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Haitzalde

Haitzalde

Where the sea and mountains come together in a truly unique way. All the rooms in our house feature large windows overlooking the coast, allowing you to experience the sea like never before.

Our accommodation is set amidst natural coves that define our coastline, located in the heart of the Basque Coastal Geopark.

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San Blas

Christmas is over, but in Debabarrena we continue to make winter as sweet as possible. On 3 February, we make the most popular treat in our traditional repertoire of cakes and biscuits: Tortas de San Blas (Saint Blaise biscuits). Come and try them!

The tradition of making biscuits to celebrate the Feast of Saint Blaise is not exclusive to Debabarrena, and is typical also in other parts of the Basque Country, such as Abadiño and Llodio.

In our region, however, many people still make these biscuits at home and then take them to church to be blessed. Saint Blaise is the patron saint of throat-related problems, which is why, according to popular belief, in addition to eating the biscuits, you should also take a piece of string to church to be blessed, and then wear it tied around your neck for nine days before burning it. This will provide protection against colds and other illnesses for an entire year.

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 1 kg wheat flour
  • 6 eggs
  • 125 g pork lard (or butter or margarine)
  • ½ kg granulated sugar
  • 1 sachet of baking powder
  • 15 drops of aniseed essence

For the glaze:

  • 2 egg whites
  • 250 g icing sugar
  • 10 drops of lemon juice
  • 3 drops of aniseed essence

Preparation

  • Preheat the oven to 180º C.
  • Place the flour on a clean worktop and push into a volcano shape.
  • Break the eggs into the dip in the centre and mix with your hands.
  • Add the lard (or butter or margarine) and knead.
  • Gradually add the sugar and aniseed essence.
  • Knead until the dough is no longer sticky.
  • Shape into a ball and leave to stand for at least half an hour at room temperature.
  • Sprinkle the worktop and a rolling pin with flour.
  • Divide the dough into small balls and squash them down to around half a centimetre in thickness.
  • Adjust the shape using a plate or tray.
  • For a fluted border, pinch round the edge.
  • Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for around 15-20 minutes, until the biscuits are golden brown but not toasted.
  • Meanwhile, for the glaze, beat the egg whites until stiff.
  • Still beating, add the icing sugar, lemon juice and aniseed essence until you have a dense white paste.
  • Spread the glaze over the still-warm biscuits using a spoon.