Peru boasts one of the finest cuisines in Latin America. Recipes such as cebiche (raw fish marinated in lemon juice), pachamanca (meat and vegetables cooked underground), chupe de camarones (shrimp soup), ají de gallina (spicy chicken) and juane (cornmash pastries) are just a few of the mouth-watering dishes served up in Peru. The quality and variety of dishes in Peru are due to several reasons.

First, Peru's ecological and climactic diversity (Peru is home to 84 of the 104 eco-systems existing on Earth) has given rise to a major supply of fresh produce, which any chef would be ecstatic about. The rich Peruvian fishing grounds abound in fish and shellfish species, the heart of the succulent coastal gastronomy; rice, fowl and goat, meanwhile, are the key ingredients of Peru's north coastal cooking. In the Andes, meanwhile, delicious ingredients such as the potato and sweetcorn in all its varieties, plus cuy (guinea pig) and ají chili pepper are the basis of highland cooking and are to be found across the country. The jungle adds its own touch, wild game with a side serving of fried banana and manioc root. Local fruit varieties such as chirimoya (custard apple) and lucuma produce incomparable deserts.

The second reason is the rich mix of Western and Eastern cultural traditions. Over the course of centuries, Peru has felt the influence of Spain in stews and soups, Arab sweets and desserts, African contributions to Creole cooking, Italian pastas, Japanese preparations of fish and shellfish and Chinese culinary methods which have given birth to one of the most popular gastronomic traditions in Peru: chifa. But the originality of Peru's cuisine does not stem just from its traditional cooking -rather, it continues to incorporate new influences, preparing exquisite and impeccable dishes that have been dubbed the New Peruvian Cuisine. It is a veritable privilege to experience Peru's cooking.

* With non-native ingredients.... They are not the same as the real thing but close enough.

Ingredients

2 pounds of white fish (mahi mahi is an excellent choice)
1 cup of lime juice
1 clove of crushed garlic
2 red peppers, diced
2 finely diced jalapeno peppers (to your preference)
Salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion, finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
Bunch of finely chopped cilantro
2 lettuce leaves per plate
12 to 16 corn on the cobs cut into 2 inch pieces cooked as usual
3 or 4 sweet potatoes, boiled and peeled
6 to 8 lemons cut in half and placed in center of table

Preparation

1. Wash and de-bone fish and cut in 1/2 inch chunks
2. Season with lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Let it marinade for 1 hour
3. Add onion, jalapeno and red pepper, celery and cilantro. Marinade for 1 more hour
4. Serve on a bed of lettuce and add two pieces of corn on the cob and a portion of the sweet potatoes.

1/2 Cup Olive Oil

3 Medium Onions -- chopped

6 Cloves Garlic -- chopped

4 Medium Chopped Rocoto Chiles -- or jalapenos

1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1 Tablespoon Cumin

1 Teaspoon Basil

2 Cups Peanuts -- roasted and chopped

1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese

3 Pounds Chicken Breasts -- chopped

3/4 Cup Lowfat Yogurt -- room Temp.

Salt And Pepper -- to taste

Boiled Potatoes -- for garnish

2 Cups Dried Black Beans

2 Large Onions -- sliced

1/2 Cup Red Wine Vinegar

1/2 Pound Ham

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1/8 Teaspoon Annatto Powder

3 Cloves Garlic -- finely chopped

1 1/2 Teaspoons Cumin

2 Medium Ancho Chiles -- ground

Salt And Pepper -- to taste

2 Medium Hard-Boiled Egg

1/2 Cup Pitted Black Olives

Cook beans in lightly salted water for about 1 hour. While beans are cooking. Bring another pot of salted water to boil. Add onions. As soon as they reboil. Drain completely and combine in small bowl with vinegar.Cut ham into pieces. Heat oil in large skillet. Add annatto power, ham, garlic, chiles, and cumin. Cook for 3 minutes. Add well drained beans, onions and enough of the vinegar to keep it moist. It may be necessary to add it all. Cook and stir for serveral minutes. Serve garnished with chopped eggs and olives.

1 Medium Onion -- finely chopped

2 Cloves Garlic -- finely chopped

4 Medium Serrano Pepper -- finely chopped

1 Tablespoon Safflower Oil

2 Pounds Pumpkin Or Winter Squash -- peeled and cubed

2 Medium White Potatoes -- peeled and cubed

1/4 Cup Half And Half

1 Cup Queso Blanco -- or feta

Salt And Pepper -- to taste

In a frying pan, cook beef in oil. Add tomato and onion, salt and pepper. In a separate sauce pan, boil thin noodles (as many as you care to use) with salt. Do not overboil. A dash of garlic salt is tasty, plus other herbs of your choice. Combine noodles and meat sauce after removing access oil. Use the water from the noodles to make the soup. Bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and break in eggs without stirring. When firm enough, add 1 can evaporated milk to 2 qts. soup. Add hot pepper if you like it spicy. Serve with small piece of toast floating on top.

3 Pounds New Potatoes

3 Cloves Garlic -- finely chopped

1 Medium Onion -- finely chopped

3 Medium Serrano Pepper -- finely chopped

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt And Pepper -- to taste

1 Cup Half And Half

3/4 Pound Queso Fresco Or Feta -- cubed

3 Medium Hard-Boiled Egg -- coarsely chopped

Ingredients

2 pounds of beef tenderloin or other tender steak
¼ cup red wine or burgundy
2 tablespoons of crushed garlic
2 medium onions cut in strips
4 tomatoes, seeds removed, pureed in blender
5 potatoes peeled and cut into strips for frying
1 jalapeno pepper cut into thin strips
1 tablespoon of vinegar
Vegetable oil for frying
Salt and pepper
Finely chopped parsley

Preparation

1. Cut beef into thin strips and marinate in wine for 1 hour
2. Cook garlic in oil over medium heat and add meat. Reserve the juice.
3. Add the tomato puree, salt and pepper. Cook a few minutes
4. Add onion, jalapeno strip, parsley and vinegar. Combine the juice
from the meat
5. Fry the potatoes in a separate pan and add to other ingredients
6. Serve over white rice

Ingredients

8 small boneless and skinless chicken breasts
2 cloves of fresh garlic
1 onion finely chopped
½ cup vegetable or olive oil
3 cups rice (not instant)
5 cups chicken bullion
1 cup cilantro and 1 cup water chopped in blender
(drain water after blending)
½ pound cooked peas
2 jalapeno peppers cut in very thin strips
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Sauté salted and peppered chicken breasts in oil until browned
and cooked completely and remove. In the same oil, cook the garlic and onion till tender
2. Combine the chicken to the garlic and onion. Add the cilantro and bullion and boil. Add the rice and jalapeno peppers. Cook over medium heat till liquid is absorbed. Add peas and continue to simmer over low heat until rice is cooked.

Ingredients

1 can of sweetened, condensed milk
1 can of evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
8 eggs, beaten
¼ cup water

Preparation

1. Mix the condensed milk, evaporated milk, ½ cup of sugar, the vanilla and eggs
2. In a saucepan dissolve ½ cup sugar in ¼ cup of water and heat carefully until it becomes syrupy and slightly tan
3. Pour the caramel in a glass baking dish and pour the milk mixture on top
4. Take a slightly larger glass dish and fill halfway with water. Place the dish with the milk mixture inside the larger dish and cover with foil.
5. Cook in a 400 degree oven for 30-45 minutes or until custard is completely cooked
6. Serve slightly chilled

Ingredients

Cookies:

2 C of all-purpose flour

1 C of corn starch

1 Whole egg

1 C of salted butter

1 C powdered sugar

3 T milk

Bakers Joy Spray

Powdered sugar for sprinkling

1 Sift the flour, cornstarch and powdered sugar at least once. Set these dry ingredients in a large bowl and cut in butter.

2 Add the egg and mix until it forms a soft dough. (Add a spoon of milk -one at a time- only if necessary to soften the dough). Let stand for 15 min.

3 Cut dough in 4 pieces

4 Spray cookie sheet with Baker's joy.

5 Sprinkle some flour over a smooth and clean surface and lay out a piece of the dough, stretch it with a roller to 1/8 inch thickness. With a round cookie cutter make the cookies and lay them on cookie sheet.

6 Bake at 350° for approximately 12-15 min. or until they are golden brown. Making the cookies...

7 Let the cookies dry completely at least 4 hours.

8 Apply a small amount of the caramel to one cookie and attach another cookie to make a sandwich

9 Roll cookies in powdered sugar to coat all over

Filling (caramel "manjarblanco"):

1 Large can of condensed milk: place unopened can in pot and cover with water. Boil it for 3 hours checking water level and adding water as needed. This will make the necessary consistency for the filling

4 cups rice
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 heaped tbsp minced garlic
8 cups water
2 tbsp butter
3 cups fresh corn kernels, cooked
salt to taste

Preparation
In a large pan, heat the oil over medium heat and sauté the garlic for 2 or 3 minutes until cooked but not brown. Add rice and combine well. Cook, stirring for a couple more minutes. Season with salt and add water. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, covered, on very low heat for 15 minutes. Then turn off heat and leave covered for five more minutes. Meanwhile, sauté the corn kernels in the butter. Remove lid form rice pan and add the corn kernels. Mix gently with a fork to separate grains and integrate the corn kernels. Spoon onto plates or use cup molds to form in individual servings.