The cakes are believed to have originated in
Fronteira,
Alentejo in the late 1800s.[1] The recipe was purchased by Manuel Rodrigues from the pastelaria "O Cego" (
lit.'The Blind') which was established in 1901 in
Azeitão.[2] Rodrigues, the namesake of the pastry shop as he was blind, gave the recipe to his wife Maria Albina who was an accomplished confectioner.[3] The cakes were originally made as a large cake that was sliced into individual servings.[4] But eventually, the cakes were made into smaller individual cakes seen today.[5]
José Augusto Pinto is the current owner of the O Cego, who started baking at the age of fifteen. The pastelaria was purchased by his father Augusto Pinto from Rodrigues in 1975.[6] Pinto continues to recreate the original Torta de Azeitão
recipe and other recipes created by Maria Albina.[7] While O Cego remains the origin of the Tortas de Azeitão, other pastelaria in
Azeitão offer the pastry as well.[8] Another shop offers the pastry in other filling flavors, such as gianduia.[9]
Although not considered a
conventual sweet, it shares many of its egg-rich characteristics.[10] Notably, the sponge cake is made with
maize flour instead of
wheat flour.[1] A similar roll cake made of
wheat flour and filled with doces de ovos is found in
Viana do Castelo known as torta de Viana is classified as a conventual sweet.[11]
^
abFernandes, Daniel.
"Torta de Azeitão". Produtos Tradicionais Portugueses (in Portuguese). Direção-Geral de Agricultura e Desenvolvimento Rural. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
^Castro, Cristina (10 November 2017).
"TORTAS DE AZEITÃO". No Ponto (in European Portuguese). Páginas Apetecíveis Unipessoal, Lda. Retrieved 1 November 2023.