Argentinean Bakery & Patisserie

PAN (Bread)

The Argentineans, we have bread with almost all the meals!
"We can not be lack of bread at the table” it would say my grandmother, referring to the fact that we can never be lack of food at home.
The bread is always in an "asado", it goes with the "picadas" and when the "pastas" are prepared with tomato sauce, or a meat is prepared with any sauce, it is typical to "dip the bread" or to "clean the plate with a small piece of bread".

The most popular types of breads are:
- The "pan Francés" (French bread): this is the baguette. We also call it "flauta" or "flautita" (flute or little flute)
- The "mignon": it is like a baguette, but less crusty.
- The "pebete": it is also called "pan de Viena" (Vienna bread): it is a little sweet. Ideal for sandwiches. A classic Argentinean sandwich: ham and cheese pebete.
- The "pan de campo" (country bread): it is crusty outside, with a dry and less spongy crumb inside. It is very good to eat it when it is still warm, freshly baked.
- The "figazza" or "figacita": it is a circular shape bread made with animal fat or butter.
- The "pan Árabe" (Arab bread): it is the pita bread, with no crumb
- The "pan de salvado" or "integral": whole-grain bread mostly made of bran.

BIZCOCHITOS DE GRASA (fat) and CUERNITOS
They are the savoury option for any mateada (reunion where we drink mate. It can be for breakfast or for tea time).

The "bizcochitos" are made with very simple dough made of flour, yeast, salt and fat cow. They are cut in a round shape, like small cakes, and baked in the oven.

With the same dough we make the "cuernitos", just giving the shape of a small "cuerno" (horn).

PASTAFROLA

It is a typical pie of Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay filled with “dulce de membrillo" (quince). It can be filled also with other fruits jellies.
Some dough strips are placed over this jelly filling, making a squared surface or rhombus.
Once it is done, we baked in the oven.
Some theories say that it comes from Italy. Some others that it is a version of a Swiss pie made of raspberry jelly, of which dough has several spices, especially cinnamon.


CHURROS
A “churro” is made by fried dough. It has the shape of a little stick and it is dusted with sugar. They can be filled with "dulce de leche". The most delicious ones are covered with chocolate!
The "churros" were created in Spain and they were much disseminated in several Hispanic countries. In Argentina it is so popular that it became one of its traditional pastries. Its combination with hot chocolate is the speciality of several bars and cafes of Buenos Aires.
History says that some Spanish shepherds have invented the "churro" hundred of years ago. They had fried their bread in a star-shape, cooking totally the inside part and leaving the outside crusty.
The name of "churro" it is because a type of sheep that lives in Castilla, Spain. The horn of this sheep has the shape of the "churro".

TORTA FRITAS and PASTELITOS

The "pastelitos" are fritters made of puff pastry, fried and filled with "dulce de membrillo" (quince jelly) or "dulce de batata" (sweet potato jelly).
Once fried, they are covered with sugar or syrup.
You have to eat them freshly made… but wait till the jelly inside gets cold!
It is very traditional to have them for public holidays like the 25th, May and the 9th, July.

The "tortas fritas" (literally: fried cakes) are typical fried pastries and a good company for a “mate” infusion.
They were created in the Argentinean country. The rainy days hindered the farm works outdoors. So the lady owner of the house made the “tortas fritas” to entertain his husband, who could not go out to work. Also, its ingredients low cost make them very popular. That is why they are associated by the people with rainy days.
It is a dough made of flour, water, salt and fat. It is cut in small buns, giving them the shape of a small cake. They are fried in fat animal (pork or beef). Once they are fried, they are dusted with sugar.
The best way to eat them is when they are still warm!

FACTURAS and MEDIALUNAS (croissants or crescents)
"I take the facturas " it is a typical phrase of an Argentinean when he or she is invited someone home to drink some mate (see the mate explanation at the section "Traditional Beverages & Infusions").
What are the "facturas"?
They are several types of sweet pastries that can be filled with "dulce de leche", "dulce de membrillo" (quince jelly) or "crema pastelera" (pastry cream), dusted with white, black or powdered sugar.
The “facturas” are made with a sweet and fluffy, spongy dough made of butter or animal grease. They are coated with caramel.

The most popular facturas are:
• Medialunas de grasa (fat) or de manteca (butter) - they are like sweet croissants or crescents. They can be filled with ham and cheese like a sandwich, giving the "medialunas de jamon y queso".
• Vigilante (guard) - it is the same dough but made in an elongated shape. They can have quince jelly and/or pastry cream.
• Tortitas negras (black small cakes) - the same dough but circular. They are covered with black sugar.
• Palmeritas (little palm tree) - they are made by puff pastry, with the shape of a heart.
• Berlinesas (Berliners) - we called them "bolas de fraile" (balls’ monk) or ironically "suspiros de monja" (nun’s sigh).
• Cañoncitos (small cannons) - it is a puff pastry filled with "dulce de leche".

Some of these names were created by anarchist bakers who mocked the different power classes.
The "cañoncito" or the "bomba de crema" (cream bomb) were called like that to ridicule the army, the "bolas de fraile" or "suspiros de monja" to ridicule the church, and the "vigilante" to ridicule the police.

ALFAJORES and CONITOS
The "conito de dulce de leche" (dulce the leche little cone) it is a traditional Argentinean sweet. It is called like that because of its cone shape. Its base is a sweet cookie. Over this cookie there is a tower of “dulce de leche” covered with melted chocolate.
There are cones made of black and white chocolate.

Although, the "alfajor" has more than 130 years of honourable Argentinean tradition, it is an Arabians’ invention. It was brought into our country by the Spanish immigrants.
Anyway, there is no country that eats so many "alfajores" like us or has so many varieties: the Argentineans, we have 6 millions of "alfajores" per day!

An "alfajor" is made of two or more sweet cookies (baked dough) separated one from each other with a filling: marmalade, jam, “dulce de leche”, mousse, coffee cream, nutella cream, etc.
They can have a black or white chocolate coating, or also some icing or powdered sugar on it.

Depending on the amount of cookies they have, the "alfajores" can be "simples" (two cookies, a filling in the middle and a coating) or "triples" (three cookies, two fillings - that can be made different - and a coating).

Among the "alfajores regionales" we find:
* The "cordobes" (from Cordoba province): it is filled with fruit jams or marmalades.
* The "santafesino" (from Santa Fe province): it is made with three puff pastries cookies sticked with a lot of "dulce de leche" and glazed.
* The "tucumano" (from Tucuman province): it has two crisp cookies filled with a jam of cane sugar.

Other classical "alfajor" is the cornstarch one: "afajores de maicena". The cookies are made with maicena (cornstarch). It is filled with "dulce de leche" and covered with grated coconut.

The "rogel" is an "alfajor cake" of Argentina. It is also called "alfajor santafesino". It is made by several layers of crisp dough, separated one from each other with "dulce de leche", and covered with Italian meringue.