Looking for Spanish Desserts? Spanish gastronomy is very diverse both in ingredients and elaborations, and its desserts are not far behind. Although they do not have so many traditional festivals to remember, the sweetest part of our cuisine deserves at least great recognition.
Discover the traditional desserts of Spanish gastronomy
Some of the desserts shown are even famous even outside of our frontiers, but some other’s name is tottally unknown. All of them are delicious, but maybe not recommendable after a paella.
Tarta de Santiago
The Tarta de Santiago is one of the most famous desserts of our country. This traditional sweet of Galician cuisine is made with almond flour mixed with egg and sugar in equal parts.
Although the origin is not very clear, since there is another traditional cake from Elche whose difference lies only in the flour, its very name links it to Galicia, where it is possible to buy it in almost any oven or convent (it is often said that the best Santiago cakes are made in the latter). This dessert so much ours has the Protected Geographical Identification I.G.P. Tarta de Santiago.
The cake is characterized by the cross of Santiago on the top.
Catalan cream
Also known as crema quemada, this dessert of Catalan origin consists of a pastry cream with an egg yolk base, which is covered with a layer of caramelized sugar on top to provide a crunchy contrast.
This dessert has many years of history, as it appears in medieval Catalan recipe books, which allows us to consider it one of the oldest desserts in Europe. Can you imagine where it comes from? Its predecessor is custard, which already existed in the Roman Republic several centuries before Christ.
Ensaimada
The ensaimada is that typical sweet of Mallorca and its name derives from the term “saïm”, which means butter, so you can already get an idea of what is one of the main ingredients. The dough is mainly made with flour, water, pork dough, sourdough and sugar.
The recipe for the authentic Mallorcan ensaimada is so unique that since 1996 it has had the specific Denomination and since 2003 the Protected Geographical Indication. A recognition that links the product in a special way with the geographical region.
Yemas de Santa Teresa
It is one of the most elaborated sweets in Avila and there is no sweet lover who does not know them and has not succumbed to their charm. Although its origin is uncertain, it is known that the “Flor de Castilla” is the first bakery to market them under the name “Yemas de Santa Teresa” in the mid-nineteenth century. Its uniqueness is the few ingredients needed to make this dessert, you only need egg yolks and sugar. It does not seem very complicated, do you dare to prepare it at home?
Torrijas
Its origin is humble, since this recipe began to be elaborated with the purpose of using the slices of bread from previous days that were getting hard. The recipe consists of soaking the dry bread in milk, coating it in egg batter and frying it in oil, although other ingredients are also used to sweeten them, such as cinnamon, sugar or honey.
Torrijas are a very old dish since they appear for the first time quoted by a Spanish author in the 15th century. This Spanish dessert is very common at Easter, as it is very typical to eat it during Lent because in the post-war period it was one of the few things that were celebrated by imposition of the regime. So, as there was no money for luxuries, they resorted to this recipe. What could be more economical than stale bread from the day before dipped in milk?
Sobaos pasiegos
Sobaos pasiegos are the kings of Cantabrian pastries. Their name comes from the area where they are made, the Pas Valley, and since 2004 they have had a Protected Geographical Indication, which is specific to the area where they are made and packaged.
In the original and primitive recipe, sobaos pasiegos were made from bread dough, but for more than a century they have been prepared with flour, as we know and consume them today. The secret for them to be perfect and fluffy lies in the quality of the butter.
Rice pudding
Its true origin is Asturias, who inherited this recipe from the Arabs. So it seems that rice pudding has a few centuries of history. Even in Cabranes commemorates this sweet dish in the Festival del Arroz con Leche, the festival was born from the legend that says that emigrants carried bottles full of this dessert when they left for America.
It is an easy and delicious dessert that anyone can make at home. Try it!
Miguelitos
It is a sweet puff pastry filled with pastry cream, typical of the town of La Roda in Albacete, the consumption of this dessert rises in September, at the Fair of Albacete where thousands of them are sold.
After years of preparation of this cake, new varieties have been created such as chocolate, white chocolate, bathed and known as “centenary”. These new varieties of miguelitos are very popular, however, they have not managed to leave aside the traditional and original.
Buñuelos de viento (Wind fritters)
Its origins, like many other traditional desserts we have in Spain, are also of Jewish heritage. The Sephardic people used to make fried buns with wheat flour which they called bimuelos as early as the 10th century.
The Buñuelo is a dough of flour, egg, milk and water that is fried, you can change from sweet to savory by adding a different filling, for example you can put apple or fish. Make the buñuelos to your liking!
Flan
Flan is another of the most common Spanish desserts that can be found, prepared and consumed everywhere. Perhaps the most common type of flan is the egg flan, but in recent years other variants such as vanilla, coffee or cheese flan have spread.
Its light texture makes it a typical dessert, but not too filling, to put the finishing touch to a meal made in Spain.
Fried milk
It is not a dessert that is usually found in bakeries but it is usually homemade. It is said that it is a typical dessert from Palencia in Castilla y León, but the truth is that it is most famous in the north of Spain and it is consumed during Carnival and Easter.
It is a sweet made of flour cooked with milk and sugar until it thickens, and the resulting dough is cut into portions that are fried. The recipe is not very complicated, you just want to cook!
Huesitos de santo
It is a dessert made of marzipan (almond paste), white and elongated cylindrical shape, originally filled with sweet egg yolk, although today you can find this dessert filled with coconut, angel hair, jam, chocolate, even praline or yogurt. The origin of its name is easy to guess, since this dessert looks like bones.
In the pastry shops you can find them around All Saints’ Day, coinciding with the almond harvest, and they are typical of the area of Castilla y León, although they are currently widespread throughout the Spanish geography.
