My love language is breakfast bocadillos

We definitely have more time in the mornings here than we did in Santa Rosa.  There is no frantic scramble for the kids to dress, scarf down breakfast, and get on their bikes to school. I am not racing to the hospital. Paul has no early train to catch to the city. As such, while we do try to maintain a loose schedule on school days, every morning is a slow morning. 

Turns out slow mornings give us plenty of space and time to bake. And bake is just what I do -- not every morning, but most. Baking has long been a stress reducer for me. I cannot explain why or how, but there is something soothing about following a recipe, mixing batter, and creating something warm and delicious. Baking brings me a sense of peace and joy, particularly if I get to share what I made with appreciative eaters.

Many rural Ecuadorians scoff at the idea that a bowl of cereal or a piece of toast could suffice as a meal. Ecuadorians eat a fairly robust hot breakfast, more akin to an American dinner. Traditional breakfast is boiled and mashed plantains (called bolón), but some families simply cook a pot of rice. Over the rice or bolón goes a protein-rich liquid or broth; in this region, fish soup or chicken stew are common. If neither is available, fried eggs with cheese with the bolón will do.

While I quite enjoy Ecuadorian food (and really like bolón), I am not a fish-broth-over-plantains for breakfast person.  I'd much prefer a banana muffin, an English muffin, or a crepe. I guess I am a sweet-toothed glutenous breakfast person.

Unfamiliar foods can be a challenging part of being far from home, even for those of us who consider ourselves adventurous eaters. During our first few months, when everything felt new, home baked goods became a simple way that I could offer my family comfort. They also served as something to look forward to each morning. Now, we are all just spoiled. 

As an added bonus, my dear friend Cecilia, who lives and works in the Andes, brought me a huge bag of whole wheat flour that she literally grew, harvested, and ground herself. I love baking with her flour! It also took us some time to find a steady supply of real butter (margarine is the product of choice in local markets), but now we know where to find it at one store in La Maná, and we stockpile it whenever we can. Butter definitely comes in handy for baking.

When I was a Peace Corps volunteer, we were taught how to bake in an oversized pot with a brick or tuna can in the base. Luckily, rather than the propane stovetop that were ubiquitous back then, most families (including us) now have a combination propane stove/oven that looks a lot like our ranges at home, just smaller and less intricate. Most Ecuadorians do very little of their own baking (fresh bread can be bought for just a few cents, most meats and veggies are cooked in soups), and I find that they primarily use their ovens as a storage space. Not us! Even though there is no temperature gauge and there is only one setting, I have come to know and appreciate my little oven, and we have a lot of mutual respect for one another. She bakes me a decent oatmeal cookie, a solid round of Friday pizzas, and breakfast goodies each morning.

Thanks to my bread-master friend, Erica, I have a big pack of active yeast that has served us well. Thanks to my neighbor Pat, I have a solid supply of vanilla, which is hard to find in Ecuador; you can only find vanilla-flavored coconut extract. Thanks to my dear friend, Alana, I picked up some silicone baking cups as a last minute Target splurge; they work great, and I am glad we have them.

Over time, we have added to our breakfast repertoire, particularly glutinous treats that we were missing (e.g. English muffins and bagels). Some recipes were total flops. Several I have had to modify for products that are readily available here, but most are variations of beloved recipes from home. 

Below is a sampling of recipes from my new love language: breakfast bocadillos. I cited their origin when possible, including my 22+ year old beloved Peace Corps cookbook. I encourage you to make any of these recipes on your own, but I'm sorry that you likely don't have a steady supply of panela with which to sweeten, bananas straight off the tree, or tart moras, which are phenomenal to bake with.  That being said, don't get discouraged, improvise away; it is what we do every day!

Mora Muffins

Moras are sour berries that are farmed extensively in the foothills of the Andes just above us. The word mora directly translates to "blackberry" in English, but these berries are more sour than blackberries and tend to be larger and firmer.  Maybe closer to a boysenberry? This muffin recipe is a super simple recipe I adapted from a blueberry muffin recipe from Allrecipes. These are Dillon and Paul's favorite muffins. 

• 1 1/2 cups flour (I always use 3/4 cup white flour, 3/4 cup whole wheat flour)
• 3/4 cup sugar (I use 3/4 cup panela)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk (plus a few more tablespoons if the batter is thick)
• 1-1 1/2 cup fresh moras (washed and cut into bite-sized pieces if large) 

Spoon into silicone baking cups. Bake for 20 minutes in muffin tin at medium heat. Careful taking a bite when they first come out of the oven because the berries are caliente!

             

Banana Muffins 

These tasty muffins are made with milk straight from the cow and either guineos or oritos (tiny finger length bananas that grow behind our house), depending on what is ripe. The riper the better. The original recipe is #9351 on recipzaar.com, "Sour Cream Banana Bread". Since sour cream is not a thing here, I replaced it with milk, and it works just fine.

• 1/2 cup oil (original recipe called for butter or margarine)
• 1 cup sugar (I use panela)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup flour (3/4 cup white flour, 3/4 cup whole wheat flour)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup mashed banana
• 1/2 cup milk (original recipe called for sour cream, but that isn't available here)

Bake for 20 minutes in cupcake tin at medium heat. 

Zucchini Muffins 

A rare treat, when we can actually find zucchini, which is not commonly used in Ecuadorian cuisine. When we do find it at the market, it is always bizarrely giant (think untended garden in summer in Sonoma County). Just the other day, Paul was gifted an overgrown zucchini by a market vendor who asked, "Will you use this? No one wants this?" He said, "Great!" and we had zucchini muffins the next morning.

• 1 egg
• 1 cup sugar (I use panela)
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2-2 cups of grated zucchini
• 1/2 cup milk (original recipe calls for apple sauce, but there is no apple sauce in Ecuador)
• 1 1/2 cups flour (always 3/4 white, 3/4 wheat)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Mix well, bake for 20 minutes in silicone baking cups in muffin tins.

 

No Yeast Cinnamon Rolls

I have it on my to do list to learn to do yeast-based cinnamon rolls, but these require less advanced planning and are still yummy (and quite filling). I often make these on mornings when I haven't pre-planned breakfast. A nice big bowl of fruit salad is excellent accompaniment, especially during mango season.

• 2 cups flour
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 3 TBSP white sugar
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 3 TBSP butter 

For filling

• 1/2 cup brown sugar (I use panela)
• 2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 TBSP butter, melted

For icing

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1-3 TBSP of milk
• splash of vanilla

Make the dough by mixing all the ingredients, cutting in butter at the last.

Roll the dough out into a rectangle shape (about 8"x10", about 1/4 inch thick) on a floured surface.

Separately, mix panela and cinnamon. Melt 1 TBSP of butter and brush onto the rectangle of dough, then sprinkle cinnamon mixture across the entire rectangle. 

Roll up carefully and cut into about 9 pieces, each about 1 inch wide.

Place each roll in muffin tin and bake for 17-18 minutes.

When muffins are still warm, spoon the icing mix over the top. Serve warm.

  

English Muffins 

I started trying to make English muffins because, at home, we consume a lot of them with peanut butter, and we were all missing them. It took several times to master these -- and my kids ate a lot of crummy muffins in the interim -- but now we've got them dialed in. This is a recipe modified from Preppy Kitchen. Key is the corn meal because the dough is STICKY! Our ongoing family debate is whether to gently pry your English muffin open with your fingers versus cutting it open with a bread knife. 

• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 2 1/4 tsp yeast (1 packet)
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 TBSP sugar
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 TBSP butter (melted)
• 1 egg (room temperature, beaten)
• cornmeal (here called "Maiz sabrosa") for dusting

Combine milk, water and sugar, warm to 110 degrees (just hot to touch), then add yeast. Let sit 5-7 minutes.

While yeast wakes, combine flour and salt in large bowl.

Mix egg and melted butter into yeast mixture once it has rested, then pour slowly into flour mixture.

Knead the dough by hand 7 minutes (super sticky).

Transfer to an oiled bowl and cover. Leave at least 1 hour (I leave overnight, usually 8-10 hours).

In the morning, transfer dough to a floured counter, gently spread out and pat down to about 1 inch in thickness. 

Cut into 3" rounds (I use a drinking glass as my muffin cutter) and dip each round in cornmeal to coat on both sides.

Let the rounds sit for 30 minutes to rest.

Heat a large skillet and cook 3-4 at a time (careful they stick) at low heat on both sides, 5-6 minutes on each side.

Serve warm with topping of choice (we like peanut butter, jam, and butter and cinnamon).

   

Crepes 

We consume a fair number of eggs here. Crepes are an alternative way to eat eggs and an excellent excuse to eat Nutella, which we may or may not have a habit of doing. This recipe comes straight from my Peace Corps cook book, and is super simple. We like them with strawberries, kiwi, mango, bananas, dragon fruit. Well, I guess we like them with any fruit we can find. I always double the recipe for our family of five.

• 1 cup flour (1/2 white, 1/2 wheat)
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 TBSP oil
• 1/4 tsp salt

Make sure you have a good non-stick skillet. 

Mix all the ingredients together until the flour clumps are well-combined. Warm and grease skillet with a bit of butter or oil (just need to do this the first time). 

Spoon about 1/3 cup of batter onto skillet, roll until it is flat and even, circular in shape. 

Cook for 2 minutes on each side.

Serve with fresh fruit and Nutella, if you dare.

     

Bagels 

This is the newest addition to our repertoire. We were inspired to make bagels when we found decent cream cheese in La Maná. The recipe comes from Sally's Baking Recipes website. And while there are a few steps, being successful with making bagels is surprisingly easy. The Ecuadorian kids find the chewy texture of bagels kind of odd, but we all love it. Don't skip the honey or egg wash steps. 

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 3/4 tsp instant or active dry yeast

• 4 cups flour
• 1 TBSP panela (or brown sugar)
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 egg white + 1 TBSP water
• 2 quarts of water
• 1/4 cup honey
• Sesame seeds, if desired

Heat water to about 100 degrees (warm to touch) and whisk in yeast. Let mixture sit 5 minutes.

In the meantime, measure and mix flour, panela, salt.

Mix yeast water with flour mixture and knead for 4-5 minutes (the dough is firm and heavy).

Let the kneaded dough sit in greased bowl covered with a towel for 1 1/2 hours or until it doubles in size.

Once doubled, punch down to remove air bubbles.

Divide dough into 8-9 round balls and shape bagels (with 1 inch hole in the middle). Let rest.

Heat water to boiling and whisk in honey.

Drop bagels into the boiling water (they float), cook 1-2 minutes on each side.

Remove carefully from water, brush with egg white mixture and douse in sesame seeds (or other topping).

Bake at medium heat for 10 minutes, turn pan and bake additional 10 minutes (total 20 minutes baking time).

Serve warm with cream cheese. Yum!