Foods to Eat in Spain - Madrid

- Rosquillas Tontas y Listas -

Rosquillas Tontas y Listas are two of the most famous traditional pastries of Madrid and are normally eaten to celebrate the Fiestas de San Isidro in May thus, they are also known as Las Rosquillas de San Isidro.

The festival of Saint Isidro for some reason is associated with donuts as two further types known as the donuts of Las Francesas and Santa Clara are also commonly sold and eaten during this time. An interesting historical tradition is that when you choose what Rosquillas you want from the vendor, he/she will string your donuts up before giving it to you rather than giving it to you in a bag.

The various Rosquillas all have the same general donut base but their difference lies in their final glaze. Rosquillas Tontas have no glaze and are the most simple type of the four. Rosquillas Listas are finished with a yellow glaze made from sugar syrup and lemon juice whilst Las Francesas are glazed with a coating of sugared almonds. Finally, Rosquillas de Santa Clara are glazed with white meringue. So in the photo above, from left to right are Rosquillas Listas, Rosquillas Tontas, Las Francesas and Rosquillas de Santa Clara.

My favourite of the four are Rosquillas Listas as I'm a big fan of lemon flavoured things and this one cuts through the slight oils in the donut particularly well with Rosquillas de Santa Clara coming a close second as the crunchy, crumbly texture really contrasts well with the chewy donut base. But, each to their own as they are all pretty good and many bakeries like Antigua Pasteleria del Pozo will often sell a pack containing all four for you to try, especially around May when they are the most popular.

Another bakery is the ever faithful El Riojano which I've mentioned a few times and I'm sure you've heard of before. With a history as a royal bakery, you can be sure that their pastries are of a excellent quality and are at a reasonable price also.