Carob Molasses & Syrups

Before refined sugar reached the Mediterranean, carob and grape were the sweeteners that flavoured the region's food. Carob molasses (harnup pekmezi in Cypriot Greek), made by boiling whole carob pods with water and reducing the liquid until it forms a thick, dark syrup, is one of the oldest food products in Cypriot history. The carob tree…Before refined sugar reached the Mediterranean, carob and grape were the sweeteners that flavoured the region's food. Carob molasses (harnup pekmezi in Cypriot Greek), made by boiling whole carob pods with water and reducing the liquid until it forms a thick, dark syrup, is one of the oldest food products in Cypriot history. The carob tree has grown on Cyprus for millennia; its pods were so valuable they were used as a standard unit of measurement.The flavour of carob molasses is complex: sweet, but with a deeply earthy, roasted quality and a slight bitterness that prevents it from being cloying. It is extraordinary drizzled over tahini (the combination of carob and…Read more