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Spain and Portugal was a long awaited trip. I have visited almost all countries of Europe except a few. This cruise met my wishes of port cities I wanted to see. Not to miss Madrid, we flew to the capital first and explored for 3 days. Next, we flew to Barcelona to explore for 3 days, before boarding the cruise ship, Emerald Princess, at the port of Barcelona.
Let the selected photos do most of the talking. Click on the photos for larger image and click on the green links for more information and photos. Photos do no justice to what we saw and what the two countries have to offer. I highly recommend watching the videos linked.
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We enjoyed dinner at open air restaurants (Madrid)
Stable of hundreds of years ago turned restaurant at Old Town Barcelona, where we had fabulous tapas
Tapas
Not to miss jamón Ibérico (cured ham), Iberian ham, also called pata negra! One of the staples of this region!
Bakeries
Madrid
The Plaza de Cibeles is a square with a neo-classical complex of marble sculptures with fountains that has become an iconic symbol for the city of Madrid (photo source: Wikipedia).
Excellent video on Madrid → here.
Barcelona
Three of Antoni Gaudí‘s Masterpieces in Barcelona
Excellent video on Barcelona → here.
Valencia
Old vs. new Valencia. Look at the narrow building between the two buildings. This was because buildings were taxed based on their width at street front.
Paella [paˈeʎa] is a Valencian rice dish with ancient roots, which originated in its modern form in the mid-19th century near the Albufera lagoon (above photo), a coastal lagoon in Valencia. The dish is widely regarded as Spain’s national dish and Valencians regard paella as one of their identifying symbols.
Excellent video on Valencia → here.
Granada
Royal Cathedral. Excellent video on Granada → here (1:40 ~ 12:40).
Seville
More on Alcázar of Seville, Seville Cathedral and Jewish Quarter
(parts of Seville we saw) on an excellent video → here (see from 1:00 ~ 14:00)
Lisbon
We toured the entire city riding the trams dedicated to the tourists.
During the two hour tour, we were served drinks and pastel de nata!
Excellent video on Lisbon → here.
Madeira
Traditional pastries in Madeira usually contain local ingredients, one of the most common being
mel de cana, literally ‘sugarcane honey’ (molasses). The traditional cake of Madeira is called
bolo de mel / honey cake and according to custom, is never cut with a knife, but broken into pieces by hand. It is a rich and heavy cake. Above is a photo of a jumbo bolo de mel made with sugarcane molasses, all kinds of fruits and nuts.
More on Madeira: Marvellous Madeira & In My Madeira Kitchen by Melissa of The Glen House
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Now to the featured recipe! Anyone who knows about Portugal, knows about pastel de nata, a delicious egg tart which originated in Portugal. They are proudly displayed in the window of every bakery.
Pastél de nata/Portuguese Egg Custard Tart was created before the 18th century by Catholic monks at the Jerónimos Monastery in the civil parish of Santa Maria de Belém, in Lisbon. At the time, convents and monasteries used large quantities of egg-whites for starching of clothes, such as nuns’ habits. It was quite common for monasteries and convents to use the leftover egg yolks to make cakes and pastries, resulting in a proliferation of sweet pastry recipes throughout the country. Following the extinction of religious orders and facing the impending closure of many convents and monasteries in the aftermath of the Liberal Revolution of 1820, monks started selling pastéis de nata (plural form) at a nearby sugar refinery to secure revenue. In 1834, the monastery was closed and the recipe was sold to the sugar refinery, whose owners in 1837, opened the Fábrica de Pastéis de Belém. The descendants own the business to this day. Since 1837, locals and visitors to Lisbon have visited the bakery to purchase fresh from the oven pastéis, sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar. Their popularity normally results in long lines at the take-away counters, in addition to waiting lines for sit-down service. They can now be purchased in many places all over the world. Pastél de nata was introduced in China after gaining their popularity in Macau (they call it pútà), when Macau, then called Special Administrative Region was under the Portuguese government.
[Excerpts from Wikipedia]
Pastel de Nata • Portuguese Egg Custard Tart
Recipe by: Fae’s Twist & Tango (fae-magazine.com)
◊ Pastéis de nata are not difficult to make if all the right ingredients are used. Its specific dark spots on surface differentiate them from Hong Kong style egg custards. To create the dark spots, there are several key components to be followed:
a) it must be made with whole milk and cornstarch,
b) it is important to be made in a silver/aluminum mold placed on silver baking tray, and
c) baked on a high heat.
◊ Note: Store bought puff pastry tends to become difficult to work with as it warms up. It is important to keep it chilled and work quickly to keep it from getting soft. Remove defrost puff-pastry from refrigerator one at a time if using more than one sheet.
◊ The amount of ingredients must be adjusted based on the size of the molds. This recipe is for the dimension of the molds I used (see below [1]).
INGREDIENTS
• 1 sheet frozen puff-pastry Trader Joe’s brand or any, preferably made with real butter (Trader Joe’s box comes in 454 g / 1 lb box with 2 approx. 25cm x 25cm frozen rolled sheets, 227 g each)
• 1¾ tsp cornstarch
• 150 ml/ 2/3 cup whole milk
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 Tbsp heavy whipping cream
• 42 g/ 3 Tbsp + 1 tsp granulated sugar
• ¼ tsp pure vanilla extract [2]
[2] Some recipes call for a piece of lemon rind and/or cinnamon stick dropped in milk and boiled together to add taste/aroma, then tempered and added to the rest of the ingredients.
It is all in the preference.
DIRECTIONS
◊ Very lightly spray the individual molds with non-stick spray.
◊ Defrost puff pastry in the refrigerator overnight. If it comes rolled, make sure it is ready to be unrolled. Unroll the sheet and take the lining paper and roll back the sheet again tightly. Cut the cylindrical roll into 8 equal pieces (25cm roll will be 3.2 cm each – 2 of which are not used, freeze and use next time, if not making more than 6). Take one piece and place it on the lining sheet or sheet of plastic wrap. Put swirl side up and flatten it with the ball of your palm. Again, using the ball of your palm, stretch the dough in all directions to make an 11cm diameter dough. Neatly form it in one of the molds. Repeat 5 more times (see photos/illustrations below). Put the molds back in the freezer until ready to use.
◊ Place rack on middle oven shelf and preheat to 220°C/425°F.
◊ Have a large bowl filled with cold water, ready.
◊ In a small bowl, add cornstarch and add some milk to dissolve cornstarch well.
◊ In a medium size deep bowl, first, beat egg yolks and cream together. Then add sugar and beat. Add milk and dissolved cornstarch and beat/combine well.
◊ Empty the mixture into a small sauce pan, and place on high heat. With a silicone spatula, non-stop, stir vigorously. As first indication of the mixture thickening, lower heat to low and continue to stir until film starts forming on the sides of the saucepan and mixture is thick but flowing. Remove from heat and place it on the cold water in the large bowl. Add vanilla and continue to stir the mixture until cools down to lukewarm.
◊ Remove molds from the freezer. Spoon the custard mixture, equally mounting in the center of the 6 molds. Place them over silver baking tray (I used my pizza baking sheet) and place it in the heated oven.
◊ Bake for ±30 minutes or until dark spots have formed (as seen in the photos). After 20 minute mark check every 5 minutes and rotate baking sheet as necessary so that all tarts brown evenly. Don’t be tempted to have the spots big or many. They are bitter, fewer and smaller are better. Remove from oven and using the tip of a knife to the side of the pastry, carefully lift each pastel de nata and place on a cooling rack. Let it cool completely (about 45 minutes). Best eaten immediately, when crunchy outside!
~ Bom Proveito! ~
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B’s dimension: top dia. 8cm x 3.2 cm deep, bottom dia. 5cm
[1] Timely, I was not able to find individual tart molds deep enough to use. Closest was the 6-cup-cupcake-tray which is 7cm dia x 3.3cm deep I found in the supermarket. Here are better molds I found on Amazon. ‘A’ is not as deep as desired, but it is used for egg tarts and will work fine. The disposable ‘B’ has perfect dimensions (see → ) and may be washed and reused.
A B
We are doing exactly this cruise in April and then traveling through Spain and Portugal. Sending post to my hubby~
Wonderful! You’ve done this trip before right? Oh Spain and Portugal is so beautiful! Have a Great Trip! 🙂
Seems like you had quite a comprehensive tour of Spain and Portugal. I visited Porto (Portugal) this summer and loved it and well, Spain is amazing but being Spanish my view may be quite biased. hehe If only I had known beforehand that you were coming, I could have given you lots of recommendations on where us locals in Valencia eat proper non-tourist food. Maybe next time.
Hello Ricardo, Thank you for your kind and interesting comment. You can be biased about your country, Spain, which is so beautiful, clean with lovely people. We are very limited with time when traveling by a cruise ship. I definitely would love to return to Spain again. Maybe then, I can get you recommendations. 🙂
Thank you for sharing these stunning pictures Fae Jan, that Paella looks especially wonderful 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed the photos and, especially of the foods!!! 😀 )))
I’ve in Portugal several years ago and I loved it. One of the best “souvenirs”that I have are the pastels de nata in Belem, the trip was worth it just for those amazing tartlets… I’ve never had the courage to make them on my own… I’m worried to screw up everything, souvenir included… I wish I could be your neighbour!!
The first recipe I used to make these tarts was a disaster. Too complicated and unnecessary steps. This recipe is proofed. 😀 ))) Give it a go and reminisce your visit to Portugal. 🙂
What a wonderful trip–thanks for sharing your great photos! And that tart looks so good, too!
I’m glad you enjoyed the photos. The tarts are yummy too! 🙂
Wow, what a great post and terrific recipe. Thanks for posting
Hi Philip, Good to see you here! Thank you for the kind words. We had a wonderful trip with delicious foods! 🙂
would love to visit Spain, if for no reason than to eat my way through 🙂 These tarts are perfect -so flaky and moreish.
Just to think that you can eat your way through, while being welcomed by wonderful people and looking at gorgeous landmarks! Heaven!
Interesting and eclectic post as usual, Fae! Your photography is so lovely! I have never been to Portugal and your post and gorgeous pastries just gave me one more reason to be wanting to visit that beautiful country one day.
It’s amazing what monks and nuns were able to achieve in those rural convents and monasteries only using a few simple ingredients and basic utensils. Some of them were really talented pastry chefs that have nothing to envy to our celebrity chefs.
Hi Francesca, Thank you for your kind comments. Yes, it is amazing what convents and monasteries have contributed to the culinary delights. Sfogliatelle (called lobster-tail in the USA) is another example and gift from convents of Italy. 🙂
It has been years since I was in Spain and I’ve never been to Portugal. Your cruise sounds like a wonderful way to visit these two countries. The little egg custard tarts sound quite nice.
When I was (much) younger, I traveled by plane, train, car, with small child… not anymore. Plain rides are only to get to the ports of embarkation. For Spain and Portugal, especially final destination being the USA, this is the best way to travel. 🙂
Such lovely photographs! I’m so tempted to take a trip to Europe.
Thank you, Mary Frances. I already want to take off again. 🙂
Lovely post with great pictures. I did a cruise similar to this a few years back – such a great way to see lots of cities and try lots of food!
Oh Amanda, I love cruising, and you are right, more cities to see without packing and unpacking. I wish more port stops to be overnight stops. And, good food! 😛
Thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures and trip with us, Fae. Your Pastel De Nata looks so tasty and reminds a lot the French Flan Patissier. I like your individual presentation! 🙂
Linda, you are absolutely right. I make danish pastries with puff pastry and crème pâtissière, which I must say, is the same taste. I guess this tart is special because we get more crème pâtissière per bite. The traditional Portuguese ones use lemon rind and cinnamon, which give a little different/distinct flavor. 😛
Fae this is such a wonderful post with the story of your trip and pictures of beautiful architecture. I especially thank you for sharing the pictures of all the pastries (including yours) that have made me very hungry right now and it is way too late in the evening to do anything about it 😉 Seriously, so glad you had such a wonderful time and thanks for the recipe!
You are my kind of a person, Homa jan! I take more photos of bakeries than I do of the landmarks! 😀 Tapas were the 2nd. 😛 Food, my passion! 😀 ))) Beautiful countries all around!
Those are beautiful places you’ve visited! I really love your travel pictures and stories. I wish I could some day experience new places and flavors. Great post, Fae!
Yes, I really saw many beauties in both countries. Sweet Vera, before you know it, You will experience new places and flavors. 🙂
Thanks for sharing! I hope one day I can go to these wonderful parts of Europe!
Hi Chris, You will go to Europe and other parts of the world sooner than you can imagine. The world is there for you to explore! 🙂
Beautiful post Fae. Love all those cities in Spain, and tapas, wow! I could just live on tapas alone, I prefer the smaller portions when it comes to dining out. Those custard tarts look amazing! When I was visiting my family in England last month, my Aunt took me to a cafe where they made these lovely tarts. Now I have a recipe I can try :).
Oh, me too, Loretta! I can just live on tapas too! 😀 ))) Beautiful countries, good food and beauty all around. And, the tart! 😛
Beautiful photos! We went to Madrid, Barcelona, Seville & Toledo last summer – what a wonderful country Spain is – we really enjoyed our time there and hope to go back again some day…these photos are awesome reminders..thanks for sharing! 🙂
Oh, I totally agree Linda! One of those countries that worth repeat visiting. Good people, fabulous food, amazing landmarks… 🙂
Looks like you had a wonderful trip Fae! Loved your photos! I have fond memories of Pasteis de nata enjoyed in Portugal and Angola (a erstwhile Portuguese colony) and yours looks perfect! I need to try to make them soon xx
Thank you, Lovely Naina! Now, Angola is a country I like to visit too, and even more to know that I can get some pasteis de nata! 😀 )))
Thanks for providing the recipe!:)
Looking forward to see your version of the tart, Sweet Asmae! 🙂
What a great article. We haven’t been to all of those cities but love Sevelle, Barcelona, and tapas! Looks like you had a marvellous time!
Yes, Andrea, both of them are marvelous countries to visit. 🙂
What a beautiful post! I loved looking at the photos and reading about the history of the Portuguese egg custard tart.I would love to visit Spain and Portugal someday.
You’d definitely visit Spain and Portugal someday. I thought the story about the tarts were very interesting too! 🙂
Enjoyed all of your photos Fae – the architecture is beautiful! Your custards look very good too 🙂
Thank you, Judi. There were so much to see, couldn’t photograph all. I’m glad you’ve enjoyed them. 🙂
Pastel the nata, how yummy! This post brings back so many memories, I studied in Portugal for a term when I was in Uni and I fell in love with these pretty little tarts. I was actually thinking the other day to make some. Delicious 🙂
Absolutely beautiful. I am glad you had a great time.
Thank you, Susan jan! I don’t mind going again. 🙂
Daniela, You have visited a country the best way possible. Long enough time to know and see the country. These tarts are sure special! 🙂