Quesada Pasiega - a traditional dessert from Cantabria Spain

Today I show you the traditional recipe of 'quesada pasiega'. Being from Cantabria, I’ve tried every brand of quesada and also the traditional homemade ones made by a friend of my mother, who prepared them exquisitely. That’s why my standards for quesada are very high, and taking advantage of the blog, I wanted to try making one myself to see if I could achieve that delicious traditional flavor. And I did it!

Rest assured that if you follow the steps in my recipe, you’ll get all the traditional flavor of Cantabria.

The origin of quesada pasiega dates back to the 14th century, and its recipe has been passed down from parents to children until today. It was born in the area of Selaya, Vega del Pas, and Villacarriedo, created by shepherds who had leftover curdled milk and eggs and came up with this delightful dessert that soon became a hallmark of the entire province.

Ingredients:

- 3 liters of fresh whole milk (to obtain 500 g of curdled milk or cheese).
- 200 g of sugar.
-100 g of butter.
-4 large eggs.
-A pinch of salt.
-100 g of regular flour or cake flour.
-3 teaspoons of ground cinnamon.
-Lemon zest.

-Rennet (the amount indicated by the manufacturer))

Preparation:

1- First, we prepare the curdled milk or queso pasiego. You need fresh milk; this recipe cannot be made with long-life milk from cartons—you must use the refrigerated milk sold in supermarket. The cheese obtained usually weighs about 1/4 of the amount of milk used. Pour all the milk into a pot and heat it to 34°C. I measured the temperature with a meat thermometer.

2- At this temperature, I added the drops of rennet indicated by the brand I bought. You can purchase rennet at pharmacies; I recommend buying the smallest amount possible because you won’t need much and it spoils quickly. For 3 liters of milk, I needed 60 drops. Stir well so the rennet spreads evenly throughout the milk.

3- I waited quite a while and nothing happened, so I gradually increased the temperature of the milk until, at 75°C, I saw it begun to curdle slightly. I continued raising it slowly up to 90°C, and at that point, it was clear that the milk had separated from the whey.

4- I turned off the heat, let the milk rest covered for two hours, then placed a strainer over a bowl with a cheesecloth on top and poured all the curdled milk onto it.

5- Lift the cloth and press the cheese slightly to release a bit more whey.

6- In a bowl, mix the butter with the sugar until you get a smooth paste.

7- Add the eggs, at room temperature, along with a pinch of salt, the cinnamon, and the lemon zest. Mix everything well.

8- Add the sifted flour using a strainer and mix thoroughly.

9-  Incorporate the cheese and mix well. Some people blend it completely, but traditionally, small lumps of cheese are left. I kept a few lumps.

10- Grease a baking mold with butter and pour in the mixture. The baking mold has a diameter of 12 centimeters.

11- Preheat the oven to 200°C.

12- Place the quesada in the middle of the oven with heat above and below at 200°C for 8 minutes.

Then lower the temperature to 180°C and bake for another 35 minutes. After that, switch to heat above at the same temperature and bake for 10 more minutes—this helps the top brown nicely.

You can enjoy it warm or cold, whichever you prefer. It keeps well in the fridge, and the next day it tastes even better.

Receta en Español

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Here you have my  favourite cooking tools: https://viaja-en-mi-cocina-english.blogspot.com/2023/05/shop.html

Cantabria

Por Miguillen - Trabajo propio, CC BY-SA 2.5, Enlace

Danish butter cookies

Although butter cookies in general originated in Europe (with Scottish and British influences) centuries ago, the Danish version became established as its own specialty during the 19th century.

Mass production of these cookies began to grow in the 1930s, and in 1933 the Kelsen group was formed, which would become the world leader in sales of this product.

The brand Royal Dansk, founded in 1966, popularized the use of metal tins for exporting the cookies. These tins were designed to keep them fresh and prevent them from breaking, eventually becoming an icon.

In Denmark, they are considered a traditional dessert, especially during the Christmas holidays, and in Danish they are known as smørkager, which literally means “butter cookie.”

Today I’m sharing with you the original recipe for these cookies. You can shape them just like the ones from the “Royal Dansk” brand, but you’ll need a piping bag. Since I had some trouble with mine, I ended up making them in a simpler way.

Ingredients:

- 225 g unsalted butter.

- 115 g granulated white sugar.

- 1 egg at room temperature.

- 1/4 teaspoon Salt.

- Half a vanilla beam.

- 284 g all-purpose flour.

- 2 tablespoons sugar for sprinkling.

Preparation:

1- Use butter that has been out of the fridge for a couple of hours so it’s slightly soft.

2- In a bowl, add the butter, sugar, vanilla, and the room‑temperature egg. Mix well until you get a fluffy texture. I ended up using a hand mixer. If you have a stand mixer, it will be even easier.

3- Add the salt and sifted flour. Mix until the dough becomes fluffy again; you can use the mixer to help.

4- To shape the cookies, you can use a piping bag, but to make it easier you can simply form them by hand. Make them small, as they expand in the oven. Place them on parchment paper, sprinkle a little sugar on each cookie, and refrigerate them for 30 minutes so they don’t spread too much in the oven.

5- Preheat the oven for 5 minutes, then bake the cookies at 150°C for 15 minutes with heat from top and bottom. If you see the edges turning golden sooner, take them out.

6- Let them cool for 10 minutes and enjoy!, They keep for 4 days in a tin, but you can also freeze them. When you want one, just pop it in the microwave and it will taste freshly baked.

Receta en Español

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Here you have my  favourite cooking tools: https://viaja-en-mi-cocina-english.blogspot.com/2023/05/shop.html

Denmark

Cabezotes from Cuba (soaked sponge cake)

Cabezotes are an old traditional Cuban dessert. Today, due to economic difficulties, they are hard to find, as they require expensive ingredients.

They were a dessert of Cuban high society, an adaptation of the soaked sponge cakes from Spain, with the addition of local ingredients such as rum.

The recipe needs a lot of egg yolks, if you do not know what to do with the egg whites, here you have another spectacular dessert : Pavlova

Ingredients:

- 12 egg yolks.

- 1 egg.

- 40 grams of Sugar.

- 1/2 vanilla beam.

- 18 grams of Flour.

- 60 grams of corn starch.

- a pinch of Salt.

For the Sirup:

- 1 cup of water.

- 1 cup of Sugar.

- 1 Cinnamon stick.

- Lemon zest.

- Vanilla.

- 3 star anises.

- 2 table spoons of rum.

Method:

1- Take 12 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites, keep the yolks in a bowl. Add one whole egg. The eggs must be at room temperature.

2- Whisk with the help of a hand mixer or stand mixer until the mixture is light in color and fluffy.

3- Gradually add the sugar while continuing beating, then add the vanilla.

4- Add the sifted flour, cornstarch, and salt to the bowl.

5- Fold the mixture gently.

6- Place paper liners in each cup of a metal muffin tin, fill each cup about 3/4 full, and bake at 190°C (375°F) for 15 minutes (top and bottom heat).

Take them out from the oven when they are golden on top.

7- Remove the paper liners and place all the cabezotes on a tray.

8- Make the syrup: pour the sugar, water, cinnamon, lemon zest, star anise, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of rum into a saucepan.

Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for 10 minutes.

Strain the syrup, and while still hot, pour it over the cabezotes—now they’re ready!

Receta en Español

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Here you have my  favourite cooking tools: https://viaja-en-mi-cocina-english.blogspot.com/2023/05/shop.html

Cuba

Bandera:   Por Miguel Teurbe Tolón and Narciso López - Geometry and dimensions from Ley no 42 "de los Símbolos Nacionales".Its shape is rectangular, twice length than width, composed by five horizontal stripes having all the same width, three deep blue and two white, placed alternating. A red equilateral triangle, in one of its vertical extremes occupy all the height of the flag constituting its fixed edge. Such triangle bears in its center a five-pointed white star, within an imaginary circumference, whose diameter is a third of the flag´s height, having one of its points towards the free upper edge of the flag.— English translation of Law 42 from Symbols of the Cuban Nation, Dominio público, Enlace