Tag: inspiration

Brunch Pizza Sandwiches

~ Sophie ~ 8 Comments

For most of us pizza lovers, there are times when we wish we had pizza for every meal of every day. Wouldn’t that be splendid? But then reality hits and we realize as much as we want this dream to happen it is impossible. Almost. There is still the task of perfecting pizza dough, having great cheese at hand at all times and waiting for that pizza to get ready. We all realize we don’t have time, enough time for that luxury. Again, almost.

I am always dreaming of fabulous brunch parties and in those parties, there will be scrumptious foods that if I started naming them, this would never end. Those parties would include the brunch pizza sandwich because to me that is the epitome of a lazy but fulfilling brunch. Sandwiches are so satisfying depending on how they are crafted because one ingredient can make or break a sandwich (story of my life). With the wish to eat pizza daily and the lack of time to make one, I introduce you to the pizza sandwich. It is basically everything pizza on a slice of bread. Once I discovered this, now every sandwich is a new adventure.

I partnered with Paramount Dairies to create this brunch pizza sandwich. Paramount Dairies makes good quality cheese in Uganda. Aside from their mozzarella (which I used for this recipe) they have a wide variety of cheeses to choose from to make your meal extra special.  Now, let us make sandwiches.

 

What you will need:

1 Loaf of bread

Paramount Mozzarella Cheese

2 C. Oyster Mushrooms, shredded

½ Avocado, peeled

6 Large Tomatoes, chopped

2 Large green papers, thinly sliced

3 Large purple onions, thinly sliced

Spring onions, chopped

1 Tsp. Ginger, crushed and chopped

1 Tsp. Garlic, crushed and chopped

1 Tbsp. Cooking Oil

Ground black pepper/ chili flakes

Salt

Observations:

  1. I preferred using a non-sliced loaf so that I can slice it myself and determine the thickness.
  2. Any kind of mushrooms will work but I prefer fresh oyster mushrooms for their flavor.
  3. Make sure you have cut all the vegetables to go on top of the bread.
  4. Make sure you grate a generous amount of cheese on the sandwiches to get maximum flavor.
  5. I use an oven toaster, the temperature may be different if you are using an oven.
  6. Another alternative (when ovens are out of the picture) is to use a saucepan on high heat. For a non-stick pan, just place the sandwich carefully in the pan on high heat and cover it. Wait till the cheese melts and then remove from fire. For a non-nonstick pan, add a teaspoon of either butter or margarine for every sandwich.

Method

On high fire, put a saucepan and add oil. Add the garlic, ginger and salt and wait for it to brown a little. Next, add the mushrooms and keep stirring them till they slightly turn brownish. This will take 5-7 minutes. Add the black pepper or chili flakes. Remove the mushrooms from fire and set aside.

Slice the bread according to your desired thickness.  Arrange the tomatoes on top of the bread slices, add the sautéed mushrooms, the sliced green papers, the sliced onions and top with a generous amount of grated mozzarella.

For the avocado sandwich, top the bread with tomatoes, then slice the avocado on top. Make sure the avocado slices are thin. Next, top with onions, and grate mozzarella on top. Garnish with spring onions.

Bake the sandwiches till the cheese melts. Serve Warm.

Get creative with your meals by purchasing Paramount cheese from a major supermarket near you. Also, there is a special offer off  of paramount mozzarella. Check out their Facebook Page for more information.

 

What do you think about brunch and what is your ideal brunch like?

🙂

 

Sophie

 

Lemon Grass Palm Oil Pan-Fried Potato Wedges

~ Sophie ~ 4 Comments

I fell in love with potato wedges in my fourth year of high school. We were lazing around and decided to go to yellow cab and order pizza. The pizza came with potato wedges as sides and up to this day, they are the best wedges I have ever had. Believe it or not, I have tried several times to recreate this recipe and I think I am a lot closer than when I first began.

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Have you heard about palm oil? It is the red semi-solid oil that is popular in West Africa and the western region of Uganda. In almost all my childhood, we always had palm oil and I can recall it being cooked quite a lot. It is recently that I have really learned to appreciate the benefits of palm oil. It adds a rich orange-reddish color to food, it has a great unique taste too and I just read on Wikipedia that it has zero cholesterol. Also I have been using it for my hair for the past one year and the benefits are amazing. But hey, this isn’t about hair. This is about how pan frying potatoes in palm oil is probably one of the best things I have ever done! As you can see, I had a hard time naming this dish! It has a variety of flavors, from lemon grass roots, palm oil, garlic and also the crunchy touch of green beans.

What you will need:

I Kg. Irish Potatoes, washed and cut into wedges

2 C. Green beans, julienned

2 Large onions, thinly sliced lengthwise

3 Garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. Lemon grass root, finely chopped

½ C. Palm oil

Ground black pepper

Salt

Method

Add the palm oil in a clean and dry saucepan and put it on high heat. Wait for the oil to fully cook. This might take 5-7 minutes or until the yellow foam on top of the oil is gone. Add the lemon grass root and let it brown a little. It will release a sweet flavor. Next add the garlic. Let it brown a little and then add the potatoes. Stir occasionally. After five minutes, add salt and stir the potatoes. After another five minutes, add the onions and black pepper and stir well. Cover the pan and let the potatoes cook on high heat. Don’t forget to stir occasionally. Once the potatoes are starting to become tender, add the green beans and stir well. Let the potatoes cook till soft when a fork is inserted. Remove from fire and Let them cool a little. Serve

 

Observations:

  1. I skipped peeling the potatoes though you can peel them if you prefer to.
  2. Lemon grass root can be obtained by uprooting a mature lemon grass plant which is crazy really because it took almost a year for that little bush to grow (the things we do for flavor!). Make sure that the lemon grass root is tender.

How do you use palm oil? Lets discuss in the comments.

🙂

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