Sabores Olores y Colores

†† † †† las regiones de colombia vol. i SABORES OLORES y COLORES edited by natalie olaya †



SABORES OLORES Y COLORES las regiones de colombia vol. i edited by natalie olaya 3



contents vol. i 5 History of Agriculture & Slavery Andes 13 21 39 El Ajiaco: Un Plato con Historia 51 La Historia del Chocolate 65 Colombiano y el Molinillo Chica: The Bitter Brew of History & the Origins of Chica Historia del Café de Colombia Caribbean 69 83 For the Love of Plantain: The History & Variations 101 of Platanos 105 El Boli, ¿Un Manjar Costeño que Pierde Vigencia? Barrio Que Vive de los Bolis Trans- Atlantic Food Migration: 111 The A frican Culinary Influence on the Cuisine of the Americas Endnotes 116 5



HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE & SLAVERY † Pre Columbian Agriculture: Indigenous peoples in Colombia were the first to process plants and animals to produce food.They cultivated maize and understood the climate and geography of Colombia to develop planting techniques using terraces, a sloped plane that has been cut into a series of receding flat surfaces which resemble steps. Tomatoes, avocados, guavas, chilli peppers, manioc, prickly pear, yuca and potato were first cultivated in Colombia and were used as additional food resources. The Indigenous people were also hunters and consumed local fauna such as deer, rabbits, snails, fishes and birds. They also cultivated coca and marijuanna for ceremonial purposes Colonial Agriculture: The European diet was principally composed of bread, olive oil, olives, “meat,” and wine. And when these foods weren’t found in the new land, they began to consume most of the Indigenous peoples plantations. The spaniards then turned violent and forced the Indigenous people into slavery and brought many illnesses to the community greatly diminishing the indigenous population. The Spaniards also brought livestock such as horses, cattle, goats and birds mostly intended for human consumption and commerce. For the colonizers, food not only functioned as a way to claim superiority, but as a role of social identification. In spain, elites consume bread, meat and wine. The poor instead ate things such as barley, oats, rye and vegetable stew. “Elites preferred to consume food that came from trees, elevated from the filth of the common world.” The Spaniards brought livestock to the land and this new meat industry instigated the decline of the Indigenous population. The new livestock needed land to graze which Spaniards provided with no regard for the way the land was being used prior to their arrival. The herds would often wander onto Indigenous croplands and destroy their primary means of food. Many indigenous peoples in this region became malnourished, too weak to fight against Colonization, or starved to death. Eventually, they began to consume European food. A critical part of colonization was carried out through the women who arrived to the new world after their men, re-emphasizing the idea of an ideal “spanish family”. Spaniard women were the “civilized” women that the Indigenous women were to become as 7

they were forced into domestic work in spanish homes. The roles of Indigenous women in the home were to learn to cook European foods and reproduce colonial practices however they would introduce Indigenous foods into European diets. This introduction of indigenous foods into the Spanish household had to also do with the mestizas, the violent mix of Indigenous and Spaniard. Euorepans decided what was okay to integrate into the “right” cuisine and became forced to accept Indigenous foods during famine. “For Indigenous people, Spanish cuisine was a principal reason that colonists were intent on acquiring the lands on which they produced their own food. Thus, for Indigenous people, the struggle was in maintaining their own cuisine while understanding that, for pragmatic reasons, they had to adopt new foods.” Afro-Colombian Agriculture: In the 16th Century, Africans were taken to Colombia as slaves from modern day Congo, Angola, Gambia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Liberia, Ghana, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Senegal and Mali to replace the vanishing Indigenous population. African slaves were forced to work in gold mines, sugar cane plantations, cattle ranches and haciendas. They worked in modern day departments of Choco, Antioquia, Cauca, Valle del Cauca and Nariño, in the pacific region of Colombia. African slaves who were able to escape Spanish colonization fled to Cartagena, the first sanctuary for freed African slaves in the Americas. Before the trans atlantic slave trade, Africa’s East and West Coast cultures made their way through the means of exploration, migration and trade expeditions to Indigenous cultures in South America and the Caribbean. West African cooks would make sure that seasoning such as hot peppers and spices such as Guinea grains, melegueta, spicy cedar, tea bush and black pepper was an essential part of cooking fish, meat, vegetables and beans and rice. Oils were also used in preparing West African dishes, such as groundnut, peanut, coconut, corn, shea butter and palm. Along with the specific foods and spices that came with the enslaved people, they also brought cooking methods with them. They include frying, boiling, roasting and steaming (wrapped in banana, plantain, cocoyam leaves or corn sheaths)

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Colombia is the second most bio diverse country in the entire world with about 56,000 different species and 6 different landscapes. Colombia is divided into 6 natural regions: the Andean region, the Caribbean region, the Pacific Region, the Orinoquia region, and the Insular region.

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Colombian cuisine has a vast menu, each plate served differently from the next region based on the region's own fruits and vegetables, animals and agriculture. Although there are a lot of differences between plates and ingredients, there are still similarities in each dish. Each departamento presents their dishes in their unique and original way based on who was there and what's grown around them. 13

AND

DES 15



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Biodiversity: Dry Forest, Rainforest, Mountain Forest, Páramo: Tropical, Subtropical, Temperate Departamentos: Antioquia, Boyaca, Caldas, Caqueta, Cauca, Cesar, Choco, Cundinamarca, Huila, Narino, Norte de Santander, Putumayo, Quindio, Risaralda, Santander, Tolima, Valle de Cauca

The Andes is the most populous region of Colombia and contains the majority of the country’s urban centres. This region is the location of the most significant pre-Columbian indigenous settlements. The Colombian Andes divide into 3 branches known as “cordilleras” The land can be divided into tierra caliente (river valley), tierra templada, tierra fria, zona forestada, paramos and tierra helada. 19

Ajiaco A popular soup in Bogotá, usually made with chicken, corn, guascas — an important source of flavor for the dish, and three different 4 Garlic cloves types of potatoes; la papa criolla, white potatoes and red potatoes. Heavy cream ‡ Place the chicken breasts in a pot and bring to boil for 30 2 cups minutes, or until the chicken is soft. Once the chicken is soft, add onion, garlic, sliced potatoes into the pot and wait until they 3 scallions dissolve. Add your seasoning, salt, thyme, basil and rosemary. Chicken breast After the chicken breast is cooked, remove the chicken breasts and place aside. Add the corn with the papas criollas to the 3 pounds broth, cooking it over low heat until the density of the broth is the density desired. Add the guascas 5 minutes before serving. Water The chicken can also be served shredded and should be mixed in 16 cups with the cream for a better flavor. 4 Corn Add the corn to the soup. Serve and accompany the dish with an avocado and rice. The capers and milk cream are served as a White & red potatoes side as well to be added to the soup to taste. 2 pounds Papas Criollas 1 pound Cilantro 1 branch Guascas 1 branch Caper bush 1 cup 4 medium avocados Thyme (to taste) Basil (to taste) Rosemary (to taste) Salt (to taste)

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Canal Trece Colombia

EL AJIACO: Boyacá, quienes se caracterizaron por realizar UN PLATO preparaciones con maíz. Esta comunidad nativa CON HISTORIA preparaba una sopa compuesta por papa, cebolla y maíz, que después incluyó ingredientes † Aunque se puede preparar de diversas maneras, provenientes del Viejo Continente como el pollo, la conserva ese sabor que nos recuerda los deliciosos crema de leche y las alcaparras. manjares hechos en casa; no en vano en 1899 el escritor e historiador colombiano José María Los registros de historiadores revelan que, en el Cordovez Moure definió al ajiaco con pollo como siglo XIX, el ajiaco solamente se preparaba en “una obra maestra del arte culinario”. El ajiaco ocasiones importantes como la celebración del más tradicional está compuesto por papa criolla, Corpus Christi y la fiesta de navidad. Esta sopa papa sabanera, papa pastusa, cebolla larga, espesa también se servía a las visitas especiales arracacha, mazorca, pollo y guascas. Entre sus y era común acompañarla con un postre: dulce acompañamientos se encuentran la crema de leche, de mora, brevas con arequipe, arroz con leche o las alcaparras, el aguacate y, para los más osados, el helado de curuba. Este último era el maridaje más ají. apetecido. Como dato curioso, el ajiaco tampoco sería posible sin las gallinas que fueron traídas hacia 1537 de Europa y que lograron adaptarse al clima templado del altiplano cundiboyacense. Registros de viajeros de la época de la Colonia revelaron que los primeros ajiacos se preparaban con carne de res o de oveja. Orígenes del ajiaco Aderezos del ajiaco El nombre de este plato tiene varias teorías: la Un buen ajiaco está acompañado por tres – más arraigada dice que se denominó así porque su venerados o despreciados– complementos: receta inicial contenía ají. Este dato lo afirmó Rufino alcaparras, guascas y crema de leche, que en José Cuervo en 1907, cuando señaló que “el ajiaco realidad hacen parte del ajiaco moderno. Aunque no es un plato caracterizado por el ají, y así sucede se cuenta con un dato exacto sobre su inclusión, las en Cuba, Perú y Chile […] entre nosotros lo que se primeras referencias bibliográficas de las alcaparras llama así no lleva tanto picante”. Otros creen en datan del año 1923, mientras que las guascas sí una leyenda indígena que cuenta que este caldo se se empezaron a emplear desde preparaciones bautizó así cuando gobernaba el Cacique Aco junto tempranas. Hacia mediados del siglo XIX los textos a su esposa Aj, y la combinación de sus nombres culinarios ya se referían al particular olor de las originó esta palabra. Los demás consideran que guascas... Así que el ajiaco y todos nuestros platos el término ajiaco es un nombre genérico, que se típicos son un claro reflejo de todo lo que significa le otorgaba a sopas y cocidos, lo que explicaría ser colombiano: nuestras raíces, nuestra identidad, la existencia de diversos tipos de ajiaco en varios nuestros sentires como sociedad, la riqueza de países de Hispanoamérica. nuestros suelos, el talento de nuestros cocineros, el esmero de nuestros campesinos y nuestras La idea de esta preparación que tuvo su auge y remembranzas personales.1 desarrollo en la época de la Colonia se le atribuye a los Muiscas que habitaban Cundinamarca y —­ Anéglica Loiza 23

Bandeja Paisa The Bandeja Paisa is an extremly popular dish found in many regions of Colombia, but the meal originated in the Antioquia region of the country. This platter includes rice, beans, chorizo, chicharron, arepas, a fried egg, avacados and sometimes ground beef and morcillas. Arroz y Frijoles ‡ Frijoles Chicharron Chorizo Soak pinto beans in water for at least an hour. This is to make Arepa them soft and easier to cook. Aguacate Platano Maduro Chop pimiento rojo ,verdes, y amarillos, cebolla y tomate. Cut Huevo Frito them relatively small. Pimientos (rojos, verdes y amarillos) Drizzle oil to cover up the bottom of the pot and add the prepped cebolla vegetables. Season the sauteed vegetable black pepper, tumeric, tomate cayenne, garlic, sazon and a pinch of salt. Let the vegetables cook bicarbonato de soda on medium heat, stirring it every once in a while. masarepa mantequilla Once they begin to turn brown, pour 1 cup of water into the pot, platano maduro and then the beans. Make sure that the water covers the beans. huevos Pour more water if necessary. Add salt and pepper to the water to taste. Make sure the beans are soft when done. ‡ Arroz Blanco Wash 2 cups of rice until the water is clear. Chop up the white onions and distrubute evenly in pot, drizzle oil into pot. Turn the stove on to medium heat, and wait for the onions to cook. Place the rice in the pot, mixing it around with the onions and oil. aceite Add 4 cups of water, or enough to submerge the rice. Add salt to taste and let cook.

‡ Chicharron Wash ½ pound of Chicarron. Rub baking soda into the fat, let sit in the fridge for 1 hour. Once taken out, take a knife and cut into the meat, making 1 ½ cuts into each piece. Do not cut into the fat Place the chicharron pieces into a deep pan. Add enough water to submerge them and place onto high heat. Salt the water. Allow the water to evaporate and then switch to medium heat. The grease from the pork will let the chicharron cook itself. Cook until golden and crispy on both sides. Salt and lime the chicharron if needed. ‡ Arepas Place 2 cups of water on the stove to heat up. Once steaming, turn off the stove Place the masarepa in a bowl. Add butter and salt. Knead together with your hands. Start adding a bit of water at a time, as to not have the flour too dry. Pour in a bit at a time to control the consistency. Keeping adding water and butter.The masarepa should be moldable and not tacky or crumbly. Take a bit of the masarepa and create a ball by placing it in the middle palms of your hands and rubbing them together in a circular motion. Once rolled into a tight ball, press your palms together, evenly flattening it out into a thin disc. Place on the grill. Flip when golden underneath, ‡ Maduros (yellow plantains) Peel yellow plantain skin Cut in half. Take each piece and split in People from this area half, top to bottom. Cut into quarter pieces. are called Paisas, or countryman. It was originally Add oil to a pan. Place the cut up plantain pieces into the hot oil. considered peasant food Flip each piece when they begin to turn brown. because farmers in the Antioquia regions would eat ‡ Chorizo (Tropical Colombian Brand) this large meal for breakfast before working in the fields. Place on grill, flipping when each side is golden brown and The many components of cooked. this platter would keep them going throughout the day. ‡ Fried egg 25



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Changua A breakfast soup made of water and milk with cooked eggs, and tostadas, garnished with cilantro, salt and pepper. The traditional changua recipe is said to have been passed down by mothers and grandmothers, leading back to the Muisca tribe, who predominantly lived in the central Andean highlands. Milk 2 Cups ‡ Finely chop the cilantro. Water Add the water and milk to a medium pot and bring to a boil over 2 Cups medium heat. 4 Eggs Once boiling, crack the eggs into the pot. Do Not Stir. Let eggs Handful cilantro cook for about 5 minutes, or until the egg yolks are just barely Tostadas firm. Salt & Pepper Garnish with cilantro Scoop an egg into each bowl and ladle in more broth and serve with bread for dipping.

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Fritanga Fritanaga is a varied dish with papaya bogotana (papa criolla), plátanos, morcillas, longaniza, yuga crita, stuffed potatoes, chich- Pork ribs or pork meat arron, chorizo, chunchullo, aguacate, limón, hogao and a beer ­— very important! 2-3 pounds ‡ Place the pork into a large plastic bowl, adding the alinos sauce aliños sauce on top. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. ½ cup In a deep pan, add oil and wait until the oil is hot. Add the pork Frying oil and meat into the pan, cooking until golden. 1 cup Serve with sauces, yucca fries, papas criollas, tomatoes, patacones, lime, guacamole and hoaga. Chorizo ‡ Yucca fries 2 pounds In a large pot, place the yuca fries and cover them with water, Chicharron salting the water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to medium low heat and cook until the yuca is tender. 2 pounds Remove the yuca fries from the water and pat dry. Cut them into Morcillas ½ inch strips. 2 large green plantains In a large frying pan, add oil. Once the oil is hot, add the cooked yucas and fry until golden brown on both sides. One brown, take Yuca fries them out and sprinkle with salt. 2 pounds ‡ Papa Criollas Papa criollas Preheat the oven to 400°F. 2 pounds In a large bowl, mix the olive oil, salt & pepper. Add the potatoes to the oil mixture, making sure to completely coat with oil. 1 large tomato Add the potatoes to a baking sheet creating one layer. Bake for Salt & pepper 40 minutes or until golden brown. Lime (for serving) Sprinkle with salt when taken out. Guacamole (for serving) Hogao (for serving) Aji (for serving)

Although fritinaga is the ‡ Patacones most traditional dish in the Andean regions of Boyacá, Peel the platanos and cut the across in quarter pieces. Cundinamarca, Tolima, other regions eat fritanga, In a deep pan, add a good amount of oil, heating it on medium varying the dish according heat. Once the oil is hot, add the plantain pieces. If needed, add to the particular ingredients oil to cover the plantains completely. of each region. Fritanaga is commonly enjoyed Fry the plantains until they are golden brown, moving them in plazas de mercado o around frequently so as to not burn one side. piqueteaderos, restaurants specialized in Fritangas. Remove the plantains once brown with a tong and place them Make sure this plate is on a paper towel to absorb the oil. Do not turn off the heat. Place enjoyed with friends and them on plantain masher or tortilla press. If there is no access to family — it's a lot of food! either, place plantains on a plastic wrap and cover with another plastic wrap. With a flat pot cover, press well on the pieces of plantain flattening them. Once flattened, place the flattened plantains back into the oil, cooking them for 3 minutes on each side Remove the patacones and transfer to a paper towel, to absorb the oil. Sprinkle with salt to taste. 31

Hamburguesas Colombianas Hamburguesas Colombianas are similar to the perros calientes from Colombia, they have everything on it. The best hamburgers 1 ½ ground beef in Colombia can be found in Burgers El Corral. You can replace the burger buns with patacones, flattened and fried plantains. Hamburger Buns ‡ Set your oven to 400° and season your fries with salt, pepper, Sauces oregano and a bit of cayenne pepper to taste. Place on a baking tray and place in the oven once ready. (garlic mayonnaise, pink sauce, pineapple & green sauce, BBQ Season your ground beef with amino acids, Adobo, salt and sauce, Ketchup, Tartar Sauce etc.) pepper, garlic powder and any other seasonings preferred making sure to season both sides of the ground beef. Once done Sliced white cheese seasoning, take a small amount of the ground beef and create a circle, then flatten it out. Lettuce Place the hamburger meat on the grill, keeping an eye on it; flip Tomato slices once one side is completely cooked. Add the hamburger buns to the grill as well as adding cheese to the cooked side of the Bacon hamburger meat. Shredded fries or thin fries Place your bacon on a sarten, making sure that it is crispy. Salt Once the buns are golden brown, take off the grill and place on a plate. Add ketchup, bbq sauce to one bun and then the lettuce, tomato. Add the hamburger meat with the cheese on top of the lettuce and tomato, adding some mayonnaise on top. Place the cooked bacon on top of the hamburger meat and add some fries on top of the bacon. Add salsa de piña and then add the top bun.

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Hamburguesas Colombianas De Patacones

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Sobrebarriga Al Horno Flank steak Sobrebarriga is usually prepared by cooking the steak in water with vegetables and Colombian seasonings, taking the beef out and 2 pounds topping it with breadcrumbs and then baking it in the oven. This dish is extremely popular in Bogotá and served with arroz y papas Water chorreadas. 8 cups ‡ Start off by making the aliños sauce. Chop up the green & red peppers and scallions, crush the garlic and place them in a food 1 dark beer processor or blender along with the water. Season with cumin and sazon Goya. Blend or process until it becomes a paste. Breadcrumbs In a hot pot, add the flank steak and cover with water, aliños ½ cup sauce, salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about 2 hours or until the meat is cooked on low medium heat. Salt and pepper (to taste) Remove the flank steak from the pot and drain. Place the steak in Aliños sauce a bowl, pour the beer and let sit for 15 minutes. 1 cup Preheat the oven to 350°F Aliños sauce Place the steak on a baking sheet, adding breadcrumbs to both ½ medium green & red pepper sides. Made sure to evenly distribute the breadcrumbs on the steak. Cook for 20-25 or until brown. ½ onion Serve with white rice and papas chorreadas 4 scallions ½ cumin 2 cloves of garlic Water 1 cup Sazon Goya with azafran ½ tbsp Sobrebarriga can be prepared in different ways: Sobrebarriga suada, sobrebarriga en salsa and sobrebarriga al horno.

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Papas Chorreadas Papas chorreadas is a typical Andean Colombian side dish; red potatoes and creamy cheese served with scallions and tomatoes. 8 medium red potatoes, The name derives from chorrear, to flow or pour, which the sauce partially peeled is intended to overflow the potatoes. It's a crucial side dish for Sobrebarriga al horno. 1 tablet chicken bouillon ‡ Place the potatoes and chicken bouillon in a large pot and Butter cover with cold water and Salt the water. Bring to a boil, cooking the potatoes until they are completely tender. Drain when 1 tbsp complete and set aside. Vegetable oil While the potatoes are cooking, heat the oil and butter in a frying pan on medium heat. Add the scallions and tomatoes, stirring 1 tbsp frequently until slightly softened . Then season them with garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper and stir for another 2 minutes. 3 scallions, cut 2 inches long Add heavy cream and bring to a simmer, cooking until the sauce comes together and thickens slightly. Diced tomatoes Season the sauce to taste and add the grated cheese, heating the 1 ½ cups sauce and cheese until they begin to slightly melt. Garlic powder Pour sauce over the plated potatoes and serve immediately. ¼ tbsp Cumin ¼ tbsp Salt & pepper (to taste) Heavy whipping cream 1 cup Chopped cilantro 1 tbsp Shredded mozzarella cheese 1 cup

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LA HISTORIA European Adaptation DEL CHOCOLATE COLOMBIANO Y The Spanish colonizers loved the flavor of chocolate EL MOLINILLO and took it back to Spain where it became the King’s official drink. Around the end of the 18th century, † Molinillo & history of hot chocolate 2 Europeans started preparing chocolate with milk The Molinillo [moh-lee-NEE-yoh] is a traditional, and sugar to create what we know today as hot hand-made whisk used in Latin America and the chocolate. The drink was so popular in Europe that Philippines as well, where it’s known as batidor. This porcelain manufacturers began making specialized turned wood whisk is used to prepare hot drinks pots and cups to serve hot chocolate. such as hot chocolate, atole and Champurrado.The molinillo is held between the palms and rotated by Bogatá rubbing the palms together, this rotation creates the froth in the drink. Chocolate Santafereño is named after the city of Bogotá, once called Santafé de Bogotá. It was traditionally made with water rather than milk. Now hot chocolate is more than just a drink in Bogotá. It forms part of a hefty snack that comes with cheese, an arepa, a roll, an almojabana, or a buñuelo. Cacao tree3 The cacao tree comes from the Amazon basin in Colombia and in other neighboring countries. Evidence of the use of cacao goes back thousands of years. Cacao trees were first cultivated up north, by the Aztecs and Mayans. They are the ones who gave us the word “chocolatl” (hot water) and cacahuatl (cacao beverage). Hot Chocolate olleta The way Aztecs created hot chocolate was by simply roasting cocoa beans, ground on a metate with some seeds and flavoring. The chocolate was thick, grainy and would separate. The Aztecs would keep pouring the mixture from one pot to another, to keep the chocolate mixed. Colonization: Spaniards molinillo The Spaniards invented the molinillo, around the 1700s; earliest versions using a simple ball or square at one end of a long handle. The molinillo became more elaborate with rings and moveable parts that helped the whisking process. The molinillos were designed to fit into a specific container with the handle extending out the top. 41



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Chocolate con queso A popular breakfast in the cold cities like Bogotá is chocolate con Olleta queso, hot chocolate with pieces of cheese dropped into the drink and eaten melted. Hot chocolate and cheese is usually eaten with a side of scrambled eggs, arepas, bread, tamales or pan de bonos. Chocolate has a history in Colombia, going all the way back to the Muisca tribe. ‡ Break off 4 Sticks of Colombian Drinking Chocolate and set Molinillo aside. Milk Pour milk into a Chocolatera and heat on medium high heat. 4 cups Add the chocolate, stirring it occasionally with a molinillo Sol drinking chocolate 4 sticks Keep an eye on the chocolate mix. Wait for a volcano of chocolate Block of mozzarella cheese to bubble up to the top of the Chocolatera and immediately remove from the heat. Take the molinillo and froth the Chocolate by rubbing your hands together back and forth. Serve and drop some small pieces of Mozzarella cheese into the bottom of the cup. Drink immediately, look for the cheese in the drink. Eat with an arepa.

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Obleas A street dessert that is customarily spread with arequipe caramel, fruit jams, whipped cream, grated cheese, or chocolate sprinkles. Waffle Cone Maker The shredded cheese is usually added for texture as it doesn’t have an overpowering flavor. Water ‡ In a bowl, place the all purpose flour. Add cornstarch and 1/4 Liter baking soda to the bowl and whisk well with a fork. Vegetable oil In another bowl pour in the water, sugar and vegetable oil. Mix well with a whisk. 2 tablespoons Slowly add the mixture of all purpose flour a little at a time to the Sugar water mixture and whisk until the. Repeat this until all the flour is mixed in. This is done in 3 sections to avoid lumps from forming. 1 & 1/2 Tablespoon The new mixture should be thick and velvety. All-purpose wheat flour Place the waffle cone maker on the stove on medium heat. Allow (no baking powder) it to warm up. 1 & 1/3 cup Scoop out a spoonful of the mixture and place it in the middle of the waffle cone maker. Close and let it sit for 1 minute, then flip. Cornstarch Let it sit for another minute. Make sure la galleta is golden brown when finished 1/2 Tablespoon Place obela on the drying rack and allow them to cool down. Baking Soda Spread arequipe and mora, or fruit jam, onto the wafer, then add 1/4 teaspoon the grated cheese. Fillings Add toppings Arequipe (Dulce de leche Mora (Fruit Jam) Whipped cream Grated cheese Toppings Whipped cream Grated cheese Chocolate sprinkles Crema de leche

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Pasteles Gloria A puff pastry stuffed with cheese, guava paste and arequipe. Pasteles Gloria can be eaten year round but are perfect for the 1 package frozen puff pastry navideña season. Pasteles Gloria are thought to be of Arabic origin and are known in different regions of the southeast of Spain as a (Pillsbury™ Place 'n Bake refrigerated Christmas pastry. crescent rounds) ‡ Preheat oven to 350 1 egg Lay out the puff pastry on a floured surface. Flour the top of the Sugar (garnish) dough, roll out the puff pastry until it is half as thick. 2 tbsp Lightly beat an egg Guava paste Using a large cookie cutter, cut into 24 circles and brush the edges of the circles with the egg. 4 oz, sliced Cut the guava paste and cheese into cubes and place on the White or mozzarella cheese center of each circle. Add the arequipe on top. Place another circle on top to enclose the filling. 4 oz Arequipe 4oz Crimp the edges of the pasteles with a fork. Place them on parchment paper baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown and puffy Once out of the oven, sprinkle the sugar onto the pastel, making sure to cover the surface. Let the pasteles cool for about 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Tequeños Tequeño is a fried breaded cheese stick or a spear of bread dough with queso blanco stuffed in the middle, and is a popular meal All purpose flour or snack in Venezuela and Colombia. To prepare it, the dough is wrapped around a cheesestick and formed into a breadstick so it 2 cups can be fried in oil. Baking powder ‡ In a bowl add all purpose flour, baking powder, sugar and salt then whisk. 1 tsp Add one egg and butter and mix the egg with the flour. Pour in the White sugar ice water. 2 tsp Knead the dough, until it is nice and smooth and completely mixed. Place the dough back into the bowl, and place some saran Salt wrap to cover it. Leave it to rest at room temperature for about 30 mins. 1 large egg Unsalted butter ¼ cup Flour a flat surface and place the dough on top of the surface. Ice cold water Take a rolling pin, adding flour onto it, and flatten the dough until it is as thin as possible. 6-7 tbsp With a knife, shape the dough into a rectangle and cut it into Cheese for frying vertical strips. Flatten it again with a rolling pin to make it as flat as possible. 12 oz Oil for frying. Cut the frying cheese into strips and wrap each stick with a strip of dough, starting at one end and making sure there are no gaps in it. Wrap the dough around the cheese. Pinch each end with your fingers and make sure each gap is tightly sealed. Deep fry each stick in hot oil until they are golden brown. Make sure to move them every now and then so they do not burn. Once finished, take them out and place them onto a paper towel.