Chilean Cheese Toast

The Chilean Andes

And, now for something completely different, a really simple recipe! Last year, I visited Chile and I wrote about my food experiences there. One thing Chileans love is palta, what we call avocado. They spread it on their toast for breakfast. They use it in salads. They stuff them. They eat them by the bushel. Traditionally, Chileans use fresh cheese on their palta toast but it's not that common in the US. Mozzarella cheese is very common so I used that. It's a delicious breakfast or snack.

Chilean Cheese Toast
(serves 1 as a snack, double for breakfast)

Toast a slice of sturdy sandwich bread. Don't use something with lots of holes because you are going to spread the avocado on it. Hole-y bread leaks. :-) Slice half of an avocado. When the bread is toasted, spread the slices all over the toast. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with a little shredded mozzarella cheese. Broil until cheese is melted. Garnish with hot sauce if desired. Stare longingly at the picture of the Andes as you enjoy.

Eating Your Way Through Chile: Part 3

Mote con huesillo, a local Kunstmann beer and pastel de jaiba at a big fair of local food in Niebla, near Valdivia

Last part of my series on my dining adventures in Chile. See Part 1 on seasonal produce, eating in Santiago, and oddities. Part 2 covers seafood (more oddities!). This installment will cover some of the traditional food/drink, family specialties, dessert, and the most exciting food in Chile. Hint: it's not Chilean.

Eating Your Way Through Chile: Part 2

Living picorocos. They move in a rather sinister way.

You may be asking yourself: What is that? Is that actually something related to eating? Indeed, it is. Chile has quite a few "interesting" seafood options, this being the most exotic one we tried. That's a photo of picorocos, also known as the giant barnacle. It's native to the coast of Peru and Chile. It appears to be a rock with an alien living inside. It tastes a bit like crab, but more savory than sweet. It is a pain in the arse to get out of the shell (the rock is not a natural rock, but a shell made by the barancle). As far as wild seafood go, this is as odd as I've ever eaten! Here's a photo of the whole thing out of its shell.

Eating Your Way Thru Chile: Part 1

Scenes from a market in Santiago: clockwise from top left, my daughter enjoying some delicious watermelon, tomatoes and strawberries, shell beans and mature corn, massive heads of broccoli

I spent 3 weeks in Chile around Christmas time. We went to visit family; my husband was born there. From a food standpoint, that was a huge advantage. The relatives know my love of food and they pulled out all the stops, as you will see throughout this series on eating in Chile.