Curious about FACTURAS? Well, my dear, this is the right place to learn about them. In this article I’ll walk you through a mouth-watering tour.

First things first

But, hang on there.

To truly appreciate the deliciousness of Argentine facturas, we need to start at the beginning. The origins of these pastries can be traced back to the arrival of European immigrants to Argentina in the 19th century. These immigrants brought with them their baking traditions, including the art of making pastries.

Over time, Argentine bakers put their own spin on these pastries, adding new flavors and shapes to create the beloved facturas that we know today.

Anarchism and Facturas

A curious side of facturas is that many of them have a provocative name, targetting the government, the military and the church. This is due to the fact that many bakers were anarchists and saw an opportunity in modeling their pastries to mock their ‘enemies’.

This explains why you find facturas with such names as vigilantes (referring to the police), sacramentos (sacraments), bolas de fraile (friar’s balls) and cañoncitos (little cannons).

Types of facturas

Now, let’s take a look at them There are many different varieties to choose from, each with its own unique flavor and texture.

If you’re new to Argentine facturas, the names of the different varieties can be a bit confusing. Here’s a handy inventory of the most popular ones:

• Churro: Fried dough that’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The classic churro is filled with dulce de leche. Only for the brave.
• Medialuna de manteca: Half-moon shaped pastry, similar to a croissant.
• Medialuna de grasa: If you compare the two types of medialuna in the picture above, you’ll see that this one is thinner and savory.
• Sacramento: Usually filled with quince jam.
• Huevo frito: New to me under that name, but I can clearly see why the name. Dulce de leche and crema pastelera in sweet composition.
• Moñito: Another with a visible justification for the name. Either quince jam or crema pastelera on the extremes.
• Vigilante: Rectangular pastry with stripes of quince jam or crema pastelera on top.
• Lengüitas: Elongated pastries, with quince jam or crema pastelera on top.
• Tortita negra: Self descriptive. Round pastries, covered with black sugar.
• Bola de fraile: You can find these pastries either filled with dulce de leche or crema pastelera.
• Cañoncito: Long, cylindrical pastry filled with lots of dulce de leche.

Other species in the bakery ecosystem

As if all this were not enough, you can find other delicious treats in traditional bakeries. Some of the most common are

Bizcochitos: Small, round. It can be either sweet (sugar coated) or savory.

Palmeritas: Really can’t say why they got this name. They have a funny shape, but certainly not that of a palm tree.

Cremonas: Like a reddit user explains, it’s a bread made with a lot of butter in the shape of a circle, or crown if you would.

A podcast episode on FACTURAS is in the pipeline. Make sure you don’t miss it!

Armed with this new knowledge, I’d say you need to try them quick!

Happy Spanish learning,

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