The dessert is popularly said to be named after a 16th-century pope, even though the cake itself is a purely Nicaraguan invention with no known Roman connection.
A moist sponge cake cut into cubes, soaked in a sweet rum-spiked syrup, and topped with meringue or whipped cream. Vendors around Granada's central park and the Calzada spoon it into small cups for a quick, sweet bite.