Diente sucre

Day 3 of the project
Santiago, Chile

One of the greatest pleasures of travel is tasting new things. Especially sweet things. Chocolate is preferred, but new kinds of fruit, candy, pastries, cake and ice cream are wonderful. Each country has its own specialty and the corporate candy giants have made country-specific delights in colorful packaging. Though if I'm being honest, I have just as much love for dessert in my home country as I do on the road. I digress. 

While a single day in Santiago is not nearly enough time to try everything in the pasteleria, I was estatic to discover the Chileans love dulce de leche just as much as their Argentine counterparts. For those who have not experienced this divine culinary invention, it is a thick, creamy caramel paste. It is liberally applied to any pastry known man. It is mixed into ice cream. It is paired with chocolate. It is even eaten by spoon (don't judge). It can be made by slowly boiling sweetened condensed milk for several hours, though most recipes advise caution due to sticky explosions.

So naturally I had a dulce negrita for breakfast yesterday. Two spongy pastry squares with a thick layer of dulce de leche spread in between and dipped in chocolate. A light dusting of powdered sugar on top. Paired with a cup of the worst burned coffee I've had in ages. Sugar junkie nirvana. And completely wired for an afternoon of walking. When the sugar rush began to dip, I stopped in a convenience store for a refresher. A delightful Banananita was just the trick. Shaped like a banana, the banana-flavored creme was coated with dulce de leche and a chocolate crust. Sort of like a banana Milky Way. The perfect pick-me-up.

Today breakfast was at the hostel and much healthier. Simple toast with jam and tea. I can already feel my sweet tooth nagging for another hit. I cannot wait to see what my Peruvian fix will be.