The All Saints’ festival on November 1st and 2nd is celebrated with all things sweet and a variety of mouth-watering panellets and rosaries are already on sale in pastry shops all over Mallorca.
Tomeu Arbona has been up to his eyes in the Fornet de la Soca workshop, preparing a whole range of panellets, such as pomegranate with rose water, coffee, coconut, chocolate and lemon and different varieties of Mallorcan almonds.
“They were imported from Catalonia, but the 17th century diary of Joaquim Fiol talks about giving children in Mallorca figurines made of bread dough or marzipan,” he says.
Over at Arbona, hand crafted rosaries are being created the All Saints’ Day festival.
“They are original and they're really healthy, because we make them in accordance with the criteria for good infant nutrition,” they said. "There are several different types of cookies, chocolate balls and panellets and the paten is made with delicious cookie dough or potato cake. Godfathers usually give them to the youngest members of the family, but a lot of young parents love tradition so they also give them as gifts."
Panellets to suit all tastes are available at Forn Fondo in Palma.
“We offer artisan sweets, patience biscuits and yolk panellets, with chocolate, yemitas or frosted fruits and the paten is made of chocolate or chocolate and puffed rice,” says Neus Lull. “There’s also panellets with pine nuts, hazelnuts, almonds, pistachios and walnuts or customers can choose vanilla, mango, lemon, strawberry, orange, chocolate or quince.”