Karpouzopita, watermelon cake from the island of Milo

Milo is a small Greek volcanic island with just over 5,000 inhabitants. It is not an overly touristic island, having stood out since remote times as a place where volcanism has allowed mining activities such as the extraction of obsidian and pozzolana, activities that are still important.

If it has gone down in history, it has been due to the discovery of the so-called Venus de Milo, a Hellenistic statue whose author is unknown and who it represents, although it could be Aphrodite (the goddess the Romans called Venus).

One of the difficulties in knowing more about the statue is that it lacks arms. Against all odds, this defect made her even more famous, although it seems that such arms exist.

In 1819 a peasant from the island of Milo unearthed the statue from a field where he was ploughing. He first found the part we all know and then found, apparently,  at least one arm and one hand holding an apple (milo is Greek for apple). Realizing the value of the find he first wanted to sell it to the Turkish authorities, who still controlled the province of Yunan (as the Turks call Greece) but in the end he preferred to sell it to a French naval officer.

The Turks were furious because they considered the deal closed but the French paid much more and the statue ended up in the Louvre where it is a piece of capital importance. From then on, not much is known about the whereabouts of the arms. Some historians think that the Greek farmer sold them to the Turkish authorities, others that they were broken while handling the heavy statue (similar in size to a basketball player like Pau Gasol or Lebron James but weighing almost a ton) and others that they never existed.

Whatever it is, the Turks continue to claim the statue, indicating that they closed the deal in the first place and hinting that once they have it, they will be able to put it back together (ie, perhaps they are in possession of the arms). For France to return the Venus de Milo is a chimera, but for it to do so to Turkey is simply impossible, although in a certain way the law assists it because Greece is then part of the Ottoman Empire. For the same reason, Spain has recovered treasures from sunken galleons that transported gold and silver from the American colonies without the wreck even being in Spanish jurisdictional waters.

Much less famous than the Venus, another of Milo's treasures is a strange sweet made with watermelon. Watermelon in Greek is καρπούζι, that is, phonetically karpouzi, while pita means both cake and flat. The watermelon cake does not use milk or eggs, but rather elements that are very characteristic of Mediterranean cuisine such as olive oil, sesame, nuts and honey. And the watermelon?

The watermelon comes from Africa, probably from the area that is now South Sudan, that is, from a desert area. Its "genetic" mission would have been to store water in harsh environmental conditions and such property would have been used by local populations. When they were thirsty or had to go on a long journey, it was best to dig up the earth and find primitive watermelons to take with them and drink when necessary. Early watermelons stored water but the pulp was bitter and inedible. About 5,000 years ago they appeared drawn in Egyptian tombs but it is still doubted whether as an edible fruit or as natural "water bottles".

The truth is that by the 5th century before Christ they were already in the Mediterranean and by the 3rd or 4th century of our era they began to be referred to as edible fruits. The pulp by then had turned a reddish color and had become sweet, so that in addition to drinking it could be consumed. Before such a thing happened, the only way to take advantage of the watermelon was to crush the pulp to extract the water. A watermelon can hold the water inside it for quite some time, so it was perfect for long journeys. However, this recipe is very unlikely to have been known to the ancient Greeks, for whom watermelons surely had no gastronomic value.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Kg (2.2 lbs) of watermelon pulp (without the seeds)
• 250 grams (9 oz) of flour
• 200 grams (7 oz) of sugar
• 2 dozen crushed walnuts
• 2 tablespoons of honey
• 1 tablespoon of cinnamon
• Sesame
• extra virgin olive oil

First, we crush the pulp of the watermelon with our hands, making sure that not a single seed remains. When tempted to buy seedless watermelons, I have to tell you that you better forget about it, the cake doesn't turn out as good. If possible, choose an intense red watermelon, synonymous of being sweeter, but with seeds.

We leave on a colander that drains the maximum of liquid.

Then pour into a bowl and mix with honey, cinnamon, flour, sugar and crushed nuts.

Paint the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil and carefully sprinkle the sesame seeds so that it covers the entire bottom.

Then we pour the dough and flatten it. Ideally, it should be a maximum of 1 or 2 cm (half an inch)  thick.

Sprinkle the surface again with sesame seeds, pressing so that they stick (on this side, the one facing up, we don't use olive oil).

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (356 F) and bake for 45 minutes.

It is extracted, allowed to cool and on the island it is cut into triangles, more out of habit than because it has any influence on the flavour.

It is eaten for breakfast, snack or dessert, almost always accompanied by coffee and in summer with a little ice cream. It is never put in the fridge or eaten hot.

Amazing sweet, isn't?