Capirotada is the Mexican bread pudding eaten during Lent and Holy Week, with stale birote bread soaked in piloncillo-and-cinnamon syrup, layered with raisins, peanuts, queso fresco and topped with sprinkles.

Capirotada has Spanish roots in a medieval dish called capirotada de capirote (the layered Lenten pudding from Castile), brought to Mexico in the 16th century by Spanish nuns. The Tapatio version uses stale birote bread, piloncillo syrup with cinnamon and cloves, raisins, peanuts and queso fresco, with multicoloured sugar sprinkles (grageas) on top. The dish is symbolic of the Passion of Christ in Catholic Mexico; each ingredient represents an element of the crucifixion. It appears across Guadalajara fondas through March and April.

Where to eat Capirotada in Guadalajara

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Make it at home

Serves 81 hr 30 minEasy

Ingredients

  • 500 g stale birote or French bread, sliced
  • Butter for toasting
  • 1 L water
  • 300 g piloncillo (or dark brown sugar)
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 cup raisins
  • 1 cup roasted peanuts
  • 200 g queso fresco, crumbled
  • Multicoloured sugar sprinkles (grageas) for topping

Method

  1. Toast the bread slices with butter on a hot pan until golden.
  2. Simmer the water with piloncillo, cinnamon and cloves until the piloncillo dissolves and the syrup is fragrant, about 15 minutes. Strain.
  3. In a baking dish, layer the toasted bread, raisins, peanuts and queso fresco.
  4. Pour the warm syrup over the layers, letting the bread soak it up.
  5. Repeat the layers, finishing with queso fresco and sprinkles on top.
  6. Bake at 180 C (350 F) for 30 minutes until the top is golden and the syrup has set.
  7. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Editor tip. Use stale bread (a day or two old); fresh bread turns to mush. The sprinkles are non-negotiable for the canonical Tapatio version.

Common allergens: Wheat, Dairy, Peanuts.