Florones or flores fritas, an eye-catching sweet for Easter

Flores manchegas, flores fritas, florones, floretas, hojuelas, flores de carnavales… There are many names for this sweet, which is a classic in Castile-La Mancha and Castile and León during the Holy Week. Its shape resembles that of the Calatrava cross; which is why its origin is associated with the region of Campo de Calatrava. This is a traditional recipe in which the key component is the mould; which is why it is essential when preparing it.

The preparation is very simple, as the ingredients are basic and the most important thing is to be careful when frying the florones. As a curiosity, in the past, housewives used to compete with each other to see who could make the most original fried flowers, passing the moulds from generation to generation as if they were a treasure. This is how this typical sweet, so eye-catching and with such a delicious and crunchy result, has come down to us today.

Florones. | Shutterstock

Ingredients for the florones:

• 3 large eggs
• 250 g of flour
• 300 ml of milk
• 2 tablespoons of sugar
• A pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon of ground aniseed
• Sunflower oil
• Sugar and ground cinnamon for decoration
• Metal mould for flowers, rosettes or florones

How to make the florones:

1. In a bowl, beat the eggs and the two teaspoons of sugar. Then add the milk, the pinch of salt and the ground aniseed and mix again.
2. When all the ingredients are well blended, add the flour little by little while mixing. The dough should be almost liquid. Leave to rest for half an hour.
3. When the batter is ready, pour plenty of oil into a pan and place the florones mould in the oil until it is very hot (180-200ºC).
4. Then dip the mould into the batter without covering it all the way to the top, put it back into the oil and move it up and down so that it releases little by little.
5. Allow the resulting flower to brown and turn it over so that it is done on both sides. Place the florones on a plate with kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil.
6. When you have finished making all the florones and while they are still hot, place them on a plate with sugar and cinnamon and you have this traditional dessert ready to enjoy.