Torta de Azeitão
The tiny but pretty village of Azeitão near Lisbon is a foodie heaven. Not only does it give its name to a deliciously runny sheep’s cheese and produce wonderful wines, it’s also famous for some of Portugal’s best cakes, namely the torta de Azeitão. No prizes for guessing the ingredients as flour, sugar, eggs and cinnamon, with a hint of lemon.
This time, the super soft sponge cake is smothered with an eggy cream, sprinkled with cinnamon and rolled.
Charuta and Ovos Moles from Aveiro
Charuta is a long, thin cigar made of egg yolk and almonds wrapped in rice paper, sometimes coated in extra sugar, as if it wasn’t sweet enough already!
It’s a regional delicacy from the north of Portugal, especially Ponte de Lima and Arcos de Valdevez, where I bought these.
Eat it, don’t smoke it.
The same principle of egg and rice paper is applied in the canal-filled city of Aveiro. What differs here is the shape, which is typically a shell.
Queijo do figo from the Algarve
Fig cake, called queijo do figo because its shape resembles a typical Portuguese cheese, is one of my favourite Portuguese cakes.
These rich patties of fig, almonds, herbs, and maybe medronho (a spirit made from strawberry trees) are not as sweet as most of the eggy cakes and go very well with a glass of 10-year tawny port.
They are also very pretty to look at as they are decorated with almonds in flower and other patterns. You’ll find them in Algarve markets in the autumn and winter.
Bolo de mel from Madeira
Bolo de mel is a deliciously rich cake from Madeira. The darkness and depth of flavour comes from the use of locally produced mel de cana, i.e. treacle or molasses.
The soft dense texture reminded me a little of rum truffles from the UK – never a bad thing!
Torta de Azeitão
The tiny but pretty village of Azeitão near Lisbon is a foodie heaven. Not only does it give its name to a deliciously runny sheep’s cheese and produce wonderful wines, it’s also famous for some of Portugal’s best cakes, namely the torta de Azeitão. No prizes for guessing the ingredients as flour, sugar, eggs and cinnamon, with a hint of lemon.
This time, the super soft sponge cake is smothered with an eggy cream, sprinkled with cinnamon and rolled.
Charuta and Ovos Moles from Aveiro
Charuta is a long, thin cigar made of egg yolk and almonds wrapped in rice paper, sometimes coated in extra sugar, as if it wasn’t sweet enough already!
It’s a regional delicacy from the north of Portugal, especially Ponte de Lima and Arcos de Valdevez, where I bought these.
Eat it, don’t smoke it.
The same principle of egg and rice paper is applied in the canal-filled city of Aveiro. What differs here is the shape, which is typically a shell.
Queijo do figo from the Algarve
Fig cake, called queijo do figo because its shape resembles a typical Portuguese cheese, is one of my favourite Portuguese cakes.
These rich patties of fig, almonds, herbs, and maybe medronho (a spirit made from strawberry trees) are not as sweet as most of the eggy cakes and go very well with a glass of 10-year tawny port.
They are also very pretty to look at as they are decorated with almonds in flower and other patterns. You’ll find them in Algarve markets in the autumn and winter.
Bolo de mel from Madeira
Bolo de mel is a deliciously rich cake from Madeira. The darkness and depth of flavour comes from the use of locally produced mel de cana, i.e. treacle or molasses.
The soft dense texture reminded me a little of rum truffles from the UK – never a bad thing!
