The Historical Significance of Ensaimada

In the late 1300s and early 1400s, the Spanish Inquisition forced Jews to either leave Spain or convert to Christianity (Conversos) if they wanted to stay. In order to ferret out baptized Jews and their descendants who were suspected of secretly practicing their Jewish rituals and religiously prescribed diets (Marranos), the Catholic Church mandated the use of pork and pork products. This explains the predominance of pork lard in breads and dishes of Spain following this period. To this day, the official recipe of Mallorca ensaimada requires the use of pork lard as its main ingredient. Families in the Philippines who take pride in their ensaimada recipes now use butter instead of lard, unaware of this bit of historical significance to their beloved sweet roll.