How many chances do you give a particular food to win you over? Once? Twice? Is three strikes an out? Or do you keep trying different recipes until you become friends, or at least very good acquaintances? Pudim Abade de Priscos has been one of those foods for me. I think we’re friends now, but it’s taken a while.
I’ve wanted to like Pudim Abade de Priscos since I first met one, possibly around Christmas 2013 but it’s hard to say for sure when. My main quibble is the sweetness. (Half of Casa Aguiar has a sweet tooth, but it’s the other half.) Unfortunately, all desserts in Portugal would collapse without sugar. It is unavoidable. That is, until sugar-free desserts catch on here, which would be around the time that hell freezes over. When ordering a coffee, there’s a standard issue of not one but TWO sugar packets!
Anyway, the version of Pudim Abade de Priscos that won me over is by a confectioner in Braga called Doçaria Cruz de Pedra, founded in 1922. Several generations later, the doçaria is still doing brisk business and the founder’s grandson Manuel Almeida is carrying on the tradition.
Doçaria Cruz de Pedra happened to be a sponsor at a gastronomy event where I shot these photos (which I’ll talk about in a separate post), a perfect occasion for trying new recipes. Theirs was very smooth, rich, and not as cloyingly sweet as I’ve had before. What’s different this time? Some fellow food bloggers told me the secret to this recipe is ____ (am I allowed to say?). Maybe I should ask Rita Branco of Oporto Encanta, who went to Braga recently and learned how to make it. Either way, whatever Doçaria Cruz de Pedra is doing is giving this pudim legs for the next century.
Source articles:
http://www.portugalize.me/2014/12/18/de-priscos-para-o-mundo-o-abade-mais-conhecido-de-portugal/
http://www.oportoencanta.com/2017/07/do-porto-para-braga-aprendendo-fazer-o.html
July 17, 2017
Album: Portugal [Summer 2017]
For more posts/photos of Portuguese food and drink:
https://gailatlarge.com/blog/tag/portuguese-kitchen
https://www.pinterest.com/gailatlarge/portuguese-food-drink/
https://www.instagram.com/gailatlarge/