Thursday, March 26, 2026

Ful Medames – Somalian Fava Beans Stew

 original recipe found here

For the Ful Medames
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 28 oz fava beans (drained and rinsed)
  • 1 onion (finely diced)
  • 4 cloves garlic (crushed or minced)
  • 5 oz. tomatoes (finely chopped)
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • Juice of 1/2 lime
  • Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Ful Medames Topping
  • 5 oz tomatoes (finely diced)
  • 1 medium red onion (finely diced)
  • 1/4 cucumber (finely diced)
  • 1 small bunch parsley and coriander (finely chopped)
  • 1 - 2 tbsp olive oil (plus extra to drizzle over the final dish)
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • Salt and Pepper (to taste)

Instructions:

  • Take a large frying pan and place over medium-high heat. Add olive oil. Once it glistens, add onion. Fry until golden.
  • Add garlic and stir until aromatics released. Add cumin, oregano, red pepper flakes and stir into the onion mixture. Add chopped tomatoes to pan and cook until they have broken down and thickened. 
  • Add fava beans to tomato mixture with 1 cup water. Season generously and add lime juice. Using a masher or the back of a fork, press down on the beans and mash until they roughly breakdown. Turn heat to medium-low and simmer until the mixture thickens (it should look like a coarse dip). Make the toppings while the Ful simmers.
  • Finely dice cherry tomatoes, cucumber and onions. Add fresh finely chopped parsley and coriander. Dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and leave to one side until ready to use.
  • Spoon the Ful into a serving dish and heap the toppings on top. Drizzle with more olive oil and serve with fluffy, warm flatbread.

Somali Conjeero (Sourdough Pancakes)

original recipe here

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 TBSP fast acting yeast
2 TBSP sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups warm water

-Mix dry ingredients. Add in water 1 cup at a time, mixing with a whisk. After the last cup of water is mixed in, use an immersion blender to smooth out the batter.

-Cover the batter and let it rise for 30 minutes. Stir batter to release the bubbles. 

-Heat up a non-stick pan that has a lid. Ladle batter onto heated pan, then use the rounded side of ladle to spread the batter out in a circular motion. The pancakes should be thin.

-Place lid on top until the pancake is crisp and browned on the bottom.

-Put on a plate and enjoy!

Friday, March 6, 2026

Yaki Udon

 original recipe here

  • 2 tbsp cooking oil divided
  • 500g udon noodles, frozen
  • 1/2 lb thinly sliced chicken
  • 1 cup cabbage shredded
  • 1/4 cup carrot julienned
  • 3 mushrooms sliced
  • 2 green onions chopped

Sauce

  • 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 1 tbsp white grape juice 
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, optional

Instructions

  • Season chicken with salt and pepper. Combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl.
  • To prepare your udon noodles, soak them in hot water for about a minute, and carefully loosen the noodles. Rinse with cold water, drain, and set aside.
  • Heat oil in a wok or a large pan over medium heat and and the shrimp or your choice of protein. Cook for about 2 minutes or until opaque. Remove and set aside.
  • Add oil to the same wok and add cabbage, carrot, and mushrooms. Continue to cook for 2-3 minutes.
  • Add the cooked chicken, udon noodles, and sauce, and toss them together until the noodles are evenly coated.

Tuesday, February 24, 2026

College Cooking: Chicken Fajitas

1 chicken breast
1 bell pepper (any color)
3/4 cup sliced yellow onion 
1/2 tsp salt
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic salt (optional)
black pepper (optional)

1) Cut chicken into bite-size pieces, put in a bowl, set aside.

2) With a clean knife and cutting board, wash, de-seed and slice the bell pepper (strips or smaller pieces)

3) Using a knife, slice the onion skin layer, then peel the outer layer off and discard. Cut the onion in half, lay the flat side down on the cutting board, then thinly slice the onion. Repeat on the other half.
           ***Slice a whole onion, then freeze what you don't need for future use. Be sure to double 
                             bag with FREEZER bags so it doesn't make your freezer stink***

4) Warm the olive oil in a skillet on medium heat for about 45 seconds. Add pepper and onion to the oil and stir to coat them with the oil. Sprinkle seasonings on pepper and onion. Allow them to cook for about two minutes before stirring them around so they don't burn. Repeat this step until the onions are translucent and peppers are soft.

5) After pepper and onion are done to your liking, add cut chicken to the skillet. Stir around, cover, and let cook for two minutes. Repeat the process until the chicken is cooked through and no longer pink.

6) Serve with tortillas, sour cream, cheese, etc.

Monday, February 16, 2026

College Cooking: Easy Sausage Gravy

1/2 lb. ground breakfast sausage 
2 TBSP all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups milk
salt & pepper to taste

1) Cook sausage in skillet until no longer pink. DO NOT DRAIN FAT!

2) Sprinkle 2 TBSP of flour over top of the cooked pork and stir until pork is coated in flour (this takes about 30 seconds).

3) Add milk to the pork and stir consistently. Cook for about 5 minutes on medium-low heat until the gravy thickens and has big bubbles. 

4) Serve over biscuits (or rice, toast, english muffin)

College Cooking: Pizza

Pepe's frozen pizza dough
1/2 cup chopped bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped yellow onion
1/4 to 1/2 cup sauce
1 TBSP olive oil
1-2 cups of Mozzarella cheese (or DF cheese if your name is Ella Steele)

1) Transfer Pepe's pizza dough from freezer to fridge the night before you're going to use it so it can thaw.

2) Preheat oven to 425°.

3) Saute peppers and onions in 1 TBSP of olive oil in frying pan over medium heat. Stir every minute or so to prevent burning. Set aside to let cool before adding to the pizza.

4) Roll out pizza dough, then transfer to pizza pan. Continue to gently press pizza dough to stretch it out to your desired thickness and width. 

5) Pour sauce onto pizza dough and spread to the edges with the rounded side of a spoon, then add peppers and onions on top of the sauce.

6) Sprinkle cheese all over the pizza.

7) Bake for 10-13 minutes until cooked to your satisfaction.

College Cooking: Sloppy Joes

1 lb. ground beef
1 can Manwich Sloppy Joe Sauce
Hamburger-type rolls

1) Cook ground beef in a skillet/frying pan until fully cooked (no pink). Use the meat chopper/smasher tool to crush up the beef as it cooks.

2) Open can of Manwich Sloppy Joe Sauce and add it to the ground beef. Cook on medium heat, consistently stirring, for 3-5 minutes. 

3) Let sloppy joes meat cook slightly before serving.