Grandma Melachros’s magical hands, in Ierissos, have always had the most “delicious” quality: the ability to “awaken” the gastronomic history of a century, to marry it with the local production of the “third leg” of Halkidiki, and to put it in the pan in the form of a golden pumpkin pie, which enchanted relatives, friends and lucky visitors, with its aromas, flavors and appearance.
For Melachro’s granddaughter, Melachroni, the preparation of this fragrant pie, with very simple ingredients, has always seemed like a ritual – or like a fairy tale, which unfolded between the field of yellow pumpkins and the fragrant kitchen. “Since I was very young, since I can remember myself” Melachroini Liakou tells APE-MPE, “I watched my grandmother make this pie: to rub the pumpkin on the grater, to bend over the steaming pot, to open it the sheet … This process was like a fairy tale for me “.
The recipe of the eponymous grandmother, who also learned it from her mother-in-law and she certainly from another woman and cook, was never delivered to the Brunette written on a piece of paper, nor worded.
The recipe was delivered to her, day by day, from time to time, as she watched Melachro create and bake her wonderful pie with the simplest ingredients, using as a raw material the yellow pumpkin, which is traditionally cultivated in the land of eastern Halkidiki. and mainly on its Mediterranean coast, yielding rich production.
“We come from a rural family. Our grandparents cultivated the land and had animals, although Ierissos is a seaside village. The whole family contributed to the agricultural work and every time we harvested the fruits of the land, we had a party at home. The role of the grandfather was, among other things, to take care of the animals and the role of the grandmother, among others, to turn the fruits of the earth into delicious delicacies. We had a lot of zucchini and in addition the pumpkins were very easy to keep in the cellar with the grains and other products of the land.
When it came time to taste the fruits of our labor, it was always like a ritual, because we knew that what we taste is something, that we delivered to the earth a seed, that we watered and took care of with difficulty. The ingredients of this pie are very simple. It does not have many things inside, what they used to use in the villages, for example eggs we used as the main food. Its taste is based purely on organic zucchini. And the whole process of creating it reminds us that we can keep some things simple. To keep things without any complexity, which can give us joy and bring back beautiful memories “says Melachrini Liakou to APE-MPE.
From gastronomic inspiration, gastronomic trend
The pumpkin pie of Ierissos, made with simple ingredients like those of grandmother Melachros, is the most widespread expression of the new trend that has formed in recent years in eastern Halkidiki: the large local production of yellow pumpkin has always been a source of gastronomic inspiration for locals. Its utilization is becoming a gastronomic trend, as more and more local dishes are created based on this crop. The recipe delivered by grandmother Melachro is prepared and available from the delicatessen gastronomy area “Aristotleia Gi”, based in Ierissos: the owners – Melachroni and her partner, Anna Lempida – made the most of local knowledge and skills grandmother, who passed on through her recipe the whole Ierissian gastronomic history.
The taste of the pie is very soft and delicate, as its ingredients come from the gardens and orchards of local growers: an excellent homemade leaf opened with extra virgin Athonite olive oil, as well as local pumpkin with sugar – without added spices or other substances, which distort the authentic taste. Thus, the pie retains the sweet taste of pumpkin, which in most cases is a product of organic farming.
At the initiative of the “Aristotelian Partnership of Professionals” of the Municipality of Aristotle, the pumpkin pie of Ierissos is expected to be included immediately in the mornings of many boutiques and luxury local hotel units, as well as in selected cafes / confectioneries, where it will be offered as a dessert or restaurant. dessert. Its availability to businesses will start from the next tourist season at the following seven points: at “Mount Athos Resort” in Ierissos, at “Eagles Palace Resort”, “Alexandros Palace Hotel & Suites”, “Ammos all day Cafe Bar” and ” Chryso Agistri fish restaurant “in Ouranoupolis, the” Alpe Luxury Accomodaton “in Olympiada and the” Paraty all day Bar “in Stratoni, which will be marked with the quality mark” Ierissos Pumpkin Pie “.
According to an announcement of the Aristotelian Partnership of Entrepreneurs of the Municipality of Aristotle, this product recently received this quality mark as proof of its contribution to the creation of a gastronomic identity in the Municipality of Aristotle, but also as a proposal of a special gastronomic experience, which highlights of Ierissos. The position of the “Ierissos pumpkin pie” is special in the activities of KOUZINA 2022, during which it will be screened through a series of targeted events, dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Asia Minor catastrophe but also to the monastery / ancient Greek / Mediterranean cuisine.
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