Peruvian Suspiro Limeño

Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 can Evaporated Milk
• 1  can Sweetened Condensed Milk
• ½ tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 3 Eggs
• 1 cup Sugar
• ½ cup Port Wine
• Ground Cinnamon

Directions

1. In a heavy saucepan, cook the evaporated milk, the sweetened condensed milk and the vanilla extract over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens and turns to a caramel color, for about 40 minutes. Take off the heat.
2. Separate the egg whites from the yolks. Beat the egg yolks in a bowl. Add a couple tablespoons of the hot milk mix and keep beating for a few seconds. Pour everything in the saucepan. Mix carefully and reserve.
3. In another saucepan, mix the sugar and Port wine. Boil over high heat for 6 minutes without stirring. The syrup is ready when it forms a caramel thread when dropped from a spoon.
4. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites at high speed until soft peaks form.
5. Add the hot syrup in a thin and steady stream, beating vigorously until the resulting meringue is cold.
6. Pour the cooked milk mixture (manjar blanco) in individual cups. Cover with meringue in a decorative fashion by using a piping bag and a decorative tip.
7. Dust with powdered cinnamon. Garnish with mint. Serve cold or at room temperature.

The best pairing for this traditional Peruvian Suspiro Limeño

You can pair this dessert with Peruvian Pisco

The origin of this dessert

The origins of the dessert are in the middle of the nineteenth century in Lima, Peru. The dessert is based around manjar blanco, a similar confection to dulce de leche, itself coming from blancmange, a dish from the Middle Ages. Blancmange came to Peru from Spain. It consisted of a thick cream made of milk, sugar, almond flour and some Iberian ingredients. An even older recipe had it made of chicken breast boiled in milk, almonds and thickened with flour and was meant as a bland food for the sick and weak. The other element of the Suspiro de Limeña is meringue, also brought to Peru by the Spaniards.

The dessert is consumed mainly in Lima and in other Peruvian cities. It is a staple of Peruvian restaurants abroad.