Kate Moss once said “Nothing takes as good as skinny feels”. Kate Moss never ate Portuguese desserts.
I, however, have eaten plenty of Portuguese desserts and also been skinny. Trust me: the sugar is better. It is with this in mind, that I decided to share with you a recipe based on one of my favorite, calorie-loaded, intensely delicious, cholesterol-bombs: Beija-me Depressa conventual sweets from Tomar, which I previously blogged about (with a significant amount of gluttony).
Now, I’ll be honest, the ones I made aren’t as good, or nearly as pretty, as the real thing, which you can get in the city of Tomar. Here is the picture of what they’re supposed to look like:
Here’s what mine look like:
Even though they turned out uglier and more gooey than the original thing, they tasted pretty good and I’m happy with my first attempt… I just spoon them out instead of using my fingers. Perhaps I subconsciously sabotaged my recipe because we all know practice makes perfect and I need an excuse to make some more!
The fact that they’re called Beija-me Depressa (“Kiss Me Quick”) means they make a delicious Valentine’s Day treat for a special somebody! If the way to someone’s heart is through their stomach, then these sweet treats are Cupid’s arrow.
Ingredients:
225 g (7.9 oz) granulated sugar
1 tbsp. organic butter
12 organic egg yolks (no, that’s not a typo – save the whites for an egg white omelet)
2 tbsp. flour
Water
Vegetable oil, for greasing
Icing sugar, for dusting
Instructions:
1. Place granulated sugar in a pan. Add just enough water to cover the sugar. Place pan on a low heat and let it boil. Continue to do this until you pick up some of the sugar syrup with a wooden spoon, and the last drop forms a pearl-like shape before it drips.
2. Take pan off the heat and add the butter. Stir it and let the mixture cool to a lukewarm temperature.
3. Add in the egg yolks, one by one, stiring in between each yolk.
4. Add in the sifted flour slowly, constantly stirring.
5. Place on a low heat again until you can run a wooden spoon along the bottom of the pan and it leaves a trail before the mixture falls back in.
6. Pour mixture into a greased pan and let cool overnight.
7. The next day, make little balls from the mixture, cover with icing sugar and place into mini cupcake liners.
