Dec 10 2006
About
Published by Laylita
My name is Layla and I love food. I currently live in Seattle, but spent most of my life in Vilcabamba-Loja, Ecuador. A lot of my recipes are inspired by the food I was exposed to growing up, from my mother’s New Mexico cooking to the market food stalls and snack carts in the street serving the best Ecuadorian food (for the record I have never gotten sick from eating anything from a snack cart in Ecuador, but I probably have some sort of immunity because I was born there). I also lived in Texas with my grandmother and she makes some of the best Southern food. Finally, I married a French guy who can cook perfect crepes and likes good red wine, which gives me a great excuse to explore French cooking (but I’ll leave the crepes to Nicolas) with a glass in hand.
According to a 5 year old named Alex I am a “good cooker”.
According to my husband the main reason he married me is because I can cook. My revenge for him using me this way is that I am using him to test all of my recipe experiments, so I guess we’re even. Marc, my 2 year old, is my other “tester”, he’s a little unpredictable and can’t speak that well yet so it’s hard to get good feedback, but if he finishes his plate it’s a good sign.
I really like to read/browse cook books and food magazines, I love the ones with pictures, I’m not that good about following recipes, except for baking, but I let the pictures and my imagination inspire me. I also love all types of kitchen gadgets and anything kitchen related (except for doing dishes), though I am currently banned from adding anything new to my kitchen gadget collection due to lack of space.
If you have any questions or comments my email is layla at laylita dot com
Brief instructions/explanation on how to use this site
Just a few instructions or tips for using the recipes: I grew up writing mainly in Spanish so you will find some grammar mistakes in the recipes and stories, I’m always open to learning the correct way so let me know if there are any improvements I can make. Also I learned to cook in the typical South American way of “add a little of this and a little of that” so basically without precise measurements just instinct, I do my best to document the measurements and amounts for each recipe, but feel free to adjust for your tastes. Most of the recipes are for about 4-6 people, when it just the family we usually have some leftovers (this is intentional) unless everyone is starving; I’ll specify in the recipes if the proportions I’m using are for a large party (10 plus people), I also think that when I include pictures of the process it’s kind of obvious how much is being made.
I assume that all vegetables, fruits, meat, seafood, etc has been cleaned properly before using so I don’t specifically say “wash the tomatoes” because I think that is quite obvious. I also assume that you know that raw fish/seafood can be dangerous and that you should avoid it if your doctor has told you so. I also recommend that you try to use fresh, local, organic products are much as possible, I try to do this with as many products as I can, however there are certain ingredients needed to make South American dishes that are not grown or made locally (or anywhere close) so it’s isn’t always possible, though I really wish someone would try growing tree tomatoes or yuca or naranjillas in Washington (or even California) because the food would taste even better.
Finally, if you would like to use any of the content or photos on this site please ask for permission.
Hello Layla,
congratulation to this excellent web site. The way you describe the food and of course the pictures of it are wonderful! I get hungry, when I just read it. Please continue because I know that Iva will definetly try something out from you recipe book.
Many thanks and greetings from Vienna,
Günter
PS: We are back to Ecuador for vacation next Week, Feb. 6th 2008!
Thank you, Gunter. Have a great time in Ecuador!
hey layla, thanks for dropping by and commenting on my photo. loved to discover your blog as well. great stuff. do you mind if i link to your blog? great source of inspiration
Thanks Andreea, I’ll add a link to your blog as well if that’s ok with you.
Hi Layla,
I am crazy for your blog, it is so fantastic!
Cheers,
Rachael
Hi Layla,
I just came across your site… I love it. I am a food fanatic, and love to cook for my husband. We have been married for a couple of months, and I am intrudicing him to my country’s food, he is colombian, so it is not too hard. Finally, I am definately going to try the Fanesca. Usually my mother does it, but this year, it is my husband and I, so it will be my first time. Hopefully I can buy all the ingredients neede… let’s see!
Thanks so much for your site!
Naty
Layla,
I must compliment you on the new look and layout of your website. I am 62 years old and thought i had seen it all..but your photos and step-by-step instructions are something i have never seen. Your website is outrageously inspiring to me, and the fact that you include personal stories and experiences makes me feel like I know you. Your writing is wonderful, your recipes exceptional, and your mouth-watering photos just make me want to fix whatever you are displaying. My son’s name is Marc, too; he will turn 40 this year. Not only are you a good cooker, you are beautiful. I can see why Nicolas was attracted to you. I love your website. Pregunta: whatever made you decide to start this project? and where did you get the gift of written communication? As you probably know, you are the only person that posts authentic and do-able(sp?) Ecuadorian recipes. Please keep them coming. Our Ecuadorian friends are wondering where I picked up the skills of Ecuadorian cooking. Shall I share the secret?
Fondly,
Christa
Christa, Thank you for the sweet comments! I’m really flattered by everything you say and am glad that the recipes are working for you. I love food, I love photography, I love Ecuador and South America and I think that there are so many culinary treasures in these places that the rest of world doesn’t know about and I wanted to share these recipes. Also like many Ecuadorians who live outside of the country I miss the food and was frustrated with the lack of photos and clear recipe instructions online. Umm, not so sure about the writing, I’m not particularly confident there, but I try and I guess the practice is working (my thing was always the reading and not really the writing).
Hi when you going to have a book to buy
viva Ecuador
Hi Layla,
I was very excited when I came across your website. My husband and I are currently in the process of adopting children from Ecuador and I have been searching for authentic recipes. Your site will be a great resource for me as I want to incorporate Ecuadorian culture into our everyday life for our children. Thank you!
Allison
Oh hooray! A blog on Ecuadorian cooking. I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to find this! I lived down in Cuenca for a few months while in college, and find myself craving a little sierra food now and then. Your pictures are lovely, and your recipes look delicious. I’ve bookmarked your site for sure! If you are ever at a loss for something to write up, I’d love to get my hands on a great llapingachos (sp?) recipe, or one for the roasted, crunchy puffed corn they sell at all the street side vendors (kind of like cornnuts, but much tastier!). I swear living in Cuenca I gained 10 pounds just from the empanada lady that sold those amazing chicken empanadas on the corner. WOW. Amazing. Thanks again for the great site!
Hi Ariel, I have llapingachos on my list of recipes to post soon. The roasted crunchy corn is called tostado, and I’ve been told that you can find Peruvian maiz cancha in the US and use it make the tostado, I need to do some more research on the process.
I just love your site! Ther recipes are fascinating and the photos are both instructive and tempting. I tried the goat stew with some meat from my local farmer’s market. I used a cup of passion fruit juice instead of naranjillo and beer instead of chicha–trying to keep it local out here in the burbs, ya know. It was so good I thought I’d go for authentic ingredients at the international supermarket 18 miles away. They had something called “chicha de jora” (tastes like vinegar; is it vinegar? is it spoiled?) and also “chicha limena” (it’s pretty–made with purple corn–fruity, spiced, sweet). Is either of these products what I need to make the goat stew?
Hi Beth, Thank you for your comments. Chicha de jora is made from fermented corn so it has that fermented taste, and you can use it for the stew, you can also use the chicha limena, but since it has added spices you might adjust the amount of spices and panela you use.
Layla, how do I subscribe to your page? I can’t find Posts RSS.
Hi Farida, I need to add that option. I just have the feed subscription right now (http://laylita.com/recipes/feed/), but I can add you manually to the subscriber list until I get that set up. Thank you.
Hi, I was probably running in dumb mode and didn’t realize until now that your main page is in English. Way cool. Congrats again
Don Lucho
Hello!
My name is Inese and I work for the Latvian Fisheries and Marketing Centre. We are popularizing the heartiness of fish products in our homepage http://www.edzivis.lv. I would like to ask your permission for republishing some recipies and photos from your homepage, of course with putting references to your site.
Best regards,
Inese Caune
Hola Layla,
You have a beautiful blog — you’ve done a lovely job on both the text and the pictures. I’m going to add a link to your blog on mine (Eat Real, http://www.realfoodforrealpeople.blogspot.com). I look forward to reading more!
All best,
Sandy Smith
You are a very talented cook, writer, and photographer. Your family is lucky to have you! You should publish. I will be back.
Layla! I am loving your blog, as I lived in Cuenca and traveled Ecuador (Vilcabamba y Loja included!) I fell in love with a myriad of Ecuatoriano specialities that your website has helped me re-create for my family and friends back in the states. The one thing that is missing though…humitas! If there were anyway you could post a sweet & moist humita rellena de queso recipe, I’d be eternally grateful! Thanks so much for the awesome work you’re doing and I agree whole-heartedly with your naranjilla statement!
Hi Claire, Thank you for your comment, I am anxiously waiting for the summer to get fresh corn and make humitas! I will let you know as soon as I post the recipe.
Hi Layla,
I live in the UK and stumbled across your site when searching for new and exciting recipes to go into a local magazine that I put together. Its a new publication and very local to my area 15,000 copies to local homes and features local news etc - each month I like to put in a few recipes, but am always on the look out for food that is different and interesting. I would love to feature some of your recipes and pictures - and would be more than happy to credit them with your website if you would agree?
I love the way you write your recipes and I think it is very appealing to your average person, I am always scared by recipe books that are formal and boring and think my readers would love your ideas.
I eagerly await your response,
Kindest Regards
Sally
Awesome site - I never realised you were Seattle based. I am from England, and now reside in Seattle, with a food blog.
Great food on your site - really great food.
Cheers!
Matt
I just wanted to say that I just stumbled upon your site and it is fantastic! I was an Rotary International Exchange student in 1976-77 in Puerto Viejo, and there were a few recipes here that brought back some wonderful memories. I really had to get used to the cheese and goat milk when I lived there, but the fresh fruit was awesome and most of the dishes were spectacular. While I was there, I think we only used the oven once and that was when I made a breaded chicken. A walk down memory lane.
Que bueno!
Kerry
I LOVE your website!!! I freaked out when I saw all the recipies that you had posted! I was born and raised in Ecuador and there really is nothing like Ecuadorian food. I went back this past July for the first time after 4 years and I COULD NOT get enough of the food there.
Thanks for working on these recipies and posting them!
Cuidate
Chao
Ely
Laylita,
I love your website. It is soooo easy to understand and the pictures help so much. By the way, you have nice photography. My father is from Ecuador and so my Mom, who is from El Salvador, picked up many Ecuadorian recipes from my grandmother that I grew up on as a child. Like you mention, there are so many ways and styles to prepare the different Ecuadorian dishes. Typical dishes like seco de pollo, I learned differently to make. Of course these were recipes passed on from generation to generation and somewhere in the passing, I am sure the recipes changes with each persons unique touch. I am so excited about your recipes and I am going to start adding some of the ingredients that you mention which my Mother never used in many typical recipes. I will surprise her with a better taste to her own recipes.
Thanks a million and keep on posting please!!!
You have a beautiful family.
Jill
In Ecuador we say that each person adds their own “sazon” - literally means seasoning - to a recipe, but it also means that you add a little of yourself to the recipe, and of course within a family it is common for a mother and daughter to have a similar “sazon” that they add to their cooking. One of the “challenges” of posting an Ecuadorian recipe with precise quantities and ingredients is that we usually don’t cook like that, an Ecuadorian style recipe is: “add some of this, some of that, cook it, add some more of X” and then each person adjusts it based on their “sazon” and “gusto”. So, use my recipes as a base and feel free to make adjustments based on your “sazon”.
Felicitaciones, esta web esta genial un amigo mío le envió unas cuantas recetas más, espera haber podido ayudar a incrementar las recetas que posee, y mis felicitaciones muy sinceras, pues en lo particular me ha enseñado a cocinar.
Jack Guayaquil - Ecuador
Hola
Soy nuevo en este blog, dejame felicitarte primero por la linda familia que posees y segundo por la extraordinaria idea de realizar una web con recetas de la grandiosa comida ecuatoriana, he aprendido a realizar unos platos que a mi familia les ha encantado, en lo particular me encanta la cocina, espero poder colaborar enviandote recetas para que las puedas publicar luego, me gustaría saber donde enviartelas.
nuevamente GRACIAS por hacer sentir a los ecuatorianos residentes en otros países, que su patria los quiere y a los que aún estamos en Ecuador, saber que existen personas como tú que les das aliento, aunque sea en la cocina.
Yaco
Guayaquil - Ecuador