''Brazo de Mercedes'' is a traditional
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
meringue
Meringue (, ; ) is a type of dessert or candy, often associated with Swiss, French, Polish and Italian cuisines, traditionally made from whipped egg whites and sugar, and occasionally an acidic ingredient such as lemon, vinegar, or cream of ...
roll
Roll or Rolls may refer to:
Movement about the longitudinal axis
* Roll angle (or roll rotation), one of the 3 angular degrees of freedom of any stiff body (for example a vehicle), describing motion about the longitudinal axis
** Roll (aviation), ...
with a
custard
Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in consistency fro ...
filling typically dusted with
powdered sugar
Powdered sugar, also called confectioners' sugar, or icing sugar, is a finely ground sugar produced by milling granulated sugar into a powdered state. It usually contains between 2% and 5% of an anti-caking agent – such as corn starch, po ...
. It is a type of ''
pianono''.
Origins
Although popularly simply translated as "Mercedes' Arm", it actually means "Arm of Our Lady of Mercy" in
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
, from
Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes
(''Our Lady of Mercy'' in English, a title of the Virgin Mary) was a Spanish Navy frigate which was sunk by the British off the south coast of Portugal on 5 October 1804 during the Battle of Cape Santa Maria.
Loss
At the time of the naval ...
, a common
devotional title for
Mary, mother of Jesus
Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...
. The dessert dates back to the
Spanish colonial period
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
. It is one of the desserts believed to have been the result of the repurposing of the discarded egg yolks from the use of egg whites for
mortar and
plaster
Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for Molding (decorative), moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of ...
in Spanish-Filipino colonial architecture.
Description
Unlike other types of Filipino ''
pianonos'' which are made with rolled
chiffon or
sponge cake
Sponge cake is a light cake made with egg whites, flour and sugar, sometimes leavened with baking powder. Some sponge cakes do not contain egg yolks, like angel food cake, but most of them do. Sponge cakes, leavened with beaten eggs, originated ...
s, ''brazo de Mercedes'' is made from
meringue
Meringue (, ; ) is a type of dessert or candy, often associated with Swiss, French, Polish and Italian cuisines, traditionally made from whipped egg whites and sugar, and occasionally an acidic ingredient such as lemon, vinegar, or cream of ...
and thus does not use
flour
Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many culture ...
. The meringue is made from
egg white
Egg white is the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. In chickens it is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms arou ...
s,
cream of tartar
Potassium bitartrate, also known as potassium hydrogen tartrate, with formula K C4 H5 O6, is a byproduct of winemaking. In cooking, it is known as cream of tartar. It is processed from the potassium acid salt of tartaric acid (a carboxylic ac ...
, and granulated sugar. The filling is traditionally
custard
Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in consistency fro ...
made from
egg yolk
Among animals which produce eggs, the yolk (; also known as the vitellus) is the nutrient-bearing portion of the egg whose primary function is to supply food for the development of the embryo. Some types of egg contain no yolk, for example bec ...
s, sugar, and milk cooked in low heat in a
double boiler
A bain-marie (; also known as a water bath or double boiler), a type of heated bath, is a piece of equipment used in science, industry, and cooking to heat materials gently or to keep materials warm over a period of time. A bain-marie is also us ...
. Other ingredients like
calamansi
Calamansi (''Citrus'' × ''microcarpa''), also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is an economically important citrus hybrid predominantly cultivated in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, Borneo, Sumatra, ...
zest
Zest may refer to:
Common usage
* Zest (ingredient), the outer peel of a citrus fruit
** Zester, a tool for preparing zest
** Twist (cocktail garnish), a piece of zest
* Zest (positive psychology), a component of character
Brands
* Zest (brand ...
,
butter
Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condiment ...
, and
vanilla extract
Vanilla extract is a Solution (chemistry), solution made by maceration (food), macerating and percolation, percolating vanilla, vanilla pods in a solution of ethanol and water. It is considered an essential ingredient in many Western desserts, es ...
can also be added to the custard. Once the meringue is baked, the custard is spread evenly on one surface then it is carefully rolled into a cylinder. It is usually chilled and dusted with
powdered sugar
Powdered sugar, also called confectioners' sugar, or icing sugar, is a finely ground sugar produced by milling granulated sugar into a powdered state. It usually contains between 2% and 5% of an anti-caking agent – such as corn starch, po ...
before being served.
Variants
Modern versions of the dessert can have a variety of different fillings and ingredients. These variations usually have different names, like ''brazo de
ube'', ''brazo de
pandan'', ''brazo de
buko pandan
Buko salad, usually anglicized as young coconut salad, is a Filipino fruit salad dessert made from strips of fresh young coconut (''buko'') with sweetened milk or cream and various other ingredients. It is one of the most popular and ubiquitous F ...
'', ''brazo de
tsokolate
''Tsokolate'' (), also spelled ''chocolate'', is a native Filipino thick hot chocolate drink. It is made from ''tabliya'' or ''tablea'', tablets of pure ground roasted cacao beans, dissolved in water and milk. Like in Spanish and Mexican versi ...
'', ''brazo de
mangga'', and so on.
See also
*
Yema cake
Yema cake is a Filipino chiffon cake with a custard filling known as Yema (candy), yema. It is generally prepared identically to mamón (chiffon cakes and sponge cakes in Filipino cuisine), with the only difference being that it incorporates ye ...
*
Ube cake
Ube cake is a traditional Filipino chiffon cake or sponge cake made with ube halaya (mashed purple yam). It is distinctively vividly purple in color, like most dishes made with ube in the Philippines.
Preparation
Ube cake is generally prepare ...
*
Crema de Fruta
''Crema de fruta'' (Spanish: "fruit cream") is a traditional Filipino fruitcake made with layers of sponge cake, sweet custard or whipped cream, gelatin or ''gulaman'' (agar), and various preserved or fresh fruits, including mangoes, pineapples ...
References
{{Filipino food
Philippine desserts
Cakes
Custard desserts
Meringue desserts