Bizcocho ( or ) is the name given in the Spanish-speaking world to a wide range of pastries, cakes or cookies. The exact product to which the word bizcocho is applied varies widely depending on the region and country. For instance, in Spain bizcocho is exclusively used to refer to sponge cake. In Uruguay, most buttery flaky pastry including croissants are termed bizcocho, whilst sponge cake is called bizcochuelo. In Chile, the Dominican Republic and Bolivia bizcocho refers to a sweet dough (masa) baked with local ingredients, similar to the bizcocho from Spain. In Ecuador the dough of a bizcocho can either be sweet or salty. The US state New Mexico is unusual in using the diminutive form of the name, bizcochito, as the name for a locally developed and very popular cookie. History The word sponge cake comes from the Latin , which means "cooked twice", that is why it was often soaked in wine, due to the low humidity it had. The Uruguayan sponge cake is frequently related to the German pastry. It is argued that it is a derivative of krapfen, which was brought by the German immigration that went to the Río de la Plata region. According to other versions, however, the origin of the cake would be the fusion of French and Spanish bakeries, as evidenced by the accounts of colonial Montevideo by Isidoro de María and the genealogical studies of Juan Alejandro Apolant and Ricardo Goldaracena. From these studies and publications it appears that the first bakers in Montevideo came from France and Spain, as documented in the immigration records of the first settlers in which their profession is recorded. In fact, the puff pastry croissant, one of the varieties of sponge cake, was invented in France and its first recipe dates back to 1905. Types of bizcochos Some of the most usual types of bizcochos are: Bizcochito: A cookie flavored with anise and cinnamon developed in the Spanish colonial province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México, roughly corresponding to the US state New Mexico in the present day. Bizcocho de soletilla: The name given in Spain to ladyfinger biscuits. Croasanes or croissants: Croissants are called bizcocho in Uruguay. Sweet croasanes can be filled with chocolate, pastry cream, dulce de membrillo (a sweet quince paste), or dulce de leche, savoury with cheese, ham or salami. Galletas dulces or : A descendant of the pastry