Cypriot Paximadia Recipe (Sesame Seed Breadsticks)
This Cypriot paximadia recipe makes crunchy, savoury sesame seed breadsticks, perfect as a snack and delicious with Greek coffee!
Ingredients
- 750 grams All purpose flour roughly 5 cups
- 1.5 tablespoon Dry yeast 1 packet
- ½ teaspoon Mastiha ground (masika)
- ½ teaspoon Mahlepi ground
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 tablespoon Tahini
- 1 cup Water warm
- 1 cup Orange juice
- 1.5 cups Sesame seeds boiled
Instructions
- Mix dry ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine 80% of the flour (roughly 4 cups of flour), yeast, mastiha, mahlepi, and salt. Stir well to ensure everything is evenly mixed.
- Prepare tahini mix: In a separate cup, whisk the tahini into warm water until it dissolves. Add this mixture to the dry ingredients.
- Add orange juice: Pour the orange juice into the bowl and mix until a dough begins to form.
- Knead the dough: Lightly flour your workbench with some of the reserved flour. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, incorporating the rest of the flour as needed until the dough is smooth and non-sticky.
- Let the dough rise: Place the dough in a clean bowl. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap and leave it in a warm spot for about 1 hour, or until it doubles in size.
- Prepare sesame seeds: While the dough rises, boil the sesame seeds in a saucepan filled with water. Once the water starts bubbling, remove the pan from heat and drain the seeds. Then spread them out onto a clean kitchen towel.
- Shape the paximadia: Punch down the dough to release air. Divide into smaller portions, rolling each into balls, and keeping them covered to avoid drying.
- Roll and cut: Roll each portion into a stick about 1 cm in diameter. Use a sharp knife to cut each stick into 15 cm long pieces.
- Coat in sesame: Roll each piece in sesame seeds, ensuring they’re fully coated. Place the coated sticks in a single layer on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Cover them to prevent the unbaked dough from drying out. Let them rise for another 15-20. They will puff up and retract slightly to about 12 cm in length.
- First bake: Preheat the oven to 160°C (fan-forced). Bake the paximadia for 25-35 minutes, or until they are lightly golden. Let them cool for 30 minutes.
- Second bake: Reduce the oven temperature to 100°C (fan-forced) and bake for another 1-2 hours until they’re fully dried and crispy. Test one or two to check the texture. The lower temperature is crucial to allow further cooking without further browning.
- Cool and enjoy: Once fully baked, remove the paximadia from the oven and let them cool. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Work with smaller portions: Roll out smaller portions of dough to make shaping easier.
- Keep your hands wet: Slightly wet your hands while rolling the dough. I find this helps create a slight stickiness, making rolling easier.
- Keep the dough covered: Cover the dough with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel while rolling and when the paximadia are rising to prevent drying out.
- Don’t over-brown in the first bake: Keep an eye on the paximadia during the first bake. They should be lightly golden.
- Check during the second bake: Monitor the paximadia closely. Gently press them with your fingers to ensure they are not soft. You may also want to bite into one or two to check that they are crispy. Be careful, as they will still be hot!
- Yield: The number of breadsticks you make depends on how big you roll them, but you can expect to yield between 70 and 90 paximadia.
Nutrition
Calories: 54kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 2gFat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0.2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 30mgPotassium: 32mgFiber: 1gSugar: 0.3gVitamin A: 7IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg
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