On my last visit to Barcelona, I was coming back from a walk around the Parco Güell when I walked by a tempting bakery window. Of course I had to stop inside and try something. I bought one of the giant meringues that you can see in the photo; the person working at the counter told me it was called “roca de Gaudí”. It’s really just a simple meringue flavored with almonds; delicious if you are into meringues (super sugary!).
Strangely enough, I haven’t been able to find anything online about how this almond-flavored meringue got the name “roca de Gaudí”, and whether the term is just used in Barcelona or in all of Catalonia. Any Barca experts out there know?
I did find a nice, simple recipe to make it at this website.
The sweets next to the rocas de Gaudí in the photo are called coques de vidre, a sweet, thin, crispy Catalan cake made with anise liqueur and a layer of smooth sugar that’s like glass (vidre). I didn’t try it last time, but I will on my next trip! In the meantime, here’s a recipe for that too – in case your curiosity has been piqued.
