By Ilias Kantaros
Sweet-tasting and versatile apricots usually appear at the market and greengrocers’ stalls in May but around mid-July the season starts to draw to a close.
Thankfully, apricots are ideal for preservation and can be eaten in a number of different ways. Fresh, dried, candied, as a juice or in jam, this fruit is high in nutrients and low in calories, and is also considered one of the best sources of beta-carotene, a powerful antioxidant.
A relative of the plum, the apricot -- Prunus armeniaca, or the Armenian prune, also known by the Romans as the golden apple -- has been cultivated for more than 2,000 years. It is believed to hail from China, though now it is most prolific in the Mediterranean and other countries with warm climates. Specifically, 70 percent of the global apricot crop of 2 million tons annually is grown in Turkey, Spain, France, Italy and Greece, while the other 30 percent comes from Iran, Pakistan, Syria, China and the United States.
Here in Greece, apricots were one of the country’s biggest crops up until the mid-1990s, with production reaching 100,000 tons a year.
Unfortunately, crops were infected by the plum pox (sharka) virus during that decade and thousands of trees had to be uprooted, slashing Greek production to a current average of 70,000 tons a year.
The 5,500 hectares given over to apricot cultivation in the country today are located mostly in the Peloponnese, while smaller orchards are also found in northern Greece, Crete and the islands of the eastern Aegean.
Cultivated apricot trees are usually 4-7 meters in height, while wild apricot trees can grow as high as 10 meters. They are very sensitive to pests and viruses and therefore farmers tend to spray them with large quantities of chemicals, which is why it is important to wash the fruit thoroughly or even soak it for an hour or two in a bowl of water with a capful of white vinegar before eating.
Alternatively, you can look for organic apricots at your local street market, supermarkets or organic food stores.
The two main Greek apricot varieties cultivated in Greece are the Bebeko and the Diamantopoulou.
When buying apricots, make sure they are not shriveled or bruised, and only buy as much as you are planning to eat over the next few days because they don’t keep very well.
In regular refrigerators, apricots can be kept for up to a maximum of six days in a plastic bag or wrapped in cloth if they are slightly green when purchased, and only for two or three days if they are already ripe. If they are still quite green, place them in a cool, dry part of the kitchen for four ot five days to help complete the ripening process.
RECIPE
Light apricot tart
For the pastry
125 gr plain flour
90 gr cold butter, diced
1 tbsp cold water
1 tbsp powdered sugar
For the filling
2 tbsp apricot jam
13-14 apricots cut in half, stones removed
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp almond slices
For the pastry, mix the flour and butter in the blender until chunky. Add the cold water and powdered sugar and mix well. Roll the pastry into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes in the fridge. Next, roll it out onto a lightly floured surface until about 1/2 cm to 1 cm thick. Press into a well-greased tart tray that is about 20 cm in diameter and 3 cm deep. Poke holes in the bottom with a fork.
For the filling, spread the jam over the bottom of the tart tray. Lay the cut apricots on top in an overlapping spiral. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cook in a hot oven for 20 minutes. Then add the almond slices and cook for another 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool before serving.
STELIOS PARLIAROS
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου