Espumilla, served by a vendor in the streets of the Centro Histórico of Quito.

When I first saw the vendors selling Espumilla, I thought it was ice cream, piled high in big mounds on a tray. How it could stay cold under the equatorial sun was a mystery to me, so I decided to try some. The vendor picked up a cone and scooped up some of the thick creamy mass, drizzling it with a red syrup. I took a bite and was startled by the texture, thinking it was pure whipped cream. I found out later that Espumilla is a traditional Ecuadorian dessert, made with egg whites and sugar, and flavored with the fruit pulp of blackberries, naranjilla, or passion fruit, but guava pulp is used in the most classical form of Espumilla.