Pastel de Nata a.k.a. Pastel de Belém is the most typical Portuguese pastry. It is a kind of egg tart and tastes the best served while still warm. The most famous and delicious ones are produced by Antiga Confeitaria in Belém.
Once upon a time... at the beginning of the XIXth Century, in Belém, next to the Mosteiro dos Jerónimos there was a sugar cane refinery linked to a small general store. As a result of the revolution of 1820, all monasteries in Portugal were shut down. Afterwards, someone from the monastery in Beleém offered sweet pastries for sale in the shop, which quickly became known as 'Pasteis de Belém'. As the area was attractive for visitors because of the monastery and the Torre de Belém , also the delicious pastries originated in the monastery became more popular.In 1837, baking of 'Pasteis de Belém' begun following ancient 'secret recipe' from the monastery. Passed on and known only to the master confectioners. This recipe remained unchanged until the present time.
Iva and I keep on saying that the best thing about Portugal are coffee and cakes. Trying Pasteis de Belém was more important cultural experience for us then seeing the rest of local tourist attractions. Pasteis just taken out from the oven, sprinkled with cinnamon powder were a delicious breakfast!
Luckily on the next day I came back there with Carolina for an afternoon coffee...
(This is one of over 30 posts, which I accidentally deleted one day in January. Luckily, I was able to recover them thanks to the backup done by DanielSan! It's a pity that the comments are gone...)
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