Yemas de Santa Teresa (en: Yolks of Saint Teresa) or ''Yemas de Ávila'' (en: Yolks of

Ávila Ávila (, , ) is a city of Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Ávila. It lies on the right bank of the Adaja river. Located more than 1,130 m abov ...

) is a pastry that is identified with the Spanish

province of Ávila 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, an ...

. Its fame has spread across the country and they can be bought throughout

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 ...

but typically they are a souvenir connected with the city of

. They are very popular for their distinctive look: small orange balls served in a white confectionery paper and are made to honor

Teresa of Ávila Teresa of Ávila, OCD (born Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda y Ahumada; 28 March 15154 or 15 October 1582), also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, was a Spanish Carmelite nun and prominent Spanish mystic and religious reformer. Active during th ...

. A possible derivative known as '' yema'' is also a popular delicacy in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, a former colony of Spain. However, they are commonly made as small pyramids or balls and sold as confectioneries rather than pastries.

History

The origin of the pastry is uncertain but there are several opinions where it comes from. One theory assumes that it was a pastry shop in the Medieval Ages in

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a ...

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 called "Yemas de Ávila". Another theory credits the monks of the convent of

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 is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. 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 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 which are stirred in

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

bowls. Meanwhile,

syrup In cooking, a syrup (less commonly sirup; from ar, شراب; , beverage, wine and la, sirupus) is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars ...

is cooked with

lemon juice The lemon (''Citrus limon'') is a species of small evergreen trees in the flowering plant family Rutaceae, native to Asia, primarily Northeast India (Assam), Northern Myanmar or China. The tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit is used for culina ...

and

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...

to reduce it until it is 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.

References

{{Reflist Spanish pastries Castilian-Leonese cuisine

History

Characteristics

See also

References