The nutritional sweet of Pastelli is made with the syrup of carob pods, produced by boiling their pulp until it forms a thick, sticky liquid similar to treacle.
Whilst carobs are in abundance on the island, Pastelli is very special as it is handmade by repeatedly and painstakingly stretching and pulling the carob toffee.
This traditional process is only practised today in the village of Anogyra, and only in the cooler months, between September and May, as the toffee doesn’t shape well in the heat. As such, it is one of the island’s sweeter delicacies.
The carob tree is an indigenous species that has been cultivated on the island for four thousand years. Once the island’s major export, carobs, or ‘black gold’, were prized for their versatility, high nutritional value and hardiness that allowed them to be stored and transported across long distances.