Two gastronomic delights.

Two gastronomic delights, one tried and true and the other yet to be tried! First, Marion decided to prepare today’s midday meal, a shepherd’s pie for the two Brothers of Charity who are now managing the clinic and myself. As you would expect the meal was a great success. Shepherd’s pie together with the steamed local maize on the cob, steamed beans and tomato and onion pie with bread crumbs on top! Perfect.

However, we first had to shop at the huge local market. The senora at the butcher’s shop even allowed Marion to smell the carne de molida, mince beef, in order to check for freshness!

The range of vegetables and fresh fruit drinks at some of the other stalls was amazing, and very cheap.

The finished product ready to be served.

Yours truly, Alfredo and Jimmy enjoy the delights of the chef. Two things of interest – note the size of the beautifully sweet corn and secondly the glass in my hand is full of Inka Cola!

The second, and untried delight, is all about ice cream.

Ayacucho, or the region of Huamanga, is famous for the ladies who make and sell traditional ice cream in the Plaza de Armas. They are called Ayacuchanas or Huamanguinos and they are always dressed in full length coloured skirts, white blouses, white sombreros and coloured silk scarfs. The ice cream they make is called muyuchi and this sweet tasting ice cream has a base of milk and peanuts, and maybe some sugar.

The method of production is extremely simple. Get yourself a large pot of ice and place a smaller pot of liquid muyuchi into the ice pot and rotate the pot by hand until the ice cream sets on the side of the chilled spinning pot. Scoop this out and serve in a small cone; apparently delicious. As I have mentioned we have not sampled one at this stage.

Obviously some find time during their work hours to taste the ice cream.