Merry Christmas to all

Inca Kola: "the drink of Peru"

One of the most emblematic brands in Peru, Inca Kola is a comercial drink that stands as a pride symbol for the peruvians. It is also known as Inca Cola or "the Golden Kola", and it's a soft drink with a sweet soft flavor from a herb called "Hierba Luisa". It was made by the Lindley family in Rimac, Lima in 1910, and today the brand is 60% owned by The Coca-Cola Company.

It's important to say that Inca Kola is common in parts of South America, and while it has not enjoyed major success elsewhere, it can be found in Latin American specialty shops worldwide. This delicious soda is yellowish-gold in color, and sold in glass and plastic bottles of various sizes and a can of the same color with an Inca theme.

Inca Kola Ingredients
The company has released public information about the ingredients:

• Carbonated water
• high fructose corn syrup and/or sucrose
• citric acid
• sodium benzoate (to protect taste)
• caffeine
• artificial and natural flavors

Caramel syrup

To this syrup be perfect, the secret is to use cream of the milk box. This trick makes all difference in this recipe.
Time to prepare: super-fast
serves: 6

Ingredients 2 cups (tea) sugar
1 cup (tea) of water
200 g of milk, cream canister

Mode of Preparation
1. In a saucepan add the sugar with water. Mix with the index finger until the sugar has dissolved and not leave glue on the sides of the pan.
2. Mild to medium fire (do not put your finger more!) And let cook, without stirring, for about 10 minutes, or until it is with an amber color.
3. Reduce the fire down and add the cream little by little. Let cook for another 1 or 2 minutes, until the syrup is homogeneous. Serve hot or cold.

Tip
This lasts until syrup a week in the refrigerator, provided it is stored in a container with lid. Before serving, you can heat it in microwave for a few seconds.

Fiery Dijon Grilled T-Bones

Description
A recipe for Fiery Dijon Grilled T-Bones

Ingredients
4 Sterling Silver T-Bone Steaks
Dijon Mustard Blend:
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/8 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes

In small bowl, stir together all ingredients for Dijon mustard blend.

Place steaks on grill over medium heat, brushing with mustard blend on each side while cooking. Cook approximately 8 to 12 minutes for medium rare to medium doneness.

Serving Suggestions: Serve with grilled corn on the cob. Try squeezing fresh lime juice over the corn and sprinkle it with chili powder and black pepper.

Recipes courtesy of Cargill Meat Solutions

Nutrition
no information available

Serves
Servings: 4

Variations
no information available

California Style Chicken Salad

Servings:
4

Cooking Time:
10 minutes

Ingredients:
¼ cup Mayonnaise
¼ cup Sour Cream
1 Tablespoon Lemon juice
½ teaspoon Dill weed
1 ¼ pound Chicken, boneless breast, cooked and diced
¾ cup Green seedless grapes, cut in half
½ cup Almonds, slivered, toasted
1 Scallion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Green leaf lettuce

Instructions:
1 - Whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon juice, and dill.
2 - Toss in the chicken, grapes, almonds, and scallions. Mix well. Check seasonings.
3 - Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
4 - Serve cold over lettuce leaves.

Serving Suggestions:
Wonderful Summer lunch idea! Serve on toasted wheat bread with tomato and a pickle for a nice deli-style touch!

Careful with the Lemon Juice, too much and you'll ruin the nice combination of flavors!

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Christmas Light Cookies

Servings:
Makes 3 dozen cookies

Cooking Time:
70 minutes / 5-8 minutes per batch

Ingredients:
½ cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp grated lemon peel
2 cups all purpose flour
5 cups confectioners sugar
½ cup milk
1 jar each of red, yellow, and green paste food coloring
1 lb. bag of licorice whips
Special Aid: Template - Click Here

Instructions:
1 - In a large bowl, using an electric mixer set on medium speed, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
2 - Beat in egg, vanilla, and lemon peel. On low speed, gradually beat in the flour until blended. Shape dough into a disk and then wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for one hour.
3 - Preheat oven to 350° and lightly grease two baking sheets.
4 - On a floured surface, using a floured rolling pin, roll dough out to ⅛ inch thickness. Using the template, cut out the cookies.
5 - Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on the prepared baking sheets. Make a hole in the bottom of each cookie (in the end of the light bulb) with the straw.
6 - Bake cookies in batches, until golden, about 5-8 minutes a batch. Transfer cookies to wire racks and cool completely.
7 - For the Icing: beat together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Divide mixture evenly among the three small bowls, reserving about 1 cup of the mixture for the white icing.
8 - Add food coloring to each bowl to make desired colors (remember: green and yellow make blue!).
9 - Spread the different colored icings on the cookies on the bulb, let stand until set.
10 - Using a pastry bag and a small, round tip, pipe the white icing "threads" on the bottom of each bulb. Let stand until set.
11 - Thread the licorice "wire" through the hole made with the straw and string together!

Christmas Light Cookies are a great gift idea. These decadent treats add fun to any gift basket! A dinner host would surely love the personal touches and not soon forget you gave them a thoughtful thank you gift basket!

Special Aid: plastic straw

Classic Beef Kabobs

Description
A recipe for Classic Beef Kabobs

Ingredients
1 pound well-trimmed boneless beef top sirloin or beef tenderloin steaks, cut 1 inch thick
8 ounces medium mushrooms
2 medium red, yellow or green bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
Salt
Seasoning:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves, crushed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Cucumber-Yogurt Sauce:
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/3 cup finely chopped seeded cucumber
2 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preparation
Total preparation and cooking time: 30 to 35 minutes

1. Cut beef steak into 1-1/4-inch pieces. Combine seasoning ingredients in large bowl. Add beef, mushrooms and bell pepper pieces; toss to coat.

2. Alternately thread beef and vegetable pieces evenly onto eight 12-inch metal skewers, leaving small spaces between pieces.

3. Place kabobs on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill kabobs, covered, 7 to 9 minutes (over medium heat on preheated gas grill, covered, 9 to 11 minutes) for medium rare (145°F) to medium (160°F) doneness, turning once. Season kabobs with salt, as desired.

4. Meanwhile combine sauce ingredients in small bowl. Serve with kabobs.

Cook's Tip: Eight 12-inch bamboo skewers may be substituted for metal skewers. Soak bamboo skewers in water 10 minutes before using; drain.

Nutrition
no information available

Serves
Makes 4 servings

Variations
no information available

Recipe: Bistec a lo Pobre

There is a very particular and delicious way to prepare steaks in Peru. Try the "Bistec a lo Pobre" and you will understand what we are talking about.

Ingredients:

• 4 sirloin steaks cut to 1/2 inch thickness
• 4 cloves garlic, mashed
• salt, pepper, cumin and smoked paprika to taste
• 2 large onions, sliced thinly
• 4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly
• 1 packet Sazon seasoning (optional)
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 4 extra large eggs

Preparation

The first step is to rub the steaks with the garlic. Season with the salt, pepper, cumin and smoked paprika. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a large skillet or frying pan. Add the onions and potatoes and sprinkle with salt, pepper and the Sazon, if using. What's more, saute the onions and potatoes over medium to medium-high heat, until very tender, about 10 minutes. I find it helpful to cover the pan for the first several minutes and finish it uncovered. Remember to remove to a serving platter and keep warm.

And in the same pan, sear the steaks on each side and cook them until they are done to your liking. Add a little more oil if you need to. Set them aside with the potatoes and onions. Continue to keep warm.

The eggs must be fried, sunny side up, in a nonstick pan. Leave the yolks soft and runny. Lay one egg on top of each steak. Finally, serve all together.

Recipe: Suspiro a la Limeña (Lima style Sigh)

The Suspiro is a traditional Peruvian dessert from the coastal cities. The preparation is easy and very simple, yet the flavour is outstanding.

Ingredients

• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 beaten egg yolks
• 2 beaten egg white
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Preparation

1. In the first place, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, vanilla, and egg yolks in a saucepan. Then place over medium-low heat and gently cook until the mixture thickens, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, about 30 minutes. Pour into a heatproof serving dish and set aside.

2. Remember to whip the egg whites with confectioners' sugar to stiff peaks. Spread meringue on top of milk mixture. Refrigerate until cold, for 3 hours. Finally. sprinkle with cinnamon before serving.

Peruvian Cuisine: The Project

Sitting in front of a delicious ceviche, Julio - the founder of Kiniro and all of the following projects - thought of a web that would spread the peruvian cuisine taste all over the world. That was the first step for the creation of this web site, which is now one of the most important sites dedicated to the gastronomy in Peru.

With the right tools and knowledge, we made "Peruvian Cuisine" the most prominent and ambicious project of its kinds. And it's a pleasure for me to invite every peruvian cheff, student, restaurant owner and tourists in general, to enjoy and participate of it. Buen provecho!

About Peru, a marvellous place

Charming, magical and culturally rich, Peru is a large territory country located in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.

In fact, this land was home to the Chavin and Mochica civilizations, some of the oldest in the world, and to the Inca Empire, the largest state in Pre-Columbian America.

The Spanish Kingdom reach these lands to conquer the region in the 16th century. The King established a Viceroyalty, which included most of its South American colonies. After achieving independence in 1821, July 28th, Peru has undergone periods of political unrest and fiscal crisis as well as periods of stability and economic success.

Info and Facts:

Capital city: Lima
Important cities: Trujillo, Piura, Cuzco, Arequipa
Official languages: Spanish
Independence declaration: July 28th, 1821
Land surface area: 1,285,220 km²
Population estimate: 29,180,900
Currency: Nuevo Sol
Currency symbol: S/.
Time zone: PET (UTC-5)
Car traffic: Drives on the right
Internet TLD: .pe
International Calling code: 51