Portuguese Easter Regueifa
The braided, coiled Easter sweet bread traditionally given by godparents to godchildren.
- Origin
- Santa Maria da Feira · Northern Portugal
- Region
- Santa Maria da Feira
- Season
- Easter
Regueifa da Páscoa is a glossy brown Easter bread with a soft interior, shaped from two braided strands coiled into a crown. Its dough contains eggs, sugar, butter, milk, cinnamon and Port and undergoes two long rises before being egg-washed.
It is made in several sizes. The braid opens into high lobes in the oven, exposing a yellow, fibrous crumb beneath its lacquered crust.
- wheat flour
- eggs
- sugar
- butter
- milk
- yeast
- cinnamon
- Port
- salt
Light, buttery and gently sweet crumb scented with cinnamon and Port, under a thin egg-washed crust.
Its size varies with the occasion; the traditional shape combines a braid and a crown.
At bakeries around Santa Maria da Feira, especially in the weeks before Easter.
Butter, mild cheese, tea or a small glass of Port.
A centuries-old tradition in Santa Maria da Feira, it is central to the Easter table. Godparents give a regueifa as the customary folar to their godchildren; in northern parishes it was also wood-fired for baptisms and served with wine.
Sources: tradicional.dgadr.gov.pt
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