Douro Bolo Borrachão — the formula published by RTP
This recipe preserves the household measures and sequence published by RTP's Praça da Alegria: an egg, yolk, butter, walnut and Port cake soaked after baking with a second Port-flavoured syrup. The municipalities of Alijó and Sabrosa document Bolo Borrachão in their respective Douro food traditions. The culinary source gives no mould size, cup or goblet volume, serving count, or instruction for the coconut; those gaps remain explicit.
- Yields
- 1 cake; source gives no mould size or serving count
- Prep
- Not stated by the source
- Cook
- 20 min according to the source, plus time to bring the syrup to the boil
Ingredients
- 2 cups Sugar for the cake
- 4 Whole eggs
- 6 Egg yolks
- 1 small goblet Port wine for the cake
- 4 spoonfuls Butter, plus extra for greasing
- 2 cups Wheat flour, plus extra for dusting
- 100 g Chopped walnuts
- as needed; source gives no application step Desiccated coconut
- 1 cup Sugar for the syrup
- 1 cup Water
- 4 tbsp Port wine for the syrup
Method
Heat the oven to 180°C / 350°F. Butter a cake mould and dust it with flour. RTP specifies neither shape nor size.
Beat the four spoonfuls of butter thoroughly with the two cups of sugar and the goblet of Port.
Add the four whole eggs and six yolks and beat until combined.
Finally add the two cups of flour and 100 g chopped walnuts, folding thoroughly. The source lists desiccated coconut but gives no instruction for it; do not add it without consciously choosing an interpretation.
Transfer the batter to the prepared mould and bake for 20 minutes. Because the mould size is undocumented, check doneness rather than automatically extending the time for a different mould.
For the syrup, combine one cup water and one cup sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add four tablespoons Port and stir.
When the cake is baked, pour over the syrup. The source does not say whether to unmould or pierce it first, use all the syrup, or wait before serving; add the syrup gradually to control absorption.
Sources for this recipe
The quantities and method were checked against the references below. Family recipes may vary; where no single official formula exists, we present a representative practical version and say so plainly.
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