Panques

This recipe for 'Panques' comes from a handwritten Mexican family cookbook dating to 1914, created by Susana de Sánchez Irazoqui and her relations from Durango. Early 20th-century Mexico was a time of transition, bridging old traditions with modern influences. Manuscript cookbooks like this were treasured family heirlooms—passed through generations of women, each adding her own notes and refinements. The recipes reflect the intersection of local Mexican ingredients, European baking traditions, and the changing domestic landscape during and after the Mexican Revolution. The manuscript offers a rare, intimate glimpse into family kitchens, revealing what home cooks cherished, celebrated, and shared at their own tables.

Back in the day, home cooks in Durango would have used large ceramic or wooden bowls for mixing, a sturdy wire whisk or wooden spoon for beating the eggs, and hand-cranked grinders or mortars for almond meal. Cast-iron or earthenware molds were generously buttered to prevent sticking, and cakes were baked in brick or cast-iron ovens, often heated with wood or charcoal. Temperature was judged by experience, with terms like 'como para marquesote' prompting bakers to rely on look, feel, and scent rather than precise thermometers.