Mrs. Ioanna’ s sweet Rafiolia

A wise cook and a traditional recipe

Mrs. Ioanna Perraki is the grandmother of my good friend Ioanna (she is named after her grandmother, as we traditionally do in Greece) and one of the best cooks of Marpissa. Actually, I could say the same thing about her daughter Georgia Fysilani; her recipes are amazing! The granddaughter Ioanna says that she doesn’t cook, but last week she brought me some of her hand-made chocolates, and they were sooo good! I do think that culinary knowledge is transmitted from one generation to the next by observation and tasting.

When I arranged to meet Mrs. Ioanna, in order to show us how she makes her famous sweet rafiolia, I was very excited! I felt as if I would get close the source of all this culinary tradition, and wanted to listen to the advices and stories of that woman who cooked all her life.

She welcomed us with a smile and she started making the rafiolia with the confidence of a person who masters a recipe well. It is an old traditional recipe of Paros, that people used to prepare during the Apokries (Carnival season). While she was cooking she was glowing and her eyes were laughing; she seemed to be in her natural environment. She told us many stories about food and about life. “ Our family recipes are our heritage” she said. “In difficult times they always give us comfort and strength”.

By the time the cooking was over, we could smell the aroma of the fresh, warm rafiolia. We impatiently tasted them, and then we wanted another, and after that one more, just to make sure of how perfect they were!

Sweet rafiolia: the recipe

 

 

For the filling

 

• 1kilo of myzithra cheese
• 1 cup of sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp of cinnamon
• some orange zest

 

For the dough

 

• ½ package of all-purpose flour
• 1 small cup of olive oil
• 1 small cup of water
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• some vinegar

* some extra sugar and cinnamon mixed together for topping

 

You pass the myzithra cheese through a hand mill to become softer.

Put all the ingredients for the filling in a bowl and mix well using a spoon.

Place the flour in a bowl; add the salt and the vinegar, the olive oil and then the water. Knead to make soft and smooth dough, then cover the bowl with a towel and leave it to rest in a warm place for half an hour.

Spread flour over your working surface. Divide the dough into balls of equal size. Using a wooden rolling pin, open them into flat circles 10 cm in diameter.

Place a tablespoon of the filling in each circle, and then fold the half of the pie on top of another, to form the shape of a half moon.

Put some olive oil in a frying pan and fry the rafiolia from both sides in medium heat, until golden. Remove from the fire and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon.

Tip: you can make a savory variation of this recipe by using feta cheese and myzithra for the filling, without the addition of sugar.

Enjoy!

words: maria alipranti

© photos by   c. drazos