What to say about Brasilian hot dogs… they are amazing!  That is the word. Just a bit different than American hot dogs, but delicious just the same.  There are many places in Brasil where you find hot dog stands, and they all offer many options of toppings.  However there are 2 kinds that I really like and every time we go to Brasil they are a MUST.  One of them is a hotdog that has shredded chicken and mayo. This is pressed and served hot.  Delicious, but it will be a recipe for another day. Today I want to share the recipe for what they call Passaporte.  It was given to me by my sister and it is always a crowd favorite.

For Brasilian Passaporte Hot dogs you will need:

Corn (fresh or canned)

Peas

Diced tomatoes mixed with a little bit of mayo

Potato sticks (batata palha)

Parmesan Cheese

Ground beef (recipe at the end of the post)

Needless to say you will need a bigger hot dog bun.  I usually find the hoagie rolls work very well.  I find them at my local grocery store, or you could make your own buns.

Cook the hot dog (boil and then grill them) and assemble the meal!

Bun, grilled hot dog, corn, peas, ground beef, tomato mix, potato and Parmesan cheese.

You can serve mayo, ketchup and mustard on the side.  This is very good!  YUM

Ps: For the ground beef I usually fry about 1/4 of diced onion with 2 gloves of garlic in 2 T of oil. When translucent add about 1 lb of ground beef and cook.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  I also like a bit of cut green onions on top. YUM

We planted some basil this week,which always makes me crave this salad.  This is one of my favorite salads. It tastes fresh and it is delicious with tomatoes from the garden! There are no measurements. I just slice tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil (whole leaves). Layer them nicely in that order.

Then you want to drizzle just a little bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar on top.  Add a sprinkle some salt and pepper and voila!  It is delicious and it is always a hit as an appetizer for parties!

Enjoy

I remember this candy from my childhood. My mom used to love them.  They have a texture of a caramel, but taste like sugar and bananas.  I decided to try to make it from home and see how they turned out.  I have to say I like the homemade a bit more than the ones we can buy packaged in Brasil.  Hope you enjoy them as well:

4 ripened bananas about 400 grms
1  3/4 c sugar
1 T butter
1 T lemon juice
1 T Nesquik chocolate

In a sauce pan, mix all together (slice the bananas). You want to cook it on medium high heat for about about 8-10 minutes.

It will start to turn into a caramel color and the bananas will melt.  Then lower the heat to about medium to medium-low.  Cook for another 10-15 or until the mixture is thicken and  comes loose from pan.

Spread mixture into a buttered pan ( I used a square cake pan)

Refrigerate it over night.  Cut into rectangular slices or any shape you may like.

Roll each individual shape into some sugar and set them aside in a cookie sheet lined with wax paper.

Leave it out (room temp) for at least 1 day until it hardens a bit. 

I then rolled each candy into a piece of wax paper. You can use any type of candy wrapper to make it more fun!  Enjoy