2018Traditional Sweets of Portugal (Broucher with Set) - Collectibles

Bean Tarts
The tradition of making sweets from legumes combined with the ubiquitous bitterness of almonds was already well established long before the arrival of beans into Portuguese kitchens from the Americas. Appearing in the Tratado de Cozinha e Copa [Treaty on Food and Wine] by Carlos Bento da Maia, rst published in 1904, bean tarts were described in a recipe very similar to that for which Torres Vedras is famous. In his gastronomic tour of Portugal in 1940, Albino Forjaz de Sampaio was very taken by the Torres Vedras bean tarts and marked the town on the map as the birthplace of this pastry that is so fundamental to Portuguese confectionery. In terms of its history, more important than its origin are its protagonists, who through their re ned expertise and great attention to detail, transformed the pastry into a sweet symbol of Torres Vedras. Maria Adelaide Rodrigues da Silva, loyal depositary of this long-standing family secret, invested in their production and with her mastery and penchant for quality turned them into a popular pastry. Later on, members of her family continued the tradition of a secret whose alchemy was characterised by the delicacy and precision in the mixture of ingredients. As always, it is the hands, steady in their movements as if they are performing a ritual, that add a touch of perfection to this pastry, which gets its consistency from beans and has a moist and generous lling of almonds and eggs. Creating a sharp and wonderful contrast between diverse ingredients, bean tarts are a hearty and opulent pastry. It is a pleasure to bite into them and discover their distinct sweet lling.