“Vasilopita” is the New Year's sweet cake and it is cut shortly after the new year begins.
The custom comes from the time when Saint Vasilios was bishop of Caesarea and wanted to protect the Christians from the cruel governor of Cappadocia, who demanded exorbitant taxes.
That‘s why he told Christians to collect everything they had of value to give. Finally, the Saint persuaded him to leave without taking anything. But since it was practically impossible to return each object to its owner, he put each one in cakes and offered them to Christians. Then miraculously each one found the object that belonged to him.
In the area of Messinia, "Vasilopita" takes the form of a cake made with butter, eggs, sugar, orange juice, flour and is decorated with almonds, powdered sugar and cinnamon.
Inside the "Vasilopita" the housewife hides a coin. The father of the family makes a cross in "Vasilopita" and cut the cake on New Year's Day, dedicating the first pieces to Christ and the Virgin Mary, to Saint Vasilios, to the poor and the immigrant, to home and then a piece is offered to each member of the family and to the guests. Whoever finds the coin is considered to have good luck throughout the year and is offered a gift. It is customary for clubs, schools and professional associations to cut "Vasilopites" throughout January until February.
What the local experts say
Interview's main points
“Before we talk about the custom of cutting the Vasilopita (St. Vasilios Bread), it's good to say a few words about Saint Vasilios the Great. Saint Vasilios the Great is one of our most important hierarchs. He came from a very wealthy family, had an excellent education with studies at the best and largest universities of the time, and the best prerequisites for a brilliant career. However, what he did when he returned to his homeland, Caesarea of Cappadocia, was to give all his property to the poor, abandon everything, and go to Pontus to become a monk. He became a monk, which disappointed his father because he wanted him to succeed him in law, since among other sciences, Saint Vasilios had also studied law. Beyond Saint Vasilios contribution to Education and literature – in fact, we consider him the patron saint of teachers and students along with the other two great hierarchs, Saint John Chrysostom and Saint Gregory the Theologian – Saint Vasilios was very well-known for his social and philanthropic work. He managed to persuade the wealthy to open their storehouses, and little by little, with tremendous personal effort, working as a doctor, as a laborer, and doing whatever he knew, he built a village, a small town, called 'Vasileiada,' where every poor person found solace. It had an orphanage, a nursing home, a hospital, schools, etc."
"Regarding the custom of cutting the Vasilopita, at that time, the Prefect of Caesarea, a harsh man, wanted to collect taxes and a lot of money from the residents of Caesarea. So, Saint Basil said to them: “Gather whatever you have – valuables, jewelry – and bring them to me so I can give them to him and appease him.” However, with his personality and persuasion, he convinced the Prefect not to take the taxes, the valuables of the residents of Caesarea. But how would Saint Basil return to each person what precious items they had given? It was New Year's Eve, and he ordered the baking of pies, which they called 'plakountes,' and inside these little pies, he placed jewelry and coins. In a miraculous way, each family happened to find in the piece of bread they received the jewelry or coins they had given. The custom of the Vasilopita with the hidden coin originates from this story."
"Every household on the eve of New Year's Day has prepared its Vasilopita, placing a lucky coin (flouri) inside. They place it in the center of the table, and when the new year arrives, they cross it three times. They don't cut the first piece for themselves, but as a sign of humility and respect, they first cut a piece for Christ, for the Virgin Mary, for Saint Basil, for the House, and for the Poor person – just as Saint Basil had dedicated his life to protecting the poor. After that, they cut a piece for the head of the household, and then for the rest of the family in order of seniority, from the oldest to the youngest. Whoever gets the coin is believed to have good luck in the new year."
"In most regions of Greece, Vasilopita is made sweet, like a cake. The sweet pie came from the Greeks of Asia Minor in the style of tsoureki (sweet bread) with mahlab, aromatics, etc. In other regions of Greece, Central Greece, Thessaly, Epirus, Western Macedonia, they made savory pies with ingredients they had locally. If the region produced dairy products, they made cheese pie (tyropita); in Thessaly, they made leek pie (prasopita), and even meat pies in other areas of Greece. In southern Greece, they make a sweet pie."
