In a small house at the foot of the hill an old woman crumbles a piece of bread with her fingers
brings it to the lips of the girl sitting on her lap
rests her head on her grandmother’s chest and asks for a larger piece
The house with a tiled facade is one of many
as if drawn by a pencil amid the sun-drenched hills in northern Portugal
The name of the bread: Pão de Ló de Margaride
the tradition of Pão de Ló has been kept through family customs
everyday moments that are stored in memory
Made with three basic ingredients – eggs
flour and sugar – Pão de Ló de Margarine has a history that dates back to the 18th century when a woman named Clara María finds the ideal combination and makes what would become the now famous Pão de Ló
“This bread immediately gained notoriety because it could last for up to two or three weeks without expiring,” explains Cláudio Ferreira
general director of the Felgueiras Business Association
“It is believed that Clara María was inspired by a recipe she heard of in a convent.”
The house where Clara María lived can be found in Margaride
one of the freguesías or neighborhoods of the municipality of Felgueiras
also the seat of the town hall or cámara do concelho
The center of Margaride has many trees and cobbled streets; bakeries fill the air with the sweet aroma from their ovens
Clara María made sure that her legacy continued through her employees
It was the latter who pushed the production of Pão de Ló to even higher levels
As a result of the fifty years of Leonor Rosa’s unrelenting efforts
the Pão de Ló de Margaride goes beyond Felgueiras and extends throughout the country
a letter with the shields of the Dukes of Braganza and signed by the count of São Mamede gives Leonor Rosa’s bakery the title of Royal Supplier
this factory was inaugurated,” explains Guilherme Lickfold
and descendant of Leonor Rosa da Silva’s third husband
The building is located in the Republic Square
“In these two ovens the loaves are placed for more or less 45 minutes
although there may be larger.” The baking time can vary depending on the size of the bread and the consistency desired
One of the fundamental elements of the Pão de Ló de Margaride is the use of fresh eggs
only fresh eggs are used,” explains Cláudio Ferreira
“There is Pão de Ló in other areas of Portugal but the tradition is not the same
the Felgueiras Business Association has begun the process to obtain Protected Geographical Identification (PGI)
In addition to ensuring the quality of the production methods of the Pão de Ló
this identification would allow producers to have greater reach and visibility internationally
they know it is a quality product,” says Cláudio Ferreira
“The customer immediately knows that it is a real Pão de Ló de Margaride.”
One of the challenges for the export of the Pão de Ló is the time needed for transport and distribution
Another objective of the PGI certification would be the possibility to submit the breads to an ultra-freezing process
which would extend the life of the product for up to two months
The investment required to obtain the PGI amounts to 240,000 euros
At the top of one of the hills in Margaride stands the parish of Santa Quitéria where every June 29th
Women dressed in traditional costumes carry baskets full of flowers on their heads
advance in procession singing and dancing in honor of the saint who was
beheaded in the second century for having maintained their faith
the parish of Santa Quitéria celebrated its 300th anniversary
smoking a cigarette; women stand under the shade of ash trees chatting and fanning their faces
as well as stands with kiwis and asparagus
all of them an important part of the economy in the region
Children walk hand in hand with their parents eating cavacas: cookies made with the same dough as Pão de Ló
try the cavaquinhas da serra,” explains José Mario Sousa
“The sweet taste of Pão de Ló combines very well with the salty taste of sheep cheese.” Founded in 1974 by José Mario’s mother
the factory has been characterized by its creative and innovative spirit in transforming traditional products to offer new and different flavors
This innovative attitude has already been recognized on several occasions
including the prize for the best Abade de Priscos pudding in 2014
“In 2014 my mother won in the category for companies
And that was really the takeoff for our family business
Now many more people know about Casa Rosa Sousa.”
In the Rosa Sousa store you can find four different flavors of pudding(coffee
Pão de Ló de Margaride with chocolate flavor
Both the Cavacas and the Pão de Ló de Margaride are finalists for the contest of the Seven Wonders of the Sweets of Portugal
The five bakeries that produce the Pão de Ló de Margaride are:
Essential cookies enable basic functions and are necessary for the proper function of the website
Statistics cookies collect information anonymously
This information helps us to understand how our visitors use our website
It was Ellen Whitaker (GBR) and Jack Van’T Kattenheye (Diabeau x Canadian River) that won Wednesday’s biggest class at CSIO5* Gijon.
With as many as 22 double clears in the 1.50m class
riders had to put the speed up to be within the top five
Whitaker ended the shortened course in 32.03 seconds, 0.64 seconds faster than runner-up Rodrigo Giesteira Almeida (POR) with Kafka vd Heffinck (Calvaro x Diamant de Semilly).
France followed in third place with Max Thirouin and Utopie Villelongue (Mylord Carthago*HN x Calypso d’Herbiers)
who crossed the finish line in 33.20 seconds
Fourth place went to Nicolas Toro (COL) with Desperado (Cardento x Lord Z), followed by Kyle Timm (CAN) with Double T (Lux Z x Kannan).
© 2025 World of Showjumping - All rights reserved
Powered by Artionet - Generated with IceCube2.Net
Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.
West Yorkshire Police are treating the deaths of Margaride Rufino and Anthony Roberts as murder
I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice
Police have named a couple found dead at their home in Idle, Bradford on Sunday.
The deaths of Margaride Rufino, known as Guida, 38, and Anthony Roberts, 37, have left their two-year-old daughter an orphan.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed they have launched a murder investigation, but said they were not looking for anyone else in connection with the case.
Police were called to a “domestic incident” on Sunday evening and found Ms Rufino with serious injuries to her neck and Mr Roberts with serious injuries to his leg.
Both were pronounced dead at the scene and two knives were recovered.
Officers said the couple’s daughter was not in the house at the time of the incident and is now being cared for by relatives.
Detective Chief Inspector Ian Scott said: "The police investigation is still at an early stage; however, we are treating this as a murder inquiry.
"A full post-mortem will be conducted to determine the cause of death for both Ms Rufino and Mr Roberts.
"At this stage we are satisfied that no other parties were involved in the incident."
Police are appealing for anyone who heard or saw anything suspicious around 6pm on Sunday to get in touch with the homicide and major enquiries team on 101, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.
Greg Broderick (IRL) went all the way to the top of the podium in Sunday's CSIO5* 1.60m Grand Prix in Gijon
Riding the 11-year-old Westbrook (Jaguar Mail x Cardento), Broderick was the fastest in the jump-off – leaving four other double clear pairs behind him.
France followed in second and third with Mathieu Billot on Quel Filou 13 (Quidam’s Rubin x Cascavelle) and Felicie Bertrand on Sultane des Ibis (Quidam de Revel x Elan de la Cour). Fernando Martinez Sommer (MEX) took the fourth place riding Cor Bakker (Colandro x Quattro) followed by Alaa Mayssara (EGY) with Dittorio-S (Vittorio x Rash R) in fifth