The confectionery in Moya on the island of Gran Canaria is a sample of the tradition and identity of this beautiful town. The elaboration of its sweets goes back several generations and its recipe and production has been passed on from generation to generation, becoming a family business. In this article we will talk about the already famous suspiros de Moya.
Moya, the beauty of the north of the island
The Villa of Moya is located in the north of Gran Canaria, 25 kilometers away from the capital of the island, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. To go to Moya, the visitor must access through the highway (GC-2), a road that borders the north coast of the island. If visiting by car, the trip to Moya is easily accessible, so the approximate duration is 30 minutes if the trip starts in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Moya arose as a modern population center both for reasons of agricultural settlement and religious reasons. The distribution of lands and waters made after the conquest of Gran Canaria and the orography conditioned the population settlement, forming dispersed nuclei above 600 meters of altitude, Montaña de Doramas, and grouped below that level, casco de Moya.
Moya's famous confectionery
In Moya we cannot say how green was my valley, because here the territory is very abrupt, but we can say that the land smells green, the green of its lush natural vegetation, of its banana plantations and the green of its potato and millet orchards.
We are in the north of the island, where people were once fond of a pastry kitchen that had some women specialized in the task and served the people and their neighbors. It was those neighbors who wanted to entertain an announced visit or who were preparing a christening or a wedding, who had to provide the necessary eggs to the pastry cook and she took care of the order.
With the ingredients that her neighbors brought with the order, the baker baked exquisite cakes and sighs. At that time, the only bakery that existed in the village was that of Mrs. Antonia. It was there where Cha Manuela would hurry to find a place in the smoky oven to bake her bizcochos. She had an old basin, but well seasoned, and provided with a stick whisk she would put her spectacular skill to the test.
Other women of the town followed the example, recipe in hand, of Cha Manuela 's skills with the whisk, and that is how we arrive at Cha Jacinta, who accidentally discovered the shape that today the bizcochos and suspiros of Moya have.
How to make delicious Moya Sighs
Also known as mimos, these canary meringue sighs are baked at low temperature for one hour and it is important to note that we will use twice the weight in sugar compared to egg whites.
Ingredients
Egg whites, sugar and lemon juice.
Elaboration
We start by measuring the proportions of egg yolks and sugar. According to the weight of the yolks, we should use twice the weight in sugar. Place the egg whites in a bowl and sprinkle lightly with a few drops of lemon juice.
Next, begin beating the egg yolks at high speed while gradually adding the sugar, making sure it dissolves completely and avoiding lumps.
Once we have finished beating the meringue, we transfer it to a piping bag and begin to form small mountains on a baking tray covered with baking paper. We place the tray in the oven previously heated to 90 degrees and leave it for 1 hour for the meringues to bake properly. Then remove our sighs from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.
If you are interested in the world of products made in the Canary Islandsand want to know more about them, here are several articles related to Canarian cheese: Denomination of Origin of Canarian cheeses; Queso de Flor, wonder of Gran Canaria; Almogrote, everything you should know about Canarian cheese pate.
Paula Vera
Photos: besmagazine.es, elperiodiquito.com
