Alfajore – Spain

An Alfajore is a traditional Spanish confection made from flour, honey, and hazelnuts. It is native to South Americans and found in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, and Paraguay, just to mention a few. The history of the name Alfajore, according to Manuel Alvar López, a Spanish professional who studies literary texts, is that it is an Andalusian word deriving from the Arabic word, “al-fakhir,” which means opulent, rich, and wealthy.

Another version is that the Alfajore was traced to be from the New World when there was an order to conquer Medina Sidonia, Alcalá de Guadaira, and Carmona by the Arab general Musa ibn Nusair, who came with an army of 18,000 soldiers. There is also a similar confection called “alaú” in the Arabic-Hispanic cookbook, Kitab al-Tabikh, created by an anonymous author, suggesting this confection’s Arabic origins.