Bunyols de carabassa are Valencia's pumpkin doughnuts: a Fallas-season-only fried sweet ring of pumpkin-and-yeast dough, sugared and eaten hot from the fryer.
Where to eat it: 2 restaurants across 1 city.
Bunyols de carabassa (pumpkin doughnuts) are the canonical Fallas-week sweet, sold from street stalls across Valencia during the March 15-19 festival (and the first half of March). The dough mixes mashed pumpkin with a yeast starter, fried in olive oil and dusted with sugar. The tradition runs back at least to the 18th century. Outside Fallas season, the bunyols are hard to find; Horchateria Daniel keeps a year-round version on the carte.
Common allergens: Gluten, Egg
Tip from the editors. The dough is very sticky; keep your hands wet to shape the rings. Fry small batches so the oil temperature stays at 180 C; cold oil makes greasy bunyols.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Horchateria Daniel inside Mercado de Colon in Valencia pours the family's Alboraya horchata since 1949, with the signature Daniel fartons baked daily.
Signature drink: Horchata with fartons
Tip: Open Mon to Sat with the market complex. Try the sospir (a soft cream pastry).
Horchateria Santa Catalina on Placa de Santa Caterina in Valencia's old town has poured horchata since 1836, with tiled walls and traditional fartons for dipping.
Signature drink: Horchata with fartons
Tip: Open daily through the day, longer hours in summer. Horchata served iced; ask for a farton on the side.
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