Easy Cuban and Brazilian recipes using fresh fruit

There’s nothing better than recipes that have been handed down in families from generation to generation. Easily prepared Cuban and Brazilian recipes such as delicious, no-bake dessert treats are always a welcome addition to any busy woman’s cooking repertoire. These recipes from childhood are often recalled with great fondness and lip-smacking detail, but seldom are they written down. They are essentially passed down through generations by watching and helping. Now, anyone on the lookout for these easy, no-bake dessert recipes need look no further.

Simply Delicious

It turns out there are many versions of this first sweet treat and just as many names to go along with it — but most people will call it simply delicious. The end result is much like Key Lime Pie. Here are a list of the ingredients you’ll need.

3 limes

20 oz box of thin, rectangular biscuits (cookies)

1-1/4 cups of cream

1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 oz

1/2 to 1 cup milk

Preparation

First off, zest and juice your limes. Really, only one lime needs to be zested, as it’s for color and decorative purposes for the most part. Set zest aside. Combine cream, lime juice, and sweetened condensed milk and beat until thick. You can use an electric hand mixer or beater set on high for roughly 5 minutes if you have one. Pour your regular milk in a shallow bowl or dish and dip your biscuits in. Then create a single layer of biscuits in the bottom of an ungreased 7 x 11 baking dish or pan and cover with about 1/4 of your beaten cream/condensed milk/lime mixture. Repeat the layering process finishing with a top layer of the beaten mixture. You should have 3 to 4 layers at this point. Top with your zested lime, cover and refrigerate, allowing to chill for roughly 2 hours, and serve.

Mango Popsicles

There are very few things as refreshing as chilled fruit on a warm day. Most of us remember making homemade Popsicles as a kid with a variety of fruit juices as ingredients, and we couldn’t get enough of them. Here is a simple Cuban recipe for delicious and refreshing popsicles your whole family’s sure to love. You can use ice trays or popsicle molds to create them. Your list of ingredients will include the following:

Pulp from 2 ripe, medium-sized mangoes

3/4 cup raw sugar

6 ice cubes

1/2 cup cold water

Place all ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth on high. Pour mixture into ice trays or popsicle molds and freeze. It’s just that easy! Note: If fresh mangoes are out of season, you can use 2 cups of frozen mangoes just as easily for this recipe.

Childhood Memories

Serving these delicious and easily prepared Cuban and Brazilian recipes is sure to conjure up images of your own childhood and garner new fans with whomever you serve them to.