Ovos Moles de Aveiro

Appearance & taste

The filling is evenly coloured, in shades from yellow to orange, with an even, not very intense sheen. It is creamy but firm, without lumps of egg yolk or sugar; only a few days after production may small lumps appear through crystallisation. It has a complex smell of egg yolk, with notes of caramel, cinnamon and dried fruit that develop from the sugar and egg yolk during cooking, and tastes sweetish of egg yolk and sugar.

The wafers are white to cream-coloured, matt, dry and brittle, neutral in taste or with a light smell of flour. Their shapes mostly show sea motifs such as fish, shells, crabs, barrels, fishing buoys and moliceiro boats, as well as nuts, acorns, chestnuts and baskets. The barrels of poplar veneer or porcelain are painted with motifs of the Ria, such as its lighthouse and the moliceiro boats.

Production

Only the yolk of very fresh class A eggs, size L or XL, with a colour of 12 to 13 on the Roche scale is used. The eggs come from 14 municipalities in the region, including Aveiro, Águeda, Ovar and Vouzela. Starch, colourings and preservatives are prohibited.

The confectioners separate the yolk by hand, using their fingers as a sieve, or by machine. The sugar syrup is heated to about 110 °C, the egg yolk is folded in and the mixture is cooked until the bottom of the pan can be seen. It then rests for 24 hours in a suitable place, because it is sensitive to temperature changes and easily picks up foreign smells; if it is cooled to 15 to 18 °C in a blast chiller, the resting time is not needed. The filling is then put into barrels or shaped in wafers, which are sealed in a hand press, cut out with scissors, dried if necessary and, if desired, glazed with sugar syrup or chocolate.

Without a wafer, Ovos Moles may only be sold loose in the producers’ own pastry shops. At room temperature they keep for 15 days, in a protective atmosphere or cling film for 21 days, with chocolate glaze for 60 days and frozen for six months. Every pack bears a certification mark with a serial number.

Origin & history

Production and packing take place in the municipalities bordering the Ria de Aveiro: Águeda, Albergaria-a-Velha, Aveiro, Estarreja, Ílhavo, Mira, Murtosa, Ovar, Sever do Vouga and Vagos. The area is shaped by the catchment of the river Vouga; maize growing and poultry farming developed on its fertile alluvial land, and according to the specification the maize traditionally fed to the hens contributes to the quality of the eggs.

According to the specification, Ovos Moles have been made in Aveiro for centuries. The tradition began in convents and was passed on over generations by women educated there. In 1502 King Manuel I granted the Convent of Jesus in Aveiro 10 arrobas of sugar from Madeira a year for convent sweets. Eça de Queiroz mentions Ovos Moles in his novels “The Maias” and “The Capital”. Registered producers already existed in 1856; the variant with chocolate glaze is documented in 1928 and, according to an older confectioner, used to be made only for feast days because it took a lot of work.