I like this soup because we live in a very rainy region, and it is nice to get home and find that your mom has prepared this yummy soup. You get warm and the flavor is really great! Some people prepare this soup after having a party. If you drank too much and you feel your head is bigger than normal, you drink this soup to get well.

In the countryside it is very common to have this soup because the farmers grow all these vegetables. When we went to the country my brothers and I used to play. What I liked most was the sensation of being free and my brothers and I ran and ran and ran.

Now that I'm older I don't go to the country; I prefer going to the Mall with my friends but I still like this soup. My Mom likes to prepare it because she says it's easy to make. Besides, it contains a lot of proteins and vitamins.

I also remember times when I was sick and the only thing that I could eat was rice pudding... hehehe! It reminds me of when I was a little girl. I was 5 years old, and I remember that my friends and I had some fun. We used to play a game. We also sang a song that went like this:

"Arroz con le-che, me quiero ca-sar con u-na señori-ta de la ca-pi-tal, que sepa te-jer, que sepa bor-dar, que se-pa abrir la puer-ta para ir a pa-sear, Con és-ta sí, con és-ta no, con es-ta señorita me ca-so yo, Ca-sa-te con-mi-go que yo te da-ré, za-pa-tos y me-dias co-lor ca-fé…."

All the children held hands, forming a circle, and then there was a child in the middle of the circle. This game is almost like a game that children play in America, which is called "Duck, Duck, Goose". A girl runs into the circle, while the other kids walk; then she chooses a boy and both sing "con está si". Later, the girl points to someone else and sings "Con ésta no". Both children hold their hands and dance inside the circle, while the other people sing. Then, the first child stays inside the group, and the second child runs into the circle and chooses another child.

Wild cinnamon trees first appeared in south-eastern Asia; in the eastern Himalayas, Assam and northern Vietnam.

Place the pieces in the oven, with butter. Cook in an oven at a high temperature for 5 minutes, then reduce the heat to half and cook for another 10 minutes, until those pieces are golden and crispy. Cool the pieces on a grill. Beat the cream until stiff. Place _ spoonful of marmalade and beaten cream on squares, to decorate.

You may ask why I chose to prepare ‘little birds’. I will answer that question. It is because since I was small my mom’s family used to get together at my grandmother’s house where we were all united. We worked in a team. I always remember that I helped my mom to mix the ingredients. By the way, my mom’s name is Doraliza.

Although I was very small I remember grandmothers face when she realized that she had left me alone in the kitchen. When she came back I was covered in flour! After her frightened scream they all saw me, and they began to laugh. My mom was still laughing when she took me to the yard and she shook me. This year I did not visit my relatives, but in my house we made something else; something better.
Guess what it was... we competed to see who of the five in my family ate the most ‘little birds’ in three minutes! I lost because my brother is bigger and he was the quickest in eating them; he ate twice as much as my smaller sister! He ate eleven little birds.

The name ‘little birds’ is due to their shape. It is similar to a bird because it has two wings that make it look as if they will fly. I hope that if you come to visit our country that you will have a chance to taste this sweet bread.

The origin of this recipe is in Chile, somewhere from the 6th region in the south of the country. In my country a recipe passes from one generation to another. For instance, my grandmother taught this recipe to my mother, and my mom is teaching me this dish, and other kinds of dishes. Now I can cook for my family.

In Chile, we have three ways of eating beans: green beans, beans and dried beans. This dish is usually prepared during summer time because you can find all the ingredients fresh and recently harvested: corns, beans and tomatoes. We have plenty of food, so it's very common to find Chilean people eating this dish during the months of January and February. I like this dish because I like to eat vegetables. Corn, beans and tomatoes really are delicious and if you eat a delicious piece of watermelon (why not the whole watermelon?) as dessert... mmm! Really yummy! You have to test it. I think that summer time is really fun for young people like me because of the sun, the beach and vacations. If you eat things you haven’t eaten since you were a baby, and if your granny prepared it especially for you, well, I guess you'll always love to eat that kind of food!

 ...The Mother of Maize changed her dove appearance to a human one; She introduced to the young man her 5 daughters, who symbolize the five maize sacred colors: white, red, yellow, spotted and blue. As the young man was hungry The Mother of Maize gave him a kettle filled with tortillas and a pot filled with atole; he didn't belive that those could satiate his hunger, but the tortillas and atole were renewed magicaly, in a way that he couldn't finish them.  The Mother of Maize asked him to choose one of her daughters and he took the Girl of Blue Maize, the most beauty and sacred of them all...

[From the book "Mitos y arte huicoles," published by Sep/Setentas and written by Peter T. Furst and Salomón Nahmad.]

After eating the meat pudding I realized that it was good. Granny used to make it with potatoes. This meal is from the South of Chile. It has a lot of meaning for my family because it is a tradition. It has passed from generation to generation; I’d like to continue this tradition. Our families always get together at my grandmother's house: the two grandparents, my uncles, six brothers and sisters and the twelve grandchildren get together to share experiences, their feelings and their memories.

To listen to my grandfather, as my mom and uncle play guitar and everybody sings, is a very special moment. In the kitchen my grandmother used to give my mom directions about how to make the meat pudding. My mother and her sisters followed her instructions carefully. I will always associate this meal with my grandfather’s farm because being there was so relaxing and I enjoyed all the moments with my family.

Usually it’s near where the movers used to live. Incredible, but true. All the people have to move the house. While men are moving the house, women are the ones in charge of cooking the curanto, a dish that’s easy to prepare because most of the people who live there are fishermen. The Pacific Ocean surrounds Chiloe Island so it’s easy for them to get the ingredients

I love hot red wine because it has a very special flavor due to the mixture of wine and oranges. Although it's a delicious drink my parents do not agree with the idea of drinking it too much. I have tasted it only a few times because it contains alcohol and it can make me feel bad, but at the same time it can be used as a cure of some illnesses like colds. If I could give advice to teenagers it would be to not drink too much of this red wine. Don't forget - it's still alcohol.

Chop up the onion and put it in butter. Mix the onions and the corn very slowly and add salt, depending on how much you like. Open up and extend the leaves and put the mixture (about 3 or 4 spoonful) in the middle of the leaves. Fold the leaves closed so that it looks likes a parcel.

Then, put two leaves on the table, one over the other. Tie it together with thin white thread. Give it the shape of a bow tie. Then put the parcel in a saucepan with boiling water. The ‘parcels’ are ready when the leaves become yellow. Remove them from the saucepan and serve hot!

The Humitas are a tradition in my family. My grandmother has a bakery and she has made this dish for years. Humitas are very popular and everybody says that they are delicious. Humitas have grated corn, onion and salt. They are not too difficult to prepare, but not everyone has the patience to prepare this dish because it does take some time.

My grandmother told me that when she was young, she always ate Humitas. She usually stayed at her grandmother’s house where she cooked them for all the members of her family. After they ate the Humitas they used to go to the living room and then they talked until the evening. Then it was time to have dinner and can you guess what they ate? Humitas! Again!! You can eat Humitas for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The corn comes from Spain, but the recipe’s origin is Chile.
The Indian people learnt this from Spanish conquerors. The recipe was very popular, but now the tradition is getting lost. People say to save time they prefer to buy Humitas at the supermarket, in stead of having the family getting together over the weekend and preparing these delicious Humitas.