Ovos Moles
A sweet Portuguese cream of egg yolks and sugar syrup, spooned into small wafer shells, ready in 45 minutes, plus cooling.
Photograph credit: Oficina dos Ovos Moles - 3.º anos by escolaglobal® · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Making Ovos Moles Ahead
Keeps for 1 week in the fridge. Fill the wafers just before serving.
How to Make Ovos Moles
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Boil the sugar and water for 8 minutes until the syrup reaches 110°C / 230°F.
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Whisk the yolks gently and strain through a sieve into a bowl.
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Pour the hot syrup into the yolks in a thin stream, whisking.
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Return the mixture to the pan and stir over low heat for 8 to 10 minutes until thick, without boiling.
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Cool completely and spoon into the wafer shells.
A Few Pointers
- Strain the yolks.
- Add the syrup in a thin stream.
- Never let the cream boil.
Why the Method Is What It Is
Short and sharp: egg yolks and sugar, and nothing else. Ovos moles, soft eggs, is the famous sweet of Aveiro in Portugal, a thick golden cream of egg yolks cooked in a sugar syrup, and traditionally it is served in thin wafer shells shaped like shells or barrels.
Boil sugar and water together for about 8 minutes until the syrup reaches 110°C / 230°F, the thread stage. Meanwhile whisk the egg yolks gently, without making them foam, and strain them through a sieve. Pour the hot syrup into the yolks in a thin stream, whisking all the time, so they warm slowly and do not scramble. Return the mix to the pan.
Stir over a low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until it thickens enough for the spoon to leave a trail and you can see the base of the pan. Do not let it boil. Pour into a bowl and cool. Spoon into wafer shells, or serve in a small glass with a spoon. The cream is very sweet and rich, and small servings are enough. It keeps for a week in the fridge.
Serving Ideas
Coffee · Port · Fresh fruit
Questions About Ovos Moles
How long does Ovos Moles take to make?
25 minutes of preparation and 20 minutes of cooking, so at least 45 minutes. The method also needs time for cooling completely, which it does not time, so treat that as a minimum. The recipe serves 12.
The Numbers per Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
Cooked this? Keep a note for next time
Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked.
First published ; last changed .
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