Citrus Moscato Sangria
This delicious and refreshing citrus moscato sangria recipe is made with a variety of citrus fruits,
honey, orange liqueur and moscato wine. Moscato is an Italian sweet wine made from muscat
grapes, in Spain they have a similar wine called moscatel and in France they make a stronger almost
liquor like wine called muscat. The flavor of these wines is very representative of the grapes.
Muscat grapes are also grown in the US. These delicious grapes are very seasonal so you don’t see
them very frequently at supermarkets. A muscat grape often reminds people of the smell of a
pomarosa or rose apple fruit from Ecuador.
I love the combination of any citrus fruit with honey, and moscato wines usually have hints of
honey, so making this sangria with moscato was a very easy (and good) decision. I used grapefruits,
blood oranges, regular oranges, mandarins and kumquats for this sangria – you can use the same
fruits or whatever you have on hand, even with just oranges and grapefruits you will have a great
sangria cocktail. I cut the grapefruit and oranges into segments since it makes them easier to eat this
way, but sliced the mandarins, blood oranges and kumquats since they are smaller and also have a
thinner skin. You can do the same, or segment them all, or slice them all, anything works with this
citrus moscato cocktail. Sangrias usually include some type of liqueur and in this case Grand
Marnier (or any other orange liqueur) worked perfectly. Sangria is great cocktail option for parties
or get-togethers with friends because you can prepare it ahead of time and in large batches, so that it’s ready to
serve when to your guests arrive. For a mocktail or non-alcoholic variation replace the moscato wine with
sparkling white grape juice and omit the orange liqueur.
Citrus Moscato Sangria ---- Yield: For 6-8 people
Refreshing citrus moscato sangria recipe made with a variety of citrus fruits, honey, orange liqueur and moscato wine.
Ingredients:
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1 grapefruit, peeled and cut into supreme style segments
2 oranges, peeled and cut into supreme style segments
1 blood orange, cut into slices
2 clementine mandarins, cut into slices
10 kumquats cut into slices
2 tablespoons honey
½ cup orange liqueur like Grand Marnier (Non-Alcoholic Version – OMIT)
2 cups chilled sparkling water
Juice of 1 lemon
1 750 ml bottle chilled moscato wine or Spanish moscatel wine (Non-Alcoholic Version - SUBSTITUTE: Sparkling white grape
juice)
Ice
Instructions
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Put the citrus fruit slices and segments in a pitcher. Add the honey and orange liqueur, let macerate for at least 30 minutes.
Add the chilled sparkling water, moscato wine, lemon juice and ice. Mix well. The citrus moscato sangria can be served
immediately or kept refrigerated for a couple of hours before serving.
When serving the sangria use a spoon or fork to put some of the citrus pieces into each glass.
Notes: For a mocktail or non-alcoholic variation replace the moscato wine with sparkling white grape juice and omit the orange
liqueur.
Aguacate relleno con atun or avocado stuffed with tuna salad
I love avocados; they are also very nutritious and full of good fat. I serve avocados as a side with a lot of
different dishes and use them in many salads; however in this recipe the avocados are the star. The
avocadoes are cut in halves, peeled and stuffed with a delicious tuna salad made with peas, corn, carrots,
hardboiled eggs, tomato, parsley and salsa rosada. Salsa rosada is popular sauce in Latin America (and
Spain) made with mayonnaise and ketchup. These stuffed avocados can be served as an appetizer or as a
salad. The tuna salad just on its own is really good; add the avocados and it’s a great combination. For a
vegetarian version you can make these without the tuna, and stuff the avocados with the vegetable salad.
For another variation of stuffed avocados check out the shrimp stuffed avocados.
Ingredients:
1 can of tuna fish
½ small white onion, finely chopped
½ cup cooked green peas
½ cup cooked corn
½ cooked and diced carrots
1 hardboiled egg, diced
1 small tomato, seeded and finely chopped
1 hot pepper, chopped finely (optional)
1 cup of salsa rosada
1 tbs chopped parsley, plus more to garnish
6 ripe but firm avocados
Juice of 1 lemon
12 lettuce leaves, washed
Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:
1. Combine the tuna, chopped onions, green peas, corn, carrots, egg, tomato, hot pepper, parsley and ½ cup of the salsa rosada,
mix all the ingredients together and add salt/pepper to taste.
2. Cut the avocados lengthwise, remove the seed & peel the avocados, drizzle the lemon juice over the avocados to prevent
darkening.
3. Place the lettuce leaves on a large serving platter or an individual plates and place the avocados halves on top.
4. Fill the avocados with the tuna stuffing, add some salsa rosada on top of each avocado and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
5. Serve immediately.
Salsa rosada
This sauce is also known as Argentinean golf sauce, it is a simple mix of mayonnaise and ketchup (and
other condiments if you like), in this recipe I use homemade mayonnaise which is made with onion
and cumin, so if you’re making this sauce with store bought mayonnaise I recommend adding a little
bit of ground cumin. I’ve had it before with a little bit of hot sauce added and if you like it spicy that’s
a good addition. Salsa rosada is used in different salads, especially those with seafood, as well as a dip
for French fries and on sandwiches.
Ingredients:
1 cup homemade mayonnaise
6 tbs ketchup
Preparation:
Combine the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.
Aguacate relleno con camarones or Shrimp stuffed avocado
Here is another stuffed avocado recipe; this one is stuffed with a shrimp salad
made with red onion, radish, bell pepper, celery and cilantro aioli. The first time
I had a shrimp stuffed avocado was at the beach in Punta Carnero (Ecuador). It
was so simple, yet delicious and refreshing, I’m sure the shrimp were fished that
same morning. There is nothing better than fresh seafood, unless you pair it with
avocado (of course). I was about 8 or 9 at the time, so I don’t remember every
single ingredient in it, but I figure I can experiment until I achieve the perfect
shrimp stuffed avocado. Nico’s improvement suggestion was to make it spicier,
so I served the aji or hot sauce on the side. This can be served alone as an
appetizer or with lettuce and tomatoes as a salad. The shrimp salad filling can be
prepared ahead; however, the avocados should be cut and peeled right before
serving to avoid darkening. The shrimp salad is also excellent on its own and
also makes a great filling for sandwiches.
Ingredients:
4-5 firm ripe avocados
1 lb. medium sized cooked shrimp
½ medium red onion, diced finely
2 radishes, diced finely
½ red bell pepper, diced finely
2 celery stalks, diced finely
2 hardboiled eggs, diced
5 tbs cilantro aioli or regular mayonnaise
Lime juice from 1 lime
Salt/pepper to taste
Optional garnishes: chopped lettuce, sliced tomatoes and chopped cilantro
Preparation:
1. Chop shrimp in half, if desired keep a few to garnish.
2. Combine diced onions, radishes, bell pepper, celery, eggs, shrimp, ½ of the lime juice and aioli in a bowl, mix well.
3. Taste and salt/pepper if necessary.
4. Cut avocados in half, remove seed and peel carefully.
5. Drizzle remaining lime juice over avocados, this help keep them from darkening too quickly.
6. Use a spoon to stuff avocados with shrimp salad filling.
7. Add any garnishes and serve immediately.
Suggestion – Serve with aji or hot sauce if you want to spice it up. Also, if you’re serving it as a salad and have any extra cilantro aioli
you can serve this on the side as additional salad dressing.
Grilled corn with cilantro queso fresco sauce
Corn in Ecuador, and other countries in South America, is different than the corn
we get in the US. The corn grains are white and larger, they are also less sweet.
Very fresh young corn or choclo can be slightly sweet, but most choclos aren’t
sweet. It can throw you off if you’re expecting a bite of sweet corn and instead
get something more savory. I have seen US style corn in Supermaxi, the large
chain grocery store, so American style corn is being introduced into the country,
but if you go to a mercado or market, you will likely mainly find Ecuadorian
style choclo.
I wanted to test a few different ways to grill corn. The Ecuadorian corn usually takes
longer to cook, so we almost always pre-boil it for 5-10 minutes before grilling it. US
sweet yellow corn cooks much quicker. I tried 3 different ways of grilling the sweet
corn: 1) pre-boiling it for a few minutes and then finishing it off on the grill; 2)
wrapping the corn ears – husks removed- in foil and grilling them, and 3) grilling the
corn with the husks on. After tasting the corn, I have to say that grilling it with the
husks on got the best results; the corn was juicy and full of flavor. The second favorite
was the foil method, it did a good job of keeping the moisture in, but the corn grilled in
the husks had the best flavor. The grilled corn that was pre-boiled was the least
favorite, it was too dry – and especially compared to the other 2 methods you can taste
the difference.
In Ecuador, it’s very common to find street vendors selling grilled corn or choclo
asado. They usually serve the grilled corn with a yummy cheese cilantro sauce or salsa
de queso. At first I thought the cheese sauce was very similar to the creamy sauce that
is usually served with potatoes. However, while we were having a BBQ at my
brother’s place, his wife’s brother, Boris, made the same sauce that the street vendors
make. I learned that it’s actually a mayonnaise type sauce. I modified it slightly by
adding some garlic to give it a little kick. This cilantro salsa de queso is very easy to
make and is great with grilled (or boiled) corn. I made the sauce using a raw egg,
however if you have any concerns about using raw eggs, then you can make this queso
fresco sauce by blending store bought mayonnaise with queso fresco, cilantro, crushed
garlic and lime juice. This queso fresco sauce is extremely addictive and is also great
as a topping or dipping sauce for carne en palito or grilled meat on a stick, another popular street food.
Essentially anything that can be grilled or dipped goes great with this sauce.
Ingredients: For the cilantro cheese sauce (makes about 1 ½ cups of sauce)
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1 egg (very fresh)
1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
¾ cup light olive oil or sunflower oil (regular oli1621ve oil will overpower the sauce)
Juice of 1 lime
6 oz. queso fresco, crumbled
¼ cup finally chopped cilantro, about 1 medium sized bunch
Salt to taste
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Grilled corn
1-2 ears of corn per person
Butter or oil for rubbing, add some chopped fresh cilantro for extra flavor
Instructions
Cilantro queso fresco sauce:
1. Combine the egg, the crushed garlic, the cilantro, a dash of salt, and ¼ cup of the oil in a blender and blend until the ingredients are
pureed
2. Continue blending and add the remaining oil until the mayonnaise sauce starts to thicken
3. Add the crumbled queso fresco and lime juice, blend until you have smooth sauce
4. Add salt to taste
Pre-boil corn & grill method:
5. Pre-boil for 2-3 minutes, then rub with butter or oil and grill for 10-15 minutes, turning every 3-4 minutes
Wrap corn in foil grilling method:
6. Remove the husks and silk from the corn, rub with oil or butter
7. Wrap each ear of corn in foil and grill for 15-20 minutes, turning every 5 minutes
8. Using gloves, carefully remove the foil and grill for 3-5 minutes if you want that crispy charred finish
Corn grilled with husks on:
9. Remove a few of the outer husks and open the husks (without removing them), remove the corn silks and then close the husks
10. Soak in cold water for a couple of hours before grilling
11. Grill with husks for 15-20 minutes, turning corn every 5 minutes
12. Using gloves, remove or pull back the husk, and grill for 3-5 minutes if you want that crispy charred finish
Cilantro salsa de queso preparation:
Grilled corn preparation:
Sopa de quinua con carne – Quinoa soup with beef
My mom would add quinoa to a variety of different soups; the
quinoa adds consistency and makes the soup more filling, in addition
to being very good for you. As a kid I loved the way the quinoa
almost pops when you eat it, it made the soups a little bit playful.
There are a quite a few different ways to make quinoa soup, the
more traditional Ecuadorian quinoa soup is made with milk and
cheese and has a very creamy consistency, this is a lesser known
soup that is made with beef, potatoes and peas. In this meaty version
the quinoa is cooked separately and added towards the end.
Ingredients:
2 tbs butter
1 cup diced white onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tomatoes, peeled and diced
1 tsp of ground achiote or annatto (or paprika)
1 tsp of ground cumin
½ tsp ground white pepper
1lb of beef, cut in medium sized chunks
10 cups of water
2 cups of fresh or frozen peas
2 cups cooked quinoa or quinua (with onion, garlic and broth)
4 medium sized Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 tbs finely chopped parsley
2 tbs finely chopped cilantro
Salt to taste
Avocado and aji to serve
Preparation:
1. Melt the butter over medium heat in soup pot.
2. Add the diced onions, minced garlic, diced tomatoes, achiote or paprika, cumin and white pepper, cook
for about 5 minutes, stirring often.
3. Add the beef, mix until well coated with the sauce, cook for about 5 minutes.
4. Add the water, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium and cook until the meat is tender, about 40 minutes.
6. Add the potatoes, peas and cooked quinoa, increase the heat and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for about 25-30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
8. Add the chopped parsley, chopped cilantro and salt to taste.
9. Serve with aji and avocado.
Sopa de zapallo or squash soup
This squash soup is perfect for the cold winter or just a rainy day, it
could also be called a squash and tomato soup, the tomatoes neutralize
the sweetness of the squash. This sopa de zapallo is very easy to make
and uses a few simple ingredients: onions, garlic, cumin, tomatoes,
and chicken stock (use vegetable stock for a vegetarian option), I like
to serve it with feta or goat cheese and chives sprinkled on top.
Ingredients:
1 large butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into small chunks
3 tbs olive oil
1 white onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp cumin
4 roma tomatoes, peeled and chopped
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock
Salt and pepper to taste
Garnishes: Feta or goat cheese and chopped chives
Preparation:
1. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large saucepan or soup pot.
2. Add the onion, garlic, cumin, and tomatoes, sauté until the onions are translucent or about 5 minutes.
3. Add the 6 cups of chicken or vegetable stock and bring to a boil.
4. Add the squash chunks, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the squash is very soft, about
30 minutes.
5. Let the soup cool down enough to blend to obtain a puree, you will probably need to work in batches.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste, re-warm if necessary.
7. Serve warm with feta or goat cheese and chopped chives.
Come y bebe or Ecuadorian drinkable fruit salad
Come y bebe, which literally translates as eat and drink, is
an Ecuadorian fruit salad made with papaya, bananas,
pineapple and orange juice, the fruit is cut in small pieces
and usually has a good amount of orange juice so that you
can actually drink it, this is a very refreshing drink or
dessert for the summer.The most basic –and traditional –
come y bebe that I’ve had consisted of just papaya, bananas
and orange juice, I add the pineapple because that’s the way
my mom made it and also because I love that combination
of smooth papaya, sweet banana and crunchy tartness of the
pineapple; you can also add other types of fruit if you like,
mangos are a good option.I didn’t add any sugar or honey
this time because the fruit was sweet enough and also I served it with honey whipped cream which gave it a
little extra sweetness. To make the honey whipped cream I mixed 2 cups of heavy whipping cream with 4 tbs of
honey, I love the flavor that the honey gives the whipped cream and it compliments fresh fruit just perfectly.
The papaya, pineapple and orange juice can be prepped a few hours in advance, but peel and dice the bananas
right before serving to keep them browning.If you want a more drinkable version of this recipe you can increase
the amount of orange juice.
Ingredients:
10 oranges, juiced, about 4 ½ cups of juice
1 large papaya, peeled, seeded and diced
1 pineapple, peeled, cored and diced
6 bananas, peeled and diced
Sugar or honey to taste
Optional –honey whipped cream to serve on top
Preparation:
Combine the diced papaya, pineapple and bananas in a large non-reactive bowl.
Mix in the freshly squeezed orange juice, add sugar or honey if needed.
Serve immediately or chill for about 30 minutes if you prefer it very cold (recommended on a hot day).