The poets of Europe and Arabia have nothing on the South Americans, especially when naming food dishes. The Swooning Imam eggplant dish of Persia, Jamaican run down fish stew, or the Portuguese Drooling Camel pudding somehow feel far less poetic than the Peruvian Suspiro de Limeña, sweet that’s “like a woman’s sigh”, or the Brazilian Romeo e Julieta, a complex marriage of two simple souls. Like lovers, the inspired flavor combination of salty, soft cheese with sweet, guava paste is a contrast made with love.
Romeu e Julieta in its most basic form is one of the most traditional desserts and the simplest to prepare in the Brazilian culinary repertoire. It consists of a fairly thick slice of fresh white cheese (most often queijo minas from the state of Minas Gerais) and an equally thick slice of a sweet fruit paste made from guava called goiabada.
Romeo e Julieta – Layered Guava and Cheese Dessert
Ingredients
- ½ lb. Brazilian queijo minas or Mexican queso fresco or Italian whole milk mozzarella cheese.
- ½ lb. Guava paste (golabada), canned
- 2 oz. Cream cheese, optional
Instructions
- Cut equal ½-inch slices of cheese and guava paste. Square off each.
- Top a slice of cheese with a thin smear of softened cream cheese. Top cheese with a slice of guava paste. That's it. Savor.
