BeadforLife: Ending poverty in Uganda

Yesterday I shared information about BeadforLife, a program near and dear to my heart. BeadforLife is part of an international grassroots movement working to end extreme poverty in Uganda. 

According to their website, since September of 2004, when BeadforLife was founded, the organization has trained 883 beaders to make beads and earn regular income; built a village on 18 acres of land with 132 homes, two wells and abundant gardens; launched a vocational education program for impoverished youth and developed a grant program to fund other organizations working in poverty eradication.

BeadforLife has graduated 621 members from its program into self-sufficiency and reached an estimated 10,000 people who were living in poverty. Women, who lived on less than $1 per day, are now earning almost $7 a day, or over $2,400 a year. BeadforLife paid nearly $1 million to the jewelry makers last year, resulting in a total community development expenditure of 1.4 million dollars.

Volunteers around the world who wanted to make a difference have held over 6,500 bead parties — an estimated 90,000 people attended those parties and are now proudly wearing paper beads. The beads that were rolled out of trash paper have now become income and hope for a better life.

Consider hosting a bead party yourself — the program could be as simple or elaborate as you choose. As I mentioned yesterday, Nikki and I served sugar peanuts, Ugandan kabobs with yogurt dipping sauce and Ugandan plantain cake at our event. As promised, here are the other two recipes. CJK

Ugandan Kabobs with Yogurt Dipping Sauce
(Bead for Life)

Dipping Sauce

1 cup plain yogurt

4 tsp. salt

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

3 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

Kabobs

3 slices whole wheat bread

3 eggs, beaten

3 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 cups dried breadcrumbs

1 cup French fried onions

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp. fresh ginger root, minced

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. coriander seed, coarsely crushed

4 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped

1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced  

2 lbs. ground beef

3 cups vegetable oil for frying

Toothpicks

Dipping Sauce

Mix ingredients together and set dipping sauce aside.

Kabobs

Moisten bread slices with water. Crumble bread into a large bowl and mix in eggs and Worcestershire sauce. Mix in dried breadcrumbs, fried onions, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander seed, parsley, and jalapeno. Add ground beef, and work in with hands until well mixed.

Roll mixture into meatballs the size of walnuts.

Heat oil in a large, deep frying pan until hot, about 375° F. Cook meatballs a few at a time in hot oil until brown and crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from oil using a slotted spoon, and place on a plate lined with paper towels.

Insert a toothpick into each meatball for serving. Serve hot or cold with dipping sauce.

Notes from Carol:

I used a small ice cream scoop to measure the amount for each meatball and then formed them by hand. I did not “deep fry” them in three cups of oil, but probably used about one-half inch of oil in a large frying pan.

The next time I make them I would try baking them in the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil and lightly grease the foil. Bake the meatballs in the preheated oven until they are no longer pink in the center — probably about 30 minutes. (An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 160°F.)

The wide range of ingredients in these meatballs provides a perky, unique flavor. I think they would also be great with spaghetti or in other dishes that utilize meatballs.

Ugandan Plantain Cake

(Bead for Life)

This recipe is traditionally used as an accompaniment to meat dishes.

2 ripe plantains, peeled, halved and cut into strips

2 tbsp. oil

1 cup cottage cheese

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tbsp. sugar

3 eggs, separated

1 tbsp. dry breadcrumbs

 4 tbsp. olive oil

Fry the plantain strips in oil until they are well browned on both sides.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Mix cottage cheese, cinnamon and sugar together in a bowl.

Beat the egg yolks until fluffy. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold the egg whites into the egg yolks.

Grease a baking dish and sprinkle the base with the breadcrumbs. Add a quarter of the egg mixture into the dish, and then add a layer of plantains. Cover with a third of the cottage cheese mixture and a little olive oil. Repeat layers until all ingredients have been used. You will finish with the egg mixture.

Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes.

Notes from Carol:

I baked this plantain cake in a 2-quart casserole and used a large spoon to serve it. It could also be baked in an 8 x 8-inch baking dish and cut into squares to serve. The finished product is more like a coffeecake than a cake that would be served for dessert.