We found this gofio recipe, Pella dulce or Sweet pella, in a trip we made to the island of La Palma, in the Canary Islands. Island that is called “La Isla Bonita” for its incredible landscapes, volcanoes and forests, beaches and start scattered skies.

Best way to know La Palma is by walking and discovering it through its paths. We did a lot of excursions and one day of the trip was meant to visit the North of the island and do the route of the dragon trees, located in Villa de Garafia.

It was a circular route of 6 kilometers and we did it in about 2 hours and a half. We were able to enjoy the highest concentration of dragon trees in La Palma and also the Buracas caves. In the middle of that route is the Gofio Interpretation Museum (MIGO).

Exterior of the Museum. Source: MIGO Facebook page

MIGO was an old traditional windmill -Tricias’ windmill- that since the year 2.000 is property of Villa de Garafia Council. (which has been in charge of its restoration).

In the past, this mill made gofio, and now it is a gofio´s interpretation centre. The result is that now it explains everything about the history and production of this essential food for the Canarian people. You can find more information about the Museum on its Facebook webpage.

Interior of the Museum. Source: MIGO Facebook page

In the Museum, they also gave us a “Pella dulce” recipe, one of the many ways to prepare gofio. It is a sweet recipe in which the gofio is the main ingredient and can be used as breakfast or snack. Luckily, they had the flyer both in Spanish and English.

Gofio is a very typical food of the Canary Islands, eaten by the aborigines as a fundamental part of their diet.

But before going into detail about the recipe, I would like to answer a question that many of you are asking: What is gofio? What is its origin and how it is made?

Gofio is a very typical food of the Canary Islands, eaten by the aborigines as a fundamental part of their diet.

Gofio is a very typical food of the Canary Islands, it is a pre-Hispanic food, of Berber origin and already eaten by the islands´ aborigines (guanches, benahoritas, …) as a fundamental part of their diet.

Although it is not only eaten on the Islands but also exists in many parts of the world (North of Africa, Argentina, Chile, Cape Verde, …) and with different names (ñaco, toasted flour, cocho, pinole, …).

To produce gofio, firstly, the cereals, legumes, and corn grains are toasted. After cooling, the already-toasted grains are ground and sifted until obtaining a very fine flour. This toasted grains flour is called gofio (we can find it with a single ingredient or different mixtures and degrees of toasting).

In the gofio production process, firstly the grains are toasted, then ground, and finally sifted until a very fine flour is obtained. This toasted grains flour, ready to be eaten, is called gofio.

As you can see, the production process is different from the production of usual flours, in which the grains are ground first. As a result, this process has a big advantage: Gofio is ready to be eaten, while the rest of the flours need a heat treatment later to be edible (make bread, pasta, pancakes, etc.).

Nutritional characteristics must be added to this consumption advantage: it is a food with a high nutritional value, high energy, rich in vitamins, fibre, minerals, carbohydrates, and proteins, and low in fat. And in addition, it is also a whole food.

All these characteristics make gofio an excellent food and (at least in my opinion) we should include it in our diet.

Coming back to the Pella Dulce recipe, just say that it is a super easy recipe, very nourishing, and that it does not need to be baked.

Let´s go with this easy recipe!

Difficulty: EASY

Preparation time: 10 minutes

Baking time: Not needed

PELLA DULCE

INGREDIENTS (For 2 -3 rollos or pellas)

250 g gofio
100 g water
50 g sunflower oil
100 g honey
100 g crushed and toasted almonds
50 g raisins
1 lemon zest

PREPARATION

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Starting from gofio and adding one by one, and in order, the rest of the ingredients (gofio, water, oil, honey, almonds, raisins, and lemon zest).

Knead the ingredients until achieving a homogeneous dough. Despite that in the video the kneading is done in a stand mixer, you can easily knead it with your hands.

Once kneaded, make a salami shape (pella or rollo).

To serve, cut into slices and add some honey on top.

Do you want to have this Pella dulce recipe in Spanish? Click it here!