Smyrna cookies, together with tsoureki and purple eggs, are actually a vital part of many households’ culinary traditions. We check with them as Smyrna cookies as a result of they originated in Asia Minor. In Smyrna, they’re known as Easter cookies as a result of they’re historically related to Easter. In Greece, nonetheless, they had been known as Smyrna cookies as a result of they grew to become extensively identified after 1922, when refugees from Asia Minor introduced with them the recipes of their homeland. In accordance with Aikaterini Polymerou-Kamilaki, former director and scientific collaborator of the Hellenic Folklore Analysis Centre of the Academy of Athens, candy and fluffy breads, similar to desserts, had been nearly unknown in Greece. The identical is true for sugar, a luxurious merchandise that was not often utilized in Greek confectionery, besides as a sweetener in drinks, and was solely accessible to the privileged social courses. The most typical sweeteners had been honey and grape molasses.
Nevertheless, sugar was a well-liked ingredient in cosmopolitan Smyrna, the place it was imported from Europe through Constantinople. “Recipes on methods to make desserts, sponge desserts, meringues, and candy breads additionally arrived from Europe along with sugar, permitting the ladies of Asia Minor to good recipes similar to vasilopita (which in Smyrna was a candy cake with dried fruits, nuts, and spices), tsoureki, and naturally cookies and koulourakia,” explains Mrs. Polymerou-Kamilaki.
One begins to understand the variability, finesse, and uniqueness of their sweets when one considers the abundance of spices in addition they had at their disposal, similar to cardamom, vanilla, mahleb, mastic from the island of Chios, and so many different “unusual” substances. Privileged and daring, the ladies of Smyrna created a baking custom that was completely totally different from that of Greece.
Smyrna means unique
These sorts of desserts had been unknown to the Greeks. Greek vasilopita, for example, was historically a savoury filo pastry pie crammed with meat, poultry, and/or greens. Equally, Christopsomo was made with out sugar or spices and as a substitute sweetened with a small quantity of honey or grape molasses “to sweeten the brand new 12 months.” Tsoureki was unknown. In different phrases, individuals had been unfamiliar with candy, fluffy, baked items, besides in main cities. As quickly as tsoureki, sponge desserts, desserts (some even with chocolate and cocoa!), and fluffy koulourakia scented with butter and mastic had been launched, they had been embraced, cherished and adopted instantly. The time period smyrneika (“from Smyrna”) was utilized to all the pieces the ladies of Smyrna introduced with them, which is how these cookies bought their identify.
Smyrna cookies are made primarily with high-quality butter and fragrant spices similar to vanilla, however orange zest or mastic are additionally used. Regardless of the quite a few variations, they’re all distinguished by their fluffy but crispy texture, aroma, and finesse. The most typical shapes are an elongated spiral (like a small boat), a snail, and a double snail, however they’re continuously braided right into a easy braid as properly.
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