Paximathia

Paximathia (also spelled paximadia) are Greek rusks, a kind of oven-dried bread. They are still very popular in Crete and on other Greek islands.

The Oxford Companion to Food describes rusks as oven-dried bread of wheat or other grain, and it lists paximadia among the plain products that resemble them. Drying the bread removes the moisture that would otherwise let it spoil, so a rusk behaves very differently from a fresh loaf.

Paximadia keep well for many months, which is why they were the ideal food for sailors, who could carry them on long voyages without worrying about staleness. Their hard texture is part of their character: they are crunchy and sturdy, and they are traditionally enjoyed as a staple of island kitchens rather than as a delicate pastry.