Nuevo Latino: desserts take on a Latin American flair.

"A lot of chocolate and tropical fruits," replied Jose Luis Flores, pastry chef at the restaurants OLA and Calle Ocho in New York City, when asked what goes into creating the ultimate Latin American dessert. And he should know, because for the last 10 years he has served alongside Chef Douglas Rodriguez--originator of "Nuevo Latino" cuisine and author of four books on the subject--at his popular restaurants Patria, Chicama, Pipa, Calle Ocho, and OLA (Of Latin America).

"We go all over the Latin states to select a wide variety of different flavors and ingredients," Flores continued. "We draw inspiration from places such as Ecuador, Peru, and Argentina, and use all of the tropical fruits like banana, mango, pineaple, and passionfruit." They even use mamei, a specialty fruit from Cuba. "No matter what it is we're making, we always make the difference with the Latin ingredients," he said. "if I'm making a cheesecake, for example, I will top it with a guava gelee."

The wildly original flavors and combinations of tastes at OLA are representative of the growing popularity of ingredients and recipes found just south of the border. In everything from five-star desserts to consumer products, it's obvious that Latin is most definitely "in."

Dulce de Leche 

One of our favorite ingredients in our desserts is definitely dulce de leche," Flores said, himself a native of Mexico City. "It is a classic caramel topping originating from Argentina."

Dulce de leche is a sweetened, thickened milk sauce that in Spanish translates to mean "sweet from milk." The ingredient first gained mainstream notoriety in 1998 when Haagen-Dazs released their dulce de leche super-premium ice cream to supermarket freezer shelves. Since then, the flavor has found its way to such places as the Cheesecake Factory and even into some McDonald's restaurants in the form of the McFlurry. Williams-Sonoma even offers dulce de leche for purchase through their website.

In Nuevo Latino-style desserts, the topping is drizzled over tan or ice cream, or is ideal used as a sweet, caramel-flavored dipping sauce for pieces of sliced fruit. At OLA, Flores offers his own dulce de leche fondue, which is served along with "fruit anticucho and Latin cookies--churros, alfajores, obleas, financiers--as well as chocolate truffles, coconut sushi, brownies, and mini jellies," he said.

At Calle Ocho, the domino pastelito dessert is a Cuban-inspired, decadent dark chocolate cake layered with a rich mousse made from dulce de leche. "The game of dominoes is a popular pasttime in Cuba," Flores explained, "So the domino pastelito is arranged on the plate in the same way that dominoes are set up on a game table."

Though dulce de leche can be purchased pre-made, Flores insists that it is best made from scratch. There are several different ways to make dulce de leche, either starting from scratch with fresh whole milk, or using sweetened condensed milk from a can. The kind made from the condensed milk will tend to be thicker, yet for those concerned about authenticity, dulce de leche made from either fresh milk or canned milk is considered genuine. The main difference during preparation will be that the kind made from fresh milk will require careful stirring.

While dulce de leche is often referred to as "caramel," it is actually never cooked at a high enough temperature to caramelize its sugars. The milk solids, which turn golden when the butter is browned, is what actually gives dulce de leche its caramel appearance.

Classic Desserts, Nuevo Style

"Most of the time we will switch off the fruits and ingredients we use depending on the season," Flores added. The best example of this is at OLA, where the flan de coco is currently served with dried fruit compote and ginger infused coconut sorbet. Flan, a staple Latino dessert item, is a tart with a filling of custard, fruit, or cheese. Its versatility with other ingredients makes it a perennial favorite. "We always have flan. We'll use it with apples, dried fruits, pears, or even pumpkin."

Another time-tested treat is the churro, "a doughnut dusted with cinnamon sugar and butterscotch sauce," Flores said. Churros originated in Spain, and are distinguished by their long, textured shape. Like the flan, churros can be filled with a wide range of seasonal ingredients.

A breakdown of Flores' other tasteful concoctions at OLA and Calle Ocho is a mouth-watering tour through the possibilities of Nuevo Latino creativity:

* Guava goat cheesecake (OLA)--"Cheesecake topped with crema nata ice cream, and dried prunes from Spain poached in Grand Marnier."

* That's the bomb (OLA)--"Our popular almond chocolate cake topped with passion fruit souffle and semisweet chocolate mousse, topped off with hazelnut ice cream."

* Brazo de Gitano (OLA)--"That's Spanish for 'Gypsy's Arm.' It is basically a big jelly roll made from rolled vanilla cake and dulce de leche, with a filling that changes throughout the season. Currently we use spiced green apple granizado and green apple ceviche."

* Coquitos (Calle Ocho)--"The coconut tembleque is inspired by the country of Puerto Rico, where the people eat a lot of coconut. Coquitos are coconut tembleque in a chocolate shell with coconut sorbet, malibu gelee, and poached pineapple in vanilla bean syrup. Pineapple, by the way, was traditionally referred to as 'the fruit of the gods.'"

* Cuban cigar (Calle Ocho)--"The cuban cigar is one of our oldest desserts, and it is another one that changes with the seasons. Currently it is a chocolate mousse and liquid raspberry gelee almond cake served with coffee parfait."

* Banana Tres Leches (Calle Ocho)--"A vanilla cake soaked in three different milks--sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream--over banana carpaccio, which is layered with passionfruit granite, mango espuma, and pistachio crocante."

From flesh fruits and garnishes to rich milky sauces and toppings, it pays to take a look at the dessert possibilities of Nuevo Latino cuisine. Whether it's south of the border or the dining room at your club, variety is the spice of life.

Coffee Tres Leches

Pastry Chef Jose Luis Flores

Makes 8 servings
Chill 8 12-ounce martini glasses
1 pint chocolate ice cream, brand
of preference
1 pint dulce de leche ice cream,
brand of preference
For Vanilla Sponge Cake
5 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 14-ounce can condensed mill
1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
2 cups whole milk
2 tablespoons dark rum
For Coffee Granite
2 cups very strong, hot coffee
1/2 cup sugar
For Whipped Cream
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons instant coffee

For Sponge Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour 9-inch cake pan.
Beat eggs on high speed for eight
minutes, add sugar gradually and
beat for five minutes then add
vanilla.

Sift flour and incorporate by
hand.

Place cake batter in cake pan and
bake for 40 minutes and let cool

Boil milk and evaporated milk;
remove from the stove and add
condensed milk and rum.

Immediately pour milk mixture
over sponge cake and let cool.

For Coffee Granite

Dissolve sugar in hot coffee and
let cool. Freeze in shallow pan for
at least an hour.

For Whipped Cream

Combine ingredients and beat together
until a stiff peak forms,

Assembling Cake

In each chilled martini glass,
place one scoop of chocolate ice
cream, one small slice of sponge
cake, two tablespoons of coffee
granite, one scoop of dulce de
leche ice cream, and finish with a
dollop of whipped cream.

For clubs without the staff or space for in-house pastry, purveyor Taste It Presents offers a different twist on ala carte or banquet desserts. The almond cake, shown here, is a traditional Italian dessert with Ladyfingers soaked in amaretto syrup layered with imported mascarpone cream and topped with Italian Amarettini cookies and roasted almonds. Other dessert offerings from the company include tiramisu, zabaglione, creme brulee and mousses.