Cretan Dakos

Method

1. 1
   • whole grain bread4

   Dry the bread into rusks — Heat the oven to 150°C and lay the bread slices directly on the oven rack. Bake for 35 minutes, turning them once, until they are dry all the way through and knock hollow — a rusk, not a piece of toast.

   ⏱35 min
2. 2
   • tomato2

   Cool until hard — Leave the rusks to cool completely on the rack, at least 15 minutes. They harden further as they cool, and that hardness is the whole point — a soft rusk collapses into mush the moment the tomato touches it.

   ⏱15 min
3. 3
   • tomato2
   • red wine vinegar1 tsp
   • saltto taste

   Grate and season the tomato — Halve the tomatoes and grate them on the coarse side of a box grater over a bowl, holding the skin flat and discarding it when only the shell is left. Season the pulp with salt and the vinegar and leave it for 5 minutes.

4. 4
   • tomato2
   • olive oil4 tbsp

   Moisten the rusks — Set the rusks on plates and spoon just a tablespoon of the tomato juice over each, then drizzle with half the olive oil and let it soak in. The rusk should soften at the surface but still fight back in the middle.

5. 5
   • tomato2
   • feta100 g
   • black olives60 g
   • capers1 tbsp
   • dried oregano1 tsp
   • olive oil4 tbsp

   Top with feta and olives — Pile the grated tomato on top, crumble the feta over in rough lumps and add the olives and capers. Dust with oregano, finish with the remaining olive oil and eat within a few minutes, while the rusk still has bite.