In Venezuela there are bakeries on every corner, and it is very common for people to have breakfast or a snack there, people gather in those spaces and share a coffee or some sweet cookies. The smell that the bakeries give off is delicious and immediately awakens the appetite.
This smell is a combination of coffee, coffee with milk and freshly baked bread. It is impossible to pass by a bakery and not stop for a few minutes to have a snack along with a Café Negro, Chicha, Malta or a juice, all typical drinks in Venezuela. It is one of the most economical ways to snack, it is delicious and works perfectly well as a snack before the next big meal.
In the bakeries you can buy pan campesino, pan canilla, pan andino and other delicious bread-based preparations that are chosen by Venezuelans for breakfast before starting their workday, or in the afternoon at break time as a snack. Do you want to know more about these typical breads of Venezuelan gastronomy? Keep on reading!
3 delicious recipes from Venezuelan bakeries
Pan de Queso
It is a bread filled with crunchy or melted cheese that is prepared at home or can be bought in bakeries. It is widely consumed for its exquisite flavor that combines the softness of the bread with the crunchy sensation of the cheese. It is ideal for breakfast with a natural juice, with coffee or hot chocolate, for lunch as a side dish, for dinner or for snacks and nibbles with friends.
How to prepare Pan de Queso at home?
The ingredients needed for this recipe are 1 kg of sifted flour, ½ kg of yellow cheese cut into slices, 6 eggs + 1 beaten egg yolk, 1 package of baconettes, 2 tablespoons of yeast, 7 tablespoons of melted butter, 7 tablespoons of powdered milk 1 tablespoon of sugar,1 teaspoon of sugar, 1 tablespoon of salt and oil.
For the preparation, mix the yeast with the warm water (2 or 3 cups of water) and the teaspoon of sugar and let stand 10 minutes. Add the remaining sugar, salt and eggs, one by one. Add the butter, milk and finally the sifted flour, stirring constantly. Let stand for 5 minutes and then knead on a smooth surface sprinkled with flour.
Cover with a cloth and let stand again for 45 minutes. Divide the dough into two parts and roll them out with a rolling pin until each part is about 1 centimeter thick. Preheat the oven to 220°C (440°F).
Brush the dough surface with oil, then distribute half of the cheese, bacon and raisins and repeat with the remaining dough. Roll the dough, close the bread, brush with the beaten egg yolk and let it rest for 30 minutes. Prick the surface of the bread and bake for 30 minutes.
This bread can be prepared with the cheese of preference and some recipes include hard white cheese. You can also add any ingredients you wish, from a variety of cheeses or stews.
Cachito de Jamón
The Venezuelan Cachito de Jamón is a roll of wheat dough with a sweet touch, filled with cooked ham and bacon. The most delicious thing about this preparation is the combination of sweet and salty flavor, and the softness of the bread. Some variations can include cheese (it can be mozzarella, cream cheese or gouda cheese), which is why they are known as cachitos de jamón y queso.
The Cachito is a transformation of the croissant recipe, which was very difficult to make in hot areas such as Venezuela and there are several theories about its origin. Some say that it was a creation of Portuguese migrants, when they arrived in the country and opened their bakeries during the 50s and 60s.
It is also said that they were created to use the leftover ingredients in the elaboration of Christmas ham bread. Another theory states that the origin of the Cachito is located in the town of Petare in Miranda and its creation is attributed to a baker nicknamed “Cachito“. Finally, another theory assures that it was given that name because of the way the final result looks like a kind of crescent.
How to prepare Cachito de Jamón at home?
Cachitos de Jamón are easy to make but the preparation takes a little time. The ingredients to prepare the bread are: 500 grams of wheat flour, 250 ml of water, ½ tablespoon of salt, 50 grams of sugar, 25 grams of fresh yeast, 50 grams of butter and 1 egg. For the filling you need: 250 grams of thinly sliced ham, 150 grams of thinly sliced bacon, butter and 2 beaten eggs.
To prepare them, on a work surface, place the flour in the form of a crown, in the center add the salt, sugar, yeast, butter and the egg, mix and add the warm water little by little. Continue kneading for about 10 minutes or until a smooth and elastic dough is obtained. Let it rest covered with a clean cloth. Separately, in a bowl mix the ham, bacon and butter and refrigerate.
After 30 minutes, take the dough, knead again and cut pieces of about 50 grams each, stretch with the help of a rolling pin in a triangular shape, placing the triangles on a greased surface.
The triangles are made by stretching the dough in the shape of a circumference, which will be cut as if it were a pizza to form 8 triangles. When all the triangles are stretched, begin to assemble the small pieces.
Start by placing a little filling in the wide part of the triangle, close the filling well and tuck the ends inwards, roll up with the remaining end of the triangle and give it a crescent shape and place on a greased tray.
Once the pieces are all assembled, take them to the oven without turning them on so that they grow, once they have doubled their original size, paint them with beaten egg and bake them in the oven at 350 degrees until they are golden brown.
Pan de Guayaba
This is another specialty of Venezuelan bakeries, and more than breakfast it is consumed as a sweet, a snack or a dessert. Pan de Guayaba has its origins in Los Andes de Venezuela.
The guava is a fruit of the tropics, it is used to make a jam or a puree that is used to spread on bread or fill it. Pan de Guayaba are made in various presentations such as individual or large pies or as rolled bread.
How to prepare Pan de Guayaba at home?
To prepare Pan de Guayaba recipe you need 5 cups of all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of sugar, 7 grams of dry yeast, 1 cup of fresh milk, 1/2 cup of water, pinch of salt, 1 beaten egg and 400 grams of guava jam.
In a bowl place the milk (slightly warm), the yeast and the sugar. Let stand for 10 minutes. In another bowl place the wheat flour and salt, make a kind of hole in the flour and add the butter and the mixture of milk, yeast and sugar. Knead with your hands or with a mixer.
Add little by little the water, continue kneading until you feel the dough soft and it comes off your hands. Form a ball with the dough and let it rest for two hours, covered with a cloth so that the dough doubles in size. Sprinkle a little wheat flour on the table and stretch the dough with the help of a rolling pin into a rectangular shape.
Spread the guava jam over the dough, taking care not to cover the edges of the dough. Roll the dough into a spiral and close the ends. Let it rest for approximately 40 minutes, brush the bread with the beaten egg and put it in the oven, previously heated at 180 degrees for 30 minutes.
With these recipes you can now prepare the most delicious bread rolls from Venezuelan bakeries, for a different breakfast that perfectly combines sweet and savory flavor, along with a coffee or a juice.