An old Lima sweet built from corn flour and chancaca. Thick, glossy, and warmly spiced, it carries soft raisins throughout and the colorful sprinkles that still mark it as one of the city’s traditional street sweets. Warm and spoonable, it is the kind of simple dessert that survives for centuries for good reason.
Whisk the yellow corn flour with part of the cold water until you have a loose slurry with no pockets of dry flour or large lumps. Keep it nearby while you prepare the syrup; hydrating it first makes the next stage much easier.
Place the remaining water in the pot with the cinnamon, cloves, and anise seeds. Simmer gently for 6 to 8 minutes, until the liquid is distinctly fragrant, then strain it. Return it to the pot, add the
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Reduce to low heat and gradually pour the corn flour mixture into the syrup while stirring continuously. Cook for 22 to 25 minutes, constantly scraping the bottom and sides, until the sanguito is very thick and glossy and leaves the bottom of the pot visible for a few seconds when the spatula passes through. Add the vegetable shortening and three quarters of the raisins, then cook for 3 more minutes, until the fat disappears into the mixture and it becomes smooth while still holding its shape on a spoon.
Serve the sanguito while still warm in small portions and finish with the remaining raisins and the sprinkles on top. It should hold a soft shape on the plate but yield easily to a spoon and taste fully cooked, never floury. And that’s it! Old-school sanguito, colorful sprinkles exactly where they belong. 😌
