Today I am introducing rice pudding or in Spanish “arroz con leche” and I will tell you how I got the recipe, which is a super sweet story. But first let’s talk about this dessert. Arroz con leche is an extremely universal recipe. For example, rice pudding is enjoyed in the Scandinavian countries. In fact, rice pudding is often served during Christmas season and they have created their own little traditions and customs around it. In Germany rice pudding became famous during and after World War II as a cheap main meal (I have to say, I still don’t get how a sweet dish can be served as a main meal). Rice pudding is also famous in Spain and made it to Latin America at some point. You may wonder why I am introducing this universally loved recipe here. The answer is because one reader of this blog went out of her way so that I was able to obtain the cookbook containing this recipe. But let’s start at the beginning.
Massini – today I am going to introduce a delicious dessert from Uruguay to you. Imagine two thin layers of sponge cake which sandwich together a whipping cream filling. This is then topped off with a custard layer, which has a caramelized sugar top. Of course any Uruguayan is proud of this famous dessert. It is said that the Spanish immigrant Pedro Carrera invented this dessert in 1951. He opened the pastry shop Carrera in the capital Montevideo and served this dessert. To the present day you can buy a Massini dessert at the pastry shop, yet the pastry shop usually spells it with only one S. Of course the dessert made it to the Uruguayan show Masterchef and has been popular outside of the country as well. I have to admit though that I had not managed to eat this dessert until the present day. For anyone who loves a dessert with light sponge cake and whipping cream, this dessert is for you.
Today we have plum tiramisu with no alcohol or raw egg. Do you think I am in a plum craze? You bet! But to my defense, you seem to be, too. Currently the 9 recipes with plums, the plum tart with cinnamon crumbs as well as kaiserschmarrn or broken-up pancakes with plum compote, these three articles are currently on very high demand and are clicked on by the thousands. So I figured, apparently I am not the only one who loves this stone fruit. So if you love it as much as I do, I decided to make the late summer equivalent to this strawberry tiramisu, which in spring and early summer was viewed more than 72,000 times. And since this time I was lazy and decided to buy ladyfingers, I promise you, this is a super delicious dessert you can impress with anyone and serve to guests.
Banana pudding from the south is a layer dessert, you will have vanilla wafers (basically vanilla cookies), custard, bananas, and meringue on top. Usually this dessert is served in a casserole. However, since it is only the two of us and because I had never made this dessert before, I decided to serve this pudding in dessert glasses. I also reduced the amount and ended up liking a recipe for only four dessert glasses. If you like a creamy dessert with bananas, this is a recipe you should try. Of course we are going to make the custard ourselves, it is really not as hard as you may think.
Have you ever heard of lemon posset? Apparently this is a dessert from the UK and it contains three ingredients: lemons, heavy cream, and sugar. It is unbelievably easy to make and comes together in less than 15 minutes. Surprisingly, you don’t need any additional binder, no gelatine, no agar agar, the lemons themselves somehow work their magic for this to get to the creamy and mousse-like texture. Continue Reading…
The good thing when you get married to somebody from another country is that you can start your own traditions. I got married to a Colombian 12 years ago, but we have been living in Germany since the start. Christmas is traditionally something we have discussed extensively. I have explained the difference between Colombian and German Christmas in this blog post. Man, we have discussed so many things, should it be the traditional bird as is common in Germany or should we go for the many snacks Colombians like to serve for Christmas? Should we make tamales, which is corn, veggies and meat steamed in banana leaves and which require a lot of work? Should we focus on the gifts instead or spend hours on the food? One thing we have learned over the years is that what works best for us is to create new traditions. Traditions that are neither German nor Colombian, but just us. New traditions we like and enjoy.
It is about high time that I finally introduce a recipe with plantain on my blog. Plantains are soooo versatile, they are often used as a side if green and are treated like potatoes. Once they are ripe and yellow, they are often used in desserts or as a sweeter component. Today I am going to show them as a sweet dessert with quince paste and melted cheese or in Spanish “platanos con queso y bocadillo.” It is a super simple dessert, which is etremely popular in Colombia. Normally you would use guava paste, however, as this is close to impossible to get in Germany, we will use quince paste instead. My Colombian friends revealed to me that it is close enough to revoke the sweetest memories.
Today I am introducing a fast espresso parfait, which is served with cranberry sauce. In case you are looking for a festive dessert you can prepare in advance for Christmas, this may be for you. Since it is frozen, it is up to you to decide when to make it. Also, you can make the cranberry sauce up to two days in advance. I think it is perfect for Christmas as you will have one less thing to worry about. The creamy espresso parfait is delicious on its own, however, if topped of with the tangy cranberry sauce, you have a winning team. Let’s get started!
Leche asada, which translates as “toasted or roasted milk” is probably one of the easiest custards there is. Melt sugar, mix together remaining ingredients, pour into ramekins, and bake. I have made this dessert in under ten minutes. If you happen to have sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla at home, you can make this Latin American custard in a jiffy. As is often the case, this leche asada is originally from Spain and was brought to Latin America during colonization. Famous among the Canary Islands, leche asada is enjoyed all throughout Latin America. Peru and Chile in particular fight over who has the best leche asada, but I will keep out of this discussion, because if you ask me, neither as it stems from Spain. Regardless of who makes the best, let’s look at what leche asada actually is
Today I am going to introduce you to suspiro limeño or suspiro de limeña, which is a caramel custard from Peru with delicious meringue on top. This dessert was invented by the wife of the Peruvian poet Jose Galvez who gave it the picturesque name “sigh of a lady from Lima” when she served it to him the first time. The dessert has two components. Number 1 is the custard, which is similar to dulce de leche and number 2 a delicious meringue with a dash of alcohol. Once you dig into this decadent dessert, I am sure you will understand why he described it as a sigh, it is so creamy, light, and sweet, it simply melts in your mouth. The meringue is almost like marshmallow, there is nothing else you can ask for.