Crepes con Dulce de Leche

Ingredients

1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
1 1/4 cups whole milk, plus more if needed
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted, then cooled, plus more for cooking

Preparation

For dulce de leche, preheat oven to 400°F. In 9-inch pie pan, pour sweetened condensed milk and cover with aluminum foil. Fill large roasting pan with hot water; place pie pan in hot water bath (water should come halfway up side of pie pan) and bake 1 1/2 hours. Prepare crepe batter while dulce de leche bakes: In blender, combine flour, salt, sugar and whole milk until just combined; do not overmix. Add eggs and butter. In medium bowl, strain batter and let stand 1 hour. Stir batter before cooking crepes; if necessary, add milk until mixture is consistency of typical pancake batter. Over medium-high heat, heat small nonstick skillet and brush bottom with melted butter. Holding pan at slight angle, pour 2 tbsp. batter into skillet and swirl to coat bottom. Cook until top appears dry, about 1 minute, then flip crepe and cook, about 15 seconds. Stack crepes on warm plate and cover with waxed paper or kitchen towel. Repeat with remaining batter, buttering skillet as necessary. Remove pie pan holding dulce de leche from roasting pan and carefully remove foil. Whisk dulce de leche to even consistency. To assemble crepes, lay crepe flat, then spread 1 to 2 tbsp. dulce de leche evenly on one side; fold crepe, first into half circle, then again to form triangle. Serve warm.

As published in Latina

Cuban Bread Pudding

INGREDIENTS:
1 loaf Cuban bread
4 whole eggs
2 1/2 cup milk
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tspn vanilla extract
1 tspn cinnamon
1 cup butter (melted)
2 tspn dark rum
2 tspn vino seco (dry white wine)
1 cup raisins
1 grated peel of lemon
1/2 tspn salt

DIRECTIONS:
Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Mix in the milk, sugar, vanilla extract, butter, cinnamon, rum, wine, lemon peel and salt. Cut the bread into one inch small pieces. Place bread pieces into bowl and mix well with an electric mixer. Place raisins into mix and stir with a spoon. You may use a fresh loaf of bread from the bakery if Cuban bread is not available. Make sure the bread is fresh.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter bottom of baking dish and place mix in the dish. Bake for 1 hour or until medium golden brown. Place toothpick inside several places of dish to make sure it is done.

Cut into small slices. Sprinkle some powdered sugar on top and serve warm.

Tamales de Chocolate

INGREDIENTS:
1 8-ounce package dried cornhusks
About 9 ounces Mexican chocolate (1 1/2 cups pulverized)
10 ounces (1 1/3 cups) unsalted butter, rich-tasting pork lard or vegetable shortening (or use a combination), slightly softened but not at all runny
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 pounds (about 4 cups) fresh coarse-ground corn masa for tamales
OR 3 1/2 cups dried masa harina for tamales mixed with 2 1/4 cups hot water
About 1 cup milk or water
2/3 cup raisins or coarsely chopped semisweet chocolate (optional)
For serving, optional:
Assorted fresh berries, custard sauce, mint sprigs

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preparing the cornhusks. Cover the husks with very hot water, weight with a plate to keep them submerged, and let stand for a couple of hours until the husks are pliable.
For forming the tamales, separate out 24 of the largest and most pliable husks—ones that are at least 6 inches across on the wider end and 6 or 7 inches long. If you can’t find enough good ones, overlap some of the large ones to give wide, sturdy surfaces to spread the batter on. Pat the chosen husks dry with a towel.
2. Preparing the batter. Roughly chop the Mexican chocolate, then pulverize it in a food processor. You should have 1 1/2 cups. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter, lard and/or shortening with the Mexican chocolate, sugar, salt and baking powder until light and fluffy in texture, about 3 minutes. Continue beating as you add the masa (fresh or reconstituted) in three additions. Reduce the speed to medium-low, then add the milk or water. Continue beating for another minute or so, until a 1/2-teaspoon dollop of the batter floats in a cup of cold water (if it floats you can be sure the tamales will be tender and light).
Beat in a little additional milk or water if needed to give the mixture the consistency of soft (not runny) cake batter; it should hold its shape in a spoon.
For the lightest textured tamales, refrigerate the batter for an hour or so, then rebeat, adding enough additional milk or water to bring the mixture to the soft consistency it had before.
3. Setting up the steamer. Steaming 24 husk-wrapped tamales can be done in batches in a collapsible vegetable steamer set into a large, deep saucepan. To steam them all at once, you need something like the kettle-size tamal steamers used in Mexico or Asian stack steamers, or you can improvise by setting a wire rack on 4 coffee or custard cups in a large kettle.
It is best to line the rack or upper part of the steamer with leftover cornhusks to protect the tamales from direct contact with the steam and to add more flavor. Make sure to leave tiny spaces between the husks so condensing steam can drain off.
4. Forming the tamales. Cut twenty-four 8 or 10-inch pieces of string or thin strips of cornhusks. One at a time, form the tamales: Lay out one of your chosen cornhusks with the tapering end toward you. Spread about 1/4 cup of the batter into a 4-inch square, leaving at least a 1 1/2-inch border on the side toward you and a 3/4-inch border along the other sides (with large husks, the borders will be much bigger). Sprinkle a few raisins or chocolate pieces (if using) down the center of the batter. Pick up the two long sides of the cornhusk and bring them together (this will cause the batter to surround the raisins). If the uncovered borders of the two long sides you’re holding are narrow, tuck one side under the other; if wide, then roll both sides in the same direction around the tamal. (If the husk is small, you may feel more comfortable wrapping the tamal in a second husk.) Finally, fold up the empty 1 1/2-inch section of the husk (to form a tightly closed “bottom,” leaving the top open), and secure it in place by loosely tying one of the strings or strips of husk around the tamal.
As they’re made, stand the tamales on their folded bottoms in the prepared steamer. Don’t tie the tamales too tightly or pack them too closely in the steamer. They need room to expand.
5. Steaming and serving the tamales. When all the tamales are in the steamer, cover them with a layer of leftover cornhusks; if your husk-wrapped tamales don’t take up the entire steamer, fill in the open spaces with loosely wadded aluminum foil (to keep the tamales from falling down). Set the lid in place and steam over a constant medium heat for about 1 1/4 hours. Watch carefully that all the water doesn’t boil away and, to keep the steam steady, pour boiling water into the pot when more is necessary.
Tamales are done when the husk peels away from the masa easily. Let tamales stand in the steamer off the heat for a few minutes to firm up. For the best textured tamales, let them cool completely, then re-steam about 15 minutes to heat through.
Serve tamales opened up on a plate with a sprinkling of fresh berries, a spoonful or two of custard sauce and garnished with mint sprigs.

Coconut-Pineapple Batido

INGREDIENTS:
1 can (16 oz.) cream of coconut
1/3 large, ripe pineapple (about 4 cups), peeled and coarsely chopped
1 cup evaporated milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup crushed ice
DIRECTIONS:
Combine all ingredients in blender and frappé until smooth.

Mango Pie

INGREDIENTS:
5 cups peeled and sliced mangos
1 1/3 cups white sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp. apple juice
1/4 cup and 1 tbsp. instant tapioca
1 tbsp. butter, softened
9-inch double-crust pie shell

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400°F. In bowl mix mango, white and brown sugar, apple juice, and tapioca. Let stand 20 minutes. Pour filling into unbaked pie shell and cover with dabs of butter. Add top crust and seal edges by pressing with prongs of fork. Cut slits in top crust. Bake 1 hour or until bubbles slowly burst and crust is golden brown. Serve at room temperature. Makes 8 servings.

Bacardi Rum Cake

Dessert

Bacardi Rum Cake

INGREDIENTS:
1 package yellow cake mix
1 package Jell-O vanilla instant pudding & pie filling
4 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1/4 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup rum of the Bacardi family (80 proof)
1/2 cup margarine

DIRECTIONS FOR CAKE:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Pour chopped nuts at the bottom of a bundt pan. Grease with healthy heart margarine.

Combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, and oil in a large bowl. Blend until smooth and pour over nuts. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour or until cake loosens from the sides of the pan. Do not undercook. Cool. Turn cake over onto serving plate and test for doneness.

DIRECTIONS FOR GLAZE:
Combine water, sugar, and margarine in a sauce pan and heat until boiling. Boil for 5 minutes. Stir in cup of Bacardi family rum. Cook until blended. Pour glaze over warm cake.

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ARROZ CON LECHE (rice pudding)

Dessert

ARROZ CON LECHE (rice pudding)
INGREDIENTS
4 cups whole milk
1 can condensed milk
1/2 cup uncooked white rice
1 tspn vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1/4 tspn salt
1 1/2 cups water
1 cinnamon stick
1 lemon rind
1/4 cup raisins
cinnamon (grounded)

DIRECTIONS
Pour the water in a pot and add the lemon rind and cinnamon stick and bring to a boil. Add the 1/2 cup of rice and reduce heat. Let the rice simmer until the rice is cooked and has absorbed the water. The rice should be soft. Remove the lemon rind and cinnamon stick. Add 4 cups of milk, 1 can condensed milk, raisins, salt, vanilla extract, and sugar to cooked rice. Simmer over medium low heat for about an hour, stirring frequently so that it doesn’t stick to the bottom and burn. As it begins to thicken, stir more frequently so that it doesn’t stick to the bottom and burn. Divide into individual serving containers and let cool. Refrigerate and serve sprinkled with cinnamon.

CLASSIC FLAN

INGREDIENTS
Ingredients for caramel:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water

For custard:
1 cup milk
1 cup half-and-half
1 tsp. vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean sliced lengthwise
1/3 cup sugar
4 large eggs

PREPARATION
Place oven rack in center of oven and preheat to 300°F. Grease six custard cups with vegetable oil. In saucepan over low heat place 1/2 cup sugar. Using a pastry brush, drizzle in 1/4 cup water along sides of saucepan. Do not stir sugar. Cook until sugar turns medium-brown color. Immediately place 1 tablespoon of caramel into each custard cup. Set aside to harden.

To make custard: In small saucepan combine milk and half-and-half over medium heat. Bring to high temperature, but do not boil. Add vanilla extract or bean and remove from heat. In bowl whisk together sugar and eggs. Temper egg mixture with 1 cup hot milk mixture. Whisk together and add back to remaining hot milk mixture. Remove vanilla bean pod, if used. Pour mixture into custard cups, almost filling each cup. Place custard cups into deep-sided baking sheet. Pour warm water into baking sheet

TRES LECHES CAKE

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
5 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, divided
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
1 1/2 cups whipping cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour a 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Beat butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy; mix in eggs and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder; add gradually to butter mixture, stirring to blend. Pour batter into prepared dish, and bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Pierce cake with a fork all over. Combine the 3 milks, and pour on top of cake; cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight. Beat whipping cream, powdered sugar, and remaining vanilla at medium-high speed with an electric mixer until thick; spread over cake, and serve.