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OsterpinzeEaster anise brioche

Osterpinze is the Easter bread of Styria, Carinthia and the area around Trieste, a soft, golden brioche dome with three deep cuts on top for the Holy Trinity, so that it opens into a crown as it bakes. The dough is rich with egg yolks and butter and flavoured with anise and lemon; old recipes add a splash of white wine, left out here. It is blessed in the Easter basket on Holy Saturday and eaten on Easter morning with ham, horseradish and eggs, or with butter and jam. Chef's tip: make the three cuts with scissors just before baking, deep enough to reach halfway down, so the crown opens wide.

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FunkasoFermented wheat pancakes

Funkaso is a Hausa pancake from northern Nigeria, made from a wheat batter left to ferment until bubbly and fried into soft, spongy rounds with crisp edges. Families cook stacks of it for the pre-dawn sahur and the evening meal during Ramadan, and again on Sallah morning for visitors. It is eaten simply, sprinkled with sugar, or dipped in a hot pepper sauce, with hot kunun or tea. Chef's tip: the batter should be as thick as double cream; too runny and the pancakes spread thin and lose their spongy middle.

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AlewaPulled sugar sweets

Alewa is the chewy pulled sugar sweet of Hausa northern Nigeria, cooked from just sugar, water and a squeeze of lime, then stretched by hand until it turns pale and satiny. Pocketfuls are given to children on Sallah, the Eid al-Fitr holiday, as they go from house to house in new clothes. The taste is clean caramel with a little sharpness from the lime. An adult should do the hot pulling. Chef's tip: oil your hands and the worktop well and pull while the sugar is still hot enough to bend; once it cools it sets hard and won't stretch.

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Dowina (Kurdish yogurt soup)

Dowina, called ash-e doogh in Persian, is warming spring food in Kurdish homes around Newroz, when yogurt is plentiful and the first herbs are cut from the garden. Rice and chickpeas simmer in a tangy, lightly thickened yogurt broth, finished with fresh dill, coriander and a sizzle of dried mint in oil. It is eaten warm, never boiling hot, with flatbread. The common mistake is to heat the yogurt too fast without stirring, which makes it split into grainy curds. Chef's tip: whisk an egg yolk and a spoonful of rice flour into the yogurt before it goes on the heat; it holds the soup smooth all the way to the simmer.

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RabarbrikookRhubarb crumble cake

By Jaanipäev, Estonian Midsummer on 24 June, the rhubarb in every country garden is tall and red, and Estonians take rhubarb cake to the Jaaniõhtu bonfire evening along with grilled sausages, cheese and the beer for the grown-ups. Rabarbrikook is a simple, soft butter cake packed with sharp rhubarb under a thick, sweet crumble that soaks up the juices. Serve it warm with vanilla sauce or cold in squares. Chef's tip: toss the rhubarb in a spoonful of sugar and flour first; the flour thickens the juice so the cake below does not go soggy.

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Empanadas de vigiliaTuna empanadas

During Cuaresma (Lent) and on the Fridays of Holy Week, Mexican kitchens turn to 'vigilia' food without meat, and fish empanadas are a favourite: tender wheat pastry half-moons filled with tuna (or soaked salt cod) cooked with tomato, onion, olives, capers and pickled jalapeños, a cousin of bacalao a la vizcaína. They are baked here, but can be fried. Chef's tip: cook the filling until quite dry, as a wet filling makes soggy empanadas that leak.

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Sopa teólogaTurkey broth with bread and cheese

Sopa teóloga ('the theologian's soup') goes back to colonial convents in Lima and Arequipa, where it was cooked for feast days, and it is still served at Holy Week and family celebrations. A rich turkey (or chicken) broth is thickened with soaked bread, milk and fresh cheese, with yellow potatoes and shreds of turkey, and finished with a little ají amarillo and chopped huacatay or parsley. It is thick, comforting and filling. Chef's tip: blend part of the soaked bread with broth before adding it, which gives the soup its creamy body without lumps.

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AllerheiligenstriezelBraided sweet loaf

In Bavaria and Austria, godparents give their godchildren an Allerheiligenstriezel on All Saints' Day, 1 November: a large braided loaf of sweet yeast dough, brushed with egg and scattered with almonds or pearl sugar. The braid is said to recall the old custom of cutting a plait of hair in mourning, and the size of the loaf once showed how generous the godparent was. It is lightly sweet, with lemon and vanilla, and is eaten sliced with butter or jam. Some recipes add rum-soaked raisins; these are soaked in warm water instead. Chef's tip: braid four strands for an impressive, high loaf.

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KaguyjyWhite corn pudding

On the night of 23–24 June, Paraguayans celebrate San Juan with bonfires, games like walking over hot coals and the 'paso de fuego', and a table of traditional foods, and kaguyjy (also mazamorra) is one of them. It is a soft, creamy pudding of cracked white corn (locro) simmered slowly in water and then milk with sugar or honey, sometimes with orange peel. It is eaten warm or cold. It is gluten free. Chef's tip: soak the corn overnight and cook it until each kernel is tender before adding the milk, or it never turns creamy.

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DubulanHoney-drizzled dough spirals

Dubulan are crisp spirals of thin fried dough from northern Nigeria, piled onto trays for Eid al-Fitr, known locally as Sallah, and for weddings among Hausa and Kanuri families. Each ribbon of rolled-out egg dough is wound loosely around a fork as it fries, so it sets into a light, crackly rosette, then honey or syrup is trickled over the top. They keep well in a tin for visitors through the festival days. Chef's tip: roll the dough so thin you can almost see through it; thick ribbons stay hard instead of shattering.

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UkodoYam pepper soup with goat

Ukodo is the Urhobo celebration soup of Delta State, served at weddings, at Christmas and on the morning after a big party, when guests are fed bowls of yam swimming in a fiery, fragrant broth. Goat is simmered with lemongrass, scent leaves and pepper soup spice, then chunks of yam cook in the broth and thicken it slightly, with dried fish for depth. It is light, hot and comforting. Chef's tip: add the yam only when the goat is nearly tender, or it collapses into mush before the meat is done.

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SkābputraSoured barley porridge drink

Skābputra, 'sour porridge', is one of the oldest Latvian foods, and at Jāņi, Midsummer on 23–24 June, it is served cold alongside caraway cheese, pīrāgi and wreaths of flowers. Pearl barley is cooked soft, then soured with buttermilk or kefir for a day or two until it is tangy and fresh-tasting, and it is thinned with milk into a thick, cooling drink sipped or eaten with a spoon on hot summer days. This home version uses bought live buttermilk to start the souring safely. Chef's tip: use clean jars and utensils, and taste it each day; once it is pleasantly sour, chill it so it stops souring.

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Huauzontles capeadosBattered cheese-stuffed greens

In central Mexico, Lent and Holy Week bring meatless Fridays, and huauzontles capeados are a beloved vigil dish. Huauzontle is a leafy, broccoli-like green with tiny seed buds; little bundles of the blanched sprigs are pressed around a piece of fresh cheese, dipped in fluffy egg batter, fried and then simmered briefly in a light tomato and chile broth. If you can't find huauzontle, use tenderstem broccoli tips or quelites. Queso fresco is usually made with animal rennet, so choose a vegetarian one if needed. Chef's tip: squeeze the blanched greens very dry, as wet greens make the batter slide off.

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Tostadas de pataTostadas with pickled cow's foot

On the night of 15 September, when Mexicans gather for the Grito and the Fiestas Patrias, the table fills with antojitos: pozole, sopes and tostadas de pata, a favourite of Mexico City and Puebla. Cow's foot is simmered for hours until it turns soft and gelatinous, then sliced thin and pickled in vinegar with onion, oregano and chilli. Piled on crisp tostadas over beans with lettuce, cream and salsa, it is tangy, rich and crunchy all at once. Chef's tip: slice the foot while it is cold from the fridge; warm, it falls apart.

240 minMexicanMeatSpicy
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Pajagua mascadaBeef and cassava patties

Pajagua mascada is a Paraguayan street-food classic that appears on every table for the San Juan festival on 24 June, when bonfires burn and the night is full of games and traditional food. Minced beef is mixed with mashed cassava, onion, garlic and a little egg and flour, shaped into flat patties and fried until crisp. The name comes from Guaraní and refers to the 'chewing' of old Paraguayan cooks, who made it from leftover meat. Chef's tip: dry the boiled cassava well and remove its woody core, which keeps the patties light and crunchy.

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Relleno negroTurkey and pork black chilli stew

Relleno negro, or chilmole, is the great fiesta dish of the Yucatán peninsula, cooked for Christmas, New Year and village saints' days. Turkey is simmered in a jet-black broth coloured by recado negro, a paste of chillies charred until black, and served with a 'but', a meatball of minced pork and spices wrapped around hard-boiled egg. Recado negro paste is sold in Mexican shops; it is very hard to make at home safely because the chillies are burnt outdoors. Serve with corn tortillas or in tortas. Chef's tip: dissolve the recado in some of the warm broth first, so it blends smoothly instead of floating in black lumps.

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Roasted new yam with palm-oil sauce

At Iri Ji, the New Yam festival held across Igboland in August, the first yams of the harvest are offered with thanks, and the chief or eldest man eats the first piece before anyone else may taste the new crop. Often that first yam is simply roasted in the embers until the skin is charred, then dipped into a sauce of red palm oil, raw onion, ground pepper and bitter utazi leaf. The inside is fluffy and sweet, the sauce rich and fiery. Chef's tip: use real West African yam, not sweet potato; it roasts dry and floury and soaks up the oil.

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Chipa so'oCheese bread with spiced beef

In Paraguay, families bake chipa in the clay tatakua ovens on Holy Wednesday so there is food for Thursday and Good Friday, when cooking stops. Chipa so'o ('chipa with meat') is a cassava-starch and cheese bread wrapped around a little filling of minced beef cooked with onion and egg, then baked until crisp outside and chewy within. It is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: knead the dough until it no longer cracks at the edges when pressed; dry dough splits around the filling.

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KalanehWild leek stuffed flatbread

In Kurdistan and Kermanshah, Newroz arrives with the first spring greens on the hillsides, and families gather wild leeks to fold into kalaneh, thin griddle breads cooked over a fire or a hot pan and soaked in melted butter. The dough is plain and soft, rolled very thin around a pile of chopped leek or chives with a little salt and pepper, so the greens steam inside as the bread blisters. Eat it hot, torn into strips, with yogurt and tea at a Newroz picnic. The common mistake is wet greens, which turn the dough soggy and make it tear; dry them well after washing. Chef's tip: brush the butter on the moment the bread leaves the pan so it soaks right in.

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Gorditas de la VillaSweet corn griddle cakes

Every 12 December, millions of pilgrims walk to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City ('La Villa'), and all around it women cook gorditas de la Villa on clay comales: small, thick, sweet cakes of corn masa with piloncillo, cinnamon and a little anise, wrapped in coloured tissue paper to take home. They are soft and slightly chewy, with toasty spots. They are gluten free. Chef's tip: cook them on a dry, medium-low griddle; too hot and the sugar burns before the middle cooks through.

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Alfeñique (Toluca Day of the Dead sugar-paste figures)

Each October the arcades of Toluca, in the State of Mexico, fill with the Feria del Alfeñique: stalls of little skulls, lambs, coffins, baskets and fruit, all modelled from sugar paste and painted bright colours for the Day of the Dead altars of 1 and 2 November. Children buy a skull with their own name on it; families place them on the ofrenda beside marigolds, candles and pan de muerto. The paste is snow-white, smooth and brittle once dry, with a clean sugar and lime taste. The old Toluca paste is egg-free, kneaded with chautle, a gum from an orchid bulb; here gum tragacanth plays that part, making the paste stretchy enough to model and helping it dry hard. The decorating icing is egg-free too, made from icing sugar, lime juice and a pinch of the same gum. Chef's tip: work the syrup while it is warm and keep the paste wrapped; the common mistake is letting it sit uncovered, so it dries out and cracks as you shape it.

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Raspados (Mexican shaved ice with fruit syrups)

In Guadalajara and the towns of Sinaloa, raspados are sold from carts and little shops from noon until late on hot days: a paper cup of finely shaved ice soaked in bright homemade syrups like tamarind, mango, strawberry and deep-red hibiscus, sometimes with fresh fruit and a squeeze of lime. They are the cheapest way to cool down, and children and adults line up alike. They are naturally egg-free and plant-based: there is nothing to set or bind, just fruit and sugar cooked into syrups thick enough to cling to the ice. The hibiscus is tart and floral, the mango sweet and thick, and the two side by side make a striking cup. Make the syrups and cool them quickly over iced water. Chef's tip: shave the ice as fine as you can and pour the syrup slowly; the common mistake is using coarse crushed ice, which lets the syrup run straight to the bottom.

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Aguadito de polloCoriander chicken rice soup

Aguadito is the soup Lima serves in the small hours: at the end of a wedding, after New Year's Eve and at weekend family lunches, it is ladled out thick and steaming to revive everyone. Rice simmers in chicken broth coloured deep green with blended coriander and warmed with yellow ají amarillo, along with peas, carrot, pepper, sweetcorn and potato. A portion gives about 24 g of protein, from the chicken with a little from the rice and peas, for around 480 kcal. The common mistake is adding the coriander purée too early: cooked for long it turns khaki and loses its fresh taste, so stir it in for the last 10 minutes. The chicken must reach 74 °C at the bone. Chef's tip: blend a handful of spinach with the coriander; it keeps the colour vivid green without changing the flavour.

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Chilcano de pescadoClear fish broth

In the fishermen's terminals of Chorrillos and Callao, chilcano is what you drink on a Sunday morning after a long night: a clear, gingery broth made from the heads and bones left over from cleaning fish for ceviche, with chunks of fish, red onion, chilli and a squeeze of lime in the bowl. It is light and warming, around 160 kcal a bowl, and still gives about 24 g of protein from the fish fillet and the broth. The common mistake is squeezing the lime into the pot while it boils, which turns it bitter; add it to each bowl at the table. Don't boil the bones for more than 30 minutes either, or the broth turns cloudy and harsh. Chef's tip: ask the fishmonger for heads and frames from mild white fish like sea bass or cod, and leave out oily fish such as mackerel, which makes the broth strong and fishy.

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