Francesinha

The inspiration came from croque-monsieur, but the sauce was invented in a Porto restaurant and the Portuguese ingredients give it a unique flavor. It is one of the typical dishes of Porto, ideal for cold days and nights. Here is a simple recipe to make when you return home and miss Porto.

Sauce:

1 Beer

1 cube of Beef stock

1 Bay Leaf

1 tablespoon margarine

1 goblet of Brandy or port wine

1 tablespoon corn starch flour

2 tablespoons tomato puree

1 dl of milk

Piripiri q.b.

Method

Dissolve the flour well with the milk and add the remaining ingredients. Blend allthe ingredients together into a smooth paste. On the stove bring the ingredients to a boil until it thickens a little stirring always to avoid sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Sandwich:

4 slices of sliced bread (without crust)

2 steaks

2 sausages

2 Portuguese smoked thin sausages (linguiça)

2 slices of cheese

2 slices of ham

Season the steaks with salt and pepper and grill them, grill the sausage and the linguiça too. Toast the slices of bread. In a oven-proof dish place 1 slice of bread, the steak, the Sausage cut in half, slice of ham and finally the linguiça cut in half just like the sausage. Cover with the other slice of bread and place a slice of cheese over the bread. Pour the hot sauce over the sandwich covered with cheese and place in preheated oven to melt the cheese.