Spanish Pionono de Santa Fé Recipe

Pionono de Santa Fé is a cake from the Spanish town of Santa Fe in Granada. Check out our Pionono recipe and prepare it at home.

The Pionono de Santa Fe is made with a slab of sponge cake dipped in syrup, filled with egg yolk and cinnamon, rolled, and topped with a crown of toasted egg yolk.

Where does Pionono originate from?

The Pionono de Santa Fe is a small cake that, since the end of the 19th century, has been made in the town of Santa Fe, Granada.

Its name comes from Pope Pius IX, whom the confectioner Ceferino Isla González wanted to honor on the 50th anniversary of his death. To do so, he created a sweet that recalled his plump figure and was named after him.

Read also: Traditional Spanish desserts + recipes

How to make Pionono

Bizcocho

1. Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and grease it with a pinch of butter.

2. Add 0.5 ounces (15 grams) of wheat flour and 0.7 ounces (20 grams) of cornflour to a bowl.

3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and add the egg yolk to the bowl with flour. Set the egg whites aside for later use.

4. Add 1.4 ounces (40 grams) of milk and stir everything until homogenized.

5. Whip the egg whites in another bowl and, when they are foamy, add 1.4 ounces (40 grams) of sugar, little by little.

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6. Beat until stiff peaks are formed.

7. Add the egg yolk mixture and mix everything well with a spatula. Use smooth and enveloping movements from bottom to top not to lose the air incorporated with the beating.

8. Pour the mixture on the baking paper and spread it over the entire surface, ensuring equal thickness.

9. Bake the cake in a preheated oven at 356°F (180ºC) for about ten minutes or until it begins to brown.

10. Remove from the oven and let cool down.

Pastry Yolk

1. Add four eggs to a bowl and weigh them without the shell. Afterward, add 3.2 ounces (90 grams) of water and mix everything.

2. Add the same amount of sugar (in our case, 2.8 ounces or 80 grams) and 0,5 ounces (15 grams) of refined cornflour to another bowl and mix well.

3. Add the sugar/ flour mixture to the bowl with the eggs and mix well until there are no flour lumps left.

4. Heat the mixture over medium heat and stir occasionally. When the mixture thickens, stir vigorously, bring to a boil and remove from the heat. Let it cool down!

Syrup

1. Add 2.1 ounces (60 grams) of water and 2.1 ounces (60 grams) of sugar to a small pot.

2. Cook over low heat for five minutes. Remove from the heat and let it cool down.

Assembly

1. Brush the sponge cake with the syrup.

2. Cover the sponge cake with the Pastry Yolk (leave around 1/3 of the Pastry Yolk for later to crown the Piononos) and sprinkle with ground cinnamon.

3. Roll the filled sponge cake on the long side and cut it into around 0.8 inches (2 cm) pieces.

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4. Crown each Pionono with a portion of the Pastry Yolk and sprinkle with sugar. Afterward, place the Piononos under the grill for a couple of minutes.

5. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator.

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