Xuixo (; also known as ''xuxo''; es, suso) is a

viennoiserie ''Viennoiseries'' (, "things of Vienna") are baked goods made from a yeast- leavened dough in a manner similar to bread, or from puff pastry, but with added ingredients (particularly eggs, butter, milk, cream and sugar), which give them a richer, ...

pastry from the city of

Girona Girona (officially and in Catalan language, Catalan , Spanish: ''Gerona'' ) is a city in northern Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter River, Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 103,369 in ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the north ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. It is a deep-fried, sugar-coated cylindrical pastry filled with

crema catalana The dessert known in most of Spain as ''crema catalana'' ("Catalan cream"), but as ''crema cremada'' ("burnt cream") in Catalan cuisine, is similar to a ''crème brûlée''; the desserts have been called "virtually identical", although ''crema c ...

. Commonly eaten for breakfast or

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and northe ...

, it is honored as ''Producte de la Terra'' ( en, Product of the home country) by the Department of Agriculture, Farming and Fishing of the

Government of Catalonia The Executive Council of Catalonia ( ca, Consell Executiu) or the Executive Government of Catalonia (Catalan: ) is the Executive (government), executive branch of the Generalitat of Catalonia. It is responsible for the political action, regul ...

It is assumed that this pastry originated in 1920s Girona in a pastry shop owned by Emili Puig in the Street Cort Reial. A French pastry shop showed Puig the preparation of cream-filled pastry and this inspired him to create the ''Xuixo''. This pastry is very popular not only in Girona but has been also accepted in the surrounding areas and can also be found in

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tar ...

Castellón de la Plana Castellón de la Plana (officially in ca-valencia, Castelló de la Plana), or simply Castellón ( ca-valencia, Castelló, link=no) is the capital city of the province of Castellón, in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is located in the east ...

and

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...

. In the second half of the 20th century it was one of the most demanded product in the ''Xurreries'' (pastry shops, es, churrerías) and nowadays it is commercialized by a candy brand that sells them not plain but with a chocolate icing.

The legend

According to a legend in Girona the invention of the ''Xuixo'' has to be credited to ''el Tarlà'', a very sympathetic person that is very present in the legends of this area. This acrobat that entertained the citizens in a quarantine during an epidemic, fell in love with the daughter of a pastry chef. Once when he visited his beloved girl her father appeared and he hid in a bag of flour. Unfortunately he sneezed (which sounds like ''xui-xui'') and was discovered. Before the pastry chef could get angry he promised to marry his daughter and give him the recipe of a special pastry: the ''Xuixo''. He named it after the sneeze that betrayed him. Nowadays a figure of ''el Tarlà'' can be seen every year during the spring festivities when its copy is erected at the place where he had entertained the people of Girona.

The popular ''Xuixo'' procession

The foundation "''Fundació Oncolliga Girona''" and the government of Girona organize the popular procession ''Marxa del Xuixo''. It is a procession in which the whole family participates and strolls through the streets of Girona to discover the city's natural surroundings. After the walk the participants are given ''Xuixos'' that have been prepared by the board of pastry chefs of Girona.

References

{{reflist

External links

Legend about the invention of XuixoOriginatingFried Pastry Filled with Cream
Spanish pastries Catalan cuisine Stuffed desserts Custard desserts Deep fried foods