The festivities commemorating the annexation of the Nicoya Party to Costa Rica is one of the best times to savor traditional dishes: corn rice, rosquillas, tanelas, gallina achiotada, piñonates, chorreadas, pozole, resbaladera… The list could go on and on!
But if you are one of those who also enjoy experimenting at home, we have selected three recipes for a lunch or dinner with local ingredients, with their respective appetizer, main course and dessert.
Do you dare to get down to work? Share your creations with us on our WhatsApp 8470-2648
STARTER
Cream of corn
Chef: Daisy Barrantes
Ingredients:
- 6 corn with the kernels cut off the cob
- 5 chilotes or baby corns
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup of sweet cream
- 3 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon chopped celery
- Salt
- Pepper
Preparation:
- Roast the chilotes in a skillet over high heat. Set them aside to garnish at the end.
- Remove the husks from the corn and cut the kernels off with a sharp knife.
- Cook the onion in a pot over medium-low heat until golden.
- Turn up the heat to medium-high and add the corn and the cup of broth. When it starts to boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 15 minutes or until the corn is soft.
- Put the sweet cream and cooked corn with the broth in a blender and blend until smooth. Return the cream to the pot and cook over medium heat for about 5 more minutes.
- Stir the cream to prevent it from sticking to the pot. It should have a thick consistency but if you prefer it a little more liquidy, you can add a little more broth. Add salt and pepper.
- To finish, serve the cream in bowls and garnish with the roasted chilotes and chopped celery.
Main course
Ayaco
Chef: Marielos Carrillo
Ingredients:
- 14 oz. of chicasquil leaves
- 8.8 oz. of beef shank
- 8.8 oz. of pork
- 8.8 oz. of pork bacon
- 5.2 oz. of cornmeal
- Beef broth
- 1 ripe plantain
- 5 large tablespoons of panela (unrefined sugar cane)
- 1 onion
- 1 head of garlic
- 1 bunch of coyote cilantro
- 1 bunch of coriander
- 1 glass of milk
- 1 small teaspoon of complete seasoning
- Achiote
- Oregano
- Salt and Pepper
- ½ a Chile
- 1 grated potato
Preparation:
- Boil the chicasquil leaves for 20 minutes to eliminate a toxin in the plant
- Cook the three types of meat in a pot with the vegetables and set them aside with the stock they produce
- Slice the plantain into slices and fry them in a skillet. When they are done, cut them into small cubes.
- Finely chop the spices and vegetables and grate the panela.
- In a pot on low heat, add all the beef broth with achiote and cornmeal so it starts to dissolve, then add the rest of the ingredientes and start to slowly stir until the mix thickens.
- When the ayaca has a creamy texture, turn it off. Serve it with tortilla and you’re done!
DESSERT
Guanacaste seed brownie
Chef: Gilberto Briceño
Ingredients:
- Eggs: 100 g (3.5 ounces)
- Cashew milk (or the one you prefer): 142 g (5 ounces)
- Agave syrup:* 82 g (2.9 ounces)
- Tahini (or peanut, almond or regular butter): 186 g (6.5 ounces)
- Baking powder: 1 g (.035 ounces)
- Guanacaste seed flour: 90 g (3.2 ounces)
- Organic chocolate: 35 g (1.2 ounces)
- Brown sugar: 40 g (1.4 ounces)
- Dried coconut: 50g (1.76 ounces)
- Salt: 4 g (.14 ounces)
- Coconut oil: 63 g (2.2 ounces)
- 60% cacao chips: 63 g (2.2 ounces)
*Substitute maple syrup or make a homemade syrup from equal parts of white sugar and water until you get that same texture. Another option is to cook tapa de dulce (unrefined whole sugar cane) with water and reduce the mixture until it has the consistency of thick syrup.
Seed preparation:
- Wash the Guanacaste pods very well.
- Open the pods to be able to remove the seeds that are inside.
- Put the seeds in water and rinse well.
- Cook them in a pot with water for 3 hours.
- Use a colander to remove excess water.
- Rinse the seeds again so that the skins begin to come off.
- Pinch the seeds one by one to separate the outer part of the seed from the inner part, the most tender seed. This is the part needed for cooking. (This is a rather slow process so it’s best to have several people doing it).
- Once the seeds are peeled, toast them in the sun for five hours.
- Grind them to make flour. The seeds have to be 100% dry in order to process them
Brownie preparation:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Celsius (617 degrees Fahrenheit).
- In a large bowl, combine the baking powder, Guanacaste seed flour, organic chocolate powder, brown sugar, dried coconut and salt.
- While stirring constantly, add the egg, coconut oil, cashew milk, agave syrup, tahini and, finally, the cacao chips.
- Bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees Celsius (617 degrees Fahrenheit).
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