Brazilian

"I've always taken a scientific, as well as an artistic, approach to food," writes Mark Van Wye of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. "My family dined out a lot when I was young, and I became an adventurous eater. I would try anything and everything, and eventually I'd attempt to re-create those restaurant dishes at home. I never asked for recipes; I liked the detective work and the sense of discovery as I experimented with ingredients, just as a novice painter learns by copying the masters." Look for green peppercorns where capers and pickles are sold in the supermarket. (They're also good in salad dressings.)

Giving a nod to tropical fruit, this irresistible treat combines rich ice cream with a nut crust and thick fudge sauce.

The recipe for these individual puddings comes from the Brazilian restaurant Pampas in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. The coconut milk can be found in the Asian foods section of most supermarkets.

The texture of this spicy Brazilian dish falls in between a soup and a stew. Cook it down if you prefer it thicker.

(Churrasco de Sao Paulo a la Parilla con Chimichurri Rojo) Churrasco is a very primitive form of cooking meat. The gauchos, or cowboys, of Brazil would kill and butcher the animals out on the pampas, build a big fire, and barbecue the meat on a spit of some sort, basting it with a vinegary liquid. As cities developed, however, this recipe too became more civilized — I do ask you to prepare it the way they do in many Brazilian steak houses, with cebollas fritas (otherwise known as onion rings).

These crunchy, cheesy fried rice balls are the perfect snack for any time of day, and they come together in less than half an hour.

Pão de queijo, which means “cheese bread” in Portuguese, is a delightful snack from Brazil made with tapioca flour (meaning it's gluten-free) and cheese.