Kicker: Rodent ice cream

NICK EICHER, HOST: If you love ice cream—I am going to ruin that for you with this story from Ecuador!

María del Carmen Pilapaña owns a small shop in the capital city of Quito. And she recently introduced her newest flavor:

Guinea pig! 

REICHARD: NO.

EICHER: Yup, guinea pig ice cream!

The rodents are a traditional hot dish in some Latin American countries. But now it’s also a frozen dish, thanks to Pilapaña. 

And she’s never afraid to experiment. She also makes ice cream flavored with ingredients like beetles and mushrooms.

REICHARD: Fungus cream. Yum.

EICHER: She said “My family and my husband thought I was crazy. They didn’t think anyone would like these ice creams, but now they’re our main product.”

And Pilapaña has a few more new flavors in mind—including crab, chicken and pork!

It’s The World and Everything in It.

(AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa) In this Sept. 28, 2019 photo, Maria del Carmen Pilapana prepares a cone with guinea pig ice cream for a customer at her stall on the outskirts of Quito, Ecuador. 

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