Local Produce to enjoy while on holidays in Zante Zakynthos
Herbs in Zante are just a few of the plants among the total of some 6,000 species
of wild Greek flora and fauna.
The seasons of spring and early summer in Zante, Zakynthos
are a delight to the senses with a myriad of flowers providing a
magnificent carnival of colour and fragrance. An abundance of flowers
are found in the fields, olive groves and rocky outcrops around the
island.
While you are here on holiday in Zante make sure you try a few of
the locally grown products from the island of Zakynthos
Sold in resort stores and road side stalls
in the northern part of the island, you will get a real taste for the
island with these delicious products. Zakynthos is a very fertile island
and subsequently has a lot to offer in terms of food, drinks, treats and
sweets!
As your drive around the island of Zante, particularly in the east of
the island, you will see plenty of grape vines sprawling through the
countryside.
The grapes are used primarily for the production of local wine. There
are a number of wineries here, such as Solomos Wines, who produce
beautiful bottles of refined Greek wine. Alternatively, you can find
some more basic products simply sold in old water bottles!
Zakynthian grapes are also frequently turned into raisins. During the
late summer and autumn months you will often see the grapes laid out to
dry in the sun in the middle of the fields. The raisins here are always
delicious and bursting with flavour!
Much of the island of Zakynthos is filled with olive groves. In the
south western region of Porto Koukla the groves are really beautiful –
with huge, majestic old trees. It is a pleasure to walk around these
groves.
Every winter the local people are busy harvesting the olives. This is an
arduous process of cutting down branches and beating off the olives by
hand.
Some of the olives are kept aside for eating – they are generally
soaked in salted water and preserved for consumption over the following
year.
Most of the yearly olive crop is used for the production of olive
oil. Zante is one of the largest producers of olive oil in Greece. This
is the basis of most Greek dishes and you can really taste the
difference from supermarket oil in the U.K. We often drive up to the
western village of Louha and buy our olive oil from the local village
coffee shop and store. The oil here is family made and absolutely
delicious!
Yoghurt and honey is one of the most popular lunchtime snacks in the
Greek Island and is synonymous for many with a holiday in Greece.
Zakynthos produces a large supply of honey every year – with bee hives
dotted around the island in the more isolated areas.
With lots of herbs and flowers growing on the hills and mountains of
Zante, the bees here produce beautiful honey. We always buy our honey
from the ‘Honey Lady’ in the north of the island. She is a real hidden
treasure, making nearly all of her own products. Her honey is for us the
best on the island.
You can find her by driving north on the coastal road towards Askos
Stone Park. Just before the entrance to the park, on the other side of
the road, you will see a small hand-written sign saying Honey Sold Here.
This is her home, rather than a commercial shop, and you will be
welcomed in to see the production of the honey and maybe even taste a
bit of the tasty honeycomb.
If you have a sweet tooth, you must try the locally produced Zante
sweets while you are visiting the island. Zakynthos makes its own Nougat
and Pastelli, a mixture of nuts set in honey!
You will see the sweets sold in tourist shops all around the island
and many people choose these sweets to take home as gifts for friends
and family.
For a really fresh and authentic taste, head down to Zante Town.
Opposite Saint Dennis Church on the harbour road there are a number of
stalls on the road that sell the freshest nougat and pastelli. They
cater to the Greeks mainly – always a good sign!
Herbs are everywhere in Zante – as soon as you step out of the
airport you are welcomed by the vibrant smell of fragrant wild oregano,
thyme and lemon balm, that grow in abundance in the fields that surround
Zakynthos airport.
Many Greek herbs become a daily part of your stay on the island as
even the simplest Greek dishes include a generous handful of
Mediterranean greenery!
Herbs are an integral part of Greek life, both chronicled in
mythology and catalogued in the libraries of ancient Greek medicine. Our
favourite Herbs to be found in Zakynthos are:
• Thyme: a ‘low-growing’ woody shrub with small dark green leaves. In
Zakynthos the flavour of thyme is tasted in Zakynthian thyme honey and
many traditional meals.
• Fennel: flowers from June to July, in fertile soils across the island.
• Mint: with its shiny green leaves, has clusters of small lilac flowers
which appear during the months of May and June. It grows best in partial
shade.
• Rosemary: with needle shaped leaves that are green and grey
underneath, has tiny blue flowers. It grows in light loose soils, often
found around coastal areas in Zakynthos.
• Sage: grows to 150cm in height, has soft velvety greenish grey leaves.
Pale pink and purple lobed flowers appear from March to May, in rocky
areas around Zakynthos.
• Sage: there is nothing that sage cannot do, according to all the
claims that have been made of it over the centuries. Famous for ensuring
a long life, sage is also known to fortify the memory, strengthen the
sinews, reverse baldness and rejuvenate grey hair!
• Oregano: grows to 60cm in height, in loose stony ground around the
island. A medicinal herb, Oregano is a vital ingredient in all tasty
Greek dishes. Proven to contain significant levels of antioxidants,
which neutralise the free radical molecules in our bodies, Oregano is
believed to trigger a host of diseases. It can also be effective as a
gargle for sore throats.
• Lemon Balm: with oval lemon scented leaves, has small white flowers
which appear between June and September in shady areas around the
island. It's no surprise that bees are attracted to this plant. Its
family name 'Melissa' is the Greek word for ‘bee’. In antiquity Lemon
Balm was labelled the ‘elixir of life’. Physicians of old prescribed
Lemon Balm an as an anti-depressant, due to calming and uplifting
properties.
We are filming a variety of Zante web videos this summer in Zakynthos
which will bring you a wide selection of our favorite accommodations,
sight-seeing, trips in Zante and our selected options of the best
activities and things to do while on holiday in Zante. If you have any
suggestions please email us.
