Malaysia 2019 - Our Food

Technical Details:
Date of Issue: 16 September 2019
Width: 35.00 mm
Height: 35.00 mm
Layout/Format: Sheet of 20
Perforations: 14 by 14
Stamp Issuing Authority: POS Malaysia
Printer: Percetakan Keselamatan Nasional Sdn Bhd 

0.60 Malaysian Ringgit - Teh Tarik, Puding Kelapa, Ais Krim Gula Apong, Bubur Cha-cha
0.80 Malaysian Ringgit - Kuih Cincin, Kuih Ketayap, Apam Balik, Kek Lapis
1.00 Malaysian Ringgit - Roti Canai, Hinava, Mi Kolok, Nasi Lemak Bungkus
5.00 Malaysian RInggit - Air Batu Campur (ABC)

Suriname 2019 - UPAEP, Traditional Meals

Portugal 2019 - About Traditional Sweets of Portugal

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 01 October 2019
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Printer: INCM
Process: Offset
Size: 30.6 x 27.7 mm
Values: €0.10, €0.53, €0.65, €0.86, €0.91

About Traditional Sweets of Portugal - 3rd Group

Queijadas de Sintra
Sometimes the history of a sweet seems monotonous, punctuated here and there by an episode marking a point in its evolution. After all, sweets are made every day. It is only the people who make them who are aware of their circumstances, who know about the ups and downs of their history. In the long life cycle of queijadas de Sintra, we get a sense of the timelessness of the recipe constantly changing hands. Thus, its history is made up of all the stories that compose the everyday lives of those who have made them, from the days they were used as payment of rent, until a distinction was made between ne queijadas and the queijadas sold in the market. It would be di cult and unfair to try and mention the names behind the houses that, over the centuries, excelled in the production of this unique sweet that always travelled beyond the geographical limits of the town of Sintra. Di cult because the list of names is so long, unfair because we would, almost certainly, fail to mention at least one, including the anonymous people who contributed to the extensive reputation of a sweet that bene ted so much from tourism in the romantic town of Sintra. Instead, we should talk about the intentions, everyday occurrences and culinary practices that made the flavour of queijadas universal, while always varied and distinct, like the various hands that made them, shaping their crisp shell countless times and preparing their unique lling, which in Sintra is calledmiolo. The cheese is the main protagonist in the latter, leading to attempts, at times, to regulate its supply through the Association for the Provision of Cheese to the Sintra Queijada Industry. Sugar, eggs, our and cinnamon would always be used in the mixture to accompany the cheese. However, while the ingredients are always the same, there are an in nite number of ways in which they can be used. This is what leads to the multiplicity of flavour, texture and aromas that melt together in the rich imagination of queijadas de Sintra, a sweet treasure so frequently mentioned in literature that it has almost turned into poetry. Even when described as an unmissable element in the context of tourism, queijadas de Sintraare assigned a kind of celebrity status that is equally appealing to royal, erudite and common palates. Queijadas are a rare example of a national sweet that confuses us with its journey through time and space. Our palate is in uenced by the flavour of the queijadawe taste today, but our memory recalls the numerous additions that so many hands have made to it. We could even say that queijadasde Sintra, more than just an icon of local confectionery, are today a tribute to all the queijadeiros and queijadeiras who, in their time, succeeded in creating magic with this mixture of ingredients.

Fatias do Freixo
The first thing fatias do Freixo [Freixo Slices] impress us with is their colour. Their honest, strong yellow reinforces our certainty that, in the history of confectionery, the choice of egg yolks as a main ingredient and eternal companion of sugar was not, in any way, a coincidence. Yellow is striking and hints at the sweetness of what we are about to taste. It is perhaps for this reason that yellow is the main colour in Portuguese confectionery, at least when it comes to making an eye-catching sweet that awakens our appetite. This is exactly the case for fatias do Freixo. The yellow not only catches our eye but makes us anticipate the delicacy we are about to experience. It is a sumptuous yellow, a yellow that xates, a yellow that oozes. Luis I of Portugal was indeed wise to always have these sweets on his table. An orderly and very regimented mixture of eggs, sugar, our and water reminding us that the most beautiful compositions are made from the simplest ingredients, fatias do Freixo pleasantly surprise us with their precise measure of sugar,not so much to be imposing, but providing enough sweetness to satisfy us. Because they are not overly sweet, the perfection of fatias do Freixo depends precisely on the fact that sugar is not the main protagonist, but merely what allows the tempting yellow to come through and convince us of perfect harmony. These fatias are the legacy of the rich tradition of pão-de-ló [Portuguese sponge cake] in the northern regions of Portugal. While in other places different sweets take centre stage on festive tables, in the North, and especially the Minho, pão-de-ló is the most prized offering in community festivities. For this reason, there are so many variations on the same recipe and so many varieties of this sweet, soft sponge cake. Fatias do Freixo are a classic example of this same tradition that trickled down as far as the Tâmega River and created a flavour that would make the people of Marco de Canavezes proud. While their flavour, texture and aroma can be experienced by all who try these fatias, it is in the Casa dos Lenteirões, in Freixo, that we nd the expertise and knowledge of the correct proportion of ingredients used to make this sweet. Made with a family recipe,the impact they have on us, and the way they stand out from so many others, leads us to believe that the rst hands to make them were inspired by noble sentiments capable of creating perfection through confectionery. This is a perfect sweet, perfection disguisedas fatias do Freixo.

Cavacas das Caldas da Rainha
Sometimes, the easiest way to understand a sweet is not by looking at its origin, but by considering the reasons for its shape and texture, as its flavour was accepted long ago and is generally consensual. This is true of cavacas das Caldas. Even before tasting one of these cavacas we immediately ask ourselves why the sweet itself is hollow. And why is it so hard? Perhaps because they originated as a pilgrim’s sweet, cavacas are very dry in textureso that they keep for a long time without going stale. As for the shape, this could perhaps be explained, like many other examples of confectionery in this sweet-loving country, by their double purpose, rstly as a receptacle for wine, which would moisten and soften them, and simultaneously as an accompaniment. This versatile sweet demonstrates the ingenuity of human beings who, in food, have always associated taste, function and form. A pilgrim’s sweet, with humble ingredients and a simple recipe, the cavaca looks to sugar syrup to grace it with sweet satisfaction, and while in the interior of Portugal the recipe for cavacas includes oil, on the coast, where Caldas cavacas are more common, it is butter which makes the connection between the eggs and the our. Once they are cooked, the cavacas are soaked in a sugar syrup where lemon is the element that gives them flavour and takes the edge o their sweetness. Taking into account the importance of tourism associated with the thermal springs and the presence of a social and aristocratic elite in the town of Caldas, especially during the19th century, many cavacarias appeared that made and sold cavacas, which due to their longevity, became unique souvenirs of tours around the city. At a time when travellers were the main vehicle of propaganda for Portuguese confectionery, the cavacas of Caldas bene ted from the constant passage of tourists through the city, and as time went by the recipe was gradually perfected. In 1924, perhaps for this reason, they were mentioned in the 1st volume of the Guide to Portugal. Whoever travelled to or went through Caldas could not leave without trying a cavaca. It is hard to believe that, while they originated as a pilgrim’s sweet, which explains their texture and form, in the town of Caldas cavacas became an icon of confectionery and, in a much more re ned social setting, the preferred accompaniment to tea and co ee. After all, it is the sugar and lemon combined with the light crunch of thecavaca before it melts in the mouth that leaves us with a taste that tempts and invites us to take another bite, just to hold on to the irresistible flavour of the cavacas das Caldas. The flavour requires no explanation, it should simply be celebrated in each cavaca.

Morgados do Algarve
Opulent in flavour and rich in form, the sumptuous morgado do Algarve [Algarve’s rstborn] is exemplary of the convergence of two confectionery traditions. On the one hand, the tradition of sugar and its use in combination with almonds, a practice introduced to the Al-Garb by the Moors, developed and established there during the extended presence of the latter in the southern Iberian Peninsula. On the other, complementing this knowledge and expertise, the lling of the morgado exhibits the noble confectionery tradition developed in the kitchens of Portuguese convents. Morgados therefore take after two distinguished traditions, which together have succeeded in achieving perfection, both in the pastry or alcofa [carrycot or basket], and in the lling. The alcofa illustrates theMoorish tradition of the art of sugar work, in this case combined with almonds, one of the main fruits cultivated in the Algarve region. Thus, the pastry is made with nely ground almonds, sugar and water and moulded into a receptacle for an elegant lling of the best that convent confectionery has to o er, doce de gila [malabargourd jam], ovos-moles [sweet egg yolk] and os de ovos [angel hair]. It is well known that the art of working with the various stages of sugar, combined with egg yolks, was practised in noble houses, where young girls were initiated into the secret alchemy of good confectionery. The system of primogeniture which drove many young women behind the high walls of convents and monasteries, combined with the availability of sugar in these religious spaces, gave us a rich and opulent confectionery. It is therefore thanks toprimogeniture that we have this richness in the art of confectionery that combines sugar with eggs and fruit, considering that a certain amount of expertise is required to make a good doce de gila so that the result does not discredit the intention. The combination, in thetradition of morgados, of doce de gila, ovos-moles, os de ovosand massa de amêndoa [almond paste], the latter so illustrative of the Moorish legacy, can only result in an excess of perfection in every aspect. Finally, morgados are meticulously decorated with owers and fruits made of the alcofa pastry and adorned with strips of coloured tissue paper in the traditional convent style of confectionery presentation. Undeniable proof that every single piece of our confectionery is the result of intersecting traditions, combined histories and reciprocal culinary arts, morgados demonstrate technique, presentation and flavour in abundance.

Cavacas de Resende
In the monograph he wrote on the Council of Resende, Joaquim Caetano Pinto, when talking about the famous cavacas de Resende, said that they were ‘very well presented, made almost entirely of eggs and sugar. The whites are used to make ocas’. Rather than just describing Resende’s most iconic sweet, the author wanted to establish the difference between cavacas de Resende and the other cavacas of Portuguese confectionery. While in the rest of the country a cavaca is a hollow sweet with a dry texture, in Resende it is brilliantly yellow, delightfully sweet and frankly irresistible due to the contrast of its white topping with the soft yellow pão-de-ló [sponge cake] beneath. In Resende, the white cavacas are called ocas [hollows]. In other words, what in the rest of the county is known as a cavaca, golden on the inside and painted with a white glaze, in Resende is an oca. Even the nameand its connotations demonstrate the contrast between the two sweets. Cavacas de Resende are slices of pão-de-ló made, almost entirely, of eggs and sugar, with our as a residual element, which used to be cut roughly, but are now sliced with perfect distinction. It is said that, in order for them to keep longer, these slices of soft sponge cake, called cavacas, are dipped in sugar syrup and dusted with our, acquiring an innocent white appearance that contrasts with the bright and tempting yellow of the sponge. Now that we have distinguished between the slices of soft sponge cake known as cavacas, and the so-called ocas, which are white and similar to other cavacas, it should be noted that this sweet has enjoyed enduring fame, with references dating from the 19th century. In 1889, the newspaper ‘O Baionense’ described how cavacas were an irresistible temptation for passing pilgrims who would nd them displayed by confectioners on white cloths with lace trim. Considering the strong tradition of pilgrimages to Santa Maria de Cárquere and Santa Maria de Barrô, the latter characterised by the pains and e orts of devotees to seek the image in stone found in a niche on the left bank of the Douro River, we can see that pilgrims on the path of devotion would, by the grace of God, be sweetened by the serene appearance and cheerful flavour of a cavaca de Resende, which would aid in igniting their religious zeal even further.

Portugal 2019 - About Traditional Sweets of Portugal (Self-Adhesive)

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 29 March 2019
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Printer: Cartor
Process: Offset
Size: 25 x 30 mm

About Traditional Sweets of Portugal (Self-Adhesive)

Queijadas de Sintra
Sometimes the history of a sweet seems monotonous, punctuated here and there by an episode marking a point in its evolution. After all, sweets are made every day. It is only the people who make them who are aware of their circumstances, who know about the ups and downs of their history. In the long life cycle of queijadas de Sintra, we get a sense of the timelessness of the recipe constantly changing hands. Thus, its history is made up of all the stories that compose the everyday lives of those who have made them, from the days they were used as payment of rent, until a distinction was made between ne queijadas and the queijadas sold in the market. It would be di cult and unfair to try and mention the names behind the houses that, over the centuries, excelled in the production of this unique sweet that always travelled beyond the geographical limits of the town of Sintra. Di cult because the list of names is so long, unfair because we would, almost certainly, fail to mention at least one, including the anonymous people who contributed to the extensive reputation of a sweet that bene ted so much from tourism in the romantic town of Sintra. Instead, we should talk about the intentions, everyday occurrences and culinary practices that made the flavour of queijadas universal, while always varied and distinct, like the various hands that made them, shaping their crisp shell countless times and preparing their unique lling, which in Sintra is called miolo. The cheese is the main protagonist in the latter, leading to attempts, at times, to regulate its supply through the Association for the Provision of Cheese to the Sintra Queijada Industry. Sugar, eggs, our and cinnamon would always be used in the mixture to accompany the cheese. However, while the ingredients are always the same, there are an in nite number of ways in which they can be used. This is what leads to the multiplicity of flavour, texture and aromas that melt together in the rich imagination of queijadas de Sintra, a sweet treasure so frequently mentioned in literature that it has almost turned into poetry. Even when described as an unmissable element in the context of tourism, queijadas de Sintra are assigned a kind of celebrity status that is equally appealing to royal, erudite and common palates. Queijadas are a rare example of a national sweet that confuses us with its journey through time and space. Our palate is in uenced by the flavour of the queijada we taste today, but our memory recalls the numerous additions that so many hands have made to it. We could even say that queijadasde Sintra, more than just an icon of local confectionery, are today a tribute to all the queijadeiros and queijadeiras who, in their time, succeeded in creating magic with this mixture of ingredients.

Cavacas das Caldas da Rainha
Sometimes, the easiest way to understand a sweet is not by looking at its origin, but by considering the reasons for its shape and texture, as its flavour was accepted long ago and is generally consensual. This is true of cavacas das Caldas. Even before tasting one of these cavacas we immediately ask ourselves why the sweet itself is hollow. And why is it so hard? Perhaps because they originated as a pilgrim’s sweet, cavacas are very dry in texture so that they keep for a long time without going stale. As for the shape, this could perhaps be explained, like many other examples of confectionery in this sweet-loving country, by their double purpose, rstly as a receptacle for wine, which would moisten and soften them, and simultaneously as an accompaniment. This versatile sweet demonstrates the ingenuity of human beings who, in food, have always associated taste, function and form. A pilgrim’s sweet, with humble ingredients and a simple recipe, the cavaca looks to sugar syrup to grace it with sweet satisfaction, and while in the interior of Portugal the recipe for cavacas includes oil, on the coast, where Caldas cavacas are more common, it is butter which makes the connection between the eggs and the our. Once they are cooked, the cavacas are soaked in a sugar syrup where lemon is the element that gives them flavour and takes the edge o their sweetness. Taking into account the importance of tourism associated with the thermal springs and the presence of a social and aristocratic elite in the town of Caldas, especially during the 19th century, many cavacarias appeared that made and sold cavacas, which due to their longevity, became unique souvenirs of tours around the city. At a time when travellers were the main vehicle of propaganda for Portuguese confectionery, the cavacas of Caldas bene ted from the constant passage of tourists through the city, and as time went by the recipe was gradually perfected. In 1924, perhaps for this reason, they were mentioned in the 1st volume of the Guide to Portugal. Whoever travelled to or went through Caldas could not leave without trying a cavaca. It is hard to believe that, while they originated as a pilgrim’s sweet, which explains their texture and form, in the town of Caldas cavacas became an icon of confectionery and, in a much more re ned social setting, the preferred accompaniment to tea and co ee. After all, it is the sugar and lemon combined with the light crunch of the cavaca before it melts in the mouth that leaves us with a taste that tempts and invites us to take another bite, just to hold on to the irresistible flavour of the cavacas das Caldas. The flavour requires no explanation, it should simply be celebrated in each cavaca.

Fatias do Freixo
The first thing fatias do Freixo [Freixo Slices] impress us with is their colour. Their honest, strong yellow reinforces our certainty that, in the history of confectionery, the choice of egg yolks as a main ingredient and eternal companion of sugar was not, in any way, a coincidence. Yellow is striking and hints at the sweetness of what we are about to taste. It is perhaps for this reason that yellow is the main colour in Portuguese confectionery, at least when it comes to making an eye-catching sweet that awakens our appetite. This is exactly the case for fatias do Freixo. The yellow not only catches our eye but makes us anticipate the delicacy we are about to experience. It is a sumptuous yellow, a yellow that xates, a yellow that oozes. Luis I of Portugal was indeed wise to always have these sweets on his table. An orderly and very regimented mixture of eggs, sugar, our and water reminding us that the most beautiful compositions are made from the simplest ingredients, fatias do Freixo pleasantly surprise us with their precise measure of sugar, not so much to be imposing, but providing enough sweetness to satisfy us. Because they are not overly sweet, the perfection of fatias do Freixo depends precisely on the fact that sugar is not the main protagonist, but merely what allows the tempting yellow to come through and convince us of perfect harmony. These fatiasare the legacy of the rich tradition of pão-de-ló [Portuguese sponge cake] in the northern regions of Portugal. While in other places di erent sweets take centre stage on festive tables, in the North, and especially the Minho, pão-de-ló is the most prized o ering in community festivities. For this reason, there are so many variations on the same recipe and so many varieties of this sweet, soft sponge cake. Fatias do Freixo are a classic example of this same tradition that trickled down as far as the Tâmega River and created a flavour that would make the people of Marco de Canavezes proud. While their flavour, texture and aroma can be experienced by all who try these fatias, it is in the Casa dos Lenteirões, in Freixo, that we nd the expertise and knowledge of the correct proportion of ingredients used to make this sweet. Made with a family recipe, the impact they have on us, and the way they stand out from so many others, leads us to believe that the rst hands to make them were inspired by noble sentiments capable of creating perfection through confectionery. This is a perfect sweet, perfection disguised as fatias do Freixo.

Morgados do Algarve
Opulent in flavour and rich in form, the sumptuous morgado do Algarve [Algarve’s rstborn] is exemplary of the convergence of two confectionery traditions. On the one hand, the tradition of sugar and its use in combination with almonds, a practice introduced to the Al-Garb by the Moors, developed and established there during the extended presence of the latter in the southern Iberian Peninsula. On the other, complementing this knowledge and expertise, the lling of the morgado exhibits the noble confectionery tradition developed in the kitchens of Portuguese convents. Morgados therefore take after two distinguished traditions, which together have succeeded in achieving perfection, both in the pastry or alcofa [carrycot or basket], and in the lling. The alcofa illustrates the Moorish tradition of the art of sugar work, in this case combined with almonds, one of the main fruits cultivated in the Algarve region. Thus, the pastry is made with nely ground almonds, sugar and water and moulded into a receptacle for an elegant lling of the best that convent confectionery has to o er, doce de gila [malabar gourd jam], ovos-moles [sweet egg yolk] andos de ovos [angel hair]. It is well known that the art of working with the various stages of sugar, combined with egg yolks, was practised in noble houses, where young girls were initiated into the secret alchemy of good confectionery. The system of primogeniture which drove many young women behind the high walls of convents and monasteries, combined with the availability of sugar in these religious spaces, gave us a rich and opulent confectionery. It is therefore thanks to primogeniture that we have this richness in the art of confectionery that combines sugar with eggs and fruit, considering that a certain amount of expertise is required to make a good doce de gila so that the result does not discredit the intention. The combination, in the tradition of morgados, of doce de gila, ovos-moles, os de ovos and massa de amêndoa [almond paste], the latter so illustrative of the Moorish legacy, can only result in an excess of perfection in every aspect. Finally, morgados are meticulously decorated with owers and fruits made of the alcofa pastry and adorned with strips of coloured tissue paper in the traditional convent style of confectionery presentation. Undeniable proof that every single piece of our confectionery is the result of intersecting traditions, combined histories and reciprocal culinary arts, morgados demonstrate technique, presentation and flavour in abundance.

Portugal 2018 - Traditional Sweets of Portugal (Self Adhesive)

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 31 January 2018
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Printer: Cartor
Process: Offset
Size: 25 x 30mm

About Self Adhesive - Traditional Sweets of Portugal

Bean Tarts 
The tradition of making sweets from legumes combined with the ubiquitous bitterness of almonds was already well established long before the arrival of beans into Portuguese kitchens from the Americas. Appearing in the Tratado de Cozinha e Copa [Treaty on Food and Wine] by Carlos Bento da Maia, rst published in 1904, bean tarts were described in a recipe very similar to that for which Torres Vedras is famous. In his gastronomic tour of Portugal in 1940, Albino Forjaz de Sampaio was very taken by the Torres Vedras bean tarts and marked the town on the map as the birthplace of this pastry that is so fundamental to Portuguese confectionery. In terms of its history, more important than its origin are its protagonists, who through their re ned expertise and great attention to detail, transformed the pastry into a sweet symbol of Torres Vedras. Maria Adelaide Rodrigues da Silva, loyal depositary of this long-standing family secret, invested in their production and with her mastery and penchant for quality turned them into a popular pastry. Later on, members of her family continued the tradition of a secret whose alchemy was characterised by the delicacy and precision in the mixture of ingredients. As always, it is the hands, steady in their movements as if they are performing a ritual, that add a touch of perfection to this pastry, which gets its consistency from beans and has a moist and generous lling of almonds and eggs. Creating a sharp and wonderful contrast between diverse ingredients, bean tarts are a hearty and opulent pastry. It is a pleasure to bite into them and discover their distinct sweet lling.

Sintra Pillows
We owe the excellence of travesseiros de Sintra to Constança Luísa dos Santos Cunha, heiress of the art of confectionary of the prestigious Casa das Queijadas de Sintra. In the 1940s, in spite of the di culties felt in Portugal due to the scarcity of many foods after the Second World War, Constança Luísa found consolation for the ills of the world in confectionery. Inspired by a desire for perfection, she read and reread the old confectionery recipe books where the art of making egg custard was combined with new pastry-making techniques, resulting in the delicious travesseiro de Sintra. The egg custard stands out for its lightness and aroma, deriving from untold ancient wisdom, a family secret forever kept under lock and key. It is fair to say that not just any pu pastry will do when it comes to making an exceptional sweet. The best ingredients must be chosen in order to ensure that the travesseiro is both crisp and melt in the mouth. If you think the pastry is good, o ered up almost indecently to your palate, you’re in for a treat when you get to the delicious lling inside. It’s not di cult to invent a new pastry, as long as you’re willing to read the vast collection of recipes available and experiment with ingredients, techniques and expertise. The di cult part is creating a pastry that makes history, a taste that will be handed down through generations, that makes the moment you rst taste it stick in your memory. This is the magic of cooking; when something you create lives forever in the memories of others. We are indebted to Constança Luísa and are grateful to her heirs for keeping this excellent tradition alive. In each travesseiro de Sintra you can taste something that has been passed down through time, from the very rst one that was ever made, right down to the one which has just been eaten. This longevity can only be achieved when the art of confectionery is much more than a way of life, it is a way of paying respect and honouring those people who came before us and gave us the best they had to o er; the magic of confectionery.

Vila Real Cockerel’s Combs
Known as bacon pasteles (Pastéis de Toucinho) at the time of the Clarissan nuns of the Convent of St. Clare in Vila Real, these pastries were later nicknamed Cockerel’s Combs (Cristas de Galo) due to their similarity in appearance with the eshy comb on the head of cockerels. These pastries were blessed with the expertise that abounded in Portuguese convents, which were like alchemical laboratories where treasures of Portuguese confectionary were born from improbable mixtures of ingredients. Without a doubt, the hands that brought Cristas de Galo into being were blessed. If at rst glance you suspect that the lling is yet another variation of sweet egg custard, you will be pleasantly surprised by the ingenious and unexpected mixture of sugar, eggs, almonds, bacon, cinnamon and apple. Bacon the avour that lingers on your palate, but you only discover the perfection of the mixture in the second bite. The sugar in its lling is what gives it its sweetness, but the pastry is also unique, in this case so much more than a recipient for the lling. The pastry, on its own, is a tribute to the women that made it, doing what they do best. With a lightness that gives it a certain delicacy, the crisp pastry leaves you wanting more, making it hard to decide which part is more delicious, the lling or the pastry. Cristas de Galo are still made today by the mastery of the people of Vila Real, in honour of the history of the defunct Convent of St. Clare in Vila Real, devoted to Nossa Senhora do Amparo (Our Lady of Refuge). They are a gift from a happy time where perfection was not just about the sweetness of sugar, but also the perfect combination of pastry and lling and such varied ingredients as sugar and bacon. It almost seems as though, in the absence of words, due to their vow of perpetual silence, the nuns used these bacon pasteles to describe the moments of happiness that they would have liked to enjoy. It is a comfort to know that the world these nuns did not experience; the lands they abandoned early on, never to return; the lands they never had the chance to know, would come to experience the perfection of a moment of happiness through these pastries. How grateful we are to be able to taste them!

Évora Cheese Tarts
The Alentejo is a kind of sanctuary of traditional confectionary, and it is the home of one of the most famous recipes for Portuguese cheese tarts, the Queijadas de Évora. The distinct taste of cheese, which in the planes of the Alentejo usually comes from sheep’s milk, derives from the (dis)proportionate ratio of cheese to sugar, where the balance tips in favour of the former. It is perhaps for this reason, because they only have a delicate hint of sugar in them, that these cheese tarts make one forget one’s gluttony when eating them. Their subtle sweetness, which results from the small quantity of sugar involved, but more predominantly from the amount of full- fat sheep’s cheese, tricks our palate to think it less of a sin. The sheep’s cheese is well strained to ensure a smooth mixture with the egg yolks, sugar, and a little our, and its strong avour makes the pastry live up to its name. The need to preserve foods in order for them to keep longer, especially in the case of milk with its limited shelf life, led to the discovery of cheese and its transformation into a delicacy. We owe the cheese tarts to this need for preservation and the type and abundance of milk available, ready to be transformed into cheese. It is not surprising that the recipe book that Princess Maria, granddaughter of King Manuel I, had in her trousseau on her marriage to the 3rd Duke of Parma, Alexander Farnese, included a recipe for alvojávenas de Dona Isabel de Vilhena for which the mixture and quantities of ingredients were very similar to the Évora cheese tarts. Furthermore, a recipe book compiled by Friar Manuel de Santa Teresa (from the 18th century) included various recipes for cheese tarts with mouth-watering references to the techniques and expertise used in their confection and the re nement and care taken by those in charge of confectionery. In the midst of the planes of the Alentejo, our eyes are dazzled by the hot sun and we cast them over the open horizon, awakening dreams of far-away places. On this journey, we come across the subtle sweetness of an Évora cheese tart which reminds us that we are at our best and happiest when dreams appear in the form of sweets on our palate.

Portugal 2018 - Traditional Sweets of Portugal

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 06 July 2018
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Printer: INCM
Process: Offset
Size: 30,6 x 27,7 mm

About 2018 Traditional Sweets of Portugal

Bean Tart
The tradition of making sweets from legumes combined with the ubiquitous bitterness of almonds was already well established long before the arrival of beans into Portuguese kitchens from the Americas. Appearing in the Tratado de Cozinha e Copa [Treaty onFood and Wine] by Carlos Bento da Maia, rst published in 1904, bean tarts were described in a recipe very similar to that for which Torres Vedras is famous. In his gastronomic tour of Portugal in 1940, Albino Forjaz de Sampaio was very taken by the Torres Vedras bean tarts and marked the town on the map as the birthplace of this pastry that is so fundamental to Portuguese confectionery. In terms of its history, more important than its origin are its protagonists, who through their re ned expertise and great attention to detail, transformed the pastry into a sweet symbol of Torres Vedras. Maria Adelaide Rodrigues da Silva, loyal depositary of this long-standing family secret, invested in their production and with her mastery and penchant for quality turned them into a popular pastry. Later on, members of her family continued the tradition of a secret whose alchemy was characterised by the delicacy and precision in the mixture of ingredients. As always, it is the hands, steady in their movements as if they are performing a ritual, that add a touch of perfection to this pastry, which gets its consistency from beans and has a moist and generous lling of almonds and eggs. Creatinga sharp and wonderful contrast between diverse ingredients, beantarts are a hearty and opulent pastry. It is a pleasure to bite into them and discover their distinct sweet lling.

Vila Real Cockerel’s Comb
Known as bacon pasteles (Pastéis de Toucinho) at the time of theClarissan nuns of the Convent of St. Clare in Vila Real, these pastrieswere later nicknamed Cockerel’s Combs (Cristas de Galo) due totheir similarity in appearance with the eshy comb on the headof cockerels. These pastries were blessed with the expertise thatabounded in Portuguese convents, which were like alchemical laboratories where treasures of Portuguese confectionary were born from improbable mixtures of ingredients. Without a doubt, thehands that brought Cristas de Galo into being were blessed. If at rst glance you suspect that the lling is yet another variation of sweetegg custard, you will be pleasantly surprised by the ingenious andunexpected mixture of sugar, eggs, almonds, bacon, cinnamon and apple. Bacon the avour that lingers on your palate, but you only discover the perfection of the mixture in the second bite. The sugar in its lling is what gives it its sweetness, but the pastry is also unique, in this case so much more than a recipient for the lling. The pastry, on its own, is a tribute to the women that made it, doing what they dobest. With a lightness that gives it a certain delicacy, the crisp pastryleaves you wanting more, making it hard to decide which part is more delicious, the lling or the pastry. Cristas de Galo are still made today by the mastery of the people of Vila Real, in honour of the historyof the defunct Convent of St. Clare in Vila Real, devoted to NossaSenhora do Amparo (Our Lady of Refuge). They are a gift from a happy time where perfection was not just about the sweetness of sugar, but also the perfect combination of pastry and lling and such varied ingredients as sugar and bacon. It almost seems as though, inthe absence of words, due to their vow of perpetual silence, the nuns used these bacon pasteles to describe the moments of happiness that they would have liked to enjoy. It is a comfort to know that the world these nuns did not experience; the lands they abandoned early on, never to return; the lands they never had the chance to know, would come to experience the perfection of a moment of happiness through these pastries. How grateful w e are to be able to taste them!

Sintra Pillow
We owe the excellence of travesseiros de Sintra to Constança Luísa dos Santos Cunha, heiress of the art of confectionary of the prestigious Casa das Queijadas de Sintra. In the 1940s, in spite ofthe di culties felt in Portugal due to the scarcity of many foods afterthe Second World War, Constança Luísa found consolation for the ills of the world in confectionery. Inspired by a desire for perfection, she read and reread the old confectionery recipe books where theart of making egg custard was combined with new pastry-makingtechniques, resulting in the delicious travesseiro de Sintra. The eggcustard stands out for its lightness and aroma, deriving from untold ancient wisdom, a family secret forever kept under lock and key. It is fair to say that not just any pu pastry will do when it comes to making an exceptional sweet. The best ingredients must be chosenin order to ensure that the travesseiro is both crisp and melt in the mouth. If you think the pastry is good, o ered up almost indecently to your palate, you’re in for a treat when you get to the delicious lling inside. It’s not di cult to invent a new pastry, as long as you’re willing to read the vast collection of recipes available and experiment with ingredients, techniques and expertise. The di cult part is creating a pastry that makes history, a taste that will be handed down through generations, that makes the moment you rst taste it stick in your memory. This is the magic of cooking; when something you create lives forever in the memories of others. We are indebtedto Constança Luísa and are grateful to her heirs for keeping this excellent tradition alive. In each travesseiro de Sintra you can tastesomething that has been passed down through time, from the very rst one that was ever made, right down to the one which has justbeen eaten. This longevity can only be achieved when the art ofconfectionery is much more than a way of life, it is a way of paying respect and honouring those people who came before us and gave us the best they had to o er; the magic of confectionery.

Évora Cheese Tart
The Alentejo is a kind of sanctuary of traditional confectionary, andit is the home of one of the most famous recipes for Portuguesecheese tarts, the Queijadas de Évora. The distinct taste of cheese,which in the planes of the Alentejo usually comes from sheep’s milk, derives from the (dis)proportionate ratio of cheese to sugar, where the balance tips in favour of the former. It is perhaps for this reason, because they only have a delicate hint of sugar in them, that these cheese tarts make one forget one’s gluttony when eating them. Their subtle sweetness, which results from the small quantity of sugar involved, but more predominantly from the amount of full-fat sheep’s cheese, tricks our palate to think it less of a sin. Thesheep’s cheese is well strained to ensure a smooth mixture with the egg yolks, sugar, and a little our, and its strong avour makes the pastry live up to its name. The need to preserve foods in order for them to keep longer, especially in the case of milk with its limited shelf life, led to the discovery of cheese and its transformation intoa delicacy. We owe the cheese tarts to this need for preservation andthe type and abundance of milk available, ready to be transformed into cheese. It is not surprising that the recipe book that PrincessMaria, granddaughter of King Manuel I, had in her trousseau on hermarriage to the 3rd Duke of Parma, Alexander Farnese, includeda recipe for alvojávenas de Dona Isabel de Vilhena for which themixture and quantities of ingredients were very similar to the Évora cheese tarts. Furthermore, a recipe book compiled by Friar Manuel de Santa Teresa (from the 18th century) included various recipes for cheese tarts with mouth-watering references to the techniques and expertise used in their confection and the re nement and care taken by those in charge of confectionery. In the midst of the planes of the Alentejo, our eyes are dazzled by the hot sun and we cast them over the open horizon, awakening dreams of far-away places. On this journey, we come across the subtle sweetness of an Évora cheese tart which reminds us that we are at our best and happiest when dreams appear in the form of sweets on our palate.

Ançã Cake
The tradition of making sweet breads is widespread across the whole of Portugal. First there was bread, staple food of our culture. Then came honey and sugar, and this gave rise to the sweet dough that was baked and used as a popular o ering on saint’s days. It was an inexpensive way for the poor and middle classes to have something sweet on days of respite from the daily grind. The tradition evolvedin all villages and towns, but in Ançã it excelled and proved that theconfectionery of the masses could be extraordinary and deserving of utmost respect. Why this sweet bread, made from simple and common ingredients, tastes so good, one can only wonder. Maybe it is the way the our is mixed with the eggs and the butter, with the patience of someone who knows that it you cannot rush alchemy in the kitchen, or the rhythmic kneading of hands with noble intentions. Perhaps it is the wood oven that gives the bread its depth of avour. Or could it be the vendors, who sing announcements, selling theirAnçã sweet bread wherever they go? Who knows why, but theappeal of its simplicity is irresistible. It is also di cult to explain why the tradition of sweet breads in the village of Ançã grew so much and gained such a following, since the circumstances and availability of our also led to the creation of the bolo de cornos [horned cake] and bolo no [ ne cake] as well as the traditional bolo de Ançã [Ançã cake], whose crown, which opens up well into the baking time, seems to hold all of the splendour of the moist and delicious dough inside of it. Di erent purities of our, some ne, some coarse, produce di erent textures; and all the admirers of this cake have their own personal preference. In 1933, Jaime Cortesão wrote in the Comarca de Cantanhede that “Ançã is the talk of the town in Lisbon (...) thanks to its magni cent sweet breads (...)”. There is nothing like experiencing the purity of avour of an egg cake, a horn or a ne cake, to the sound of the alternating rhythm of the clear andcrystalline water of the Ribeira de Ança, which you can’t help but feel cleansing your soul as it runs through the village.

Odivelas White Quince Jam
In times gone by, when an abundant supply of sugar made miracles of confectionery possible in convents and monasteries, a well known recipe was given a new twist when the Odivelas Monastery o ered the world Marmelada Branca. Presented in small cubes, the Odivelas quince jam stands out from others due to its white colour,which hints at the innocent and delicate secrets of its confection.The Bernardine nuns of the Cistercian Order knew to take great care over the smallest details, so that the fame of this sweet quince jam spread throughout the kingdom, leading greedy palates to ock to the convent’s turn-box to acquire it. This quince jam became famous,above all, for its white colour, however, those who have grown upeating it say that no other jam has such intense taste of quince, whichis regarded as the greatest fruit of a season of plenty. The convent’slast nun left a written record of the recipe: “peel the quinces and put them into cold water. Bring them to simmer on a low heat and when they are well cooked pass them through a sieve. For 1kg of pulp, heat 2kg of sugar until it bubbles up in the pan, so that a drop of it in a glass of water becomes rm: take the pan o the heat and stir in the pulp with a spoon until the mixture is smooth, then put it back on the heat until it bubbles. Remove the pan from the heat and beat the jelly until it cools, then put it on plates to dry.” Told as if telling a storyto a friend, this recipe tells us that the secret was kept by the personwho used it every autumn and had mastered the art of making a white quince jam, so di erent from the others that were commonly made throughout the region. The record in the recipe book wasn’t so much an attempt to ensure the recipe’s survival, but rather a story from the kitchen entrusted to people who knew all the secrets of confectionery, forging a relationship that would last for all time. Asecret whispered between everyday conversations, this recipe leadsus to assume that the secret to a good white quince jam rests, then as it does now, upon the desire to achieve perfection by transforming a fruit with sour skin and esh into small silky cubes that melt in the mouth.

Caniço Doll Biscuits
We must trace our steps back to the 19th century to nd the rst signs of the doll biscuit tradition in Caniço. Oral history identi es António Correia, born in Mãe de Deus, in Caniço, as the rst person to make Bonecas de Massa, as a way of providing extra income for his family. In 1916, one of his sons, Alexandre Correia, known as ‘Old Father’, married Ludvina, in the area of Serralhal, and together the large family adopted the tradition when it became impossible to maintain the couple and their nine children with agriculture alone. They made the dollsat home on their farm, the Sítio dos Barreiros.

The Bonecas de Massa, representations of human gures made outof dough, began to gain popularity at street parties and Alexandre would follow the trails around the island with a basket on his back,laden with Bonecas to sell in the big religious festivals: the Bom Jesus festival in Ponta Delgada; the Sr. Dos Milagres festival in Machico; the Senhora do Monte festival in Monte; the Senhora da Piedade festival in Caniçal; and the Livramento and Santíssimo Sacramento festivitiesin Caniço.

The production of the doll biscuits was an important event for children and when word spread that Ludvina was about to make them, her grandchildren and their friends would come from all around and show up at the house to o er their help. The children were in chargeof putting on the eyes, using the seeds of a herb known as balloonvine or love in a pu (Cardiospermum), that grows on the shore of the island, Indian shot (Canna indica), chive seeds or cloves, thatthey would break in half with a stone and put in place of the eyes. They would also help to put on the red, blue or green tissue paperdecoration (papelinhos). The colours don’t have any special meaning; they were the colours that were available at the time. There isphotographic evidence of the use of green. The children would carrythe raw dolls in their arms up to the oven door, where Ludvina would use an oven peel to put them in the oven. The children would wait eagerly for the 15 or 20 minutes it took to bake them, to receive the broken ones, which could not be sold. They would gather plums and pears with a stick or by climbing trees and would eat them with thepieces of broken doll biscuits. When Alexandre passed away, Ludvinacontinued to make the dolls with the help of her two daughters, Elisa and Glória. Glória followed in the footsteps of her father and would go to the street parties, together with her cousin, Salomé Teixeira, who would later continue with the tradition of making the Bonecas de Massa. Thanks to Salomé Teixeira, the Bonecas de Massa or Bonecasde Maçapão earned a place in Madeiran popular art and variousexhibitions were held to promote the art form.

The gures each had di erent characteristics; they came in di erent shapes and sizes: male and female, holding hoops or nests and cockerels or hens. Each stage of their preparation requires a great amount of skill. The process begins with the preparation of the dough, in which water is mixed with salt and yellow egg colouring before adding the our, which sometimes is mixed with yeast. Once the dough is well kneaded, like bread, it rests. It is then cut into small pieces and moulded into the desired shape. After the moulding comes the decorating stage when the necklaces are added: poor/ traditional girl dolls get 3 necklaces and rich girl dolls get 5 necklaces and a more detailed skirt. Then comes the red or blue paper. Usually red is used on their heads, shoulders and the hem of their skirts, while the blue is used on their arms; crossing from one arm to the other below the neck. The number of necklaces and the amount of tissue paper used makes the distinction between the poor/traditional and the rich dolls. Other shapes like nests/hoops with 3 hens, a cockerel or hen are also made and adorned with tissue paper.

Portugal 2017 - Traditional Desserts of Portugal

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 16 May 2017
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Illustrator: Paulo Bastos (photos)
Printer: LaPoste
Process: Offset
Size: 25 x 30 mm
Values: N20g, A20g, E20g, I20g

About Traditional Desserts of Portugal

The history of Traditional Portuguese Desserts can be likened to a poem composed of words as simple as the ingredients used in the major- ity of recipes included in this rst philatelic issue devoted to this sweet theme. Water, eggs, sugar, milk and wheat our are a starting point for many creations, transforming, in the experienced hands of our pastry chefs, into sumptuous desserts, prodigious in shape, delicate in texture and surprising in avour. Like the best poems of simple words, through the alchemy of cooking, be it a simple chemical interaction or beautiful divine inspiration, the bringing together of these ingredients results in exceptional desserts that do not allow us to forget the places they were created and the people who made them or with whom we savour them. They penetrate our beings and we are never again able to escape from the memory of how they tasted. Just like the most beautiful poems that cause us to over ow with emotion, traditional Portuguese desserts ll our hearts with sweetness transformed into happy feelings.

Pastéis de Tentúgal, Pastéis de Belém, Ovos-Moles de Aveiro, Queijadas de Vila Franca: these are the names of the desserts looked at in this rst adhesive issue from Correios de Portugal, paying tribute to the genius, creativity, expertise and soul of our pastry chefs and the authenticity of our desserts. They celebrate what sets us apart in an area in which Por- tugal has distinguished itself. An authentic journey through the country, these desserts form part of a legacy of recipes that allows us to discover our villages, towns and cities as something more than small black dots on the map of Portugal. A journey into the history of the dessert with humble beginnings, sweetened by honey and by the beauty of wanting to honour break-times in a frugal way of living, happy occasions within the family, within the community, but becoming the protagonist of a rich history of both modest and great circumstances where eggs and sugar are lord and master of many stages.

This is the start of a voyage through desserts that unfold in a thousand textures and avours. More than just ennobling our recipes, giving them breadth, giving them vigour beyond the publicity, this is an opportunity to discover the uniqueness of each of them. As well as the avour, it is important to understand the how, why, where and who. To comprehend how the sweet ballet that the pastry chefs of Tentúgal dance around a simple ball of dough results in a ne, delicate lm with which to make the famed Pastéis de Tentúgal. To discover the ovo-mole in the context of its history, the avour of its wafer-enclosed lling in the shape of conches, shells and sh from the enormous mirror of water that is the Aveiro lagoon. To discover Pastéis de Belém and the stories accompanying them in the legendary bakery where they soar between cinnamon and co ee in the urry of demand from so many fans. To try Queijadas de Vila Franca do Campo and appreciate the delicious taste of a recipe that takes us back to one of the oldest ways to sweeten the end of a meal and thus nd grateful welcome among us.

In this series of adhesive stamps, showing images that whet the appe- tite, we will discover not only the desserts, but also the hands that create such beautiful poetry and sing so serenely, peacefully and with such de- termination, the recipes known by heart, the rhythmic actions, conscious but involuntary, a permanent legacy of the knowledge they possess and the pleasure with which they give it.

As in the most beautiful poems, we discover that beauty starts with sim- plicity. The words are short, the ingredients are simple, the hand is ex- pert, the action is delicate, the poem gleams with emotion, the dessert leaps out with its avour and warms our hearts like a love poem.

Olga Cavaleiro

Pastel de Belém
Legend and history coincide when we speak ofPastéis de Belém. The secret recipe known only by a few master pastry chefs at one time, the lling prepared in the “Secret Workshop,” and the great popularity of this custard tart make the Pastel de Belém an icon of Portuguese desserts, the star of a story that seems somewhat hazy. Perhaps it is best to start with what is known of its origins. In fact, in the cookbook taken by Infanta Dona Maria (1521-1577), daughter of King Manuel I of Portugal, as part of her trousseau on her marriage to the Duke of Parma, we nd a recipe for milk tarts. It is clear from these predecessors that the ingredients and method point to what would laterbecome custard tarts, as recorded by Lucas Rygaud in 1826 in his book Cozinheiro modemo ou nova arte de cozinha [The Modern Cook or the New Art of Cuisine, published in Lisbon, in 1807]. The production of the tarts began in 1837, in facilities annexed to a sugar cane re nery near theJerónimos Monastery, meaning that their reputation would always be associated with the name “Belém.” However, more important than the recipe, which is not public knowledge, is a visit to the Pastéis de Belém bakery. It is a cultural experience because of the unique surroundings where the aroma of the tarts, cinnamon and co ee mingle in a baking idyll that always conjures happy memories.

Ovos-Moles de Aveiro
Ovos-Moles (lit. soft eggs), in all their simplicity, are the result of combining raw egg yolks with a sugar syrup. Once served in wooden or porcelain pots painted with motifs of the Aveiro lagoon, at the mouth of the river Vouga, it is thought that their modern-day wafer covering was devised by a nun from the Mosteiro de Jesus, making this dessert easier to handle. The choice of lagoon-related shapes, such as crabs, mussels, shells and conches, among others, made Ovos-Moles even more appealing. It is a prime example not just of creativity in terms of the variety of shapes, but also of the expertise involved in their preparation. The egg yolks are added to a sugar syrup carefully heated to a point between the soft-ball stage and the thread stage, then cooked at a speci c temperature. The cook’s experience in handling the mixture is fundamental for the avour, aroma and texture of the nal product. After cooling and resting for 24 hours, it is then placed in the pots or enclosed in the wafers that come in such creative shapes. This dessert was devised in the Jesus Monastery, reputedly because of the easy access to sugar that, by royal decree, was delivered to the monastery. The recipe was re ned by the Dominican nuns who lived in the monastery, which will always be associated with the presence of Santa Joana Princesa, Patroness of the city of Aveiro. The recipe was later passed from hand to hand, which led to a great spread in its production, culminating in its recognition as a Protected Geographical Indication, on 3 January 2006.

Rebuçados de ovo de Portalegre
Wrapped in silk paper, in keeping with the noble artistic tradition of paper cutting in Portuguese monasteries and convents, Rebuçados de Portalegre are, in their simplest form, a sublime “orb” in our desserts. What creativity must have been possessed by the baker who, from that eggymixture, was able to create a sweet treat that is impossible to resist? What imagination, to start with eggs, sugar and water and arrive at this sweet “orb”? The monastery kitchens were real laboratories where the availability of sugar allowed for truly prodigious creations. Rebuçados de Portalegre, heirs of the convent tradition of the Santa Clara Convent, are an example of this because of the uniqueness of their presentation and the simplicity of their ingredients. It is the mastery shown by the pastry chef in combining the yolks to the sugar at just the right time that makes all the di erence, as they must not be allowed to curdle. Then it is the way the small, sweet, eggy balls are worked and coated in the syrup that gives them their shiny, glazed appearance. Enriching the tradition of Portuguese desserts, Rebuçados de Portalegre continue to tempt and perhaps the answer to their presentation is discovered each time they are tasted. The beautiful, tiny globe enveloping the sweet egg lling is the perfect size to savour the intense and unique lling and ood your emotions with all the desires, dreams and aspirations of the pastry chef who created it.

Pastéis de Tentúgal
In 1891, the chronicler of the newspaperConinbricense said of pastéis de Tentúgal, “(...) one must eat them at least once in life,” as if it were a sin to die without trying them. Devised in the Carmo Convent, in Tentúgal, by the professedCarmelite nuns, these pastries stand out for the delicacy, transparency and softness of the layers that surround the egg lling and, even today, they are made in what is almost a ritual dance where pastry chefs defy physics as they make the sheets of pastry y across their hands, as the transparent dough of our and water reaches the “veil” stage. But this cherished dessert is also the starting point for discovering the key gures related to the pastry, the whirl of giving and receiving translated into the many turns of the revolving door of the convent, the many stories, the most moving of which are tales of children and the sweetest of which are the gifts of foods, medicines and alms to the poor and needy. Recognised as a Protected Geographical Indication since 4 September 2013, the Pastel de Tentúgal is an important symbol of a land that knows that simplicity brings with it beauty and preserves the memory of the discovery of the best in each of us. That was, after all, the reason the Pastel de Tentúgal was created, making a gift topledge thanks with the very best of what one has.

Queijadas de Vila Franca do Campo
Vila Franca do Campo – S. Miguel, Azores – justi es Portugal’s excellent reputation in the eld of desserts with its sweet cheese tartlets. These desserts are descended from the confections developed by the professed nuns of the First Rule of Saint Clare in the Santo André Convent. Only in the mid-20th century, thanks to those who couldstill recall the tarts’ delicious taste, was it possible to recover this recipe, the intense avour of which lingers as a memory on the palate. We know that a large part of its success depends on the quality of the milk, which, after being curdled, is the main ingredient of the tarts. At a time when sugar was not abundant in the Azores Archipelago, the tarts were sweetened with honey, which along with eggs and wheat our gave the mixture the correct consistency. It is interesting to note that the lling of these tarts is prepared the day before they are baked by mixing the curdled milk with egg yolks, sugar, butter and our, and then placing the mixture over the heat until it comes to the boil. After being cooled, the mixture is then passedthrough a sieve or ne strainer. Tasting these cheesecakes is a discovery of simplicity, but we know that this discovery is only possible through the perfecting of the recipe, the mastery and dedication with which it is repeated and thequality of the ingredients.

Tigeladas de Abrantes
In the cookbook of Infanta D. Maria (1521-1577), daughter of King Manuel I of Portugal, in the ‘Blancmange’ section, we nd both Milk Tigeladas and D. Isabel de Vilhena’s Milk Tigeladas, an indication of the longevity of the traditionassociated with this dessert. There is no argument, however, in respect of the uniqueness of Tigeladas de Abrantes, which show similarity to D. Isabel de Vilhena’s Milk Tigeladas. The recipe is thought to have been developed, re ned and cherished in the Nossa Senhora da Graça Convent by the professed Dominican nuns who lived there until 1891. According to the oral tradition, it is thought that the recipe that has endured until the present day was passed on by a washerwoman who worked at the convent. The name tigelada (lit. bowlful) refers to the red glazed earthenware bowls in which they are cooked.Eggs, sugar, wheat our, lemon and salt are combined into a homogenous paste, then milk is added until all the ingredients are incorporated. Connoisseurs know that a good tigelada depends on the way in which it is cooked, as the red glazed earthenware bowls must be pre-heated before they receive the mixture of ingredients. Because of this, tigeladas reveal an aerated “cell” e ect inside, created by the shock of the change in temperature, with a golden yellow colour on top, toasted in parts. The richness of the texture, enhanced by this aeration, allows us to savour in tigeladas de Abrantes the simplicity of a dessert that has for a long time been a point of reference in traditional Portuguese desserts.

Portugal 2017 - About Traditional Desserts of Portugal (Self-Adhesive)

Technical Details:
Issue Date:16 May 2017
Designer: Atelier Design & etc
Illustrator: Paulo Bastos (photos)
Printer: La Poste
Process: Offset
Size: 25 x 30 mm
Values: N20g, A20g, E20g, I20g

About Traditional Desserts of Portugal - Self-Adhesive

The history of Traditional Portuguese Desserts can be likened to a poem composed of words as simple as the ingredients used in the majority of recipes included in this first philatelic issue devoted to this sweet theme. Water, eggs, sugar, milk and wheat our are a starting point for many creations, transforming, in the experienced hands of our pastry chefs, into sumptuous desserts, prodigious in shape, delicate in texture and surprising in flavour. Like the best poems of simple words, through the alchemy of cooking, be it a simple chemical interaction or beautiful divine inspiration, the bringing together of these ingredients results in exceptional desserts that do not allow us to forget the places they were created and the people who made them or with whom we savour them. They penetrate our beings and we are never again able to escape from the memory of how they tasted. Just like the most beautiful poems that cause us to over ow with emotion, traditional Portuguese desserts ll our hearts with sweetness transformed into happy feelings.

Pastéis de Tentúgal, Pastéis de Belém, Ovos-Moles de Aveiro, Queijadas de Vila Franca: these are the names of the desserts looked at in this rst adhesive issue from Correios de Portugal, paying tribute to the genius, creativity, expertise and soul of our pastry chefs and the authenticity of our desserts. They celebrate what sets us apart in an area in which Portugal has distinguished itself. An authentic journey through the country, these desserts form part of a legacy of recipes that allows us to discover our villages, towns and cities as something more than small black dots on the map of Portugal. A journey into the history of the dessert with humble beginnings, sweetened by honey and by the beauty of wanting to honour break-times in a frugal way of living, happy occasions within the family, within the community, but becoming the protagonist of a rich history of both modest and great circumstances where eggs and sugar are lord and master of many stages.

This is the start of a voyage through desserts that unfold in a thousand textures and flavours. More than just ennobling our recipes, giving them breadth, giving them vigour beyond the publicity, this is an opportunity to discover the uniqueness of each of them. As well as the avour, it is important to understand the how, why, where and who. To comprehend how the sweet ballet that the pastry chefs of Tentúgal dance around a simple ball of dough results in a ne, delicate lm with which to make the famed Pastéis de Tentúgal. To discover the ovomole in the context of its history, the flavour of its wafer enclosed lling in the shape of conches, shells and sh from the enormous mirror of water that is the Aveiro lagoon. To discover Pastéis de Belém and the stories accompanying them in the legendary bakery where they soar between cinnamon and co ee in the urry of demand from so many fans. To try Queijadas de Vila Franca do Campo and appreciate the delicious taste of a recipe that takes us back to one of the oldest ways to sweeten the end of a meal and thus nd grateful welcome among us.

In this series of adhesive stamps, showing images that whet the appetite, we will discover not only the desserts, but also the hands that create such beautiful poetry and sing so serenely, peacefully and with such de- termination, the recipes known by heart, the rhythmic actions, conscious but involuntary, a permanent legacy of the knowledge they possess and the pleasure with which they give it.

As in the most beautiful poems, we discover that beauty starts with simplicity. The words are short, the ingredients are simple, the hand is ex- pert, the action is delicate, the poem gleams with emotion, the dessert leaps out with its flavour and warms our hearts like a love poem.

Olga Cavaleiro

Portugal 2015 - Mediterranean Diet

Technical Details:
Issue Date: 20 July 2015
Designer: Folk Design
Printer: INCM
Process: Offset
Colours: 4 Colours
Size: Stamps 40x30,6 mm, Souvenir Sheet 125 x 95 mm
Values: €0.45, 0.45, 0.72, 0.80

About Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet is a food concept that, within the history chronology, is as much timeless as it is accurate. Its classification as “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO confirms not only the existence of a specific food regime, but also a historic trace born within the Mediterranean. This is the legacy that the current issue of stamps intends to celebrate.

A study launched in the late 1950s, under the coordination of the North American physiologist Ancel Keys has, in 1970, come to some conclusions, which still serve today as a paradigm to justify the so-called Mediterranean Diet. According to the research group led by the professor Keys, the peoples, among the seven countries studied, whose food diet was based on vegetable fats, instead of animal fats, lived longer and had a lower tendency to suffer from cardiovascular diseases. The diet of Crete represented one of the emblematic cases reported. In this Greek island, the researchers found that locals daily consumed an average of 80 to 100 grams of olive oil as food seasoning or they ate olives in generous doses as accompaniment to bread. According to experts, these established habits revealed that the high consumption of monounsaturated vegetable fats such as olive oil (rich in oleic acid) rather than animal fats provided Cretans with a greater longevity and improved health status ― these results were not evident when compared to the inhabitants from other regions and countries under study, whose food modus vivendi differed form others found in Mediterranean.

Although the Mediterranean diet has been born in association with a particular food style, its concept has proved to be quite evolutionary and comprehensive. The UNESCO has initially classified the joint proposal from Spain, Greece, Italy and Morocco in 2010. Three years later, the international peer-review committee met in the city of Baku, in Azerbaijan, to favorably resolve upon the ratification of the original proposal, thus allowing the inclusion of Cyprus, Croatia and Portugal.

In December 2013, Portugal was then registered as a country where the Mediterranean Diet goes beyond the nutritional aspect, persisting as anthropological, sociological and gastronomic heritage. This issue of stamps reveals the Southern gastronomy as a symbol of that heritage. The Algarve region is the natural heir of what the Mediterranean has left us, but the historical background extends also to Alentejo. On the one hand, regional specialties from Alentejo, such as the purslane broth or the sweet potato Portuguese scones, are illustrated in two of the stamps. On the other hand, the dishes particular to the Algarve region, such as the pickled horse mackerels and the chick-peas with pears stew, appear in the other two. The souvenir sheet highlights the Algarve region as the “cradle” of our Mediterranean Diet, with emphasis given to an octopus stew recipe. It is about a philatelic tour through these two regional cuisines seasoned by the Mediterranean which, in spite of being ancestral cuisines, are still part of pleasure of living in the contemporary Portugal.