On All Saints’ Day it is very common to enjoy some typical traditional sweets on this special day. Discover how to make Santo bones, wind fritters and panel lets at home.
Every year for more than 1,280 years, on November 1, the day known as All Saints’ Day is celebrated in our country. It is an evidently Christian celebration, which takes place mainly on this day in the Catholic Church, and on the first Sunday of Pentecost in the Orthodox Church.
It is on this day when all those deceased people who are no longer among us, who having overcome purgatory have obtained the beatific vision and enjoy eternal life in the presence of God, are celebrated and remembered in the form of a solemn feast.
For this reason it is known as All Saints’ Day, and not only the saints or blessed who are on the list of those canonized by the Catholic Church are celebrated, but all those who already live in the presence of God.
Although in the past this day was much more religious in our country, today the deceased are still remembered, and there are those who continue to visit cemeteries precisely for this purpose.
The preparation and enjoyment of certain typical recipes are also common, which in most cases are mainly characterized by being traditional dessert recipes. They are typical sweets that only tend to be made on this day, and that are not usually found the rest of the year.
How to make the most typical sweets for All Saints’ Day?
Bones of saints
The bones of Santo consist of a tremendously traditional dessert made with marzipan and filled with yolk candy. It is possibly one of the most famous desserts of this day, and very characteristic for its shape, reminiscent of small bones (hence its name).
Ingredients for the marzipan:
- 250 grams ground almonds
- 200 grams of sugar
- 80-100ml. of water
- the zest of a lemon
- Icing sugar
Ingredients for the egg yolk filling:
- 4 egg yolks
- 100 grams of sugar
- 50 grams of water + 5 tablespoons of water (for the glaze)
- 200 grams icing sugar
Preparation:
- First we are going to make the marzipan. To do this, put the 200 grams of sugar and between 80 to 100 milliliters of water in a saucepan and heat it over medium heat in order to dilute the sugar, stirring little by little. Make a syrup by letting the water boil for a few minutes.
- Now add the syrup to the grated almonds. To do this, do it little by little, integrating and mixing well. It should not be very wet dough.
- Form a ball with the marzipan dough and let it rest and dry a bit. To do this, leave it to rest for 2 hours.
- Place baking paper on the kitchen counter and sprinkle a little icing sugar to work the dough. Now take a portion of the dough and spread it out with the help of a rolling pin, leaving a thickness of between 2 to 3 mm. cut the dough into strips approximately 5 centimeters wide.
- With the help of a few sticks, make some incisions in the strips, thus giving them the characteristic bone design. Now cut each strip into pieces between 5 and 6 centimeters.
- With the help of a wooden stick, make some canes with each of the portions that you have cut. Press them lightly where the two edges meet, and let them dry for a few hours.
- Now we are going to proceed to make the filling yolk. Separate the whites from the yolks and beat the latter well. Reserve them.
- In another saucepan, make syrup with 100 grams of sugar and 50 grams of water.
- Add the syrup little by little to the bowl of yolks with the help of a few rods. Do it little by little. Now put the mixture in a bowl and put it in a water bath. You need to stir constantly until the mixture thickens (it is important that a thick cream remains).
- Put the yolk paste in a pastry bag and fill the marzipan bones.
- To finish, make a glaze with the icing sugar (200 grams) and the water (5 tablespoons) by putting both ingredients in a saucepan and mixing them well until they are integrated.
- Now carefully dip each of the bones into the glaze and place them on a wire rack to drain well.
- Ready!
Fritters
Those known as Bunuel’s de Vento also stand out for being a characteristic dessert of this day, although it is common to find them also during Holy Week.
In fact, while in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands they tend to be consumed during Lent, in Andalusia or Madrid they are consumed above all during Holy Week.
Ingredients:
- 6 eggs
- 200 grams of wheat flour
- 150 grams of butter
- 1/4 liter of milk
- 40 grams of sugar
- A pinch of salt
- Sugar
- Cinnamon powder
- Olive oil (for frying)
Preparation of wind fritters:
- In a large bowl mix the eggs, flour, milk, butter, salt and sugar.
- Knead the mixture well and let it rest for about 1 hour.
- Now with the help of a spoon or with your hands, mold small balls with the dough.
- Put olive oil in a frying pan and fry the dough balls over low heat, browning on one side and on the other.
- Put absorbent paper on a large plate and place the fried balls that you are preparing on it. This way you will be able to remove excess oil.
- In a bowl mix sugar and cinnamon. Finally, pass the fritters through this mixture and reserve them.
- Ready!
Pine nut panel lets
The panel lest of pine nuts stand out for being a sweet typically characteristic of Catalonia, but tremendously popular today in the rest of Spain. They are also traditional from Valencia and the Balearic Islands.
They consist of little balls of dough made with ground raw almonds, egg and sugar, which are finally covered with pine nuts.
Ingredients:
- 200 grams raw almonds
- 200 grams of sugar
- 2 egg whites + 1 egg yolk
- 75 grams of pine nuts
- The zest of 1 lemon
Preparation of the pine nut panel lets:
- First we are going to proceed to grind the raw almonds. Then add them to a large bowl and add the sugar, egg whites and lemon zest.
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
- With the help of your hands form small balls.
- Now paint the balls with a little egg white and coat them with the pine nuts.
- Put baking paper on top of the tray and place each of the balls on it. Now paint the balls with egg yolk.
- Bake for 10 or 15 minutes. Just at the moment you notice that they begin to brown, cover them with aluminum foil. Then remove them and let them cool.
- Lists!
