Hanging out in the bottom portion of the food pyramid, we want to discuss the importance of pan to our Peruvian friends. There must be something in the Andean air, because wow, can Peruvians make delicious pan. The life of a panadero (baker–enjoy the free Spanish lesson) starts super early in the morning (3AM!). The pan must be mixed, kneaded and baked so the families can enjoy with cafe con leche (assuming you know this one!) in the morning. Every town has their own way of making pan, but you really can’t go wrong when serving freshly baked bread each day, can you?
To the right is a Peruvian panadero removing pan from a traditional, wood-burning oven. This particular woman makes hundreds of loaves of bread for her community; some say it is the best in Peru!
One of the most popular recipes with the Chiquian’s is pan con queso. Can we imagine a better combination?! Bread and cheese may evoke thoughts of a Parisian cafe, but with a little Peruvian flare, you have an incredible recipe. Unfortunately, pan con queso can not be enjoyed year round, so our artisan friends have to wait until the rainy season to indulge (rain=more food for the cows=more milk=more pan con queso). Pan con queso is super easy to make, all you need are a few simple ingredients. When making this recipe in our test kitchen, we used fresh, crusty, french bread and gruyère cheese from the local farmer’s market. The fresher, the better! The nutmeg adds a nutty, cinnamon taste, really complementing the gruyère. Serve it with desayuno (breakfast) or lonche (dinner). Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 12 slices of fresh bread
- 12 slices of gruyère cheese
- 3 eggs-separated
- 1 teaspoon of corn starch
- 1 pinch of nutmeg
- Salt
- Pepper
Preheat the oven to 375º F.
Spread the slices of bread -both sides- with butter (using about 2 tablespoons of butter). Place in a deep baking dish and then place a slice of cheese over each piece of bread.
Separate the eggs. Beat the egg yolks and then add the corn starch, 1 tablespoons of melted butter, salt and pepper. Beat the egg whites to form peaks, and then add the nutmeg. Mix egg whites with the beaten yolks.
Pour the egg mixture over the bread and bake it for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve immediately.
Keep checking back to Mayu for more Peruvian recipes, updates on eco-fashion and details our new Fall hand-knit alpaca accessories! Follow us via Twitter@shopmayu, our blog or Facebook.
Tags: artisan, artisans, Artisans from Peru, baking, bread, cheese, Fair Trade, Peru, Work
