Areias are a traditional Portuguese cookie, typical of Cascais (near Lisbon). In fact, you can’t visit Cascais without tasting this delicious sweet.
They are small, round cookies, very buttery, and coated in sugar. The dough is extremely crumbly and literally melts in your mouth, which is where the name areias (sand) comes from. They’re the perfect match for tea or coffee, and it’s almost impossible to eat just one.
If you can’t make it to Cascais, you can easily recreate these cookies at home. They’re very simple and easy to make, and if you manage to resist eating them all at once, they keep well for about a week.
In this version, we added a bit of lemon zest, which, although not traditional, we think really enhances the flavor of the areias. Besides the classic sugar coating, you can also sprinkle them with cinnamon if you enjoy that flavor.
Below, you’ll find the recipe explained step by step. We hope you enjoy these areas.
Preparation
- Servings: 12–15 cookies
- Prep time: 1 hour 20 minutes (20 minutes of prep + 1 hour resting time)
- Difficulty level: Easy
Required utensils for this Areias de Cascais Recipe
- Mixing bowl
- Spatula
- Bench scraper
- Parchment paper
- 1 fork
- 1 tablespoon.
Ingredients – Areias de Cascais
- 50 g sugar
- 25 g lard
- 140 g all-purpose flour
- 50 g butter
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Sugar and cinnamon, to taste, for dusting
Areias de Cascais – step-by-step recipe
- Rub the sugar together with the lemon zest until it turns slightly yellow and releases a strong lemon aroma.
- Mix the flavored sugar with the butter and lard using a fork (it’s easier to do this by hand than with a mixer).
- Add the flour and combine everything, pressing the dough with your hands until it comes together and forms a ball. If it feels too dry and crumbly, add a few drops of water.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C).
- Remove small pieces of dough and shape them into small balls, pressing them firmly together so they hold. They should be small, about 20–25 g each. This dough is very sandy, so it’s normal for it to crumble while handling.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the cookies on it, leaving about ¾ to 1 inch (2–3 cm) between each.
- Bake for 10–15 minutes. The areias should be lightly golden and still soft; they will firm up as they cool.
- While still warm, coat the cookies in sugar or in a mixture of sugar and a little cinnamon.
Serving suggestions
Areias de Cascais are the perfect treat for an afternoon snack, served with tea or coffee. They’re small cookies, ideal for satisfying a sweet craving. You can serve them simply dusted with sugar or, if you prefer, with a mix of sugar and cinnamon.
Tips and variations
- Do not use an electric mixer for this recipe; it’s much easier to bring the ingredients together by hand using a fork.
- This dough crumbles easily. At times, it may seem like it won’t come together and feel very loose, but be patient — with a bit of persistence, you’ll be able to shape it.
- If the dough is really too dry, add a few drops of water, but don’t overdo it; the dough should not be too moist.
- The sugar should be added while the cookies are still warm, as this helps it stick better.
- The texture of these cookies is intentionally very delicate and crumbly, almost falling apart at the touch — hence the name areias.
- If you don’t have lard, you can use only butter; simply replace the lard with butter.
- The traditional recipe doesn’t include lemon, but we really like it and think it adds a lot of flavor to the cookies.
Storage
Store the areias in a well-sealed container, such as a tin or a jar. Try to place them as neatly as possible, as they can easily crumble if stacked carelessly.
Do not store them in the fridge or freezer, as moisture will ruin the cookies’ texture.
When stored properly, they keep well for 1 to 2 weeks, maintaining both flavor and texture.
Conclusion
Areias de Cascais are delicious, easy-to-make cookies with a rich, buttery flavor and a hint of lemon. They’re perfect for an afternoon snack, served with a cup of tea. We hope you enjoy making them as much as eating them, and that these cookies bring a little piece of Cascais tradition to your table.
Areias de Cascais
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Bench scraper
- 1 Parchment paper
- 1 Fork
- 1 Tablespoon
Ingredients
- 50 g sugar
- 25 g lard
- 140 g all-purpose flour
- 50 g butter
- Zest of 1 lemon
- Sugar and cinnamon to taste, for dusting
Instructions
- Rub the sugar together with the lemon zest until it turns pale yellow and releases a strong lemon aroma.
- Mix the flavored sugar with the butter and lard using a fork (it’s easier to mix by hand than with an electric mixer).
- Add the flour and combine everything, pressing the dough with your hands until it comes together and forms a ball. If it feels too dry and crumbly, add a few drops of water.
- Cover the dough and refrigerate for one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C).
- Remove small pieces of dough and shape them into small balls, pressing them firmly together so they hold. They should be small, about 20–25 g each.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the cookies on it, spacing them about ¾ to 1 inch (2–3 cm) apart.
- Bake for 10–15 minutes. The areias should be lightly golden and still soft; they will firm up as they cool.
- While still warm, coat the cookies in sugar or in a mixture of sugar and a little cinnamon.
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