{"id":20213,"date":"2019-09-20T09:19:38","date_gmt":"2019-09-20T07:19:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bake-street.com\/?p=20213"},"modified":"2026-04-08T12:27:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T10:27:19","slug":"costrada-de-alcala-de-henares","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bake-street.com\/en\/costrada-de-alcala-de-henares\/","title":{"rendered":"Costrada de Alcal\u00e1 de Henares"},"content":{"rendered":"

All of you who have ever been to Alcal\u00e1 de Henares, <\/a>city from Spain, Madrid, or are from there will know the recipe that I am going to share with you today. But, first of all, tell you that it is a recipe for those who are “sweet-tooth”. Today we will see how to make the famous Costrada de Alcal\u00e1 de Henares<\/strong>, a classic and traditional pastry that we could classify as “old-fashioned desserts”. I love them, you know.<\/p>\n

This would not have to be any inconvenience because how many old-fashioned desserts there are around the world that we still enjoy as the first day they were invented? Thousands, hundreds of thousands. That is why we must never allow them to fall into oblivion. And I’m not referring to this one anymore, which I’m sure will never fall, but to others such as the banana-split<\/strong><\/a> (my God, I ate tons of it when I was a child), the traditional pyjamas dessert<\/em><\/strong><\/a>…<\/p>\n

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\"Costrada <\/picture><\/div>\n
Costrada de Alcal\u00e1 origin.<\/h5>\n

Costrada de Alcal\u00e1 de Henares<\/strong><\/em> is one of the traditional and emblematic sweets of this city together with Rosquillas de Alcal\u00e1<\/em> and Almendras garrapi\u00f1adas<\/em>. As you can see, the people of Alcal\u00e1 know how to get a great life.<\/p>\n

In fact, the three elaborations are joined to the history of Alcal\u00e1 through the famous confectionery Salinas<\/strong> that opened its doors in 1846, in the Plaza de Cervantes<\/em>, and the confectionery El Postre<\/strong> opened in 1926. To this day both confectioneries are closed, although their memory endures in the childhood of many alcala\u00ednos<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Costrada de Alcal\u00e1<\/em> is a millefeuille made with puff pastry and filled with pastry cream and meringue. The dessert is topped with toasted chopped almonds and icing sugar. A very simple and traditional sweet, but it has been making its way over the years. Today it can be found in most of the city’s restaurants.<\/p>\n

\"Costrada <\/picture><\/div>\n
Origin disputed.<\/h5>\n

The origin of the costrada<\/em> was considered, by alcala\u00ednos<\/em>, an equal creation of both pastry-shops, Salinas<\/strong> and El Postre<\/strong>. Although perhaps the first oney had more influence due to its antiquity. As a curious fact, the Salinas bakery was a supplier to the Spanish Royal Family.<\/p>\n

It is said that the daughter of the founder of the pastry shop “El Postre<\/strong>“, Marival G\u00f3mez, was the one who introduced the costrada<\/em> in Alcal\u00e1 from a recipe given to them by a family friend after having taken it at a wedding in Zaragoza.<\/p>\n

\"Costrada <\/picture><\/div>\n
Traditionally, the costrada is made in a large format and not individually.<\/h5>\n

Puff pastry sheets are baked and then filled with pastry cream and meringue. At the time of place the fillings, the most common thing is cream in the base and meringue in the upper part. But maybe you will find it in a different order.<\/p>\n

Then cover everythings with meringue, in the same way as if we covered a cake, sprinkle with almond, icing sugar and bake for a few minutes. In this way we roast the almonds and dry the outer meringue.<\/p>\n

In my case I have decided to carry them out in an individual format and with a slightly different presentation, but following the classic and traditional line. In any case, whether large or in small portions, you have to encourage yourself to do it at home.<\/p>\n

In the elaboration I leave you how to do the costrada<\/strong><\/em> from scratch, that is to say, puff pastry included<\/strong><\/a>. It is a dough that does not need to proof, but it is something laborious. By this I mean laminate, which if we stop to think, is not much either.<\/p>\n

In that case, the recipe is simplified a lot and you’ll have a sensational weekend dessert.<\/p>\n