Mexican food is a favorite in Magic Valley, but even lovers of tacos and burritos may not have ventured into the pastries that are a traditional part of the cuisine.
The treats are simple and cheap, with most cookies and rolls costing less than 50 cents. More decadent varieties, like empanadas, are still less than a dollar.
Don’t be afraid to ask if you are curious about the flavors you’ll find in the filled pastries. Although some of the attendants have only limited English, they are still happy to explain what goes into the cultural breads and sweet treats.
Pastries can be purchased in Mexican grocery stores, panaderias and even some Mexican video stores that also vend food products, though the bakeries generally offer the largest selections.
La Michoacana Bakery and Mexican store in Jerome has more than 20 types of baked goods, ranging from fresh breads and tortillas to cakes and dessert pastries, all baked on site. Some stores like Mi Pueblo in Buhl and Video Centro Regalos in Wendell get their fresh-baked supply every morning from one of the other bakeries in the valley.
Ready to try Mexican pastries? Here’s a primer on some of the most common varieties.
Conchas
With a name that means “shell” in Spanish, it’s not surprising these look like something you’d find on a beach. The giant cookies are topped with a paste flavored with cinnamon, vanilla or cocoa and can be a variety of colors. Try one with coffee or milk for a sweet breakfast that is healthier than a doughnut.
Bolillos
Used to make tortas, a sandwich-like dish, these giant rolls come in rounds and narrow baguettes. The dough is slightly salty, which makes it perfect for more savory meals. Sheyla Zuniga, the manager at La Michoacana in Jerome, said the rounds are more popular than the baguettes. Local taco wagons often purchase their bolillos from local panaderias like La Michoacana.
Libros
Named for their book-like appearance, these crunchy pastries ?are perfect for a dessert or sweet snack. They are flavored with cinnamon sugar and are crispy like a wafer. To make libros, the dough is rolled thin and brushed with sugar and butter. The baker then folds the dough four or more times and rolls it thin again, repeating the process multiple times to create the thin pages of the “book,” which comes out of the oven brittle and flaky. Another Mexican cookie, oreja, uses the same ingredients but is formed to look like an ear instead of a book.
“I like libros for breakfast with milk, but they are very sweet,” Zuniga said.
Ninos Envueltos
Translated as “child in a blanket,” ninos envueltos’ jelly filling represents a child, while the fluffy sponge cake is a blanket around it. They are similar to the American jelly-roll, while the outside of the cake is coated in jelly and rolled in coconut. Traditionally, this dense cake pastry is white cake with raspberry or strawberry filling, but it comes in many different flavors and fillings. La Michoacana in Rupert carries pineapple and peach with white cake.
This pastry is delicioso with hot chocolate or dipped in cold milk.
Empanadas
If you’re looking for the dessert version of a hand-held pot pie, try empanadas, which are a simple dough crust with a variety of fillings. The empanadas can either be baked or fried, but in Magic Valley, bakeries all specialize in the baked version.
“My favorite is the pineapple,” Zuniga said. “Great for dessert or a snack.”
Fruit-filled empanadas are somewhere between a slice of pie and a turnover. They make a tasty afternoon pick-me-up, but with ice cream on top can be turned into a decadent after-dinner treat.
Empanadas at Mi Pueblo Bakery in Twin Falls come in strawberry, pineapple and pumpkin; Plaza Mexico in Jerome specializes in cream-filled empanadas; and Mi Pueblo Bakery in Buhl sells squash, pineapple, strawberry and Bavarian cream.
“The squash empanadas have cinnamon in them,” said Nidiy Soria, who works at the Buhl branch of Mi Pueblo. “They are good for dessert with milk.”
However, empanadas also come filled with just about anything. Cheese and jalapeno is a lunchtime favorite at Michoacana.
These are just some of the basic Mexican baked goods. Every panaderia offers something different, so don’t be scared to try something new — it’ll cost you less than a dollar, and you might find a new favorite.
Eva Stutzman may be reached at 735-3288 or estutzman@magicvalley.com.
