taste a bright yellow color, it is very tasty and can be found in many shapes and sizes, the most common being the square one. It is a traditional product, exclusively made in Crete and is considered to be a formal bread and is offered at weddings and important celebrations.

Cretan Honey

The honey produced in Crete is golden, almost amber, of very good quality and without foreign additives. The bees are fed on thyme and other fine Cretan aromatic herbs (found in the Cretan Madares, Omalos and elsewhere), and coniferous trees resulting in a honey that has a pleasant and subtle scent, a rich flavor and therapeutic qualities. It is eaten raw and is also used in pastry-making and cooking. It should be noted that it is ideal for our constitution. If we eat a spoonful of honey first thing in the morning and then drink a glass of water it will activate our metabolism and is also beneficial for the stomach and the nerves.

Aromatic Herbs

DENTROLIVANO Called rosemary, its’ Latin name is Rosmarinus officiualis, and belongs to the family of Labiatae. It is an evergreen plant, bushy of dark green color, with dense, very thin, lance-shaped leaves and a very pleasant scent. It is self-sown, grows all over Crete and has been known in Greece since antiquity. It can be used fresh or dry, in sauces made for seafood and fish, and as a beverage. Also used in the pharmaceutical industry as it has healing properties (weakness, insomnia, indigestion, alopecia, hysteria, cellulite).


SAGE (FASKOMILO) It is a self-sown bush, with lance-shaped, saw-like, leaves, which have an ashen- green color and strong scent. It flowers at the end of spring and its flowers are whitish and cluster-shaped. The word itself (sfakos + milea) is of ancient origin. It is mainly used as a beverage, either alone or with malotira and dittany. When cooking braised meat, red sauces or vegetable dishes, add only 1-2 leaves of sage because it has a very strong flavor. It mainly is a pharmaceutical herb and warming beverage. By distilling it, you can make an essential oil useful in pharmaceuticals and soap making.


DITTANY (DIKTAMO or EROTAS) The ancient Greeks named it “artemidion”, since it was Artemis’ gift to them, to cure the wounds that she sometimes carelessly made with her arrows. It is one of the most important healing herbs of antiquity - the plant was named “diktamnon” of the Dikti mountains - since it was considered to beacure for most illnesses. The words diktamo or erontas, stamatohorto, livanohorto and many other synonyms are used to name this rare aromatic plant that only grows in Crete, usually at great heights and on steep cliffs. It is a perennial, self-sown moss and has three varieties, according to the size of its leaves: narrow-leafed, broad-leafed and medi- um-leafed. Used as a beverage, either alone or with sage and malotira. Two or three leaves are enough for one cup; any more would make the beverage slightly bitter. It is a toning and refreshing beverage, ideal for cold winter nights. It has toning, stimulating and healing properties. Erotas is used to make a stimulating drink. Put 30 gr. of this herb in 1 liter of white wine, soak it for 2 weeks, and drink one water glass of the mixture daily, for 1 week. Avoid long- standing use. Pregnant women should not use it since it has abortive properties.


MALOTIRA Malotira or Malothira is mossy, bushy and brushwood-like plant that grows in mountain areas. You can drink it as a beverage on its own with honey or combined with other herbs (sage, dittany).


LOUISA Louisa with the characteristic smell of lemon. The plant comes from America but has completely acclimatized in Greece. It is a bush that can also grow to a small tree depending on how it is pruned; it sheds its leaves in the winter. The flowers grow in bunches, sometimes to the top of the plant. The gathering of the leaves, sprouts, and flowers is done in the summer. All parts of the plant are used in healing. You can make a beverage from the leaves (10- 20 gr. to a liter of water), which is toning, a remedy for fever, soothes the bronchial tube and the nasal passages, good for perspiring, can be used as diuretic, helps stop diarrhea and bleeding. Used as a poultice it is good for pains in the nerves, headaches and for pain in the ears. The oil is used by industry in several ways (perfumery, confectionery, distillery etc.).

Crete is one of the special wine-producing areas in Greece. It has been known in the west for this very attribute. Crete’s climatic and geological conditions give the island the opportunity to make a name for itself as a wine producing area both in Greece and abroad. Apart from olive oil, wine can constitute an important export product in turn. Besides, the oldest wine-press / wine-factory in the world, dating back to the end of the Minoan period, was discovered in Crete or Candia in the region of Archanes. According to Sir Arthur Evans who carried out excavations in Crete, it was the time when Cree first started producing wine (after a beer tradition). All this is also corroborated by the deciphering of the Linear B Writing of the Mycenaean era, which confirms the existence of vine arbors in Crete at the time. Moreover, Crete constituted a bridge between the East and the West as far as viticulture is concerned. The route followed was Caucasus – Syria – Palestine – Egypt, and the Minoan navigators of Crete transported the wine to the rest of Greece and to the southern shores of Italy. Today, there are more than 20 varieties of Greek grapes in Crete, among which are the red and white varieties.

 

Wines

 

RED GRAPE VARIETIES​

Tsardana – grown in Hania and Rethym- non, but only occasionally.

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Akominato – grown in Hania and Herak- lion.


Kotsifali – mainly grown in Heraklion.

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Mantilari – originally grown in the Cycladic islands and Rhodes and later in Crete. Its cultivation reached to Macedonia.

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Liatiko – grown in Heraklion, Lasithi, Hania, Rethymnon. Also, called ‘Liatis’ or ‘Mavroliatis’.


Voidomatis – (Voudomato, Vouvalas), sparsely grown in Lasithi, Hania, and also in other areas of the Aegean Sea.

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Gemira – (Gemero), sparsely grown in Hania.


Ladikino – grown in Lasithi and Heraklion.

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Black Muscat – grown all over Crete and also in Cycladic Islands, the Peloponese and Corfu.



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WHITE GRAPE VARIETIES
Vilana – grown in Heraklion, Lasithi and occasionally in Hania and Rethymnon.

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Thrapsathiri – grown all over Crete and in the Cycladic Islands. Clone of the “Athiri” grape variety of Santorini.


White Muscat – grown all over Crete and in other areas of the world.

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Valaitis (Ambelitis) – grown in Rethymnon, Hania, Gytheio and Argos.


Vidiano – grown in Rethymnon (Mylopota- mos), and occasionally in Heraklion.

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Dafni – grown in Lasitihi, Heraklion. It is characterized by its aroma reminiscent of bay leaves (dafni).


Dermatas – occasionally grown in Rethymnon.

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Romeiko (Mavroromeiko) – grown in Hania, Rethymnon and occasionally in the Cycladic islands. It is a characteristic wine of Hania. The following international wine selections arealsogrowninCrete: Cabernet,Sauvignon, Garignan, Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah, Uni Blanc (Trebiano of Toscana), Roussane.

​TSIKOUDIA (or RAKI)
It is a clear alcoholic drink that is mainly made of the “strafila” (the peel from the grapes, after the wine has been produced). There is also a tsikoudia made of berries (mournoraki), which is particularly alcoholic, with a strong flavour and taste. It has been known since the Turkish occupation; it is served in special, very small glasses and is usually served with peanuts. The arrival of the refugees from Asia Minor changed this typical snack into apakia, siglina, matured peppery gruyere cheese, snails with rosemary and wine (hohlious boubouristous) etc. Tsikoudia can be found in all the coffee shops, food-shops, restaurants, even in the “in” cafés of Crete and of course in all homes. You can buy both bottled and unbottled tsikoudia. You can also find it in many tavernas in Athens.

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