SPICES:

SECRETS OF THE GREEK TABLE

by Elaine Gavalas

or thousands of years, Greeks

have used spices to flavor and scent
their foods, as well as for their
calming, healing, and aphrodisiac
qualities. Many prized spices, such
as anise seed, masticha, and red
pepper, are native to Greece. The
use of spices in Greek cuisine, perfumes, medicine and religion
remains as important today as it
was to the ancient Greeks.
Since the beginning of recorded
trading, exotic spices of the East,
among them black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice and
mahlepi, were brought by Arab
caravans to spice bazaars in
Constantinople and Alexandria,
and then to the ancient Greek cities.
Spices also came to Greek ports by
ship from India and the islands of
Ceylon and Molokai. Spices were
so precious they were exchanged
for gold or slaves.
Likewise, spices have been integral to Greek traditions, myth and
religious rituals. In ancient Greece,
spicy, honeyed wines were cherished for their mystical properties
during Dionysian revelries and
Eleusinian mysteries. They were
also used for sacrificial rites, warding off the evil eye and, in love
potions, attracting romance. The
ancient Greek philosopher,
Plutocrat, wrote of perfumed spices
used during religious festivals and
to lull to sleep, allay all anxieties,
and brighten the dreams. Even
today, spiced incense is burned
during religious services in Greek
Orthodox churches.
Greeks consider certain spices

essential for good health and use

them for their medicinal qualities,
in healing tonics and in food. As
the ancient Greek physician,
Hippocrates, proclaimed, Let thy
food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food. Hippocrates,
regarded as the father of modern
medicine, used spices and herbs
from the Greek countryside as a
foundation for medical science and
healing. Hippocrates famous
spiced wine recipe, containing
cinnamon, cloves, allspice and
honey, was prescribed for many
common ills and is used to this day.
Licorice-flavored mastic, called
masticha in Greek, is perhaps the
most famous indigenous Greek
spice. The amber-colored mastic sap
resin is tapped from the lentil
bush (Pistachio lentiscus), and occurs
only on the island of Chios. Although
the bush has been transplanted to
other tropical areas of the world, it
will not produce the liquid that
hardens into the mastic sap teardrops.
This phenomenon has been the subject of much research; a recent
published medical study shows that
Chios mastic heals stomach ulcers.
Mastic resin is exported throughout
the world for confectionery, distillery
and pharmaceutical purposes. In
Greek cuisine, masticha is used in
cakes, cookies, drinks, liqueurs and
candies. In the summertime, Greeks
enjoy a masticha drink called
soumatha. To make soumatha, a
syrupy almond milk is made from
pounded almonds, sugar and masticha,
which is then mixed with an equal
part of water. Pure refreshment!

Anise, called glykaniso in Greek,

is another native spice and, like
mastic, highly valued for its
licorice-flavored seeds and plant.
Anise is best known as the flavoring
in the famous Greek liqueur, ouzo,
but it is also commonly used in Greek
pastries, tomato sauces and meat
dishes. In Greek folk medicine,
brews of anise seed are said to be
good for your nerves.
Not as renowned but just as
important are the red peppers grown
for spice in Macedonia. The climate
in this northern Greek region is
uniquely suited to growing many
varieties of peppers, called piperi in
MINT MAGIC
A discussion about Greek flavors
wouldnt be complete without
mention of one of the most common
herbal accompaniments: mint. In
Greece, many varieties grow wild,
including spearmint and peppermint
(diosmos). Like spices, mint also
has a history of thousands of years
of use in Greek cuisine, medicinals,
perfumery and religion. The ancient
Greeks used fresh mint to scent their
bathing water and dinner tables. Mint
tea has long been used as a remedy for
indigestion and stomach problems.
And to this day, Greek Orthodox
priests offer a blessing with bunches
of fragrant mint, called agiosmos,
dipped in holy water.
Mint has a sweet, cooling taste
and is frequently used in Greek cuisine,
including salads, meat and macaroni
dishes, desserts, drinks, cakes and
cookies. During hot summer days,
a cool and refreshing cucumber salad
called tzatziki, blended with yogurt
and mint, is nearly ubiquitous.

Greek. Greek red spice piperi are

intensely flavorful and aromatic.
Unfortunately, red spice piperi are
difficult to find as the art of cultivating and processing them is
becoming lost to modern ways.
However, ground red spice piperi,
along with the imported black
piperi, remains an essential ingredient
in Greek cooking from soups to meats.
Mahaleb, mahlepi in Greek, is a
more unusual Greek spice with a
distinctive, fruity taste. The finelyground mahlepi powder is made
from the inner kernels of fruit pits
of a native Persian cherry tree (Prunus
cerasus mahaleb). For myself, as
Im sure for many Greeks, the sweet
smell of mahlepi always suggests
the aroma of freshly-baked tsoureki,
a traditional sweet bread flavored
with mahlepi and baked for Greek
Easter. Mahlepi is also used in holiday
cakes and cookies.
Legend tells us that saffron was
created by Hermes, the Greek messenger god. For the early Greeks,

saffron (krokos) as spice, dye, and

scent was rare and costly, prized by
kings and queens. Homer writes of
gods, goddesses, heroes, and royalty
clothed in noble garments of saffron
yellow hue. In modern-day Greece,
saffron spice is used in specialty
dishes, such as saffron cheese pies
from Astypalaia made only at Easter.
Tantalizing and pungent all, cinnamon (kanella), cloves (garifalo),
allspice (aromatopeperi) and nutmeg
(moshokarido) have been prized as
precious imported spices from the
East and used in Greek cuisine
since ancient times. These spices
are frequently included in desserts,
drinks, cakes and cookies. More
unusually, as is not common in
Western cuisine, cinnamon, cloves,
nutmeg and allspice are used in
meat and macaroni dishes and
tomato sauces, giving them a
deliciously unique taste and aroma.
For example, cinnamon lends its
distinctive flavoring to meat dishes
such as kapama (stews), along with

cloves, allspice and nutmeg for

pastistio (baked macaroni) and
moussaka (eggplant casserole).
The culinary spices most prized
by the Greeksanise seed, masticha,
red and black pepper, mahlepi, saffron,
cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and allspiceare as cherished today as they
were millennia ago. For unique flavorings, try incorporating Greek spices
into your own culinary creations.
HIPPOCRATES
SPICED WINE ELIXIR
2 cups red or white Greek wine
1/4 cup honey (preferably Greek)
2 Tbs fresh lemon or orange juice
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
Combine all ingredients in a
saucepan. Simmer over low heat
for 15 minutes.
Remove the cinnamon stick and
serve, hot or chilled.
Yield: 2 servings