Chachepó, the traditional sweet from Linares that has been resurrected
Two ringtones sound and on the other end of the phone I hear the Mina's energetic voice , that she is struggling with the tasks of her cafeteria just before closing. Her husband, Pablo, is still in the workshop busy with the preparation of the last delicacies of the day: “here they give us 9 pm today as always, that's for sure”, she tells me.
It is the marriage of Linares , in the province of Jaen , who runs Excelsior, a pastry shop with more than 2 decades of history who for two years has achieved fame thanks to a milestone: he has managed to resurrect the chachepo , the most traditional sweet of the city , missing for about 20 years after the closure of the mythical confectionery of Félix de Amo.
Linares revives the Chachepó
The promoters of such a great feat? On the one hand, Pablo himself, who had spent a long time with his mind set on retrieve that old recipe and return it back to the city . For another, Ramiro Rull de Torres Mina's father master chocolatier almost 90 years old —And the son of a master of meringue, the pioneer of this pastry family that, mind you, is already in its fourth generation dedicated to the sweet—, who had in his memory the famous and longed-for formula.
After two years of tests, trials and errors, tastings and holy patience, Excelsior was finally able to confirm that yes, he had succeeded: the chachepó was already —again— here . “It is true that neither the products nor the raw material are the same as in the past, although the ingredients are the same, but the result has been a success. The young parents of the chachepó call us: we have made it resurface ”, Mina tells us.
The history of this sweet that drives so many crazy has its origin no less than a hundred years ago. We spoke with Nazareth, the daughter of Mina and Pablo , that she assists us with her hands free while she manages to get out of a traffic jam in Madrid, the city where she lives and works. Immersed from a distance in her family project —she is in charge of marketing, communication and administration, among many other tasks—, she tells us about the wonderful experience that she supposes to give a bite of chachepó cake , which is really a baby in French.
“It is a sweet with a cylindrical shape that was eaten standing up on the plate —now he lies down— and almost always at night, when the workers of the mines in the area finished the day and what they wanted was to accompany it with a glass of anise . She brought very good times, that's why the people of Linares have always been very fond of her, ”she tells us.
And he had such good times, that she was baptized as chachepó in reference to the word “chachi” , an adjective widely used in the area and which, as we already know —and the RAE reminds us— means “terrific, very good”. All clear, yes sir.
Fluffy and soft, juicy and with a slight anise flavor Mina comments that the dough is egg and flour based, and that they have made sure that no one other than her three family members knows the real recipe. "We come at 6 in the morning and until 9 at night we are making cakes, from all kinds of cakes to fried milk and, of course, chachepos," she says.
Chachepó preparation process
Of the latter, she assures that they can make, on a normal day, between 400 and 500 units . “We make them daily and by hand, one by one by hand. In normal times they leave here about 90 or 100 boxes daily , although at Christmas we have to increase the workforce so that they can help us with the setting and packaging”.
And with penetrate she refers the pastry chef at 24 hours that the chachepos must pass, after being baked, submerged in a liquor syrup that gives it that touch that everyone loves: it is undoubtedly one of the keys to its success.
However, it was precisely this last step in its preparation that was a handicap for the chachepó: "When people came to Linares they asked what they could take typical of the city, and they could not be a chachepó because being impregnated in syrup, they couldn't stand it”, says Nazaret. “So we decided to do a project, which is our contribution to having achieved that the most historic sweet from Linares has crossed borders: we designed a special container”.
Chachepó, succulent and well pregnant
A packaging that allowed the sweet, which does not contain dyes or preservatives , endure up to a month and reach their destination, no matter how far away it was, in perfect condition . Thus, and thanks to the online store that they launched two years ago, the chachepos have reached places hitherto unthinkable: Miami, Singapore, London or Ghana are just some of them . In Spain? He has a special predilection for this Linares delicacy in Catalonia and in the Levante area , where more orders are placed.
But the improvements continue, and the Excelsior family is about to take another step in this direction. Nazareth speaks excitedly about this new bet: “The autoclave It is a machine that allows food to be preserved much longer. It puts a very high pressure on the product, and increases durability thanks to the atmosphere it creates. This technique had been used in all kinds of preserves, but not in sweets, where we are going to implement it now: instead of one month it can last up to six months. We are going to be pioneers in the autoclave in the pastry shop, it is a milestone that we are going to achieve”.
And as in meeting challenges, at Excelsior they are professionals, they also broke the mold a few months ago when they established outside their premises, in the heart of Linares , the first vending machine that sells a traditional product in Spain. In other words: they have made sure that in Linares there are no excuses of any kind so that whoever gets the craving cannot indulge in taking a bite of a chachepó, whatever time it is.
So much development and commitment to Linares' star product had to have its reward, of course. And this came from the beginning of the business adventure thanks to the recognition of its neighbors, great experts in the art of pastry tasting, who have managed to travel to the past through the flavors of chachepó. But also thanks to the label “Taste Jaén Quality” and some other award, such as Best Promotion 2019 awarded by the Diputación, or the Best Sweet in Spain 2019 from Cadena Ser.
However, the search for perfection is a constant at Excelsior, as Mina says: “I keep training because I want to keep learning, that's why I'll start soon a master's degree in haute pastry at the Torreblanca School, one of the best ”. Knowledge that he will put into practice, without a doubt, as soon as he can.
And it is already known that, where there is passion, work becomes enjoyment. And this is what happens to this family for whom sweets are everything: to try their most coveted product, you will have to visit their website, although they are also available in gourmet shops and service stations throughout Spain.
Of course, when it comes to tasting it, it is better to be advised by those who know. In this case, Mina is clear: With a glass of sweet wine, chachepó is pure delicacy. Will have to take note.