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Pan de Pascua is a sweet, spongy fruit cake eaten during Christmas in Chile. Its origin is attributed to German immigrants, and it is similar to Stollen and Italian panettone. The cake requires flour, butter, eggs, sugar, rum, baking powder, and spices, and is usually served with a local drink called cola de mono.
Pan de Pascua is a type of spiced fruit cake that people in the South American country of Chile customarily eat during the Christmas season. It is mainly characterized by its sweet and spongy texture and the addition of raisins and candied fruit. The exact origin of this cake is unknown, although it is generally attributed to German immigrants to the country. Thus, it is possible that pan de pascua originated around the 19th century when German immigration to Chile began, decades after the country gained its independence from Spain in 1810.
The term “pan de pascua” means Easter bread. This can be attributed to the fact that when it was first introduced, people made it and ate it during the Easter holidays. Now the cake is traditionally eaten at Christmas, when Chileans usually enjoy a slice or two with a local drink called cola de mono. Literally translated as “bad monkey tail,” cola de mono can be considered the equivalent of eggnog in the United States.
The German origin of pan de pascua is probably due to the cake’s similarities to Stollen. This is a spiced loaf-shaped cake that usually contains raisins and nuts and is covered in granulated, powdered, or frosted icing sugar. Like pan de pascua, Stollen is mainly made and eaten during the Christmas season.
Pan de pascua is also similar to Italian panettone. Prepared and eaten during the Christmas season and as a New Year’s Eve commemoration, panettone also contains raisins. The shape, however, is different, with the panettone having a cylinder on top that resembles a dome.
In addition to flour and the aforementioned cake ingredients, Pan de Pascua also requires butter, eggs, sugar or honey, rum or brandy, baking powder or baking soda. Diced or dried fruits are usually apricots, figs, pears, plums or peaches. Sometimes walnuts or other nuts are added. Common spices used in bread include ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
Butter and eggs are usually the first ingredients mixed together in pan de pascua. After adding a little water, the other ingredients are thrown in. The whole mixture is poured into a greased pan and cooked for just over an hour. Some recipes suggest preparing the dough a few days before baking for best results.
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