Torre de
PanquequesAn Argentine dish traditionally served at Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve dinners as part of a cold buffet, the torre de panqueques always proves to be a crowd-pleaser.
For 10 portions--
Ingredients:1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cold whole milk
2/3 cup cold water
3 eggs, lightly beaten
¼ tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. butter, melted [plus 1 Tbsp. to grease the pan]
1 small head Romaine lettuce
5 small tomatoes, sliced thin
8 oz. sliced boiled deli ham
8 oz. sliced deli cheese
mayonnaise
salt and pepper
Optional [any combination of the following]:
strips of roasted red pepper
chopped or sliced hard-boiled egg
chopped or sliced green olives
chopped or sliced hearts of palm
Directions:Preparing the panqueques:Combine the first five ingredients and beat the mixture until smooth using a blender or whisk. Add the melted butter and blend just until smooth. Don’t overbeat the batter, as the panqueques will turn out rubbery. Strain the batter if it looks lumpy. Refrigerate the batter, covered, for a minimum of 1 hour.
Heat an 8-inch non-stick frying pan [or crepe pan, if you happen to have one] over medium heat. Lightly brush the pan with melted butter.
Pour ¼ cup of batter into the center of the pan, and then tilt the pan to evenly cover the bottom. Cook about 1 minute, or until lightly browned and lacy on the bottom. Flip the panqueque with a spatula, and cook briefly on the other side [it will look speckled]. Remove the panqueque to a wire rack or plate to cool as you continue making the rest, stacking successive panqueques one on top of the other. Don’t get discouraged if the first panqueque turns out badly — this is common.
This recipe yields 10 panqueques. Once cooled, the panqueques can be stored in the refrigerator in a ziptop plastic storage bag for several days if you’re not ready to assemble the torre de panqueques.
Assembly:If you have a springform pan, you can use it as a guide to help keep the panqueques and other ingredients from sliding around. Otherwise, just assemble the torre de panqueques on a serving dish.
Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise over a panqueque, and place it in the bottom of the springform pan (mayonnaise side up). Top the panqueque with a single layer of lettuce leaves and then a layer of sliced tomato. Season with salt and pepper. Spread a thin layer of mayonnaise over the next panqueque, and place it in the pan. Top the panqueque with a single layer of boiled ham and then cheese. Alternate layers of lettuce and tomato and ham and cheese until you run out of panqueques. If you choose to add some of the optional ingredients to the torre de panqueques, intersperse a couple layers of those items or use them as garnish for the top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving (can be made up to one day in advance).
Remove the torre de panqueques from the refrigerator. Spread a final layer of mayonnaise on the top panqueque and decorate the torre de panqueques with chopped vegetables and/or hard-boiled egg. Remove the springform pan ring and slice the torre de panqueques into portions with a serrated knife.
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Coquitos (Coconut Macaroons)
Coquitos (literally “little coconuts”) are the Argentine version of coconut macaroons. These sweet, chewy gems of coconut often grace the table as part of the merienda or late afternoon snack, a custom many Argentines indulge in given that they typically sit down to dinner around 10 pm.
Ingredients:For the pastry cream:
2 cups milk
¾ cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the coquitos:
1¾ sticks (14 tablespoons) butter, softened
1¼ cups sugar
5 eggs
¾ cup pastry cream
5 cups (14 oz.) finely shredded, unsweetened, dried coconut
½ tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cornstarch
For the glaze: [optional]
1 tablespoon apricot jelly
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon water
Directions:For the pastry cream:
1. Scald the milk in a heavy saucepan along with half the sugar (milk should foam but not boil).
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the other half of the sugar, the cornstarch and the flour. Add the eggs to the bowl and whisk together the ingredients until smooth.
3. Slowly incorporate the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to avoid curdling the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and whisking constantly, cook over medium heat until it just comes to a boil and thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
4. Transfer the pastry cream to a clean bowl (pass it through a fine-mesh strainer if you spot small pieces of curdled egg), and cool the pastry cream to room temperature.
For the coquitos:
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time. Add the strange pastry cream, whisking to fully incorporate it into the mixture before adding the coconut, vanilla extract and cornstarch. Mix thoroughly to combine.
3. Place the mixture in a pastry bag with a large star tip or use a large, heavy-duty zip top plastic bag with one of the corners cut off. Pipe out uniformly-sized coquitos onto a greased baking sheet or silicone baking mat. Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Allow the coquitos to rest on the cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to completely cool.
Optional step:
Make as much glaze as you like, respecting the ratio between the 3 ingredients. Bring the apricot jelly, sugar and water to a low boil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring often. Let the glaze reduce until it has thickened slightly, about 2 minutes. Lightly drizzle or brush the coquitos with glaze to give them shine.
Transfer the coquitos to an airtight container to ensure freshness and to keep them from drying out.
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Tarta de Pollo [poyo] y
Choclo (Chicken and Corn Pie)
Although empanadas tend to steal the show, tartas (savory tarts or pies) are just about the next best thing when you’re craving a combination of flaky dough and hearty filling. What they lack in portability, they make up for in ease of preparation.
Ingredients:
1 round of ready-made pie crust or masa para tartas
1 Tbsp. butter
2 stalks green onion, chopped (both green and white part)
¾ cup chopped red pepper
1½ cups canned corn
2 chicken breasts, poached and shredded (roughly 3 cups)
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 cup cream cheese, softened or queso crema (available in Argentina as Casancrem, Mendicrem)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400ºF. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased 9-inch pie dish. Fold any excess dough under itself and crimp the edges decoratively. Prick the dough lightly with a fork all over. Bake the crust until the edges begin to brown, pressing the bottom and sides of the crust occasionally with the back of a fork, about 15 minutes. Cool slightly.
2. Reduce the oven temperature to 325ºF.
3. Over medium heat, melt the butter in a medium skillet and sauté the green onion and red pepper until soft. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. In a large bowl, add the corn, chicken, parsley, green onion and red pepper. Stir to combine and season the mixture with salt and black pepper to taste. Add the cream cheese and eggs to the chicken mixture. Mix thoroughly and pour the mixture into the pre-baked shell, smoothing the top.
4. Bake the tart in the middle of the oven for 35-40 minutes or until the filling is set. Cover the crust with aluminum foil if it begins to get too dark. Allow the tart to rest for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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Empanadas Árabes, or Fatay
Along with the millions of Europeans who settled in Argentina during the late 1800s and early 1900s with hopes for a better life, large numbers of settlers from the Middle East—particularly Syria and Lebanon—came to try their luck in South America as well. At the time, Syria and Lebanon still formed part of the expansive Turkish Ottoman Empire, so when these immigrants arrived at Argentina’s ports, they were classified as Turks, which explains why, even today, Argentines refer to Arabs (from any country) or those of Arab descent as turcos.
Immigrants from the Middle East have put down roots throughout the country, but their numbers are particularly concentrated in the provinces of Buenos Aires and Córdoba and the Cuyo region (San Juan, San Luis, Mendoza, and La Rioja). It’s estimated that the current population of Argentina includes some 3.5 million Arab immigrants and their descendants.
While Argentine dishes based on Spanish and Italian cuisine normally receive all the culinary fanfare, a few specialties from the Middle East have left their mark on the nation’s culinary scene. One of these foods—known as the empanada árabe, fatay or sfija—wraps a well-seasoned meat filling in a basic dough similar to that of pizza. The bright acidity of lemon, the sharpness of onion, and the aromatic spices, including a touch of allspice, flavor the meat (usually beef but sometimes lamb). Empanadas árabes are traditionally shaped into a triangle, with a portion of the filling remaining visible in the center. Many enjoy squeezing a bit of lemon juice in the center to give the empanada a little extra zing.
Makes for about 2 dozen empanadas--
Ingredients:Filling:
1 lb. ground beef
2 medium onions, finely diced
½ large red bell pepper, finely diced
2 stalks green onion [both green and white parts], finely chopped
juice of 2 lemons
½ cup fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. ají molido [substitute crushed red pepper]
¼ tsp. allspice
Place the ground beef, onion, red bell pepper, green onion and lemon juice in a large non-reactive bowl. Add the parsley and spices (salt, black pepper, cumin, ají molido and allspice). Using your hands, gently mix the ground beef, vegetables and spices until well combined. Don’t overmix the meat. Store the meat filling, covered tightly, in the refrigerator for 3 hours.
Dough:
½ cup warm milk [100º-110ºF]
1 ½ cup warm water [100º-110ºF]
1/3 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. active dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
7 cup bread flour [substitute all-purpose flour]
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. salt
Directions:Place the milk, water, olive oil, yeast and sugar in a small bowl. Whisk briefly to combine, and allow the mixture to sit for 10 minutes or until foamy.
Place the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine and then make a well in the center of the flour. Pour the yeast mixture into the well. Using a fork, bring the flour into the center and mix it into the liquid. Once the dough comes together, turn it out onto a clean, lightly floured work surface. Knead until you achieve a smooth, elastic dough, about 5 to 7 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, covered with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in volume, approximately 1½ hours.
Punch down the dough and divide it into 24 equal pieces. Shape it into balls roughly the size of a ping-pong ball. Allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes, covered with a damp dishtowel. Lightly flour the work surface and roll out the balls of dough to a thickness of about 1/8 inch. Cut the dough into circles using a saucer or small bowl as a template.
Assemble the empanadas:Remove the filling from the refrigerator. Pour off the juices released by the meat.
Place a tablespoon of filling in the center of each empanada disc.
Seal the empanadas using one of the following two methods [both methods form a triangle]:
[Method 1] Bring the edges of the dough together to form the shape of a triangle, firmly pinching each corner shut. Leave the center of the empanada open to expose the filling.
[Method 2] Fold up the bottom edge of the empanada disc, pressing down firmly at the corners. Fold over the right side of the empanada disc at a 45º angle and press down firmly at the corners. Lastly, fold over the left side at a 45º angle and press down firmly at the corners. Leave the center of the empanada open to expose the filling.
Place the assembled empanadas on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake in an oven preheated to 400ºF for approximately 20 minutes or until the dough turns golden brown.
Serve hot and with lemon wedges for a little extra zing.
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Cazuela Gaucho (Argentine Chicken Stew)
Here's a recipe for a Jewish dish which was originally designed to be cooked over a campfire. This stew is a dish typical of the cooking of a group of Jews who left Russia in the late nineteenth century to form an agricultural community in Argentina. Some of the early pioneers became gauchos and would have cooked this stew over a camp fire in a clay pot called a cazuela.
Ingredients:
2 chicken, cut up
flour (for dredging)
olive oil (for sauteing)
3 large carrots, cut into chunks
8 potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1 lb pumpkin or 1 lb hubbard squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
2 large parsnips, cut into chunks
3 onions, sliced
1 -2 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon paprika (preferably Hungarian)
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
1/2 cup white wine
chicken stock
1/2 cup barley
2 ears corn, sliced into 1 1/2-inch slices
1 (10 ounce) package frozen peas, thawed
1/2 lb green beans, cut
1 egg, beaten
Directions:
1. Heat some oil in a Dutch oven.
2. Dredge the chicken pieces in seasoned flour.
3. Saute the chicken until golden brown on all sides.
4. Remove chicken and set aside.
5. If necessary, add additional oil to the pan and saute the carrots, parsnips, potatoes and squash until golden brown.
6. Remove vegetables and set aside.
7. Saute onions until limp and translucent.
8. Near the end of the onions' cooking time, add the garlic and paprika and saute 2-3 minutes.
9. Return chicken and sauteed vegetables to the pan.
10. Add bay leaf, white wine, salt and pepper and chicken stock to barely cover the stew.
11. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to a simmer.
12. Cook for 20 minutes and add barley and corn cob slices.
13. Cover and continue cooking for 30 minutes.
14. Add green beans and thawed peas and cook for 10 additional minutes.
15. Beat the egg.
16. Add a little of the hot liquid from the pan and beat the egg vigorously.
17. Add the egg to the pot and stir.
18. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.
19. Taste the stew and correct the seasoning, if necessary.
20. Serve the stew in soup plates or deep dinner plates with a rim.
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PebeteA pebete is an Argentine soft oval bun made of wheat flour with a thin brown crust,[1] rather like a fatter hot dog roll. It is often used to make a sandwich, typically filled with cheese, cured meat, tomato and mayonnaise; the sandwich itself is usually called pebete followed by its filling, e.g., pebete de queso (cheese pebete).
According to the Royal Spanish Academy it is from the lunfardo term for young boy, itself from Catalan pevet.
Ingredients:
3/4 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon fast rising yeast
Directions:
1. MEASURE all ingredients into bread pan according to your manufactures directions.
2. SET machine for dough cycle, press start and let it work until the kneading process is complete. Shut machine off and allow dough to rest for 15 minutes.
3. REMOVE dough to slightly floured surface and cut in 8 pieces.
4. MAKE cylindrical balls with the pieces and place side by side in a buttered oven tray. Leave to rise for one hour.
5. PREPARE cornflour or cornstarch, dissolve the cornflour or cornstarch in cold water add boiling water and leave to cool.
6. BAKE 10 to 12 minutes at F428 C220.
7. REMOVE from the oven and paint with the previous prepared cornflour cornstarch mix.
8. LEAVE to cool on the rack and enjoy.
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Dulce de Leche Pionono [pee-onono]
A pionono is just like a jelly roll cake - it's a sponge cake that has been rolled up around a filling. This Argentinian pionono is filled with dulce de leche that has been lightened with whipped cream.
Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup almond flour (optional) or 1/4 cup additional all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup dulce de leche
Confectioners sugar
1 recipe caramel frosting (optional)
Preparation:
1 Line a 11" x 17" jelly roll pan with wax paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2 Sift the flour with the salt, almond meal, and baking powder, and set aside.
3 Place the egg whites in a (very clean) bowl of a standing mixer and beat until soft peaks form.
4 Add 1/4 cup of the sugar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form. Transfer beaten egg whites to a clean bowl.
5 Add the egg yolks with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar to the mixing bowl, and beat until pale yellow and tripled in volume, about 5 minutes. Add the vanilla and mix well.
6 Fold the dry ingredients gently into the egg yolk mixture until just blended, then carefully fold in the egg whites. Spread batter evenly into the prepared jelly roll pan.
7 Bake cake until it is golden and just starts to spring back to your touch, about 8-10 minutes. Do not overbake, or it will be difficult to roll.
8 Loosen the edges of the cake by running a knife around them, then turn cake out onto a dish cloth that has been dusted with confectioners sugar. Peel off the wax paper, and dust top of the cake with more confectioners sugar.
9 Roll cake up carefully in the dish towel and let it cool in the rolled-up position.
10 Place cold whipping cream in a large bowl and beat until medium-firm peaks form. Whisk in 2 tablespoons sugar and a touch of vanilla if desired. Whisk 1/4 cup of the whipped cream into the dulce de leche to lighten it, then fold dulce de leche mixture back into the rest of the whipped cream.
11 Unroll cake and spread whipped cream/dulce de leche mixture over the cake. Reroll cake, wrap with the dish cloth or saran wrap, and chill for 1-2 hours or overnight.
12 Once the cake is thoroughly chilled, place it on a cutting board, unwrapped. Prepare caramel glaze according to the recipe, using only 3 cups confectioners sugar. While the icing is still warm, pour it over the cake, letting it run down the sides until covered. Remove excess icing from bottom of cake and let set. Slice off ends of cake to neaten the edges (extra treat for the chef!)
13 Chill cake until ready to serve.
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Torta Negra Galesa
Patagonian torta galesa cake is a fruitcake with an interesting history. When a group of Welsh settlers arrived in Argentina in the late 18th century, they were hard pressed for food and supplies. The women pooled their meager pantry ingredients (nuts, candied fruit, molasses, spices, alcohol), and came up with this recipe for a fruitcake reminiscent of home, one that would also keep well for months. As they settled in and prospered, this recipe remained a favorite, and is still served today.
Ingredients:
1 cup walnuts, almonds, or hazelnuts, or a mix of all three
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup chopped candied fruit peel (optional)
1/4 cup chopped marischino cherries (optional)
1 cup rum
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
5 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon pie spice
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons fresh orange juice
Preparation:
1 Roughly chop the nuts. Soak the nuts, raisins, and candied fruit in the rum overnight. Drain the nuts and fruit and reserve the rum.
2 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
3 Cream the butter with the brown sugar.
4 Gradually beat in the five egg yolks, molasses, and honey.
5 Sift the flour with the cinnamon, pie spice, and baking powder and add to the batter, alternating with the reserved rum. Stir in nuts, raisins, and fruit.
6 In a separate, clean bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites gently into the batter.
7 Pour the batter into a 9 x 5 inch bread pan, or into a 10 inch diameter by 2 inch cake pan.
8 Bake for 45 minutes, then check cake. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. If the cake is not done, return to the oven and check every 10 minutes until the toothpick comes out clean.
9 To make the icing, place 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar in a bowl. Whisk in orange juice 1 tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached. Icing should be slightly runny.
10 Drizzle icing over top of cake, and decorate with raisins and nuts.
11 Profit!
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Revuelto Gramajo [rev-welto gra-maho] (omelet)
There are many different stories about its origins but Francis Mallmann, author of Seven Fires, tells one that is close to his heart. He claims that this omelet was created by Arturito Gramajo, husband of the famous tango singer Elisita Gramajo. Mallmann's grandmother, or Tata, told him that she was once courted by Gramajo all the way back in 1919.
Ingredients:
2 red potatoes, about 6 ounces each, scrubbed
2 cups vegetable oil, for frying
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 thin slices jamón ibérico or other top-quality air-dried ham, such as serrano or proscuitto
4 large eggs
Coarse sea salt
Procedures:
1
Using a mandoline or sharp knife, cut the potatoes into a fine julienne.
2
Heat the vegetable oil in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven to 360°F. Add the potatoes, in batches if necessary, and cook for about 2 minutes, until golden. Remove with a slotted skimmer and drain on paper towels.
3
Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a chapa (a flat piece of cast iron set over a fire) or 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add the ham and crisp for about 15 seconds. Remove to paper towels to drain.
4
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil on the same cooking surface over medium heat. Lightly beat the eggs and pour them in. Flip the edges with a spatula as the eggs cook to allow the uncooked portion to reach the pan surface. The eggs should be golden on the bottom—if necessary, lower the heat so that they do not brown. When the omelet is set on the bottom but still slightly runny on top, place the potatoes on one half of the omelet, and then the crisped ham. Use a wide spatula to fold over the other half of the omelet, and slide it onto a serving dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
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Vitel Toné [vee-tel toh-né]: Cold Veal with Tuna Sauce
Vitel toné (also spelled vitel thoné or vitel tonné), a classic element of holiday spreads at Christmas and New Year’s celebrations in Argentina, fulfills the Argentines’ craving for meat with a dish that manages to be flavorful, yet on the lighter side, when the mercury rises during the southern hemisphere summer.
A massive wave of Italian immigration at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century made a profound impact on Argentina’s culture, language and, of course, cuisine. Immigrants from “The Boot” brought this dish, known as vitello tonnato in Italian, with them from their homeland. The dish originated in the Lombardy and Piedmont regions of northern Italy in the 19th century. Today, vitel toné enjoys widespread acceptance throughout Argentina.
8-10 small servings--
INGREDIENTS:
For meat:
1 (2- to 3 lb.-) veal eye of round roast [known as peceto in Argentina]
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 carrot, roughly chopped
3 stalks of celery, roughly chopped
1 scallion (green part only)
1 small bunch of flat-leaf parsley
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. whole black peppercorns
1 Tbsp. kosher salt
For sauce:
1 (5 oz.) can of tuna, packed in water
6 anchovy fillets
3 Tbsp. white vinegar
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 cup cream
reserved poaching liquid, as necessary
For garnish:
1 Tbsp. flat-leaf parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp. capers
DIRECTIONS:
For poaching the meat:
Trim fat and silver skin from meat. In a deep, heavy pot, add onion, carrot, celery, scallion, parsley, garlic, bay leaf, black pepper and salt along with enough water to cover the meat. Cover pot, bring water to a boil, then add meat. Return to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and gently simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove from heat, set aside, and allow meat to completely cool in the poaching liquid. Strain and reserve the poaching liquid. Wrap the meat tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until well chilled (overnight is best).
For the tuna sauce:
Drain tuna and put into a food processor with anchovies and vinegar. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Add the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Process until it becomes a creamy, beige-colored sauce. Add the cream, and pulse lightly to incorporate it into the sauce. Add a few tablespoons of poaching liquid from meat if you need to thin the sauce a bit.
Carefully cut the meat into uniformly thin slices. Spread some of the tuna sauce on the bottom of a serving platter, and then layer the meat, slightly overlapping the slices. Cover the meat with sauce, and continue layering meat slices and sauce. Repeat until all the meat is used. Leave enough sauce to cover top layer. Garnish with capers and chopped parsley. Refrigerate, tightly covered, for at least 2 hours to allow flavors to develop. Remove from the refrigerator at least 15 minutes prior to serving to take a bit of the chill off the dish.
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Dulce [dool-tse] de Tomate (Tomato Jam)
6-7 lbs. fresh tomatoes (about 2 dozen)
6 cups sugar
2 cups water
Wash the tomatoes and bring a large pot of water to a boil. When the water is boiling, submerge the tomatoes for about 20 seconds to blanch them. Remove to a bowl of cold water to stop the tomatoes from cooking. Peel them, cut in half and remove seeds. I found that the easiest way to do this is to use a serrated knife to remove the top, then squeeze the skin off from the bottom. Then cut them in half and squeeze the seeds out or used your finger to pull them out. Chop the tomatoes into large dice.
Weigh them--for every 6 pounds of tomato pulp, you'll need 6 cups sugar and 2 cups water. If you don't have a scale, you can guesstimate--a bag of flour weighs five pounds, so it will be slightly heavier than that. Also, a good rule of thumb for making jam is to do just one batch at a time and avoid the temptation to double the recipe--it doesn't cook as well.
Why removing the seeds is important: Florencia says this is just for looks, since sometimes the seeds turn dark and in general the jam looks prettier without seeds. However, it's fine, flavor-wise, if the seeds remain, so it's up to you.
Put the 2 cups water and 6 cups sugar in a pot on the stove top. Stir over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved in the water, making a simple syrup. When the syrup is at a boil, add the 6 lbs. tomatoes, and cook for 15-20 minutes, lowering the heat to a simmer. Be sure to watch the pot so that it doesn't boil over and it does foam! The foam can be skimmed off the top. After 20 minutes, turn the stove off and let the mixture sit for a few hours. Florencia says this is also aesthetic; the dulce de tomate takes on a shinier, more brilliant look if it goes through a cooling and re-cooking process.
After a few hours, re-heat, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, taking care that it doesn't stick or burn. Bring it to a boil, then lower the heat and let cook for 1-2 hours, stirring periodically. After this time, the tomatoes should have a shininess and transparent look.
Let cool and then put it into jars. It can keep for a couple of weeks refrigerated, or can according to the manufacturer's instructions of your canning kit.
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Milhojas Argentinas [meel-ohas]
Ingredients:
2 (10 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
3 sheets puff pastry, baked according to box instructions
1 fresh pineapple, peeled and sliced into rings
Directions:
1
Place the unopened cans of sweetened condensed milk into a large pot and cover with water, by about 2 inches.
2
Bring the water to a boil and reduce heat so water is simmering.
3
Maintain water level and simmering water for 3 hours.
4
After 3 hours, pour off water, being careful not to touch the cans.
5
Let the cans cool completely before opening. This is now called dulce de leche.
6
Grill the pineapple slices and dice small. Set aside.
7
Onto 2 sheets of the baked puff pastry, evenly distribute the dulce de leche.
8
Dulce de leche-side-up, layer one sheet one on top of the other (so it looks like: pastry, dulce de leche, pastry, dulce de leche).
9
Then, place the remaining plain layer of puff pastry on top of the top layer of dulce de leche.
10
Trim the edges, and cut into 2 by 3-inch triangles.
11
Serve with pineapple.
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Potatoes With Basil (Argentina)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs baby potatoes
1/4 cup butter
3 garlic cloves
8 leaves basil
salt and pepper
Directions:
1
Melt the butter in a dutch oven and sauté the potatoes, adding salt and pepper, until they begin to brown.
2
Add the garlic and cook for a few seconds, until fragrant. Then move the dutch oven into your oven, preheated to about 350 degrees.
3
Roast the potatoes until they are crispy on the outside and soft in the center, then add the basil and toss.
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