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Manjar blanco del ValleMilk and rice sweet

In the Valle del Cauca around Cali, Christmas means stirring manjar blanco: whole milk, sugar and a little ground rice cooked down for hours, traditionally in a big copper pan (paila) over a wood fire, until it turns into a thick, pale-caramel paste. It is served in totumo gourd bowls with buñuelos and natilla, or with a slice of fresh cheese. It is gluten free and keeps a week in the fridge. Chef's tip: soak and blend the rice to a fine paste first, which gives manjar blanco its smooth body without lumps.

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Dulce de papayuelaMountain papaya in spiced syrup

Papayuela is the small, fragrant mountain papaya that grows in the cool highlands of Boyacá in Colombia. Cooked slowly in panela syrup with cloves and cinnamon, it becomes a glossy, amber dulce that Boyacá families set out during Holy Week and again at Christmas, often with a slice of fresh white cheese or cuajada. It is vegan and gluten free. Firm, slightly underripe ordinary papaya, or babaco, makes a good stand-in. Chef's tip: blanch the fruit briefly first, then drain it; this removes the bitter latex and lets it soak up the syrup.

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Torta de natasBoiled milk skin cake

Dairy farms in Boyacá and Cundinamarca boil their fresh milk every morning, and the thick, creamy skin that forms on top (the natas) gets lifted off and saved in a jar in the fridge. After a week or so there's enough for a torta de natas, a rich, close-crumbed cake with a buttery, slightly tangy flavour, served at onces (afternoon tea) with aguapanela or a tinto. Natas are mostly milk fat, so the cake needs no butter. If you don't boil raw milk, clotted cream loosened with a little milk is a fair stand-in. Over-beating natas is the trap: they can split into butter and whey, so beat only until smooth. Chef's tip: collect natas from whole milk simmered gently and cooled undisturbed; the slower it cools, the thicker the skin.

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Jam dropsJam thumbprint biscuits

Few things say Australian morning tea like a plate of jam drops: soft golden butter biscuits, each with a thumb-pressed hollow of glossy jam. Country cookbooks and school fete stalls have carried them for generations, and they are often the first biscuit Australian children learn to bake, because there is nothing to roll or cut. Serve them with a cuppa, or tuck them into lunch boxes; plum or apricot jam work as well as raspberry. Plenty of families make them without egg, using a little milk instead. Chef's tip: fill each hollow only level with the top, about half a teaspoon; overfilling is the common error, and the jam bubbles over and burns on the tray.

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Arepa de chocloSweet corn griddle cakes with cheese

Along the mountain roads of Antioquia and Boyacá, roadside stalls cook arepas de choclo on wide griddles all day: thick, sweet cakes of blended fresh corn, golden outside and soft inside, folded or topped with a slab of fresh white cheese and a smear of butter. Colombians eat them for breakfast, as a mid-afternoon snack with hot chocolate, or as a quick supper. The usual mistake is a batter that is too wet, so the cakes tear when flipped; it should hold its shape on a spoon, and a little precooked cornmeal fixes a runny batch. Queso campesino and mozzarella are often made with animal rennet, so look for a vegetarian cheese if needed; check the cornmeal pack is gluten free if that matters. Chef's tip: cook them over a medium-low heat; the sugar in the corn burns before the middle sets if the pan is too hot.

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TopfengolatschenSweet quark puff pastry squares

A Topfengolatsche is what Viennese office workers grab from the bakery on the way in, and what grandparents order with a Melange in a coffee house on a Sunday afternoon. The corners of a puff pastry square are folded over a lemony, vanilla-scented filling of Topfen (Austrian quark) with plump raisins, and the top gets a thin white glaze. It is flaky, light and not too sweet. Raisins are sometimes soaked in rum; warm water or orange juice works just as well, and the recipe below is alcohol-free. Wet quark is the classic problem, because it turns the filling runny and it leaks out in the oven. Chef's tip: hang the quark in a sieve lined with a clean cloth for an hour, or squeeze it, until it is as thick as soft cream cheese.

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Jelly slice

Jelly slice is a fixture of school fetes, church bake stalls and birthday tables in Australia and New Zealand: a crushed biscuit base, a tangy layer of lemon and condensed milk set with gelatine, and a glassy top of red raspberry jelly, cut into neat squares. It needs no oven but a lot of fridge time, so make it the day before. It contains gluten and milk, and gelatine, so it is not vegetarian; agar-based vegetarian jelly crystals and a vegetarian gelling agent work if set according to their packet. Chef's tip: let the jelly cool until it is syrupy and only just warm before pouring, or it melts into the creamy layer.

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Sausage sizzle

The sausage sizzle is how Australians raise money for school fetes, sports clubs and polling days, and it is the easiest food for a backyard birthday: thick sausages barbecued until browned, laid diagonally on a slice of soft white bread with a heap of sweet fried onions and a squiggle of tomato sauce. One slice, one sausage, eaten in the hand. It contains gluten from the bread (and often the sausages). Chef's tip: cook the onions slowly on the flat plate before the sausages, and push them to the cooler side to keep warm while the sausages cook.

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Honey joysHoney cornflake cakes

Honey joys have been on Australian children's birthday tables for generations, next to fairy bread and chocolate crackles: crunchy clusters of cornflakes coated in bubbling honey butter and baked in little paper cases until golden and crisp. Children can stir and spoon them while an adult handles the hot syrup. They are for school-age children and not for babies under one, who shouldn't have honey. They contain milk and usually gluten (from malt in cornflakes). Chef's tip: bake them just until golden; a few minutes too long and the honey turns bitter.

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Kärntner ReindlingCinnamon raisin yeast cake

Carinthia's Easter loaf takes its name from the Reindl, the round, deep pan it is baked in, and in southern Austria no Easter basket goes to church without one. Inside the golden yeast crust is a spiral of butter, cinnamon sugar and plump raisins, so every slice shows a dark swirl. Locals eat it two ways: sweet with coffee on Easter morning, or alongside the savoury Easter platter with horseradish. Many bakers soak the raisins in rum overnight; warm water or tea works just as well and keeps it alcohol-free. A dry, crumbly Reindling usually means too much flour went in during kneading, so keep the dough soft and only lightly floured. Chef's tip: butter the pan well and dust it with sugar, which caramelises into a thin crunchy shell.

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Pan aliñadoSweet and salty cheese bread braid

Colombian panaderías fill their glass cases with pan aliñado, a shiny braided loaf that is sweet on the outside and salty from the crumbled white cheese worked through the dough. In Bogotá and across the Andean towns it is torn into chunks at the onces, the late-afternoon break, and dunked in a cup of hot chocolate, ideally with an extra slice of fresh cheese melting in the cup. The texture should be soft and pillowy, the crust thin and glossy with a sugary shine. Queso costeño is the usual cheese; a mix of feta and low-moisture mozzarella is the closest substitute (choose ones made with vegetarian rennet). Adding the cheese at the start is the common error: it smears and stops the dough developing, so knead it in last. Chef's tip: sprinkle sugar over the egg wash just before baking for the sweet, crackly top that makes it pan aliñado.

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Cocktail frankfurts with tomato sauce

Ask anyone who grew up in Australia or New Zealand about birthday parties and they'll mention 'little boys' or 'cheerios': bright red cocktail frankfurts, gently heated and piled in a bowl with tomato sauce for dunking, next to the fairy bread and sausage rolls. They take ten minutes and need almost no skill, which is why they've lasted. Check the label for gluten and allergens; many brands contain neither, but some do. Chef's tip: heat them in water that is barely simmering, never boiling hard, or the skins split and they turn pale.

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Jaffles (Australian toasted sandwiches)

Jaffles are Australian childhood in a sandwich: thick bread sealed around a hot filling in a cast-iron jaffle iron over the campfire, or in an electric sandwich press after school and on rainy weekend lunchtimes. Cheese and baked beans, or cheese and tomato, are the classics, and the sealed edges keep everything molten inside. They contain gluten and milk. Chef's tip: butter the outsides, not the insides, so the bread turns crisp and golden against the iron.

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ErdäpfelstrudelSavoury potato strudel

Austrians, especially in the Mühlviertel of Upper Austria and the Waldviertel, make savoury strudels as often as sweet ones, and Erdäpfelstrudel is a farmhouse favourite for a meatless Friday or a cold evening. Thin pastry wraps a filling of potatoes, fried onion, sour cream, marjoram and parsley, baked until crisp and golden and sliced with a green salad or a dill and sour-cream dip. Bought filo makes it easy at home. The mistake to avoid is a wet filling, which turns the pastry soggy underneath. Chef's tip: cool the filling completely before rolling; warm filling makes the layers stick and tear.

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Coconut icePink and white coconut fudge

Coconut ice is the pink and white sweet that fills Australian school fete stalls, Christmas hampers and CWA cake tables, a no-cook fudge of desiccated coconut, condensed milk and icing sugar. It is soft, chewy and very sweet, so cut small squares. A common mistake is a mixture that's too wet to hold; add more coconut until it's firm enough to press. Chef's tip: press the white layer first, then the pink, and chill before cutting for sharp stripes.

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Golden syrup dumplings

Golden syrup dumplings are a winter pudding from Australian country kitchens, made during the Depression and still cooked by grandmothers in the Riverina and the Victorian high country when the nights turn cold. Soft scone-dough balls simmer in a sauce of golden syrup, butter and brown sugar until they swell and turn sticky. Serve with vanilla ice cream or custard. A common mistake is a pan that's too small; the dumplings double in size and need space. Chef's tip: keep the lid on and resist peeking, so the tops steam light and fluffy.

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Melting momentsLemon buttercream sandwich biscuits

Melting moments are the soft, crumbly biscuits found in Australian and New Zealand bakery jars and grandmother's tins, two rounds made with custard powder and icing sugar sandwiched with a lemon butter icing. The custard powder gives them their yellow colour and tender, short texture that melts in the mouth, hence the name. A common mistake is overbaking; they should be pale, not golden. Chef's tip: press each ball with a floured fork for the classic stripes.

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Curried sausages

Curried sausages are pure Australian weeknight comfort, the dish generations of kids came home to in Sydney, Brisbane and country towns alike, usually made with thick beef or pork sausages and a tin of mild curry powder. The sausages are browned, sliced and simmered with onion, carrot, potato and peas in a gentle, slightly sweet curry gravy, then spooned over fluffy rice. The usual mistake is skipping the pre-cook: browning the sausages whole first keeps them juicy and gives the sauce its colour. Sausages, whether beef or pork, must reach 71 °C in the centre. Chef's tip: a grated apple simmered in the sauce is the classic Aussie trick for a rounded sweetness without extra sugar.

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Moreton Bay bugsSlipper lobster with garlic butter

Moreton Bay bugs are the flat, shovel-nosed slipper lobsters caught off the Queensland coast around Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, and for Queenslanders they are a summer treat, split and grilled at the beach house. The tail meat is sweet and rich, somewhere between lobster and prawn. Buy them raw, frozen or fresh, from a fishmonger and ask them to halve them if you like. A common mistake is overcooking, which makes the meat rubbery; it is ready the moment it turns white. Chef's tip: grill flesh side down first to mark it, then turn and baste in the shell.

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Curried egg sandwich

A school canteen and church-fete favourite across Australia, the curried egg sandwich is soft white or wholemeal bread filled with hard-boiled egg mashed with mayonnaise and a little mild curry powder, often with lettuce or cress. It goes into lunch boxes cut into fingers. The common mistake is mashing the eggs while warm, which turns the mayonnaise oily and the filling runny; let them cool completely. Chef's tip: warm the curry powder in a dry pan for 20 seconds first, and the raw, dusty taste turns sweet and toasty.

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Masato de arroz (Bogotá spiced rice drink)

In the old bakeries of La Candelaria and at the juice stands of the Paloquemao market in Bogotá, masato is poured from big jugs to go with warm almojábanas and pandebono at mid-morning or with the afternoon onces. It is cooked rice blended with spiced syrup and left to rest until it turns gently tangy, so it tastes like a cross between rice pudding and a cool, creamy lemonade. Any natural fermentation produces a trace of alcohol the longer it goes on; this version rests only overnight and is then chilled, and for a completely alcohol-free drink skip the rest and add lime juice for the tang. Chef's tip: keep the rest short and taste it; it should be lightly sour and sweet, never fizzy or boozy.

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Aussie salad sandwich

The salad sandwich is the backbone of the Australian lunchbox and the school tuckshop order: soft bread built up with tinned beetroot, grated carrot, tasty cheese, tomato and crisp lettuce, cut into triangles and wrapped in paper. Beetroot is what makes it unmistakably Aussie. The common mistake is laying wet beetroot and tomato straight on bare bread, so by lunchtime it is pink and soggy. Many Cheddar-style "tasty" cheeses use animal rennet; choose one labelled vegetarian. Chef's tip: butter both slices to the edge and put the cheese and lettuce next to the bread, with the wet fillings sealed in the middle.

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Mazorcada (Bogotá loaded corn bowl)

Late at night, when the bars of the Zona T and Usaquén empty, the food trucks and carts around Bogotá's Parque de la 93 do a roaring trade in mazorcada, a huge tray of sweetcorn buried under shredded chicken or beef, melted cheese, salsa rosada and crunchy potato sticks. It is messy, salty-sweet and very filling, and Colombians argue about whether pineapple sauce belongs on top. Chef's tip: melt the cheese first and add the potato sticks at the very end, so they stay crunchy.

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Sorbete de curubaBanana passionfruit milk drink

In Colombia a sorbete is not an ice but a fruit milkshake, and around Bogotá and the cold highlands of Boyacá and Cundinamarca the classic is made with curuba, the long, soft-skinned banana passionfruit that grows on vines at 2,500 metres. Bakeries and corrientazo lunch spots serve it with almuerzo or with a slice of cake at onces, the late-afternoon snack. It is pale salmon-pink, creamy and sweet-tart, more delicate than passionfruit, with a fragrance like guava and lemon. The common mistake is blending the pulp with its black seeds on high speed: the seeds break up and the sorbete turns bitter and grey-flecked. Pulse just enough to loosen the pulp from the seeds, strain, and only then blend with milk. Serve it at once, because the acid in curuba thickens the milk the longer it stands. It is ready when it is smooth, frothy and pink with no gritty specks. Outside Colombia look for frozen curuba pulp in Latin shops; passionfruit pulp works too, but use about two thirds of the amount as it is stronger. Chef's tip: dissolve the sugar in the strained juice before the milk goes in, so you can blend for less time.

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