Galician Almond Tart - Tarta de Santiago (Galicische Mandeltorte)

Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain is rather famous for being an important destination for religious pilgrims. But Galicia also has its own incredibly delicious tart. Santiago de Compostela gives its name to the almond and lemon tart called Galician Almond Tart or Tarta de Santiago (literally meaning cake of St. James).

The first documented reference dates back to 1577 when Pedro de Porto Carrero visited the University of Santiago. It was a similar recipe but the name was different then, it was called Torta Real, which means Royal Cake.

However it seems like it was not  until the 20th century that the Tarta de Santiago became knownn outside of Galicia. It gained fame thanks to Saint James' Way, which is the pilgramage to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. The pilgrims on this route must have really enjoyed a slice of this tasty Spanish cake after their long journey and upon returning home, are likely to have told their family and friends about it. To this day, the cake is most commonly eaten throughout the month of July as well as the first week of August as the Santiago the Apostle's day is celebrated on the 25th of July.

It is a delightful, light dessert that is relatively easy to make. As mentioned above, the recipe dates back to the middle ages and although there are many subtle variations such as adding orange zest instead of lemon zest, the basic filling of almonds, sugar and eggs has remained unchanged over the years.

Pilgrims and tourists who visit the great Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, where the relics of the apostle Saint James are believed to be buried, see the cake in the windows of every pastry shop and restaurant. This wonderful almond tart is traditionally presented by sifting icing sugar…

over a template…

… to reveal the Cross of the Order of Santiago (cruz de Santiago) which gives the tart its Galician name.

The sign of the cross that decorates the top of the tart did not appear until 1924, when Jose Mora Soto from Santiago de Compostela decorated his cakes with the silhouette of Saint James' cross. According to his descendants, he was looking to give the traditional product a different touch. This idea was proved to be so successful that it was copied by other Compostelan pastrycooks and spread throughout the whole of Galicia.

The cake can be baked in many sizes, big and small, thin and thick, over a pastry tart base or without a base.

In Santiago de Compostela it is served in a pastry shell, but the filling holds up as a cake on its own. My deliciously moist and fragrant homey version is baked with a nice shortcrust pastry base. And there is a little cinnamon added, which I think adds a nice and delicate flavor to the lemon zest and almond meal, the two main ingredients of this tart. While there is some flour in the shortcrust pastry, there is no flour in the filling, the beaten eggs provide the only raising agent.

Recipe for the Galician Almond Tart - Tarta de Santiago
(Galicische Mandeltorte)

Ingredients for the Shortcrust pastry

• 200 grams AP (plain) flour, plus some for dusting
• 100 grams cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 75 grams superfine (caster) sugar
• 1 egg (L), free range or organic
• a bit of cold water

Ingredients for the Almond Filling

• 5 eggs (L), free range or organic
• 300 grams superfine (caster) sugar
• 1 lemon, organic, rind only, grated
• 300 grams almond meal
• one pinch ground cinnamon

For decoration

• some icing sugar

Equipment needed

• tart pan with a removable bottom or springfrom pan (26 cm diameter)
• pastry brush

Preparation of the Shortcrust pastry

1. Pulse the flour, butter and sugar in a food processor until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Mix together the beaten egg and water. With the motor still running, gradually add the egg and water mixture to the bowl of the food processor a little at a time, until the mixture comes together as a dough.
3. Roll out the pastry onto a lightly floured work surface to form a circle about 32 cm in diameter.
4. Carefully line a 26 cm tart pan with removable bottom or springform pan with the rolled pastry, then lightly prick (dock) the base with a fork.
5. Transfer the tart pan to the fridge for about 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
7. When the pastry has chilled, line the tart case with parchment paper and fill it with baking beans.
8. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then carefully remove the paper and beans.
9. Return the tart pan to the oven for another five minutes, or until the pastry is pale golden brown.
10. Remove the tart pan from the oven and set aside.
11. Reduce the oven temperature to 170 degrees Celsius.

Preparation of the Filling

1. In a large bowl, using the whisk attachment of your mixer, whisk the eggs and sugar until pale and frothy and mixture has doubled in size (about 6 to 8 minutes).
2. Using a large rubber spatula, carefully fold in the finely grated lemon zest, then the almond meal and cinnamon.
3. Spoon the almond mixture into the pre-baked tart shell and smooth the top (this is best done with an offset spatula).
4. Bake the tart in the oven for about 50 minutes or until the filling mixture has set, risen and is pale golden-brown.
5. Transfer the tart to a cooling rack and let cool for about 15 minutes, then lift the tart from the tart pan.
6. Let the tart cool completely.
7. If using: cut out the pattern and place on the tart. NOTE: for the template of the Cross of St. James, please see the last picture.
8. Dust the tart with icing sugar and serve.

This cake is great for serving with a typically Spanish style Café con Leche (coffee with milk). But of course, it also makes the perfect end to any Spanish meal. It is often also often accompanied by a glass of sweet wine or a dessert wine.

My husband had asked me for the longest time to bake this tart - once he had tasted a piece of this traditional Galician pastry while visisting Santiago de Compostela many years ago, he was a real fan. Over the years he would always tell me that this was an almondy, sweet treat with the St. James Cross gracing its top. Finally, this week, I had a chance to bake this Galician specialty and I am quite glad that I did because this is a wonderfully moist almond tart. It looks pretty when served and it is a breeze to prepare. If you want, you can even bake this tart without the shortcrust pastry. And it tastes even better the day after it was baked - as is the case with many cakes containing ground nuts.

It is also noteworthy that in May 2010, the EU gave the Tarta de Santiago the so-called PGI ( protected geographical indication) status within Europe. Meaning that to be called a true Tarta de Santiago for marketing, the entire product must be traditionally manufactured within the specific region of origin.

Following is a template of the Cross of St. James which can be used to decorate this fabulous Galician tart.

Buen Provecho!

FFwD: Cod and Spinach Roulade with wild garlic pesto and tomato sauce

Today we are preparing an elegant Cod and Spinach Roulade for the French Friday with Dorie group.

It is nice to be cooking fish again…

…it is springtime and the first fresh vegetables of the season have appeared in the markets, lending themselves to the preparation of a fresh tomato sauce and wild garlic pesto to accompany the fish roulades.

The tomato-lemon sauce in Dorie´s recipe calls for butter, garlic, tomatoes and the peel from one half preserved lemon. A nice and fruity fresh sauce.

Then onto the preparation of the wild garlic pesto. My very favorite spring pesto of all times. Unlike common cultivated garlic, it is the leaves that are eaten rather than the bulbs and the taste is more delicate too, similar to the flavor of chives. The leaves can be eaten raw or lightly cooked.

Be sure to wash them well - some recipes also call for blanching the leaves for a few minutes in boiling water. The leaves add a subtle, tangy flavor to salads, stir-fries and soups. On the weekend I will be preparing a wild garlic tart with the remaining leaves.

Towards the end of the season they bloom and the white flowers are also edible.

Once the tomato sauce and the pesto were done, it was time to prepare the cod roulades. The filling of the roulades consists of fresh spinach, onion, garlic and the other half of the peel of the preserved lemon. The roulades itself contains cod, egg whites and very cold cream that get processed in the food processor until the ingredients turn into a thick mousse. Then the fish mousse gets spread on some plastic wrap, the spinach filling gets placed on the fish mousse and then all rolled up and steamed for a good ten minutes. After a little rest, I sliced the roulades carefully and served them with the gently heated tomato sauce and a bit of the wild garlic pesto.

In France, roulades are a very common way to prepare fish or thinly cut meat and it is also common to place a filling inside the rolled shape. And I must say that it makes for a very pretty and elegant presentation.


Recipe for the Wild Garlic Pesto (Bärlauch Pesto)


Ingredients

• 80 grams wild garlic leaves
• 50 grams Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano (or other hard cheese)
• 50 grams ground almonds (or other nuts such as pine nuts)
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 100 ml extra virgin olive oil, plus some more for topping up the jar (I used lemon infused olive oil)

Preparation

1. Wash the wild garlic leaves and dry them carefully
2. Finely grate the cheese. 
3. Grind the almonds in a food processor and add the cheese, salt and pepper.
4. Add about 1/2 of the wild garlic leaves and blend.
5. Repeat with the remaining leaves.
6. Add the olive oil and blend.
7. Put in jar and top up with oil so that the pesto is covered and close lid.

To see how well the Cod and Spinach Roulades of all the other Doristas turned out, please click here.

Bon weekend!

Tuesdays with Dorie - Mad about Madeline and Madeleines

Today´s recipe for the Tuesdays with Dorie group are Madeleines. The recipe for these famous pretty French sponge cakes was contributed by baker extraordinaire Flo Braker.

The Madeleines come in a palette of flavors, ranging from the traditional lemon zest to rose or even orange flower water, vanilla, chocolate, green tea (with Matcha), and, honey. There are even some savory versions containing fresh herbs such as thyme or rosemary or even finely grated cheese such as Parmigiano Reggiano.

The sign of a fine Madeleine is a little hump, created by leaving the batter to chill and stiffen for at least two hours, and by baking in a hot oven. The batter has a tendency to stick to the traditional shell-shaped metal molds, so you should also remember to butter your molds twice. The cakes also turn out fine in nonstick silicone molds, but they will never color to a crisp golden brown.

For a Proustian moment, savor your Madeleines as he did with a cup of tisane. Although “tisane” refers to herbal teas in general, it is believed that he quite enjoyed dunking his French sponge cakes into a cup of linden blossom tea (infusion de tilleul).

In order to make delicious Madeleines, you will have make a classic sponge cake or génoise using unsalted butter, cake flour, some salt, eggs and pure vanilla extract. And in order to obtain their traditional shape, you will need the above-mentioned traditional Madeleine baking pans. I have regular Madeleine molds and mini Madeleine molds - the mini ones bake in about 5 minutes.

To bake these small French tea cakes, you spoon the batter into the molds, filling them almost to the rim and bake the Madeleines until they are puffed, golden brown, and just starting to pull from the sides of the molds, about 8 to 10 minutes. Note that the peaked centers will be lighter than the rest of the cakes. Turn them out on a rack to cool. They are best eaten warm from the oven, though they may be stored in an airtight container for 2 to 3 days.

And while enjoying your Madeleines with a steaming cup of linden blossom tea, why not read the delightful book Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans, it does not always have be In Search of Lost Time (À la recherche du temps perdu), by the famous French author Marcel Proust.

To see how the other Doristas fared with this recipe, please do click here.

The recipe can be found at Katie and Amy´s blog - Counter Dog - "Thank you both for hosting today´s recipe"!

Sources:

• "Madeline" by Ludwig Bemelmans available at www.amazon.com
• Madeleine mini baking mold and regular size one from "Gobel" available at www.gobel.fr
• Linden blossom tea (Lindenblütentee) from "TeaGschwender" available at www.teegschwender.com 

FFwD: Financiers Fraises-Pistaches (Erdbeer-Pistazien-Financiers)

Today we are baking Financiers for the French Friday with Dorie group.

It is usually said that these small French almond cakes were created around 1890, by the pâtissier Lasne whose bakery was located near the Paris stock exchange. Lasne knew that his clients who were working in the financial district, were not only wealthy but also always in a hurry. So he came up with the idea to create a small and elegant little cake that could be eaten by his clients without any utensils and without risking a stain on their clothing.

But before Lasne created the financiers for his clients, however, it should be mentioned that since the Middle Ages, the Sisters of the Order of the Visitation (les sœurs de l'ordre des visitandines) used to bake small, oval, and soft delicious almond cakes. But like most almond pastries, these little delicacies experienced a rather dark period after the Renaissance. Potassium cyanide smells much like bitter almonds and it was rumored that the lovely Catherine de` Medici and her followers had the unfortunate propensity to give poisoned gifts to certain personae non gratae. Therefore,  it was taboo for centuries to bake anything containing almonds. But in 1890, it is said that the talented pâtissier Lasne breathed new life into the original recipe. Lasne also had the idea (très marketing) to change the oval shape of the original small cakes to a rectangular shape to evoke the association of a gold ingot – hence, the Financiers were born!

Financiers are certainly as rich as the bankers they were named for.  They consist of ground almonds (100 grams),  white sugar (200 grams), unwhipped egg whites (6 large), plain flour (90 grams), and a good amount of unsalted melted butter (170 grams), which can be cooked until it is golden brown (beurre noisette).

Not only is the list of ingredients nice and short but the Financiers are also very easy to make. All you have to do is butter and flour about 12 financier molds, a 12-hole mini muffin pan, or other pretty little cake pans or molds and put them in the fridge so the butter sets. You melt the butter for the dough in a pan until it starts to brown and strain through a fine sieve. Set aside. Mix the almonds and sugar in a pan, stir in the egg whites and gently heat for two minutes. Add flour and butter and chill the batter overnight. Pour the mixture into the molds and bake for 15-18 minutes (depending on the exact size of your pans) until golden brown and risen in the center. Cool very slightly before taking them out of the cake pans or molds.

You can get really creative with this recipe, I have seen such additions as blueberries, raspberries, pineapples and kumquats, hazelnuts or pistachios instead of the almonds, herbs such as rosemary or thyme, lemon and many more. I decided to add strawberries and pistachios. We have seen a lot of strawberries in stores lately and while they might not be the sweetest yet, they were perfect for these Financiers as they held their shape even when I added them to the dough…

…and delicious alongside the ground pistachios.

As I do not own any Financier molds, I decided to use my tiny vintage Mondamin cake molds. At first I was not sure about being able to unmold these little cakes from these vintage molds, but a while ago, I read in one of the many recipes that I looked at that if you place the buttered and floured molds in the fridge for a few minutes before baking, the cakes will unmold easily – be that as it may, it worked.

Overall, these almond cakes are very pretty and not overly sweet. They are also simple to bake, very versatile, and just perfect served with coffee or tea. And they can be made ahead and be brought to a picnic or even be kept for a nice weekend dinner party.

To see how pretty the Financiers of all the other Doristas turned out, please click here.

Les financiers sont de délicieux petits gâteaux!

Bon weekend!

Burger Brezel (Burger Pretzel)

The traditional pastry that I am featuring today is called Burger Brezel (Burger Pretzel). They were  originally produced in an area around Burg Castle (Schloss Burg) in a region called Bergisches Land (North Rhine Westphalia). The Town of Burg nowadays belongs to the City of Solingen, world-renowed for the production of incredibly good kitchen tools such as the Wüsthof or Zwilling knives and scissors.

The Burger Pretzel is an artfully looped, manually produced pastry made with a lighty sweeted yeast dough. According to tradition, around the year 1795, a wounded French soldier from Burgundy stayed with the family of a baker in the Town of Burg while he recovered from his injuries. In his other life he was also a baker and it is said that he left his recipe for Pretzel with the Burg family as a way to show his gratitude for the care that he had received during his recovery. Based upon his recipe, the recipe for Burger Pretzel was developed. At first the recipe was kept a secret but a couple of years later,  almost every little town in the area had a baker who produced Burger Pretzel.

Last month, we received a copy of the traditional recipe for Burger Pretzel during  Pretzel Day at the outdoor museum.

So-called Kiepenkerle (peddlers transporting their wares afoot carrying wooden back frames and panniers) sold the Burger Pretzel throughout the region and beyond. And while we were visisting the museum that day, a woman wearing the traditional gear of the Pretzel vendors distributed the Burger Pretzel.

Today only a few bakeries still exist which produce the Burger Pretzel by hand and according to the traditional recipe. The traditional four-time loop of these Pretzel cannot be achieved with machines.

The Burger Pretzel differs from other Pretzels in its appearance. According to its size it has a minimum of four or five twists in its middle segment. In order to twirl the knot of the Pretzel (Schnackenstock), the baker throws a string of dough in the air and “spins” it by hand. Characteristically, the Burger Pretzel becomes hard and crispy within a few hours after baking. Its crust is golden brown and  it tastes a bit like rusk.

During the Pretzel Day, pictures of different forms of Pretzels were put on display. Here you can see the basic shape, the original shape as well as the Burger Pretzel shape with the traditional four-time loop, the Bavarian, and the Swabian shaped Pretzel.

Today, the Burger Pretzel is often served as an integral part of the menue of the so-called Bergische Kaffeetafel, an afternoon meal somewhat resembling an English Afternoon Tea and still very much alive today, in homes as well as in restaurants. On special occasions, when guests are expected or family celebrations are planned, everything that the country farm in the Bergish countryside can and could provide was put on the table.

The opulence of the food emphasized the special hospitality of the region and attracted many city dwellers out into the green countryside to enjoy eating sweet yeast buns (with or without raisins), various black and rye breads, sweet spreads as well as hearty things to put on your bread like honey, pear- or apple butter or sugar beet molasses.

There was also butter, quark, and cheese, in addition to blood pudding and liverwurst, ham as well as various cakes and, in some places, boiled or scrambled eggs. Another essential item is rice pudding with cinnamon and sugar and freshly baked Bergish waffles with hot sour cherries. And the Bergische Kaffeetafel is always dominated by the Dröppelminna (Coffee Maid), a special coffeepot made of pewter. While enjoying your coffee, it is traditional to dip the Burger Pretzel into your coffee.

Since 2010 the Burger Pretzel has been a passenger of the so-called Slow Food’s Ark of Taste (Arche des Geschmacks). The international project of Slow Food lists about 1.000 endangered, but regionally important products and points the public to the loss of food culture. In the region of the Bergish countryside (Bergisches Land),  a group has initiated a campaign to save the Burger Pretzel by organizing baking workshops, gastronomic weeks and special events like “German Bread & Butter Day”.

Recipe for Burger Brezeln (Burger Pretzel)
(translated and adjusted slightly from a recipe by the working group for the Burger Pretzel/Arbeitskreis Burger Brezel)

The recipe yields 10 to 12 pretzels

Ingredients for the Pretzel

• 20 grams fresh yeast
• 250 ml lukewarm whole milk
• 500 grams AP (plain) flour or spelt flour 
• 75 grams sugar
• 50 grams unsalted butter room temperature or 50 ml of a neutral oil
• a pinch of salt
• sugar for decoration (optional)

Preparation of the Pretzel

1. Dissolve the fresh yeast in in the warm milk. 
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, butter and salt.
3. Add the dissolved yeast to the flour mixture and knead the dough either by hand or using your mixer with the dough hook for about five minutes or until the dough comes together and looks homogenous.
4. Let the dough rest for about thirty minutes or until it has doubled its volume.
5. Divide the dough into twelve portions.
6. Roll each portion first into a bun shape and then into a strand of about 35 cm.
7. Then form a loop and twist the ends around each other for four times, then lay them under the middle part of the loop to form a Pretzel.
8. Carefully place the Pretzels onto a parchment lined baking sheet and let them rest for about thirty minutes.
9. Preheat your oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Brush the Pretzels with a bit of water  - at this point you could also decorate them with sugar.
10. Bake for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned. 
11. Transfer to cooling racks and serve the same day with butter and jams or store in tins or jars.

NOTE: the Pretzel will taste like sweet buns on the first day and they can be kept for several months if stored properly – at that point they will taste like rusks and can be enjoyed by dunking them into coffee or tea.

I  baked one batch using spelt flour (Dinkelmehl) and no sugar for decoration (you can the the results on the first and eighth picture) and the second batch with regular all purpose flour (Weizenmehl Type 405) and sugar (you can see the results on the forth, tenth and eleventh picture). Both times the Pretzel turned out wonderful - the recipe is easy and forgiving and we liked to eat them the same day while they were still soft and tasted a bit like regular sweet buns.

For more information regarding the Working Group for the Burger Pretzel and the local chapter of Slow Food, please click:

www.burgerbrezel.de
or
www.slowfood.de/biodiversitaet/die_arche_passagiere/burger_brezel