Uruguayan Food

Pio Nono Relleno like my mama makes it…

A good memory of home is something we call a Pio Nono. We buy them frozen and they are very thin rolls of a heavenly slightly sweet very thin sponge cake that can then be filled with savory or sweet wonderful things.

A staple in my house made by my mama was the Pio Nono stuffed with Tuna, Hearts of Palm and sweet corn, mixed with a bit of mayo and spices, covered with a little bit of more mayo and decorated with green and red peppers.

A very special person (mama Gaye) asked that for her little birthday celebration I make her what we now call, my special Rolly Polly! Slight technical hitch, there was nowhere near the house where I could get hold of this frozen life saving rolled sponge cake!

In preparation for tonights dinner, last night I decided to make it myself, not that its a difficult thing, but it has a tendency to stick and crack easily (well that’s just me)!

The experiment was a success and by bedtime last night I had myself a Pio Nono ready to be filled out tonight!

img_5792

img_5794

This evening as soon as I got home, I mixed the tuna, sweet corn and chopped hearts of palm, seasoned them with pepper, paprika, chopped chives, little mayo and a squirt of ketchup. Gave it a little taste for flavour approval and then spread it evenly on my Pio Nono!

img_5807

img_5809

Then I gently rolled it up……

img_5810

And all that is left to do is add a few finished touches, a little mayo all over, some chopped chives and red peppers and a little fresh dill for the final decorating touch! 🙂

img_5811

This is all that was needed to make one very special person happy ❤

img_5812

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAYE! 

Tradition with a twist

Down at home (Uruguay) we have a traditional dish that I love making for my family. Of course as always, I love putting a little twist into the traditional recipe.

This dish is called Tortilla de Papas, also known as Spanish Omelette.

The basic ingredients for it are:

  • Potatoes
  • Garlic
  • Onions
  • Eggs
  • Salt and pepper

So here is how I go about making it. Some people slice the potatoes really thin and then sautee them until they are cooked. I start by boiling the potatoes until they are just slightly tender (you should be able to slice them without them turning into a mush).

3851104974_fcfd278793

I used to slice them but in recent years I have opted to cube them instead.

parboiled

Whilst the potatoes are cooking, I slice a bunch of onions and chop up a few cloves of garlic and cook them in a pan till they are nice and golden.

onion-soup-3

This time round I added some lovely bacon to the pan and let it crisp up nicely. The added bacon is my little twist for the day. Then I tossed in the cubed potatoes and tossed them around with a bit of olive oil till they got a nice color going and before I took them of the heat I added some chopped cilantro, you can use parsley if you prefer…..

Screen Shot 2015-11-18 at 5.12.29 PM

In a bowl, I beat up a bunch of eggs, added salt and pepper and then I added the the potatoes, onions, garlic and bacon.

DSC04920

Give the mixture a nice toss to ensure that everything is coated in the egg mixture.

DSC04921

Then heat up a frying pan , drizzle some oil and as soon as its nice and hot, put the mixture into it and spread it out evenly.

I cook it for about 5-7 minutes on one side, then place a plate on top and flip it over and gently slide into pan to cook the other side for aprox the same time.

DSC04923

Some people finish it off under a broiler in the oven to avoid flipping it over but once you do it a couple of times you will find its actually very easy!

And there you have it, a little Uruguayan tradition with a bacon twist, its also excellent with any leftover meat chopped up (steak, pork or lamb).

DSC04925

We usually eat it with a side of salad but the options are endless. Of course its fabulous the next day, nice and cold out of the fridge, perfect breakfast with some smoked salmon 🙂

 

 

 

 

Game Night and Chivitos al Pan

Chatting to my sister tonight via Facetime, she makes a comment that her hubby is making Chivitos al Pan for dinner tonight! Now I was drooling…….

If you have never been to Uruguay or Argentina, you might never have heard of this staple wonderful ,superb, tasty, full of yumminess, sandwich! Think I am joking or exaggerating? Check this out!

Kids were playing Monopoly so I decided to make them this magnificent Uruguayan treat for dinner vs their idea of hitting the food trucks!

DSC03433

So here is what I used, I probably added extra stuff and forgot some other stuff as I left home (Uruguay) back in 1991 but I think I did pretty good considering 🙂

DSC03415

Today I used:

  • Minute steaks – have to be nice and tender
  • Buttered buns lightly toasted in the grill
  • Salsa Golf (Mayo mixed with ketchup)
  • Sliced jalapeños
  • Fried Egg ( I think you are supposed to use sliced hard boiled eggs)
  • Ham
  • Bacon
  • Lettuce
  • Tomatoes
  • Cheese
  • Green Olives for garnish

Buttered and toasted my buns and put them to the side. In the meantime I had my steak cooking on the grill outside……

DSC03421

I stared cooking the eggs, flipped them and placed the bacon, ham and cheese on them and let the cheese melt.

DSC03418

Mixed my mayo and ketchup to make the golf sauce and placed a large dollop on each side of the bun. Placed the lettuce and tomatoes at the bottom, followed by the steak.

DSC03419

On top of the steak went the eggs, ham, bacon and cheese, then topped them off with sliced jalapeños, placed the other bun, cut it in half and topped it off with a green olive held by a toothpick and voila, Chivito al Pan is ready ❤

DSC03422

Whilst I was cooking the kids were playing monopoly, the living room was filled with screams and laughter, but as soon as I served them their Chivitos al Pan, total silence took over for a full 10 minutes 🙂

Noise is now back and they are back to their Monopoly game…..

DSC03431

I love cooking for my family, puts a smile on my face every time ❤