Pão Doce das 24 Horas

Description: The cake is made with yeast dough initially. It is pre-pared with flour, milk, eggs, sugar, olive oil, lard and selected spontaneous yeast. It has a feverish and little open core, to which the oil and lard give great conservation.

Region: Center.

Other denominations: 24 Hour Sweet Cake. 24 Hour Cake.

Special feature: Sourdough cake weighing 0,5 to 1 kg, tended into an elongated shape, folded in half along the length to end in a spout.

History: It descends from the sweetbreads that the Greek and Roman civilizations brought as an offering to the gods, to calm their anger. It has come down to our days as an offering in religious manifes-tations.

Use: As an intermediate meal on days of regional festivals.

Know-how: The day before, part of the flour is prepared with "yeast" exclusively with "bait". The next day, with the rest of the flour plus milk, eggs, sugar, olive oil and lard, a rich dough is made that ferments with the addition of selected yeast. After being tended, it undergoes a final sealing between cloths, «screens», and is then fired directly over the «home» of the oven.

Source: Produtos Tradicionais Portugueses, Lisboa, DGDR, 2001