“Locra” means “thick soup”, so one should never say “Locra Papa Soup.”  Rather, it is simply “Locra Papa — the best soup you’ve ever tasted!” ☺

On May 23, I published a blog entry talking about a cooking class I took at La Warmi for locra papa.  I promised I would post the recipe once I had tried it at home.  Here is the fulfillment of that promise.

The ingredient list includes Achiote.  I have never heard of this before coming to Ecuador, and I doubt it can be purchased in most grocery stores in the US. It looks like a dark oily liquid.  The teaching chef said that its main purpose is to create the final color.  As such, if you can’t find it, try making the locra without it.  Perhaps something else could be used to create the color if you really want the authentic appearance.

Ingredient List:

• 3 cups potatoes — peeled and cubed
• 1 red onion — chopped
• 1 clove garlic — minced
• 1 tsp Achiote
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp cumin seed
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp salt (or I substitute Slap Ya’ Mama for salt in almost all recipes)
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup cheese (NOTE: The photo above shows ‘taco cheese.’  This didn’t work as well as hoped. Now I use ‘queso fresco’, which works much better.)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1-1/2 cup water (important to measure!)
• 1 avocado

Note: Be sure to measure the water used.  If you use a different amount of water than the 1-1/2 cup indicated, adjust the milk, cream and cheese accordingly.

1. Wash the potatoes once cubed.  Rinse until water is clear.
2. Heat the oil and achiote.  Add onion, garlic, cumin, oregano and salt. Cook until onion is soft (about 5 min).
3. Add potatoes and cover with water (this is where you measure how much water you use, and adjust all later ingredients if needed).
4. Cook for 15 min.
5. Add the milk and simmer for 5 more minutes.
6. Remove from heat. Add cheese and cream.
7. Add salt and pepper to taste.
8. Add avocado to serving bowl before placing on table.

A favorite Sunday brunch indulgence of ours is eggs Benedict. We haven’t found a good one here in Cuenca, so I decided to give it a try.  I was surprised by just how easy it is to make.  Of course, it has enough calories and fat that we will still hold it back for special occasions…

The image above-left shows the ingredients for the hollandaise sauce, while above-right shows what is needed for the rest of the eggs Benedict.  Notice how many eggs are in those two photos? ☺

Hollandaise Sauce

Ingredients:

• 3 egg yolks
• 1/4 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp lemon (or lime) juice
• 1 dash hot sauce (such as Tabasco)
• 1/2 cup butter

If you are lucky enough to have a niece like Kerry that buys cooking aids as a Christmas gift, you might have a handy yolk extractor like this too!

If you follow Julia Childs, you will build up your arm muscles in making the sauce.  I prefer a simpler way — using a blender.

1. Heat the butter in a microwave until very hot — about a minute. 
2. Combine everything except the butter into a blender. Cover and blend for about 5 seconds.
3. Remove the blender cover and pour the butter in a small stream into the blender while running on high.

The sauce should thicken almost immediately, as the hot butter cooks the egg yolks.  Remove the blender container and place it in a pan of hot water to warm it up before serving.

Eggs Benedict

Ingredients:

• 2 English muffins
• 3 tbsp white vinegar (optional)
• 4 large eggs, fresh as possible and at room temperature
• 4 slices ham or Canadian bacon
• Hot batch of Hollandaise sauce (see recipe above)

Slice the muffins and toast them. Place a slice of ham on each open face side.

The only tricky part here is the poaching of the eggs.  There are several gadgets to make it easy, but those aren’t really needed. Crack each egg carefully into separate coffee cups.  Boil a pot of water, at least two liters (half gallon).  When the water is boiling, swirl the water, creating a vortex.  Slide one egg into the vortex and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on the muffin and ham.  Repeat with each egg.

Pour the hot Hollandaise sauce over the top and serve immediately.

I had lunch with a local restaurant owner last week, and took the opportunity to ask him where he buys meat and seafood. I mentioned that I had bought some shrimp for paella from the local mercado, and he immediately piped in “I’ll bet it was bland, soggy and tasteless, right?”  And yes, he was right, so obviously I asked where to get the best shrimp in town.

“I get mine at the freezer section of SuperMaxi,” he replied.  ☺

“Huh???” was my immediate intelligent question…  He told me that the frozen shrimp are flash frozen on the boat, and therefore as fresh as possible.  On the other hand, the shrimp at the mercado came to shore, was trucked from the coast to Cuenca, and then sat in a pot on the counter waiting for me to buy it.  The flash frozen wins hands-down every time.

Of course, this had to be put to the test, so I bought a bag of frozen shrimp the next day at SuperMaxi, and decided to make some spicy shrimp pasta with it.

Gotta say, this is the best pasta I have ever made, and the shrimp was indeed far better than the mercado.  This recipe quickly found itself into my ‘favorites’ list, and will be made again for guests in the future.  I got the original recipe from the Food Network website, but as always, have made my own modifications.

This recipe does have quite a lot of ingredients.  However, the primary spice mix can be made in a larger batch and then the unused portion can be stored for future meals.  The main spice mix consists of:

• Paprika, 2-1/2 tbsp
• Salt, 2 tbsp (I use “Slap Ya Mama” spice mix in lieu of plain salt)
• Pepper, 1 tbsp
• Garlic Powder, 1 tbsp
• Onion Powder, 1 tbsp
• Ceyene Pepper (aka “red pepper”), 1 tbsp
• Thyme, 1 tbsp
• Oregano, 1 tbsp

Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl.  I then store this in a small spice bottle, which I label “spicy shrimp mix.”

The main ingredient list then includes:

• Spicy Shrimp Mix, 2 tbsp  (see above for how to make this)
• Olive Oil, 2 tbsp
• Butter, 4 tbsp
• Minced Garlic, 1 tbsp
• White Wine, 1/2 cup
• Lime Juice, 1/4 cup (here in Cuenca, I always use fresh-squeezed)
• Salt, 1/2 tsp  (I again use “Slap Ya Mama” here)
• Pepper, 1/4 tsp
• Red Pepper Flakes, 1 tsp
• Spaghetti, 1 pound 

1. Cook spaghetti according to its directions.  Meanwhile:
2. Start by tossing the shrimp in the Spicy Shrimp Mix until coated.
3. Place olive oil and half the butter in a large skillet over high heat.
4. Add the shrimp in a single layer.  Cook for 2 minutes.  Turn shrimp over.
5. Add garlic.  Cook for 30 seconds.
6. Add wine, lime juice and remaining butter.  Cook for approx 1-1/2 min, or until shrimp is pink.
7. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper to taste.
8. Add the pasta and red pepper flakes.  Toss well and serve hot.

We have also found that this meal is fantastic as left-overs.  We add a small amount of water, then microwave covered until hot.  Tastes almost as good as the first day.