Chemistry Reference
In-Depth Information
petimezi. This dark viscous elixir has sweetened the palate for many years now. For the current
petimezi,thisviscoussyrupismadebyboilingandremovingthemust(grapejuicebeforethestart
offermentation).ItisfoundthroughoutGreeceintownsandvillageswherepeoplemaketheirown
winesandinselectedshelvesofsupermarkets.Autumnisthetimewhencooksinvillagesusefresh
must and petimezi to make biscuits, custards, cakes, breads, and halva even sweeter. In modern
cooking,thissweetenerhashadasortofrevival,addedbeyondconfectioneryproductstodishes
withmeats,ish,andvegetablesandtosaucesanddressingstosatisfytheGreekappetitesearching
forsomethingnewandinnovative.However,modernchefsknowverylittleaboutthissweetener,
whichcomesfromGreekancestorssomethousandsofyearsago.
TheancientGreeks used several variationsofsweetgrapejuice,distinguishedbythedegree
towhichtheywereboileddown,orconcetrated(
http://dianekochilas.com/889/grape-must-in-the-
greek-cooking
)
.Therewasthehighlyprized
gleukos
,whichdenotedeitherthefresh,free-lowmust
thatwasobtainedfromfully-ripeoroverripegrapesbeforetreadingorthefermentedproductofthis
must; then there were several concentrated forms:
hepsema
, which was grape juice concentrated
byboilinguntilratherthick,andwhichwasacheapsubstituteforhoney;
hepsetos
,whichwasless
concetrated;and,inally,
siraion
,yetanotherconcentratedgrapemust,buttowhatdegreeorthick-
nessitishardtodetermine.
InLimnos,afreshhomemadepastaisboiledingrapemustandservedupasaheartywinter
dessert. In Tinos, trays of moustalevria, once set, are left to dry in the sun and then dredged in
cinnamon and sesame. A similar sweet is made in Roumeli called
moustopita
, and is sun-dried
moustalevriasprinkledwithsesameandseasonedwitheitherbayleaforbasil.
Sutzuklukumisanothersweet,whichhaswalnutsinarowdippedinmoustalevriaandthenleft
todry,aprocessrepeatedmanytimesuntilasweetwithwalnutsismadegelatinizedandsausage-like.
Petimezi acts as a preservative in country cuisine, more speciically in sweets in a jar made
witheggplantandpumpkin.Petimeziispouredonbakedbreadintsaletia(pancakesfrombobota,a
sweetporridgemadeoflourandanolddishfromSamos)andusedinsmallspinachpiesmadeon
theislandofTinoslikefesklopita,inmosttraditionaldishes,andinatleastonesweetandsourdish
withish,savoro,indifferentversionsfromtheCyclades.
Tomake2Lofpetimezi,werequire5Loffreshmustandtwo5-cmcubesofstalebread.Must
ispouredinabigpanwithbread.
Weheatatalowtemperature.Whenthemuststartstoboil,thefoamisremovedwithaspoon.
Thisiscontinuouslydonewhilethemustisboilingslowly.Cookingiscarriedoutuntil5Lboil
downto2L.Athickandviscousmixturewillbemade,withadensityapproximatelybetweenthat
ofoilandhoney.Then,itislefttocoolandisstoredinaclearjarinacoolanddryplace.
Themostcommonsweetsmadewithmustaremoustalevria,akindofcustard,andmoustokou-
loura,thickbrownrollsthatbecomesoftandcrispywiththetasteofmust(Kochilas2009).
CretanpetimezicomesfromtheevaporationofmustfromselectedmaturegrapesinCrete.It
has a wonderful aroma and taste. It is made traditionally and used as a sweetener in homemade
sweets,pancakes,doughnuts,andothers.Itisanexcellentsyrupforicecream.Thisproductwas
usedfromGreekancestorsasaheatingagentduringwarandasasweetenerinconfectionsduring
theperiodwhensugarwasaluxurybecauseofitshighprice.
Traditionalgrapesyrupcanbeusedtodayatarateof1:1insteadofsugarinallsweets,evenin
breadandbutter,whereasitisthemainingredientandpreservativeforsweetsinajarcalled
retse-
lia
.Inaddition,throughoutGreeceandonmanyislands,weindpumpkinorquincepreservedin
petimezi.InCrete,petimeziispouredonigsbeforepreservesaremade.Themostextraordinary
recipecomesfromNaoussa,wheregrapesyrupiscalledhoneyandismadefromagrapevariety
thatisblackandsour.Oneofthemosttraditionallocalsweetsis
kores
inhoney,afruitpreparation
withroughlycuteggplantpreservedingrapesyrup
.
Traditionalgrapesyrupgivesaroma,color,andmanynutrientswhereveritisused.Itcanalso
beusedinthemanufactureofmoustalevriainsteadofmust(Figure7.16).
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