All in Food
Its avocado season in Ghana and what better time to try out avocado recipes whilst the sun is shining? Popularly called 'Paya', a turn on the word Pear, the soft and mushy fruit is a great accompaniment in many Ghanaian dishes. I love Pear with Ga Kenkey, Banku and on the side of Attieke (this idea i recently discovered at a popular spot behind the Osu mall). It goes down perfectly with bread, a bit of magarine with a giant cup of Lipton tea. Yes, my Grandma trained me well!
This is a perfect meal for breakfast and an early evening meal for those not wanting to eat heavy. Mushrooms are currently in season in the country which makes it a perfect time to make all kinds of dishes. The vegetable which is gluten-free, cholesterol free, fat-free and low in calories and very low in sodium provides important nutrients such as selenium, niacin and vitamin D. Mixing this with more vegetables was guaranteed to see me through my busy schedule for the day which included a visit to the printers
I hadnât made gari fortor in a long while. Its just one of those dishes which isnât regular in my home. Its not like jollof which we can prepare at least once a week, four times a month. It has a low shelf-life thanks to the possibility of the gari losing its freshness. But I had stated my intention on Instagram so here I was standing in my dumsor-free kitchen preparing the dish which can look deceptively like jollof from a distance. Get closer and you will be disappointed.
Its not everyday that you find a great Italian restaurant built like an African hut, nestling within the compound of a French language school. Actually almost uncommon I would say. But thatâs where I discovered amazing pizza and I am not looking back again.
Growing up in a Ga home taught me some valuable cooking lessons: how to pound fufu on my own, how to use an iron cauldron to prepare banku, how to prepare all the various kinds of Ghanaian soups, how to create balls of Kenkey and make Fishermanâs soup. Most of these dishes were prepared using traditional methods and utensils over hot coals which gave each dish a unique taste which no other cooking method can compete against.
I came across Jamie Oliver's article on Jollof Rice on my Twitter timeline two days ago. My curiosity pushed me to tap the article and I saw a curious dish of rice, vegetables and a chicken drumstick looking back at me. This is going to be interesting I thought as I scrolled through his brief intro on the roots of Jollof. Then came the recipe which I couldn't get the head or tail of when I started reading but then again I think I had expected a step by step list not full paragraphs so I soon got bored.
After writing for an hour yesterday, I was starving. I drove home to find every stew in the freezer and anything to go with it in its raw state; yam was raw, rice also raw and no kenkey in sight. Stomach grumbling i drove out to look for food. But my search for food didnât want to include anything continental, I was revved up for a local dish.
As i drove along the bustling streets of Osu, I remembered my friends Joe and Klenam eating out at an attieke place on Friday night. I quickly telegrammed Klenam on the directions only for him to come back and ask me to come to Chase restaurant. Dude I am in a local chow mood, I texted back. He didnât respond again.
Accra has a multitude of restaurants and hotels serving the populace and international tourists. Whether its food, accommodation or a happy hour, most provide some sort of service to bring back their guests and customers to keep their businesses afloat.
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But the question is which restaurants or hotels have good tasting food with customer service that doesnât frustrate you? Which restaurants in the city can you send your US clients which serves excellent food at affordable prices and in a clean environment and miraculously accept VISA? Thatâs when you get stuck.
A fruit smoothie is an excellent health option for the individual looking to reduce soda or as we call it here âsoft drinksâ intake. When you decide to kick drinking Coke, its sadly also the time that you are bound to be bombarded with brilliant Coke ads and often the only choice of drink offered at a lunch party. Have you ever stopped to wonder what benefits you gain from drinking a smoothie or do you drink it because everyone is drinking it and you just want to look cool? Whatever your reasons are, its important to note what you consume and how beneficial it can be for your health.
Feeding wedding guests can be more expensive than most items on your wedding list. Especially for a Ghanaian wedding & engagement. Why wouldn't it when a wedding can start from breakfast time all through to dinner time? People get hungry and trust me you don't want to have hungry guests on the most important day of your life.
Cakes. There are indeed a few good places in Accra where you can get beautifully crafted, moist, tender and divinely tasting cake. Where the quality has remained consistent over the years. My first encounter and experience with a cake from BakeShop Classics was some many years ago when an aunt bought my late grandmother a beautiful 60th birthday cake.
