Bolo de Mel

Bolo de mel da Madeira, from the Portuguese island of Madeira, is a celebratory cake baked with a rich sugarcane syrup. Walnuts and almonds line the top of the low, dark-brown disc, and when it is broken open, pieces of citron and nuts appear in the cross-section. To eat it, you break off as much as you want by hand and enjoy the dense cake in small pieces.

A Syrup Made by Boiling Down Sugarcane Juice

Mel de cana, the source of the cake’s sweetness and color, is a syrup made by boiling down sugarcane juice. Although it contains the word mel, meaning honey, here it refers to a product derived from sugarcane. Its production method also differs from that of molasses, the residue left after sugar is extracted as crystals. The syrup itself sweetens the dough and gives it its brown color and deep aroma.

The syrup is combined with flour, sugar, and fat, and candied citron, walnuts, and almonds are kneaded in. Besides cloves, cinnamon, and nutmeg, some recipes (ingredient proportions and methods) also combine anise, ginger, and other spices, and the spice blend varies from household to household. In versions that add Madeira wine or citrus peel, the aromas of fruit and wine overlay that of the syrup.

Some of the nuts are chopped and mixed into the dough, while others are placed on top. The pieces inside give texture to each bite, and the walnut and almond halves form a pattern on the low disc. In the dark-brown cross-section, the bright-colored peel of the citron can also be seen.

A low, disc-shaped bolo de mel. Nuts line its brown top. Photo: TeWeBs, 2019-03-02, location unknown. Original image / CC BY-SA 4.0. Scaled-down version from the source, no additional processing.

Kneading and Resting the Dough, Then Baking It in a Low Round Pan

In the leavened-dough tradition, butter or lard is used, and the dough is kneaded and then left to rest for a long time. Some recipes allow about 3 days for fermentation. On the other hand, there are also recipes that include baking soda among the ingredients, so the way the dough is leavened varies as well. The work of kneading by hand to blend the syrup, fat, and fruit has also been passed down among the island’s producers.

In a household method recorded by the Madeira Ethnographic Museum, the dough is lifted and slapped back down into a large bowl, and kneaded until it no longer sticks to the hands. The bowl is then covered with paper and a blanket, and the dough is left to ferment in a dark place for about 38 hours. It is also work for which the family gathers to prepare the cake together.

Rather than rising tall, this cake packs its ingredients densely into a low round pan. It is cooled thoroughly, wrapped in paper, and stored in a dry place, for example in an airtight container. It is a cake enjoyed in small pieces for its fine-textured crumb studded with fruit and nuts and the deep flavor of the syrup.

A Cake Raised on an Island of Sugar Production and Trade

Sugarcane cultivation began on Madeira in the 15th century, and in the latter half of that century the island exported sugar to various parts of Europe. The bolo de mel is also said to be linked to this era of sugar production, and it is described as having developed from simple 15th–16th-century methods through the addition of more spices and decorations. However, whether the same formula as today has continued since medieval times is not known.

The name bolo de mel de cana appears in a menu for a religious celebration from the early 19th century. Later, the custom of giving the cake at Christmas spread, and household recipes combining the syrup, imported spices, and fruits and nuts that keep well were handed down.

Besides the well-known version made with sugarcane syrup, Madeira also has the “bolo mascavado,” sweetened with dark brown sugar. A 1989 folklore book calls it “the poor person’s cake.” When the nuts and fruit are increased or reduced and the syrup is replaced with dark brown sugar, the aroma and the number of pieces change, even in the same low disc. Among the island’s year-end cakes, not only versions made with generous amounts of syrup and fillings but also methods that substitute or reduce ingredients have been handed down.

Certification Protecting Madeira’s Syrup and Traditional Methods

Through a 2006 regional legislative decree, the Autonomous Region of Madeira established a collective certification mark and a seal of authenticity for “Bolo de Mel de Cana da Madeira.” Eligible are cakes whose main ingredient is the island’s sugarcane syrup and that are made in keeping with traditional recipes. The system allows for differences in formulas between households while upholding the basic requirement of using the island’s syrup.

Made on December 8 and Shared by Hand

The traditional day for making it is December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is baked ahead for Christmas, cooled, and wrapped to be ready for the holiday table. Because it keeps well, it is eaten not only at the end of the year but throughout the year.

Traditionally, rather than being cut into even wedges with a knife, it is eaten by breaking off as much as one wants by hand. It is sometimes served with Madeira wine or liqueur. The closely related broas de mel are small baked goods that use the same sugarcane syrup and spices; they differ in size and shape from the bolo de mel, which is baked as a low disc and divided.

Glossary