Flaó d'Eivissa is associated with Ibiza, one of Spain’s Balearic Islands.
The name Eivissa is the Catalan name for Ibiza, so “d’Eivissa” literally identifies the Ibiza version. This flaó is a circular cheesecake-like pastry filled with sheep’s or goat’s cottage cheese, eggs, and sugar, traditionally scented with peppermint and aniseed.
Flaó has a much wider Spanish culinary family, which causes the common mix-up. The pastry is also associated with Formentera, Majorca, Menorca, and mainland regions, but the varieties differ. Menorca’s flaó, for example, uses tender Maó cheese and may be sweet or savoury, while flaons from Morella are semicircular pastries filled with cottage cheese and almonds.
Historical references to flaó date to at least 1252, and the pastry also appears in Ramon Llull’s 1283 work Blanquerna. On Ibiza, it is traditionally linked with Easter celebrations and may be served with sweet wine or the local thyme-based liqueur called frígola.