Yemas de Santa Teresa
Encyclopedia
Yemas de Santa Teresa (en: Eyes of Sainted Teresa) or Yemas de Ávila (en:Eyes of Ávila) is a pastry that is identified with the Spanish province of Ávila (province)
. Its fame has spread across the country and they can be bought throughout Spain
but typically they are a souvenir connected with the city of Ávila
.
They are very popular for its distinctive look: small orange balls serveed in a white tartlet paper and are made to honor Teresa of Ávila
.
called "Flor de Castilla" that first sold a pastry under the name "Yemas de Santa Teresa".
Don Isabelo Sánchez, founder of the pastry shop "La Dulce Aviles" (nowadays known as "Flor de Castilla") in Ávila commercialized the pastry in 1860 under the name "Yemas de Santa Teresa". The success of the dish was great and other pastry chefs in Ávila soon started to sell similar pastries which they calles "Yemas de Ávila".
Another theory credits the monks of the convent of Teresa of Ávila
with the invention of the dish.
With the beginning of the 21st century the market for "Yemas de Ávila" expanded and they are now on demand in North America
.
Therefore a new packaging system was developed to improve the preservation and make them survive the shipping to America.
s which are stirred in copper
bowls. Meanwhile syrup
is cooked with lemon juice
and cinnamon
to reduce it until it's a dense mixture. The consistency can be proven by dipping a spoon into the syrup and is right when the sticky liquid keeps connected with the spoon by a thin thread.
As soon as the syrup reduction is gooey enough it is mixed with the egg yolks and stirred with them at a low heat. The pastry dough is left to cool and is then moulded into the special kind of balls with a few centimetres diameter and put into the tartlet papers.
Ávila (province)
Ávila is a province of central-western Spain, in the southern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is bordered on the south by the provinces of Toledo and Cáceres, on the west by Salamanca, on the north by Valladolid, and on the east by Segovia and Madrid. Ávila has a...
. Its fame has spread across the country and they can be bought throughout Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
but typically they are a souvenir connected with the city of Ávila
Ávila
-History:In pre-Roman times , it was inhabited by the Vettones, who called it Obila and had here one of their strongest fortresses....
.
They are very popular for its distinctive look: small orange balls serveed in a white tartlet paper and are made to honor Teresa of Ávila
Teresa of Ávila
Saint Teresa of Ávila, also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, baptized as Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada, was a prominent Spanish mystic, Roman Catholic saint, Carmelite nun, and writer of the Counter Reformation, and theologian of contemplative life through mental prayer...
.
History
The origin of the pastry is uncertain but there are several opitions where it comes from. One theory assumes that it was a pastry shop in the Medieval Ages in AndalusiaAndalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
called "Flor de Castilla" that first sold a pastry under the name "Yemas de Santa Teresa".
Don Isabelo Sánchez, founder of the pastry shop "La Dulce Aviles" (nowadays known as "Flor de Castilla") in Ávila commercialized the pastry in 1860 under the name "Yemas de Santa Teresa". The success of the dish was great and other pastry chefs in Ávila soon started to sell similar pastries which they calles "Yemas de Ávila".
Another theory credits the monks of the convent of Teresa of Ávila
Teresa of Ávila
Saint Teresa of Ávila, also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, baptized as Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada, was a prominent Spanish mystic, Roman Catholic saint, Carmelite nun, and writer of the Counter Reformation, and theologian of contemplative life through mental prayer...
with the invention of the dish.
With the beginning of the 21st century the market for "Yemas de Ávila" expanded and they are now on demand in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Therefore a new packaging system was developed to improve the preservation and make them survive the shipping to America.
Characteristics
This pastry is made exclusively with egg yolkEgg yolk
An egg yolk is a part of an egg which feeds the developing embryo. The egg yolk is suspended in the egg white by one or two spiral bands of tissue called the chalazae...
s which are stirred in copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
bowls. Meanwhile syrup
Syrup
In cooking, a syrup is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but showing little tendency to deposit crystals...
is cooked with lemon juice
Lemon juice
The lemon fruit, from a citrus plant, provides a useful liquid when squeezed. Lemon juice, either in natural strength or concentrated, is sold as a bottled product, usually with the addition of preservatives and a small amount of lemon oil.-Uses:...
and cinnamon
Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...
to reduce it until it's a dense mixture. The consistency can be proven by dipping a spoon into the syrup and is right when the sticky liquid keeps connected with the spoon by a thin thread.
As soon as the syrup reduction is gooey enough it is mixed with the egg yolks and stirred with them at a low heat. The pastry dough is left to cool and is then moulded into the special kind of balls with a few centimetres diameter and put into the tartlet papers.