Dália Martins has dedicated her whole life to the bakery. Today, at the age of 73, she has no regrets and says she still feels good doing what she has always done. According to the owner of Padaria Esperança, in Arrifes, her dough tastes different and her customers know it. To Correio dos Açores, she explains how her dough differs from others, why she follows the recipes she’s been given, the difficulties she faces in finding people who want to work, and assumes, “We make dough the old-fashioned way.” An Easter tradition that continues to strengthen in Azorean society.
Correio dos Açores – How long have you been running Padaria Esperança?
Dália Martins (owner of the bakery) – Since forever (laughs). When I was a little girl, I started working in my father’s bakery, which was a few meters down the road, and then I came here. I’ve had this bakery for almost 40 years. This is one of the oldest bakeries in Arrifes. There are two bakeries, but mine is the oldest.

So we can say that baking runs in the family?
Yes, as a little girl, I used to go to the bakery with my father. I’d see how the dough was kneaded by hand, because in the old days, everything was done by hand. And here my recipes are traditional. We follow my grandparents’ and my mother’s recipes, and I haven’t deviated from them. The dough, whether it’s sweet bread, malassadas, folares, or biscoitos, is different from the others. That’s why people know the quality, and I have no shortage of customers, thank God. I’m a bit of a suspect, but that’s what people tell me. My dough is completely different from the others. My customers often say that our pasta is old-fashioned and that we do it the way it used to be done, which is something you don’t see nowadays.
Is it difficult to find qualified people to work with?
Very difficult. Nobody wants to work, and the government is to blame for many things. The government is paying subsidies so that people don’t work, and I, at 73, have been working here since five o’clock in the morning. Nowadays, nobody wants that life. When we need it, and we say it’s to work at night, because they have to work through the night to have bread baked by three or four o’clock in the morning. The first thing they ask me is the timetable, and when I say that, the answer is always that they don’t want to. I’ll give you an example: we need someone, so I went to talk to a young man from Arrifes. Do you know what he told me? That his paycheck comes home is why he doesn’t need to work. Fortunately, I’ve never had this kind of support, and I don’t owe the government a shield either. I’ve spent my whole life working.

And have you been able to find people to run the bakery?
Thank God I have people I can count on. The truth is that I couldn’t do it on my own. But I don’t think they have any reason to complain about the boss either (laughs). But here’s the thing: in the past, lots of people came to ask for work. Today, nobody comes to ask for work.
But how does your pasta differ from the others?
That’s the secret. But it’s a question of tasting. You buy one from somewhere, and you buy mine from here. And then you have to prove it. I work just like my mother used to, with butter, eggs, and milk. People don’t want to put things in pasta. They don’t season the dough.
More or less, how many folares (name for traditional Easter Sweet Bread) did you make for this Easter?
I can’t tell you a precise number because we’ll still be making them on Saturday. But if I had to say a number, I’d say we’ll make between 400 and 500 folares. I have a lot of orders, really a lot, and sometimes I say I can’t do it. I can’t accept certain large orders because I’m short-staffed. And, as well as being short-staffed, my strength is not what it used to be 20 years ago. But there you have it, willpower never fails me. I feel good doing what I do. I feel really good doing it.

You never imagined yourself being anything other than a baker?
No, never. I was brought up with it. I know those recipes that were my grandmother’s and my mother’s, and that’s what I follow. I don’t run away from a recipe. I don’t run away from the recipe. That’s why people say that, for example, my cookies are different. They are, because I don’t deviate from the recipe that my ancestors entrusted to me.
For example, one of my suppliers told me that if I wanted to use a pre-prepared dough, all I had to do was add water and knead, and it would be ready to use. But I don’t do it like that, my dough doesn’t contain any water.
If you had to describe Easter, how would you describe it?
For me, Christmas and Easter are the most important times, because it’s the Resurrection of Jesus. And what does the folar represent? The Resurrection of Jesus. That means a lot to me. I’m a Catholic, not a very practicing one, but I’ve always followed all my parents’ advice, and I don’t regret it. Nowadays, people need to listen to the word of God more. It’s really lacking. Nowadays, practically all we see are people on their cell phones and tablets. There’s not much talking or dialogue. There should be more dialogue between families, more love, and a better understanding of how to listen to our elders and show them love.
What message would you like to leave this Easter?
A message of a lot of peace a lot of love a lot of understanding a lot of peace there’s a lot of war, a lot of misunderstandings all in exchange for what? Money. Nobody talks about love. Anyone who asks anything about Jesus, or the Father, or the Virgin Mary, nobody knows; they don’t answer anything. And this was the message that Jesus came to bring to the world, because he died for all of us. And so, we have to do our part here on Earth, since we’re only here on loan for a short time, not for long.


Frederico Figueiredo is a journalist for the Correio dos Açores, under the direction of Natalino Viveiros.

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.