What defines a traditional dessert? It refers to recipes handed down through generations, surviving into today. Under that lens, the Almudena crown doesn’t fit neatly. Its origins trace back to 1978 when a group of pastry chefs honored the Virgin of Almudena, the patron saint of Madrid’s guild. This became the winning recipe in a contest where other ideas were set aside.
Its presence graces bakery windows across Madrid this year, yet it has not always been so commonplace. The Almudena crown remains a rare crown beyond certain circles, gaining popularity only in the last decade.
At the start of the decade, only a few bakeries produced this dessert. Today it stands as a rarity without a single standard version. At first glance it resembles a cousin of Roscón, but notable differences exist. It is a piece of fermented pastry dough flavored with a preferred liquor and finished with pastry cream, whipped cream, or a truffle filling. The dough is kneaded, shaped, and fermented, then baked and decorated with an egg wash and cream to form a peak resembling a crown, as described by the Pasteleros de Madrid, a private association formed in 2015 that unites many of the region’s artisanal workshops.
According to the association, this dessert does not contain orange flower water. The decorations once featured sugared fruits and candied bits but were replaced with cream details and almonds, completed with a figurine of the Virgin Mary. It is listed in the Madrid typical desserts section on their site.
Crowns everywhere
The current appeal of the Almudena crown is strong enough to draw newcomers who want to learn the craft. In 2023 Catalan pastry chef Xavier Barriga visited Madrid and introduced his own version of the crown at his two stores on Eloy Gonzalo and Hermosilla avenues, drawing attention to the dessert. He notes that he arrived with an open mind and followed a simple motto: wherever you go, you see something worth trying.
Barriga describes the crown as similar to a roscón, with pastry dough, cream, and orange on top. His adaptation adds flower honey, extra virgin olive oil, and anise, along with toasted almonds. A version with cream filling was also developed. He emphasizes that these recipes emerged in part from competition-derived ideas and tend to thrive when tied to a specific celebration.
He also points out that not every bakery adopts a single family formula; for example, the Sant Jordi bread from Barcelona—born from a baker’s imagination in 1989—has spread widely. That loaf includes layers of sobrasada and cheese to evoke the Catalan flag, underscoring how good ideas can travel across regions.
More desserts have appeared in modern times
Do not be misled by the Jordi bread example alone; many sweets are crafted to honor specific dates. A fresh fig tart prepared for the Barcelona Mercé festivities in 2022 involved a collaboration among renowned pastry chefs and culinary talents from different backgrounds, including Antonio Bachour, Jordi Vila, and Olivier Fernandez, with collaboration from the Gremi de Pastissers pastry school. In 2023 this sable dough, almond cream, and late-summer fruits were available in around a hundred patisseries in the city. Other master pastry chefs contributed creations as well, including Oriol Balaguer, Erik Ortuño, and the Escribà family, who crafted a Lyonnaise-inspired cake with cream, raspberries, and chocolate for La Mercé.
Other notable examples include a dessert prepared by the Valladolid Confectioners Association for the San Lorenzo festival in 2000. The City Council and confectioners relaunched this dish in 2023, offering a puff pastry cake with orange cream and a rich chocolate sponge in nearly twenty shops across the city.
Lastly, a special dessert created by the Madrid Association of Artisan Pastry Entrepreneurs and distributed for free in Madrid on the day Princess Leonor of Asturias took the oath to the Constitution was a almond sponge cake with orange pastry cream, marked by a chocolate decoration in the colors of the Spanish flag. While such desserts capture attention, time and taste will determine whether they become enduring traditions or fleeting novelties.