Those Venezuelan readers out there know that a truly Venezuelan quesillo is the most requested food in any birthday party (after tequeños). It is one of the most famous Venezuelan desserts.
For the rest of the people that aren’t as familiar with this dessert, you need to know a couple of things about it:
Firstly: It is not exactly a pudding. Sorry if the title is kind of misleading. It looks similar to a pudding but the texture and the taste are different.
The main characteristic of a good quesillo is its holes. These tiny holes make it looks like a cheese. That’s why in Venezuela we call it quesillo; it looks like a small cheese.
The texture must be a little bit more firm than a classical flan. The flavor is soft vanilla with a hint of rum. I like a good quality rum to give it a nice aftertaste.
You can make a lot of variations of the classical quesillo: coconut quesillo, peach quesillo , pineapple quesillo, etc. Usually, you just need to replace the milk with any type of liquid (coconut milk, peach juice or pineapple juice).
I cannot talk about this recipe without a big smile and remember a lot of great moments with my family back in my country. I have to admit that Venezuelan recipes are my weak point. It’s incredibly bittersweet to write about the recipes that make me remember the people and the environment where I grew up.
Venezuela is such an amazing country that sadly is crossing a political and economic crisis that has made many of us — some sources says that more than 5 million — leave our country.
So every one of my Venezuelan recipes makes me feel connected to my roots no matter how far I am. In my house we eat arepas as breakfast, we eat Arroz con leche in Semana Santa and we eat tons of tequeños in our parties.
Food is a huge deal in my family; hence, cooking Venezuelan food is my way to keep my family and my country always present.
How to make quesillo?
The best of this traditional Venezuelan dessert is how easy it is. Just 6 ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
Basically the only thing you need to do is to blend all the ingredients (eggs, condensed milk, milk, rum, and vanilla). Then make a caramel (sugar + water) and pour it into a flan pan to create a base.
Now, pour the mix and bake for 1 hour, in bain-marie, approximately.
I hope that you get inspired to try this lovely Venezuelan dessert for your next party or reunion.
See you in the next recipe!
