Sweet Rice Pie or 'Tzoulamas'

Rice, once a Venetian dietary staple, seldom graced Cretan kitchens due to its costly imported nature.

Only in the Messara region was rice cultivated, albeit in small quantities, and the cooking process often demanded an extended boiling time. Typically consumed boiled, it took a festive turn during Carnival season when it was simmered with cream or milk, sweetened with sugar, and adorned with a sprinkle of cinnamon.

‘White and beautiful rice with excess sugar,

How many times, remembering it, made my mouth water.’

says a hearty eater-slave in the comedy ‘Katzourbos’ by Georgios Chortatsis.

Rice was also prepared in combination with beans. However, the dish known as 'rice and beans,' originating from Venetian cuisine, was perceived by the Cretans as a delicacy, given that rice was considered a luxury ingredient at the time.

In the villages of Messara, since ancient times, the housewives had a tradition during the second week of Carnival. They would prepare a sweet rice pie, tzoulamas, as a delightful addition to the carnival table.

In the Messara households, housewives crafted the filling with various variations. The core ingredient was rice, and to this, they added pieces of chicken, pork, lamb, bird liver, or a combination thereof. Sometimes, they even incorporated leftover meat from the previous day.

Dough Ingredients:

• 1 kg flour
• a small amount of olive oil
• lukewarm water
• a pinch of salt
• juice from a lemon
• 1 shot of raki

Ingredients for Filling

• 1/2 kilo rice
• 1/2 kilo liver
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup crushed sesame seeds
• 1 cup coarsely ground walnuts
• 1 cup almonds, blanched and coarsely ground
• a pinch of cinnamon
• a handful of raisins
• chicken broth

Other Ingredients

Butter

Procedure

Mix the flour in a bowl. Using your hands, incorporate a small amount of lukewarm water, a little olive oil, butter, raki, lemon juice, and salt. Blend and knead all the ingredients until a soft dough forms that doesn't stick to your hands. Continue kneading and allow the dough to rest for approximately an hour.

Cut the liver into pieces and blanch it in hot water for 1 minute; then drain it. In a pot, melt butter and fry the liver, seasoning with salt and pepper, and allowing it to cook briefly. Next, add the chicken stock and rice to the pot, bringing the mixture to a boil for 15 minutes. Let the rice sit for 10 minutes to absorb the flavours. Finally, stir in cinnamon, raisins, and nuts.

Heat the butter.

Take a portion of the dough and, using a rolling pin, roll out a somewhat thick phyllo sheet. Brush the baking pan with butter, place the first phyllo sheet, brush it with butter, and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Grate the phyllo sheet with the prepared filling, then sprinkle again with sugar and cinnamon. Roll out a second phyllo sheet somewhat thinly and place it over the filling. Brush with butter and sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Repeat the process three more times. Finally, cover and complete the layers with the last phyllo sheet, which should be somewhat thick. Sprinkle it with cinnamon and a light dusting of sugar.

Bake in the oven at 170 degrees for approximately 40 minutes.

Wishing the best of luck to those who embark on this culinary journey!

Lena Igoumenaki

President of the Cretan Cuisine Festival Association