I’d been looking for a way to use chirimoyas since I came across them a few months ago in a nearby market. Originally found in the Andean region between Peru and Ecuador, they’re also cultivated in small pockets throughout Chile, California, Spain, New Zealand, Australia, and Israel. Heart-shaped and scaly, they could be a dragon’s paw and are almost as rare in my Brooklyn neighborhood, so I was excited when I found them. Also known as custard apples, they’re like everything and like nothing else. The fruit can be likened to strawberry, banana, pineapple, papaya, avocados, mango, ripe pears, and commercial bubble gum while Mark Twain described it more simply as “deliciousness itself.” Continue reading ‘Merengues con Chirimoya’
Archive for the 'Bread/Baked Goods' Category
Merengues con Chirimoya
Published 24 January 2010 Brazil , Bread/Baked Goods , Brooklyn , Country , Desserts , Ecuador , Peru , Spain 5 CommentsTags: Anna Pavlova, Cherimoya, Chirimoya, Custard Apples, Dulce de Leche, Manjarblanco, Mark Twain, Pavlovas, Yanuq
Pan de Yuca
Published 13 January 2010 Appetizers , Argentina , Brazil , Bread/Baked Goods , Breakfast/Brunch , Colombia , Ecuador , Light Lunch , Miami , Recipes Leave a CommentTags: Chipas, Pan de queso, Pan de yuca, Pão de queijo, Tapioca Starch, Yuca Harina
Though I’d love to have homemade rolls every day, I stay away from bread recipes for first thing. They never seem to rise and bulk up in the time promised. I wake up early and spend the morning nervously peeking at the dough I lovingly covered in its blanky and placed in a draft free place to no avail. One hour becomes two and there’s no breakfast in sight. By the time it’s done, I’m too cranky to really enjoy it. I didn’t get to sleep in yet the dough enjoyed a leisurely rise. When I came across pan de yuca or yuca bread in a Miami, I was curious. A combination of yuca flour (also known as tapioca starch) and cheese, it can be mixed and rolled as quickly as arepas then baked off. Continue reading ‘Pan de Yuca’
Estrellas de Chocolate
Published 15 December 2009 Bread/Baked Goods , Cookies , Cuba , Desserts , General 1 CommentTags: Chocolate Cookies, Cocina al Minuto, Nitza Villapol, Peppermint
I’ve become deeply suspicious of Cuban cookies. It’s not really the cookie’s fault. They’re just not what we do. Growing up, home baked cookies weren’t foreign but they did have the exoticism of something you’d mostly like get at a friend’s house. Tres leches, meringues, tocino del cielo, flan were home, toll house was not. The last couple of months, I’ve tried a few forgettable variations. I follow the recipes to the letter but cusubes elude me and my caballitos de queque were cinnamon drenched failures. This being the cookie season, I looked though all my Cuban sources for a new recipe that was traditional but workable. Many called for Crisco with 1950’s abandon while others were really turrones (blended with more Crisco). Continue reading ‘Estrellas de Chocolate’
Figure Eights
Published 6 December 2009 Argentina , Bread/Baked Goods , Colombia , Cuba , Desserts , Mexico , Puerto Rico , Spain 1 CommentTags: Anise, Arab, Bunuelos, Bunyols de Quaresma, Catalunya, Christmas, Iberia, Malanga, New Year's Eve, Oaxaca, Sephardic, Turkey, yautia, Yuca
There’s always a point when I finish a post and choose a country category that feels a little dishonest. Well not so much dishonest but not the whole elephant either. When I decided to write about Latin food, I knew that it would be a fuzzy focus and difficult to define. Buñuelos, fritters popular throughout Spain and Latin America, are a good example. Originally from the Iberian penninsula, they’re either Arabic or Sephardic, or maybe both. Typically made from a wheat-based dough that’s flavored with anise, they’re rolled into balls or discs and deep fried then topped with a syrup or honey. Continue reading ‘Figure Eights’
Elena Ruz
Published 28 November 2009 Bread/Baked Goods , Cuba , Light Lunch 1 CommentTags: Cuban sandwiches, El Caramelo, Elena Ruz, Havana, Roasted Turkey
The Elena Ruz sandwich always seemed a little out of place on the menu. A combination of roasted turkey, cream cheese and strawberry preserves, it floats alongside the heavier ham, lechon asado and cheese melds of Cuban lunch menus – lighter and prettier with a first and last name. Named for Elena Ruz, a Havana socialite who had the unusual combination made to order for her at El Carmelo. Then a fashionable cafe in the 1930s, it landed on the menu becoming a popular item. According to later interviews, her parents were scandalized to see a sign for “Sandwich Elena Ruz 25 centavos” on display, though as she pointed out the other sandwiches only went for 10 cents at the time. Continue reading ‘Elena Ruz’
Snow Days
Published 20 November 2009 Bread/Baked Goods , Breakfast/Brunch , Cuba , Desserts , Miami , Recipes 2 CommentsTags: Churrera, Churros, Versailles
Though it’s typically full, it’s rare to see a line outside of Versailles restaurant in Miami. It’s only on the rare cold night that it actually reaches capacity, especially when there’s a run on churros. Any day that dips below 65 becomes an impromptu holiday in a summer town, a Miami snow day of sprinkled sugar and fried dough. The lines form and the usual late night orders for medianoches and mariquitas become churros and hot chocolate.
I think it’s the special occasion quality I associate with churros that keeps me from buying them in New York (though I’d never pass them up in Madrid – I’m not crazy). Yesterday, deciding I needed a little Christmas now, I brought out the churrera, that my mother who hates to cook but loves kitchen gadgets sent, and my Continue reading ‘Snow Days’
Practical Packages
Published 18 November 2009 Basic Techniques , Bread/Baked Goods , Light Lunch , Spain 2 CommentsTags: Alhambra, Anya Van Bremzen, Empanadas, Granada, Hernan Cortes, Maria Josefa Lluria de O'Higgins, Mexico City, Pastela Moruna, Puff Pastry, Sophie Coe
With the holidays coming fast and furious, I had the uncharacteristically practical thought that it was time to make empanadas, an easy way to use leftovers. So sensible, but after a poor initial batch involving sirloin tips and too-buttery dough, I had to start from scratch. I was looking for something in a chicken, baked not fried, and maybe a little sweet. That’s when I found Anya Von Bremzen’s recipe for pastela moruna, Moorish chicken with dried fruits and Continue reading ‘Practical Packages’
Pan de Medianoche
Published 30 September 2009 Bread/Baked Goods , Cuba , Light Lunch , Miami Leave a Comment
Recently, when I was asking friends and family how they felt about the sandwich Cubano, I was surprised at how many said they preferred medianoches. Similar to the Cubano but smaller and sweeter, the medianoche or “midnight” sandwich was sold in Havana nightclubs to tired dancers and at late night cafes. Also tired from my last miss at making a pan de agua loaf, I decided to try making a medianoche bread instead. If you live in South Florida, making Cuban bread at home makes as much sense as churning your own butter. It’s as easy to find there as it’s impossible everywhere else, so I was excited to find a recipe for the challah-like bread on the Three Guys From Miami site. I spent all day fussing over the rolls like a nervous mother – will the yeast bubble, do I knead more, will they rise? I definitely had a few oh no moments along the way, I was to0 kneady, but they did rise. The final result was all I could have hoped for a first try – a half dozen sweet, eggy medianoche rolls and one so plump it looked like it was going to eat the other five. Though here is a lot of room for improvement with practice, I couldn’t be prouder. Continue reading ‘Pan de Medianoche’
Getting Warmer
Published 10 August 2009 Bread/Baked Goods , Cuba , Miami 1 CommentTags: Pan de Agua

I made yet another attempt at producing Cuban pan de agua this morning with mixed results. If my last loaf went French, this one stopped by Italy came out a pan de ciabatta or ciabatta de agua. The barely there crust of Cuban bread still eludes me but the slightly sweet flavor and airy texture were much closer. When it rised up perfectly and plumped in the oven, I thought I finally had it but it wasn’t to be. Nevertheless, I am getting warmer and will be diving into the flour bag again. It’s hard to tell where my Cuban bread will go next. Greece? Morocco? Spain? I’ll find out soon enough.








