Pasties challenge paella in Spain

Pasties date back to about 1300

A Cornish pasty manufacturer is hoping the county's traditional dish will prove popular on Spain's Costa Blanca.

Crantock Bakery believes it is the first pasty maker to open its own shop in the region.

The pasties are all made at Crantock's Indian Queens bakery and hand crimped to a traditional Cornish recipe, before being blast frozen and taken to Spain.

The company's first shop opened in Cabo Roig on Tuesday.

The Spanish have even taken to them Barry Yates, Pasty Shack

Nick Ringer from the bakery said: "Our pasties now go across Europe from Gibraltar to Berlin.

"Spain is a key part of this strategy."

Crantock, which has been selling pasties in Spanish resorts for over two years, has teamed up with a Spanish-based distribution company Pasty Shack for the project and there are plans to open further shops in the coming months.

Barry Yates from Pasty Shack said; "The store was really busy on Tuesday.

"The Spanish have even taken to them, and they particularly like the cheese and onion variety."

The Oxford English Dictionary suggests that the pasty was identified in around 1300.

It became more commonplace in the 16th and 17th Centuries, and by the 18th century was firmly established as the staple diet of working men across Cornwall.