Mantecados!!

I don’t know about you, but for me Christmas smells like shortbread. This year, as always, I’m rocking my favorites, but there are two types that have a special meaning in my life.

On the one hand, the Double Cinnamon Mantecados from La Perla de Antequera. These are my favorites, without a doubt, and not only because of how good they are, but because they remind me of my grandmother from Antequera, who is now 95 years old. When I was little, I always had a box ready for when we went to visit her for Christmas. That cinnamon flavor, the texture that melts in your mouth… Every time I eat them I am transported to those afternoons at home, surrounded by family, with the brazier lit and the TV playing in the background. There is nothing that surpasses them.

And then there are the mantecados from the Monastery of Santa María de la Asunción in Morón, which are another marvel. These were given to me by my other grandmother, who is 89 years old, but with her personal touch: she crushed them with her hands and shaped them into sausages. I never really understood why she did it, but now I can’t eat them any other way without thinking about her. It’s funny how something so simple can stay so engraved.

In the end, mantecados are much more than a sweet to me: they are memories, family and traditions. Although I say it clearly: the cinnamon ones from La Perla de Antequera are the ones that will always have my heart.

And you? Any sweets or Christmas traditions that make you travel back in time? Are you more of a Polvorones, Nougat or Mantecados? Tell me, I like to read these things while I continue enjoying mine with a glass of fresh whole milk.

Happy holidays, r/spain!