«Αρκατένα, συσκευασμένα και έτοιμα για πώληση σε πανηγύρι» Πηγή: Στάλω Λαζάρου
The preparation of the specific sourdough made from chickpeas (aquafaba), requires a process with many stages and high environmental temperature. So, in the past, the arkatena bread or rusks would be prepared around the 15th of August.
Name - Recipe
Εφτάζυμα.
A special kind of bread, crisp bread/rusks, kneaded with sourdough which is made from chickpea foam (similar to aquafaba). Arkatena are found in villages in the Limassol and Paphos districts. They correspond to the ‘eptazima' found in other regions of Hellenism, such as in Asia Minor, the Dodecanese and Trikala (Kypri - Protopapa 2003, 284).
For the sourdough:
1-1½ cups of chickpeas broken (choose a variety that cooks
easily)
herbs: 2 dry bay leaves, 2 cloves, 2 small cinnamon sticks, 2
small pieces of ginger (smaller than a fingernail).
6-7 cups of village flour (yellow)
hot water
For the dough:
2 kg of village flour and 2 kg of plain flour 00 (farina)
1 teaspoon of salt
ground aromatics: 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, mastic
(ground with a little flour), mahleb (mahlepi), ginger and a little bit
of nutmeg
warm water for kneading
2 cups sesame seeds
For the syrup:
2 cups of sugar
1½ cups of water
Preparation of the sourdough: Divide the chickpeas and place them in two 1L bottles with a relatively large opening to facilitate the removal of the foam. Heat water (neither lukewarm nor too boiling hot). Before taking it o ff the heat, add the aromatics. Divide the water between the two bottles (including the aromatics), enough to cover up to about 3 fingers under the opening. Close the bottles with their lids, keep them in a warm environment and cover them with warm cloths. Check the bottles after about 2 ½ hours if the foam has reached the top of each bottle. There are times when it may take up to 8 hours for the foam to form. When you see that foam has reached the top of the bottles, take a bowl and using a spoon mix almost 1 cup of flour with enough hot water (not boiling water) so that the mixture looks like porridge. Using a spoon, remove the foam carefully from the bottles (it should be gelatinous, do not take water with it) and transfer it to the bowl with the flour misture. When all the foam has been transferred to the bowl, cover the foam with a little flour and then the bowl with warm cloths. In the bottles with the chickpeas add a little bit of hot water - there should be some distance left from the top of the bottles - close the bottles with their lids and cover them with warm cloths. Check after 1-2 hours and, when a foam has been formed again, repeat what we described before. Each time we add some flour, hot water etc. to the bowl. This process of transferring the foam to the bowl etc. is repeated three times.
After the last transfer of foam and last mixing with water and flour, the foam, which has the role of sourdough, will be left covered with warm cloths and in a warm place for 2 ½ - 3 hours. Afterwards, in a separate basin, place the leftover flour of about 4-5 cups and about 3 ½ cups of hot water, add the foam from the bowl and mix with a spoon. Cover with cloths and leave in a warm place for 1 ½ - 2 hours until the sourdough has about doubled in volume.
Preparation of the syrup: Boil the water with the sugar until the sugar dissolves and let it cool to use later
Preparation of the dough: In a basin, place the flour (village and plain), the salt and the aromatics and mix them with a spoon. Add the sourdough and gradually pour warm water and knead until a soft dough is formed. Divide the dough and shape it into the bread form you prefer and roll each one of the bread in sesame seeds, cover them with warm cloths and place them in a warm place to proof (to rest and rise) for about 2 hours, depending on the environmental temperature. Brush the arkatena with syrup before putting them in the oven. Bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes. If you want to turn them into crisp bread/rusks, take them out of the oven to cool and then bake them again at a very low temperature (Ministry of Agriculture 2010, Cypriot traditional preparations, 49-51).
Baking in the oven
Functional and symbolic role
In the old times, the arkatena were prepared on August 15 (Kypri - Protopapa 2003, 285-286).
Additional information and bibliography
See also: Arkatena bread and rusks in the Food section.
Kypri Th. - Protopapa K. A. (2003), Traditional bread of Cyprus. Their use and significance in customary life, Publications of the Centre for Scientific Research, XVIII, Nicosia.
Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment, Department of Agriculture (2010), Cypriot traditional preparations, Press and Information Office, Nicosia.
Varvara Yangou, Argyro Xenophontos
Πώληση αρκατένων σε πανηγύρι © Βαρβάρα Γιάγκου
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Arkatena bread and rusks
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