If you are reading this now then you are either super interested on this article or you do not even know what the Espumilla is and want to find out. Good news, you will and you will love it!
So, what is the espumilla actually?
A traditional dessert found in Quito and the sierra in Ecuador. It is made of two main components: guayaba, which is a fruit and eggs. Its appearance is fluffy and smooth and so as its taste, which is the perfect combination between sweetness and consistency.
Espumillas are special not just due to their process but because of the value they add to Quito. Due to their originality, I must focus this article on the way an espumilla should be eaten as it is by real quiteños.
1. After mass
Every Sunday, the entire family must go to church because God must be dedicated at least one hour per week. Of course, not all kids like to wake up at 7 am on a Sunday. However, eating an espumilla after mass always seemed to be the perfect excuse to behave and listen for an entire hour.
Trust me, if you go outside the church on a Sunday you will find a queue of kids getting ready to get their behavior reward.
2. At the market
Families in Quito must do their groceries during the weekend because the food was somehow devoured on the week before. Despite knowing this, families take their sweet time sleeping in. As the fridge is empty, they all go together to the market during at midday. Eating an espumilla while drinking one natural fresh pressed juice here is the best type of breakfast you will ever have.
3. It must be topped with coloured sprinkles and a blackberry syrup
Somehow, we cannot really be satisfied with an espumilla unless it has coloured sprinkles being poured from a salt jar and the traditional blackberry syrup gently poured from a mayonnaisse jar! It is not the syrup nor the sprinkles themselves that change the whole espumilla but it does change the essence, that feeling we get of being back in our child days.
4. It must be bought from the special lady
Choosing the right person and the right espumilla may sound easy but it could be tricky for those who do not know. In order to choose the right espumilla, you have to find the lady that will be walking around screaming “Espumiiillaaa, espumiiiilllaaaa” wearing a beautiful white apron and a white little type of hat. They are the true experts!
5. You must enjoy it to the fullest!
From the moment you pay the 25 cents, you see the sprinkles being spread up to the moment where you hear the last crunch of you biting in the cone of the espumilla. The whole process must be an experience that takes you back to your childhood, back to those Sundays and market days in family.
Espumillas are our identity, they are our little key to both the past and the future, they are the door to disruption.
