47 THE ART OF TRADITIONAL BREADMAKING An architect, a contemporary art follower and a gastronomy enthusiast, Mr Valis Loizides has in recent years turned his focus to another form of art – the traditional Cypriot breadmaking! cooked in sauce. Cypriots also enjoy it fresh or as paximadi (rehydrated) with olive oil and salt, quince paste, dried figs, raisins, honey, nuts, or homemade jam. Q: How would you suggest someone visiting Cyprus for the first time enjoy traditional Cypriot bread? A: A simple meal of freshly baked bread with halloumi cheese or anari, olives, smoked lountza or cured ham, tomatoes or fresh fruit, accompanied by Cypriot wine will be memorable! Q: What makes Cypriot bread unique? A: The use of local hard wheat, a result of our dry climate and the retention of all parts of the wheat grain during milling (including semolina). Also, its simplicity; made only with flour, water and salt. Apart from the basic bread, we also have the enriched breads. Q: Koulouria are festive enriched breads. Which are the main types? A: Koulouria are made with natural sourdough in elongated or round shapes, enriched with aromatic spices, such as mahleb, mastic, cinnamon, nutmeg, aniseed, ginger, cumin and coated with various seeds. The main types are the arkatena (made with chickpea starter), galatena (with milk), karpasitika (with anari) and lefkaritika (with semolina). They are also made as paximadi (hard bread). Q: Bread dough also forms the basis of Cypriot traditional pies. Which are the most popular? A: With 170 days of fasting each year, Cypriots have created pies suitable for fasting periods. These include eliopita (olive pie), kolokotes (with red pumpkin), tahinopita (with tahini) and hortopita (with green herbs). Equally popular are halloumi pie, tsipopita (with milk cream), epsimopita (with grape molasses) and flaounes baked during Easter (Orthodox Pascha). Q: How do Cypriots enjoy bread? A: Bread accompanies dishes such as soups, grains, vegetables, appetizers and foods Photos: Valis Loizides
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