Wednesdays Wonders: Helado de Paila

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Here is an interesting little piece of trivia. The Pasto Indians have been enjoying ice cream (well more like sherbet) for centuries. The natives used ice from the Cerro Cumbal (see Monday's Myth) and mixed it with salt. Then they would place a paila (a container) made of copper in the ice. The paila was filled with small portions of the recipe below. Then, it would be constantly stirred until it hardened.

Ingredients without milk:

1 quart of fruit pulp any kind you like -- mango, passion fruit, blackberry, etc.
1 cup sugar
2 egg whites

Ingredients with milk:

1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 cups cream
1 1/4 cups fruit pulp

If you don't have ice from a mountain or a copper pot, you can try an ice cream maker. Then, check out this video.



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