Where it comes from
France (Commercy), per the most widespread account
The magdalena is the default breakfast bun: soft batter in a fluted case, made for dunking in coffee or a glass of milk.
About its origin, one account mostly circulates, and it should be taken as that: it places it in the 18th century, in the kitchens of the castle of Commercy, in Lorraine, under the Polish king Stanisław Leszczyński, father-in-law of Louis XV. It is an origin story, not a demonstrated fact.
What is local is its presence in the obrador: magdalenas are among the things the province’s bakeries turn out daily, and in several Alpujarra villages — Padules, Ohanes, Bayárcal — they are listed alongside roscos and soplillos as home baking, in honey versions.
What it is made with
- Flour
- Egg
- Sugar
- Olive oil
- Lemon zest
- Bakeries in Alhama and the Alpujarra villages