The History of Queijadas de Sintra (Cheese Tarts from Sintra)

In Eça de Queiroz’s work Os Maias, published in 1888, cheese tarts are a subject of conversation among the characters and appear in the story that takes place between Lisbon and Sintra, often bought by noblemen who stopped off on their way to Sintra to enjoy the delicious local “Queijadas”.

But in fact, the history of the delicious tarts is lost in time, and there are records that they were already produced in the region during the Middle Ages and that they were even used as payment for rents. The excellent pastures of Sintra allowed the production of an extraordinary fresh cheese which, due to its abundance, encouraged its use in the confection of sweets. That is why the small tarts are still made today from 5 simple ingredients: fresh cheese, sugar, eggs, flour and cinnamon and then wrapped in a thin and very crispy dough, have long been an unavoidable icon of the region.

From October 1st, 2021, “Queijadas de Sintra” will finally gain a special status revealing itself to the world on a privileged stage – Lisbon. It is right in the city centre, in Rua da Prata, that the new shop exclusively dedicated to them opens its doors to sweeten the mouths of the world.

Queijadas Finas de Sintra – Eugénia de Jesus®

The new Queijadas Finas de Sintra store, which opened today to the public, contains a symbolism that adds value to the cultural and gastronomic heritage of the country. Not only the decoration of the shop is inspired in the romanticism of Sintra and the magic of Pena Palace, but also each package contains the many stories of four generations of women dedicated to a family tradition with more than eight decades: the famous Queijadas Finas de Sintra from Eugénia de Jesus, born in 1903 and with a dream to fulfill.

Keeping its tradition, the tarts continue to be entirely made using manual processes and the same utensils as ever, and are accommodated in batches of half a dozen, joined two by two by the top surface and separated from each other by squares of paper before finally being wrapped in the traditional way; in a cartridge.

The story that the feast of Our Lady of the Nativity began and the fairs and pilgrimages of the country continued, now finds in downtown Lisbon the stage to sweeten the mouths of the world, finally fulfilling the dream and honouring the memories of Eugénia de Jesus.

Presenting Portugal to the World

The Value of Time Group offers unique and exceptional experiences in a hymn to Portugal, maintaining an insatiable curiosity through the disruptiveness that defies conventional logic. The new store of the Group, exclusively dedicated to cheese tarts from Sintra. Located in one of the main streets of the city of Lisbon, in downtown, the store is another stage for this icon of our culture to shine, presenting to the world the cheese tarts with the brilliance and dignity they deserve.

www.ovalordotempo.pt