squash soup ecua-style.

now that it is super chilly out, i have been feelin' in the mood for soup.  everyone loves butternut squash soup....SO i wanted to share a interesting twist on it.  i like to make it like i've had it in ecuador.  don't be put off by the mixture of sweet and savory.  just trust me.  (as usual with my ecua-recipes, this one comes from laylita.)


sopa de zapallo.

ingredients.
3 T olive oil
1 white onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 t cumin
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
6 c vegetable stock
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks**
s and p to taste
shredded cheddar cheese to garnish
avocado to garnish

directions.
1.  heat the oil in a large pot and add the onion, garlic, cumin, and tomatoes.  saute for about five minutes or until the onions are translucent.
2.  add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
3.  add the squash, return to a boil, then let simmer for about thirty minutes or until the squash chunks are very tender.  (right now the word tender is really weirding me out).
4.  let the soup cool a bit to prevent injuries (we already conquered the squash) then puree it using an emersion blender.  if you aren't lucky enough to have one of these totally awesome items, then just use a regular blender and work in batches.  but be annoyed that it was inconvenient.
5.  add salt and pepper to taste.
6.  serve topped with grated cheese and avocado slices.

this immediately made me want to eat this again.

**ever lost a finger trying to peel and cut a butternut squash?  never again.  boil water in a large pot.  take the whole squash and put it in the boiling water (covered) for 3 minutes.  remove it from the water and let it cool til you can handle it.  NOW you can just peel it like a potato with a regular peeler and cut it with a regular knife and not worry about blood and frustration.  BEST TRICK EVER.

aceite de achiote or annatto oil.

i have probably mentioned aceite de achiote in a few of my recipes by now.  so i've finally gotten around to actually explaining what that means!  i'd never heard of it until i went to ecuador.  but perhaps you have heard of annatto seed?  so, what i have been calling "achiote oil" is spanglish.  it would be aceite de achiote in spanish, or annatto oil in english.  i also see how this might be confusing...i'm not talking about oil from the annatto seed, but rather vegetable oil that has been infused with the annatto color and flavor.

in ecuador i was surprised to see that a lot of the cooking oil in peoples homes was bright red.  after some research (read the label and translated it) i discovered that people were using annatto oil.  interestingly enough, annatto seed doesn't have a very strong flavor (it definitely has its own smell that i can recognize by now though) but does give a glorious bright red color to everything.  also, my host mom told me it helps counteract the unmentionable intestinal side effects of eating beans.  yay!  but yes, why are llapingachos bright orange?  the answer would be this oil!

when i got back to boston i was dismayed to discover that aceite de achiote is basically impossible to buy even though annatto seed isn't ("ethnic" aisle).  after communicating this to my mother she made me my first batch!  its actually really easy and now i will teach you how to do it!


aceite de achiote.


ingredients.
2 c vegetable oil
1 c annatto seeds
(want to make more?  want to make less?  thats a 2:1 ratio kids!)

directions.
1.  place oil in a heavy saucepan and heat to about 350F.
2.  add annatto seeds and remove pan from heat.
3.  allow to cool and strain oil into a glass jar.
4.  store in the fridge.


i would show you guys a photo but my jar is pretty gross looking at the moment (had some renegade oil cover the outside forever).  next time i make it i'll try to remember to put a photo on here!

potato and quinoa soup.

we all know i love me my potatoes and i love me a good soup.  other things i love?  quinoa and ecuador and cheese.  hence, this soup is my PERFECT soup.

i love sneaking protein into my meals in the form of delicious crunchy grainy things.

as with most of my ecuadorian recipes, this on is based almost entirely on one from laylita.  also i made an ENORMOUS batch so i can freeze some for a cold and lazy day! (feel free to halve the recipe).


potato and quinoa soup.

ingredients.
4 T achiote oil
4 medium onions, diced
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 t cumin
2 t oregano
1 t coriander
12 small to medium-ish russets, peeled and cut into small-ish chunks
2 c uncooked quinoa, rinsed
16 c water or broth (i did half and half for this batch)
2 c milk
4 c grated monterey jack cheese
one of those plastic trader joes packages worth of cilantro, finely chopped
salt and peppa

directions.
1.  heat the oil in a huge pot.  add the onions, garlic, tomato, cumin, oregano, coriander, and some salt and pepper and cook over medium heat for about 8 minutes.
2.  add the potatoes, mix em up real nice, and cook for 5 more minutes, giving em a stir every once in a while.
3.  add the water/broth and bring to a boil.
4.  add the quinoa, reduce the temperature, and simmer for about 25 minutes (until the potates are tender).
5.  stir in the milk and cheese and cook for about 5 more minutes.
6.  stir in the cilantro right before serving.  also, you'll probably need to salt the buns offa this thing.

normally i would put a few avocado slices on top of this bad boy, but
today i was forced to accept that the ole brown paper bag trick
takes longer than six hours to work....

boston, meet llapingachos.

i've referenced llapingachos maybe more than once.  if you know me in real life it's likely that i've mentioned them many a time.  even though i recently feasted upon them in ecuador, it still wanted em!  plus i wanted cait (my roommate) to experience their glory.

so lets just think about how potatoes are really high up in my favorite foods.  i love potatoes in every form. now, lets think about how mashed potatoes are my favorite form of potatoes.  the potato king.  okay, now lets talk about how things are better when they're cripsy and browned.  oh, and we can't forget about how cheese makes everything more delicious.  so, are you ready to behold the glory of llapingachos?

make some mashed potatoes, form them into cheese filled patties, fry the patties on both sides.  SERIOUSLY.  i'm gonna have to say that the ecuadorians do this better than the jews.  its a wonder that llapingachos haven't globalized more.

the recipe i use is from one of the best websites ever to be created, but i shall post my version of it here.  thank you laylita.


llapingachos.

ingredients.
5 russets, peeled and cut into chunks
2 T achiote oil (i will explain this in a post soon i promise)
1/2 of a white onion, finely chopped
salt to taste
1 c shredded monterey jack cheese

directions.
1.  boil the potatoes in salted water until a fork easily goes into them.
2.  saute the onions in the oil over medium-high heat until the onions are soft (perhaps 5 minutes).
3.  mash together the onions and potatoes til you get orange mashed potatoes! let it sit for about an hour.
4.  form the potates into balls perhaps the size of a plum.  make a hole in the center, fill it with cheese, then seal the hole.  squoosh the balls into little round patties.  let them rest in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.
5.  heat up a nonstick skillet but don't oil it.  cook the llapingachos until browned on both sides.  they can be finicky.  i will bestow what advice i have.  let them sit for about 5 minutes before even touching them.  then when you want to flip them, make a quick, smooth jab under them because the delicious crispy brown part has a  tendency to want to stay on the pan.  let em sit on the other side and put em right onto your plate!  they are kind of like muffin batter....you want to mess with it as little as possible for best results.


BEHOLD.

one had more success than the other in retaining the crispy part.

so, as you can see, i like to eat my llapingachos with a fried egg.  they are also usually served with rice (ecuadorian style, of course), but my impromptu llapingacho making necessitated some TJ's harvest grain blend as there was no white rice to be found.  i did adapt it for ecuadorian style preparation though!  also, this dish is perfect with avocado slices.

i provide you the evidence of the rice and avocado from a previous
llapingacho-making voyage that was poorly documented with my
computer camera.

oh and by the way, one of the other reasons llapingachos are like gold is that ladies all over the place just have these outdoor cooking carts set up where they make and sell this meal (llapingachos, rice, beets, fried egg) for like 70 cents.  


i should mention, for those of you who didn't learn spanish, that llapingachos is pronouced like yah-ping-GAH-chose.

a journey to ecuador.

i did it again.  i abandoned my internet friends.  but this time i have a really good excuse.  I WAS IN ECUADOR.

ecuador is my favorite place in the world.  i spent a semester studying abroad there and have been itchin' to get back ever since.  enter Darwin Animal Doctors.  basically, i was volunteering with some ecuadorian veterinarians down on galapagos islands giving free treatments to any animals who needed it!  but that is longer story for another time.

one of the MANY reasons ecuador is my favorite place in the world is the food.  boston, for all its wonderful food offerings, is totally, one hundred percent, lacking in the ecuadorian food department.  i did manage to learn to make some things during my two years back in boston, but going back to ecuador and eating everything in its perfect authentic setting was a dream come true.  (literally, i dream about food.  whatevs).

so get ready for a photojourney through the food of ecuador!  oh, and most of the time i forgot to take a photo until i had already started eating, so i apologize for the many half-eaten meals!

jose, the vet for isabela island, had a lovely wife who made
lovely meals three times a day!  cheese empanadas?
banana empanadas anyone?

paco, the vet for santa cruz island, has the best
improvisation skills i've ever encountered.  he whipped
this up for lunch at his house one day.

we all know that almuerzo means lunch in spanish.  in
ecuador, almuerzo specifically means that you pay $2 for
whatever the restaurant is serving that day.  it comes with
soup, main course, juice, and sometimes dessert!
here we have rice, beets, llapingachos (cheesy fried
potato patties), and a fried egg (instead of meat).

wonderful ladies sell delicious cheese empanadas on
the street.

they also sell grilled plantains.

totally unexpectedly i had one of the best salads i've
ever had.  ecuador is NOT known for its salads.

lets talk about patacones.  they are made from plantains
when they are still green (not black like the sweet ones).
you fry em, then smoosh em, then fry em again.
better than french fries.

menestra is a staple of ecuadorian cooking and one of my
absolute favorite foods.  i usually make it with lentils, but
was served the pinto bean version the majority of this trip.
always served with rice and i mix the crap outta it.

oh and i usually get a fried egg with it too!

this water kills me.  babies don't drink water.

naranjillas.  you can't find them in boston (maybe even
the US, who knows).  but they are the source of my
FAVORITE juice.  it is normal to have homemade juice
with every meal.

i went to visit my host mom (the BEST cook in all of
ecuador!) and she totally pulled this one out of thin air.
fried tilapia and cauliflower (i used to eat fish back when
i lived with her...i bit the bullet and just ate it.  truth).

perfect breakfast that i am going to make all the time.
scrambled eggs with green plantains, bell peppers,
onion, and cheese!

something when terribly wrong with their translation.
"popes join themselves sea breams, with sauce of meat,
fréjol, cheese."

but i did end up ordering a veggie burrito that was
particularly nicely presented.

i love street food.  stopped at a gas station
and bought these fried dough things
from a guy in the parking lot.  didn't
even have to leave the car.

you can also just yell what you want out your window to
the fruit guy and buy it that way too.

drinking a coconut!

oh batidos.  when ecuadorians are feeling
a little fancier than juice, they blend the
fruit with milk instead of water.  we might
call this a milkshake (no ice cream).  and i
drink them ALL THE TIME in ecuador.

we had a dog come in who had been gored by a wild pig.
after sewing all his guts back into his belly (he lived!), the
owner took us up to his coffee farm and showed us the
whole process.  from left to right the beans go from just
the way you pick em to roasted and ground.  pretty cool way
to get paid, considering we give free services!

SO.  there you have it.  a tiny sampling of the delicious wonders of ecuador.  soon i will teach you all how to make some of these wonders.  get excited, because your life is about to change in the best way possible.