In the village of Kampos, the Gryllis family gathered to prepare Patiniotikes, the traditional Easter pies of Patmos. Filled with sweetened mizithra and baked in a wood oven, the pies became a family choreography of dough, fire, trays and Easter eggs.
The pies of Holy Week
In Kampos, I was introduced to the Gryllis family, known for preparing Patiniotikes during Holy Week. These traditional pies of Patmos are filled with sweetened mizithra and baked in a wood oven.
The preparation was not the work of one person alone. The whole family moved around the kitchen and oven: shaping, filling, carrying trays, tending the fire, dyeing Easter eggs and waiting for the pies to bake.
Moscha Gryllis holding a freshly baked pie.
Preparing Patiniotikes around the oven.
Easter eggs in the kitchen.
Freshly baked Patiniotikes.
The kitchen became a small choreography of Easter: dough, fire, cheese, eggs, hands and waiting.
The smell of the pies filled the air. What remained in the photographs was not only a recipe, but a family working together inside the calendar of the island.
