Portuguese Butterfly Palmier

Also known as: Portuguese butterfly palmier · Egg-cream butterfly pastry

Four flaky wings hold egg-yolk cream beneath icing sugar.

Origin: Portuguese pastry-counter tradition · rare Filled Palmier variant
Region: Portugal
Season: Year-round, very rare

Sweetness

Richness

Difficulty

Borboleta starts from the logic of a Filled Palmier, but its dough is cut and shaped into two large upper wings and two smaller lower wings. Mirrored halves enclose egg-yolk cream and receive either icing sugar or a jelly glaze.

Silhouette is decisive: an ordinary heart palmier or bow is not enough. Four puff-pastry expansions and a narrow centre should suggest an open butterfly, with orange filling visible between the layers.

Ingredients

Puff pastry
Egg-yolk cream
Icing sugar or jelly glaze

Taste & texture

Very crisp and caramelised through the wings, moist and yolk-rich in the filling, with either a dry sugar or glossy jelly finish.

Variations

It may be dusted with icing sugar or brushed with jelly. Wing size varies, but four lobes and egg filling define it.

Where to try it

No regular public listing was confirmed. Ask older bakeries for “Borboleta de ovo” and show the shape because the name is little known.

Pairs well with

Espresso.

History

Fabrico Próprio documents it as a little-known direct variant of the Filled Palmier. No inventor, first shop, date or regional explanation was found.

Its present rarity prevents a reliable address recommendation. Even so, its deliberate manipulation and distinct name justify preserving it as an archetype, provided the page does not imply broad availability.

Sources: fabricoproprio.net

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