Folk Saints’ Dulce de Leche

We are beyond delighted to be able to offer this exceptional Dulce de Leche, made by our dear friend, Florencia Sanchez-Schilling (She is also the partner of Aaron, who leads the bread program here at OWL, which makes it that much more special when you spread it on toast!!)
Below, some words from Flor:

“Dulce de leche is a delicious milk spread very popular in all of Latin America, each country gives it a different name, and prepares it in a slightly different way. This version is from my homeland, Argentina. In Argentina we eat cakes, crepes, pastries, alfajores, desserts and many other things with dulce de leche. It is a  part of daily life, and most people always have a jar in their fridge. I regularly enjoy eating dulce de leche with bread, cheese, fruit or ice cream. It is always sure to satisfy a sweet tooth.

While dulce de leche might appear very similar to caramel, the cooking methods are very different. Dulce de leche is made by slowly cooking milk, cream, and sugar with a bit of baking soda, over the course of many hours, reaching something called “The Maillard Reaction:” a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars, that makes them caramelize and attain a distinctive nutty, malty, rich and complex flavor.

The name Folk Saints is an ode to the place where I grew up. I grew up in San Juan, Argentina,  a small town near the Andes Mountains. The folk people of this region believe in a popular Folk Saint called La Difunta Correa. There’s a beautiful sanctuary on the outskirts of the city, and thousands of people from all over the country travel to ask for favors or pay their devotion for the miracles they believe to be performed by the saint. While I’m not a devotee in the way the people of my town are, I hold this cultural tradition very dear to my heart. There’s an element of magical realism in the devotion to Latinamerican Folk Saints that I miss and remember with love: The prayer, the promise, the superstition, the beautiful belief in something fantastical, miraculous, and beyond sight. I see the devotion to folk saints in Latin America as a common cultural trait that unites us. This is a side of me and my people that I wish to respect, honor, and celebrate.

I hope you enjoy the dulce de leche as much as I do, and get to relish in a little piece of my homeland.”

Warmly,
Maria Florencia Sanchez-Isaia