Torrijas

Torrijas are slices of stale bread soaked in a sweetened milk or wine mixture, dipped in egg, fried and finished with sugar and cinnamon. They are a traditional Spanish sweet, most closely associated with Holy Week (Semana Santa).

What it really is

Torrijas are made from day-old bread, usually a thick-cut white loaf or a brioche-style bread, cut into slices about two centimetres thick. The slices are soaked in milk flavoured with cinnamon, lemon peel and sugar, or in red wine or white wine with sugar and cinnamon, then dipped in beaten egg and fried in olive oil or sunflower oil until golden. The hot torrijas are rolled or sprinkled in sugar and cinnamon, and sometimes finished with honey or syrup.

Torrijas are close to French toast and to the English eggy bread, but the Spanish version is usually fried in a larger amount of oil and is often made with wine. The wine version is typically darker and more soaked. Torrijas are also distinct from the Spanish sweet bread called pan perdido in some regions, although the two names are sometimes used for the same thing.

How it's served

• Served warm or at room temperature as a dessert or a sweet snack.
• Usually dusted with sugar and cinnamon, sometimes with honey or syrup poured over.
• Traditionally eaten during Lent and Holy Week, and sold in bakeries and pastry shops in spring.
• Often eaten with coffee or a glass of sweet wine in the afternoon.

How to write it on the menu

• Name the bread (stale white bread or brioche), the soaking liquid (milk or red wine) and the coating (sugar and cinnamon).
• Allergens: list WHEAT, EGGS and MILK; state if the dish is made with wine, since wine carries SULPHITES.
• Common variants: wine torrijas (torrijas al vino), milk torrijas (torrijas de leche), honey-glazed torrijas.