Conventual Sweets: A Guide to the Best Heavenly Pastries of Portugal

On my latest trip to Portugal, what got me out of bed in the morning were the pastries. Seriously, even the buffet breakfast at my hotel in Lisbon had croissants to rival Paris.

When it comes to pastry, the Portuguese have the Midas touch. Take a walk down any street and you’ll see pastelaria windows filled with flaky, sugary desserts that glisten like golden-brown treasures. As you travel throughout the country, you’ll find most every major town has its own signature confection with a storied past and protected recipe. You could almost say that pastry is a religion in Portugal—and you wouldn’t be far off, for a surprising reason behind their abundance.

The secret of their history is baked into the name for these confections: doçaria conventual, or “conventual sweets.”

Yes—as in “convents.”

A Brief History of Portuguese “Conventual Sweets”

In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and its colonies became the biggest producer and trader of sugar, largely due to the kingdom’s expansion into Madeira. Before this time, sugar had only been used for medicinal purposes by pharmacists and monastic infirmaries, for everything from asthma to indigestion to the bubonic plague. With this new abundance of sugar came lower prices (and sometimes free bags of the stuff from the king himself), so the nuns and monks decided to experiment with combining sugar with another ingredient they had in excess: egg yolks.

The whites of eggs were being used in great quantities for starching clothes and fining wine. But what to do with the yolks? It didn’t take long for monastics up and down the country to discover that sugar and egg yolks (and some almond flour) are a match made in heaven.

Thus, the doçaria conventual (meaning “convent dessert” or “conventual sweet”) was born—or rather, a different dessert was born in each town, at each monastery or convent. Of course, many of these desserts incorporate other flavors—cinnamon, powdered sugar, almond paste, or molasses, for example.

To this day, you can taste your way through Portugal’s historic pastries, sampling the local specialties sold with pride, from the Algarve to the Azores.

How Many Varieties of Conventual Sweets Are There?

When it comes to the varieties of conventual sweets, there are at least several dozen to over 150 distinct recipes, by some counts. Some are region-specific, and some are not tied to any province. Several, like Lisbon’s famous Pastéis de Nata, are so ubiquitous that they can be purchased at the airport for a sweet bem-vindo a Portugal.

If you’re planning a trip to Portugal, here are a few of my favorite must-try conventual sweets.

Pastéis de Nata*

Where to Find: Lisbon (and throughout Portugal)

Without a doubt, the most internationally famous Portuguese pastry is the Pastel de Nata, and deservedly so. Creamy, unsweetened egg custard is poured into a puff-pastry cup roughly the size of a doorknob. Devourable in just three or four bites, it’s an indulgent treat that is both the perfect size and also gone too quickly. Though the traditional style is made with plain, unflavored egg custard, other nonstandard options exist, like chocolate, salted caramel, and fruit.

When served warm from the oven with a fresh dusting of cinnamon, I do think one bite of Pastel de Nata could solve the world’s problems (or at least justify the most heinous jet lag). Sold in every bakery and supermarket, you can’t leave Portugal without trying at least one. For dairy- and butter-free, look for “Vegan Nata” alternatives in Lisbon and Porto.

*Is it Pastel or Pastéis? The short answer is both! Pastel and pastéis simply distinguish singular and plural. Pastel (pah-SHTEHL) is one pastry. Pastéis (pah-SHTAYSH) is more than one pastry. Example: “This was an excellent Pastel de Nata. Where can I get more Pastéis de Nata?”

Pastéis de Belém

Where to Find: Belém (neighborhood in Lisbon)

As Champagne is to the Champagne region of France, so too are Pastéis de Belém to the Belém neighborhood of Lisbon. Specifically, to the Fábrica Pastéis de Belém, a bakery in the heart of Lisbon’s Belém neighborhood that churns out this hyper-local version of the Pastel de Nata. It was here, in the early 19th century—in what used to be a sugarcane factory and general store—that monks from the neighboring Jerónimos Monastery began selling their pastries: Pastéis de Belém were born. The recipe has been kept secret—and unchanged—ever since.

If you’re in Belém for the neighborhood’s other famous landmarks, it’s worth a visit to the bustling bakery where it all began. Not only can you taste the difference for yourself (so fresh! so flaky!), but large windows to the kitchen allow you to watch the bakers in action, pressing the raw dough into baking tins and nimbly plucking the hot ones out of them. And are Pastéis de Belém truly better than Pastéis de Nata? You’ll have to visit Belém and find out for yourself.

Ovos Moles

Where to Find: Aveiro

I’m convinced that the popularity of Ovos Moles is mainly due to how fun it is to say Ovos Moles (OH-vush MO-lesh)—and the Portuguese say it very quickly. White wafer on the outside, sunshine-yellow egg-and-sugar filling inside, and molded in a variety of maritime shapes, such as boats, fish, and seashells, they’re certainly a playful snack to see arranged on a plate. The crisp outer wafer has a Styrofoam appearance and a sweet communion-wafer taste, to counter the yolky and mildly grainy filling. Produced in the canal region of Aveiro, you can purchase them in any pastry shop, or find the real deal in one of the Confeitaria Peixinho stores in Lisbon and Porto.

Travesseiros

Where to Find: Sintra

Travesseiro translates to “pillow” in Portuguese, so if you can’t pronounce this particular pastry, you can always ask for “the pillows.” Not coincidentally, their puffed-up shape resembles their namesake (albeit an elongated version). The recognizable shape is created by a puff-pastry envelope encasing a rich cream made from eggs and almonds. Travesseiros were invented in Sintra in the kitchen of A Casa Piriquita over 160 years ago, and you can still visit the bakery today.

Tip: If the line at A Casa Piriquita is too long, walk uphill and around the corner about half a minute away to their second location, Piriquita II, which can have a slightly shorter line.

Queijadas

Where to Find: Sintra, Madeira, Azores, Évora, Oeiras, and Pereira

If you know a bit of Portuguese, you might recognize the featured ingredient of queijadas, Portugal’s own cheesecake tarts. These bite-sized pastry cups are filled with fresh cheese (queijo is “cheese” in Portuguese), similar to ricotta, in addition to the usual suspects: butter, flour, cinnamon, and of course sugar and eggs. Though the exact origin of this recipe is lost to time, these puck-like pastries were used in medieval times as currency for paying rent. You can also find queijadas at A Casa Piriquita I and II in Sintra, in addition to the regional varieties in Madeira, the Azores, Évora, Oeiras, and Pereira.

Malasadas

Where to Find: Azores

These yeast-leavened doughnuts were born in the Azores, islands off the coast of Portugal. Traditionally, they were made for Carnaval to use up the kitchen’s lard and sugar, thereby removing temptation before the beginning of Lent.

My first malasada was not in Portugal—it was on the Big Island of Hawaii, years ago as a kid on vacation. In the 1800s, laborers migrated from the Azores to Hawaii to work on the sugarcane plantations. They brought their culture, language, music, and of course, food. Unsurprisingly, the malasada caught on, and eventually Hawaiians added a twist to the original Portuguese version by adding fillings. But no matter where you are, these filling doughnuts are best hot, fresh, and near a beach.

Ready to try some of these conventual sweets for yourself? View our customizable Portugal itineraries or culinary tours and talk to a Vaya specialist to create your perfect trip today.

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