A polvorón (From , the

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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

word for powder, or dust) is a type of heavy, soft, and very crumbly

shortbread Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part sugar, white sugar, two parts butter and three to four parts plain flour, plain wheat flour. Shortbread does not contain leavening, such as baking powder or bakin ...

made of

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfeeding, breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. ...

, and

nuts Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed * Nut (food), a dry and edible fruit or seed, including but not limited to true nuts * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut, NUT or Nuts may also refer to: A ...

(especially almonds). They are mostly produced in

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

, where there are about 70 factories that are part of a syndicate that produces polvorones and mantecados. Under the name ''mantecados'', these sweets are a traditional preparation of other areas of the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

and other Spanish-speaking countries as well. Polvorones are popular holiday delicacies in all of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Hispanic America Hispanic America ( or ), historically known as Spanish America () or Castile (historical region), Castilian America (), is the Spanish-speaking countries and territories of the Americas. In all of these countries, Spanish language, Spanish is th ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, and other Spanish-influenced countries around the world. Traditionally, they were prepared from September to January, but they are now available all year round.

Mantecado

''Mantecado'' is a name for a variety of Spanish shortbreads that includes the ''polvorón''. The names are often synonymous, but not all ''mantecados'' are ''polvorones''. The name ''mantecado'' comes from (

lard Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig.

), usually the fat of Iberian pig ('), with which they are made, while the name ''polvorón'' is based on the fact that these cakes crumble easily into a kind of dust in the hand or the mouth. In

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

''mantecado'' is an

ice cream Ice cream is a frozen dessert typically made from milk or cream that has been flavoured with a sweetener, either sugar or an alternative, and a spice, such as Chocolate, cocoa or vanilla, or with fruit, such as strawberries or peaches. Food ...

and in Spain it may be also the name given to a kind of sweet sherbet. In the Philippines and Puerto Rico, ''mantecado'' is a popular traditional ice cream flavour, characterised as a mixture of vanilla and butter. It was served during the 29 September 1898 luncheon banquet that followed the

Malolos Congress The Malolos Congress (), also known as the Revolutionary Congress () and formally the National Assembly, was the legislative body of the Revolutionary Government of the Philippines. From 1898 to 1899, prior to the Philippine Declaration of I ...

' ratification of the

Philippine Declaration of Independence The Philippine Declaration of Independence (; ) was proclaimed by Filipino revolutionary forces general Emilio Aguinaldo on June 12, 1898, in Cavite el Viejo (present-day Kawit, Cavite), Philippines. It asserted the sovereignty and indepe ...

in June that year 1935.

Regional variations

Cuba

has adapted the flavors of mantecado or polvorones from Spain into a beloved flavor for Cuban ice cream. This Cuban flavor has influenced ice cream flavors made in other Latin American countries such as

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

Latin America

Polvorones are a common Christmas dessert in Latin America. Today, there are other options for the fat used in the sweet other than pig fat, like butter, as well as vegetarian polvorones and mantecados made with

olive oil Olive oil is a vegetable oil obtained by pressing whole olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea'', a traditional Tree fruit, tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin) and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking for frying foods, as a cond ...

United States

Sometimes called Pan de Polvo, the sweet is made with

anise Anise (; '), also called aniseed or rarely anix, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia. The flavor and aroma of its seeds have similarities with some other spices and herbs, ...

in the south

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

region.

The Philippines

The Filipino version of polvorón (sometimes spelled "polboron" or "pulburon") is made from toasted flour,

powdered milk Powdered milk, also called milk powder, dried milk, or dry milk, is a manufactured dairy product made by evaporating milk to dryness. One purpose of drying milk is to preserve it; milk powder has a far longer shelf life than liquid milk and do ...

, and

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of Churning (butter), churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 81% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread (food ...

margarine Margarine (, also , ) is a Spread (food), spread used for flavoring, baking, and cooking. It is most often used as a substitute for butter. Although originally made from animal fats, most margarine consumed today is made from vegetable oil. The ...

instead of lard. In contrast to other polvorón, it is not baked and has a very fine powder-like and dry consistency. Though usually compressed and shaped by round or oval tin molds and individually wrapped in colorful '' papel de japón'' or cellophane, it can also be eaten in its toasted powder form stored in jars. A number of optional ingredients can also be added to ''polvorón''. Well-known variants include peanuts, ''kasuy'' ( cashew nut), ''

pinipig ''Pinipig'' is a flattened rice ingredient from the Philippines. It is made of immature grains of glutinous rice pounded until flat before being toasted. It is commonly used as toppings for various desserts in Filipino cuisine, but can also b ...

'' (pounded and toasted young green rice, similar to crisped rice),

sprinkles Sprinkles are small pieces of confectionery used as an often colorful cake decorating, decoration or to add Texture (food), texture to desserts such as chocolate brownie, brownies, cupcakes, doughnuts or ice cream. The tiny candies are produced ...

, crushed Oreo cookies, powdered

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...

raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of several plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the Rosaceae, rose family, most of which are in the subgenus ''Rubus#Modern classification, Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Ras ...

and

ube halaya ''Ube halaya'' or ''halayang ube'' (also spelled ''halea'', ''haleya''; ) is a Filipino cuisine, Filipino dessert made from boiled and mashed purple yam (''Dioscorea alata'', locally known as ''ube''). Ube halaya is the main base in ube/purple ...

, among others. They can also be coated in chocolate. Unlike its other counterparts, it is not considered a holiday delicacy, but rather an everyday snack. It is commonly used in town fiesta contests, where participants consume an amount of dry polvoron before they try to whistle.

Photo gallery

File:Polvorón de Estepa.jpg, Two halves of a ''polvorón'' File:Polvorón-2.jpg, Polvoron production line in a factory in Spain. File:Polvorón-1.jpg, Visit of the Antequera Confectionery Industries of the Sancho Melero Group File:Dulce de Laroya 20210924.jpg File:Mantecados Felipe II.jpg File:Mantecados - Keith Williamson.jpg

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polvoron Andalusian cuisine Christmas food Christmas in Spain Cookies Latin American cuisine Mexican desserts Philippine desserts Shortbread