Bolo podre
Honey and Olive Oil Easter Cake- Yield
- One Bundt or tube cake (10- to 12-cup pan), 12 to 14 slices
- Active
- 25 minutes
- Total
- 2 hours 30 minutes, including cooling
- Difficulty
- Easy
The story
Bolo podre translates as rotten cake, an odd name for a dark Easter cake of honey, olive oil and cinnamon. Idealista's guide to Portuguese Easter food lists bolos de azeite, olive oil cakes also known as bolos podres, as a specialty of the Beira Baixa, made from flour, eggs, sugar and olive oil. The Michelin Guide's survey of Portuguese Easter customs places bolos de azeite among the Easter sweets of Covilhã and the Serra da Estrela, together with broinhas and empanadilhas. In the Beira Baixa, Idealista adds, the folar is an obligatory presence on the Easter table and is made with fennel and cinnamon.
The cake uses olive oil where many cakes use butter. Recipes published by Teleculinária warm or beat the honey with olive oil, eggs and usually sugar, season the batter with cinnamon and sometimes lemon zest, and bake it at 350°F (180°C) for 40 to 45 minutes. A Thermomix collection of Portuguese regional recipes adds a splash of aguardente and a pinch of clove. The amount of honey varies widely, from about a third of the weight of the flour to twice as much.
Easter Sunday falls on March 28, 2027. Bake the cake on Good Friday or Holy Saturday and serve it with coffee after a lamb or ham dinner.
Ingredients and method
The full recipe, with US and metric measures and stand-ins for hard-to-find ingredients, is part of the Easter edition. Buy it once and keep the PDF.
Want to try first? Frankfurter Grüne Soße is free to cook.