Tag: food

Avocado Yoghurt Parfait

~ Sophie ~ 8 Comments

I cannot say that I’m that good at baking (but I believe I am trying…kind of…). And because of my shying away from baking elaborate desserts, I am always (kind of) looking for a way to make hustle free desserts. I made my first parfait months ago  and was really impressed by how easy it was to make and how really delicious it is not to mention money friendly. I can definitely say this dessert will be made often as long as there are biscuits and yoghurt or ice-cream. This avocado variation is phenomenal since it incorporates creamy avocado. The whole combination is amazing.

What you will need:

Two medium-sized avocadoes

Biscuits

½ C. Milk

½ Litre yoghurt

3 Tbsp. Sugar

1 Tsp. Lemon juice

Mint

Method

Peel the avocadoes and cut them into cubes of about an inch. In a blender, combine avocadoes, milk, ½ cup of yoghurt, and sugar and blend till pureed. Add the lemon juice and continue blending for 20 more seconds. Using a glass bottle, crush biscuits till coarse.  Layer the biscuit, avocado puree, biscuit again and yoghurt till the glass is filled. Garnish with mint and serve

Observations:

  1. I would recommend refrigerating the avocadoes for a day before blending them.
  2. Make sure the yoghurt stays chilled till it is time to layer the ingredients. I used strawberry flavored yoghurt.
  3. I did not put a specific measurement for biscuits because you will need a lot to finish up the avocado puree.

Enjoy

 

🙂

Sophie

 

A Harvest Story + Fresh Bean Soup

~ Sophie ~ 3 Comments

I was somewhere around 9 years and we had a garden…gardens. If you are Ugandan, you know that almost all homes have two (…or more) gardens. The backyard garden which is mainly used to grow simple foods like vegetables, herbs, and some two or four maize plants thrown in. One or two overgrown pumpkin vines snaking their way around a handful of scattered bean plants. They are small but enough.

Then there is the large garden or farm or a shamba if you may. One that is used to grow plants at a larger scale where there is almost a half to an acre (or more) of beautiful maize plants basking in the sunshine and fully radiant. Under the shade of those maize plants will be different kinds of beans growing and thriving at that. A farm so large that either the whole family(from parents to toddlers) spends endless days weeding then harvesting when it is time or where extra hands in addition to the whole family are hired to help out.

It is times like these that are still vivid in my mind. The harvest. Where we woke early, took heavy breakfast and got down to harvesting beans among many other foods. It was (and still is) hard work, but what makes it all worth it is the final aroma of boiling fresh beans. After they have been uprooted, picked from their branches and shelled, we would put a large pot of these beans on fire. There is something magical about eating food straight from the garden and when my cousin shared her first harvest with us, we were so excited beyond words.

Although it is not officially harvest season, people have started harvesting and it is wonderful. One thing with fresh food is that it does not require a ton of condiments. By simply boiling fresh beans with onions, tomatoes and some salt, you will have the most fragrant, delicious and healthy soup in no time.

What you will need:

3 C. Fresh beans

1 Large tomato, chopped

3 Small red onions, chopped

½ Tbsp. Ginger grated

Salt and pepper to taste

½ Tbsp. Oil

Observations:

If you want your dish soupy, add more water. While the beans boil, the water may reduce. Keep replacing the water to retain the aromatic soup

Method

Wash fresh beans and place them in a saucepan. Add enough water to cover the beans by about 2-3 inches.  Place pan on high heat. Let the beans boil. When the beans start turning a grey color, add ginger, onions, tomatoes, salt, pepper, and oil. Cover the pan and let the beans continue cooking. Once the beans start releasing an aroma and have softened, reduce the fire and let the stew simmer on low heat for about 10 minutes. Remove from fire and serve hot.

🙂

Sophie

Creamy Dodo Pasta

~ Sophie ~ 24 Comments

Another dodo recipe. Here is why. When the rainy season started, dodo sprouted from everywhere and it was very green, healthy and luscious that we could not let it over grow. So we started incorporating it in most of our meals. This is another recipe that has made dodo very enjoyable. I have always loved creamy white pasta sauce and maybe someday I will get around to making it but this creamy dodo is flavorful in its own way and not to mention the dodo itself has a ton of nutrients. Another time you find yourself with more than needed dodo, you can try this.
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What you will need:

250 Grams of pasta

2 Small Irish potatoes, peeled and halved

Four handfuls of dodo, washed

2 C. Milk

2 Medium tomatoes, chopped

1 Tsp. Garlic, finely chopped

1 Tsp. Ginger, finely chopped

½ C. Green onions chopped

A handful of crushed groundnuts

Oil

Salt

Method

In a medium saucepan, add water and one cup of milk and bring to a boil. Break the pasta strands in half and once the water has reached boiling point, add the pasta. Keep stirring the pasta to avoid it from clamping together. Sprinkle a little salt and after 5-8 minutes, remove the pasta from the fire and drain it then set aside to cool.  Boil Irish potatoes till tender and remove from fire.  Steam the dodo until almost tender. Remove from fire and let it cool.

In a blender, combine the steamed dodo (leave a few strands for later), boiled potatoes and the remaining cup of milk and salt to taste and blend till pureed.

In a separate saucepan, pour oil. After a minute, add the garlic and ginger and salt and let them brown a little. Next add the onions and tomatoes and stir till the tomatoes are soft. Pour in the dodo puree and stir well. Let it simmer for 10 minutes and then remove from fire. Pour the sauce over the pasta and mix well adding in the reserved strands of steamed dodo. Garnish with crushed groundnuts and sprinkle with lemon or orange juice. Serve.

Let me know how it turns out when you try it.

🙂

Sophie

 

 

PS: if  a lemon is too strong for you, you can use a raw orange which is slightly sour.