Ensaimada

Ensaimada de Mallorca

Mallorca's iconic spiral pastry: a soft, enriched yeast dough brushed liberally with lard, coiled into a snail shape, baked pale and pillowy, and buried under a snowy cap of icing sugar. Best eaten the morning it's made, ideally with a café con leche.

Prep

40 min

Cook

25 min

Total

65 min

Serves

8 (one large spiral, about 8-10 portions)

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •500 g (1 lb 2 oz / about 4 cups) bread flour, high-protein (11-13%) for a chewy crumb; all-purpose works but yields a more tender, less traditional result
• •200 ml (¾ cup + 1 tbsp) whole milk, lukewarm
• •100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
• •100 g (½ cup) lard (manteca), traditional and essential for the authentic flavor and texture; soften to room temperature but not melted. Do not substitute butter or oil.
• •2 whole large eggs
• •25 g (¼ cup) fresh yeast, or 7 g (about 2¼ tsp) active dry yeast, bloomed first in the warm milk
• •1 tsp fine sea salt
• •1 tsp lemon zest, finely grated, optional but very traditional
• •30 g (¼ cup) lard, extra, for brushing, softened to spreadable consistency
• •100 g (¾ cup + 2 tbsp) icing (powdered) sugar, for dusting, do not skimp — the snowy coating is signature

Steps

1. 1 Bloom the yeast: stir yeast into the lukewarm milk with 1 tsp of the sugar and leave 8-10 minutes until foamy.
2. 2 Make the dough: in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine flour, remaining sugar, salt and lemon zest. Add the eggs, bloomed yeast mixture and milk, and knead on low for 3 minutes, scraping down as needed.
3. 3 Add the lard a tablespoon at a time, waiting until each is fully incorporated before adding the next, then knead 10-12 minutes more until the dough is very smooth, elastic and pulls cleanly from the bowl. It should feel soft and slightly tacky, not sticky.
4. 4 First rise: shape into a ball, place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let rise in a warm spot until doubled and puffy, about 2 hours (or 8-12 hours overnight in the fridge for more flavor).
5. 5 Punch down gently, cover and let rise again for 30-45 minutes.
6. 6 Prepare a large baking sheet (or a special ensaimada mold) by greasing lightly with lard.
7. 7 On a clean surface lightly dusted with flour, roll the dough into a large rectangle about 50 x 70 cm (20 x 28 in) and roughly 5 mm (¼ in) thick.
8. 8 Brush the entire surface of the dough generously with the softened lard — be generous; this is the defining ingredient. The dough should glisten.
9. 9 Roll up the dough tightly along the long edge into a long rope, then coil the rope into a spiral (snail shape), tucking the end underneath. Lift onto the prepared tray.
10. 10 Second rise: cover loosely with a clean towel and let proof at room temperature for 2-3 hours, until visibly puffy and roughly doubled. Do not rush this — under-proofed ensaimadas will be dense.
11. 11 Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 20-25 minutes, until pale golden on top and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Internal temperature at the center should read 88-92°C (190-198°F) on an instant-read thermometer. Do not over-brown — the crust should remain pale.
12. 12 Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes, then dust very heavily with icing sugar just before serving, so the snow-white cap is unmistakable.