As a homeschooling family, my kids are practically home every day. Except, of course, during our family travels. But since we have been home for 50 days now, I have to give them more than just cookies and biscuits for their afternoon snacks. Enter the Merzci pandesal relief packs that I received during Covid-19 quarantine. These made way for Pandesal creations every day for six days. Sharing them here with you so that you will have more than just toasted bread.

• Related: Benefits of Homeschooling at This Time

What is Pandesal?

Pandesal is the Pinoy spelling. But it actually comes from the Spanish term that means bread with salt or literally, “salt bread”. We commonly associate pandesal with early mornings, coffee, and scrambled eggs. And you get a warm fuzzy feeling remembering how things were in the past before Covid-19 happened.

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Now, we need to stay at home and try to be productive in order to protect our sanity and also to extend the family budget. That is why I came up with these pandesal creations.

• Related: Teaching Kids How to Budget Money

I could not keep giving them pandesal to dunk in milk everyday. So I had to make their snacks exciting and new. It is the novelty plus the element of surprise about what mom will prepare today that gets them hyped up for snack time.

Easy Pandesal Creations

From its name, we already know that pandesal has salt. The pandesal from Merzci Bakeshop is big, so when you slice it, you can put lots of stuff on it and it will look nice. One piece, sliced in half, is already very satisfying when you have different toppings on each slice.

• Related: Brojas is another product of Merzci Bakeshop. Here’s what I did with it: Creamy Peach Mango Ice Box Cake Recipe with Brojas

Here are the several things we did with our pandesal. You don’t necessarily have to buy new ingredients. If you have leftovers in your fridge, you can transform them into pandesal toppings.

But if there is anything you need, that would be BUTTER. That is the base of most of our pandesal creations. So, let’s get that oven toaster working overtime with our pandesal ideas.

Pizza de Sal

We had leftover Italian spaghetti sauce. What better way to use it than as pizza sauce! It is already seasoned and has meat so all we added were ham, onions, and cheese. We skipped the mushrooms (although Shane wanted some) because we were on a budget. You can add slices of bell pepper, too. Cook in the oven toaster until the cheese is melted.

In order for the sauce not to seep into the porous surface of the sliced pandesal, we spread some butter over it before the pizza sauce.

• Related: Activities for Kids During Home Quarantine for Covid-19

The kids helped me slice and assemble the pizza de sal. That was our afternoon activity. Afterwards, they got to enjoy their creations.

Sweet Pan de Sal Toast

Slice the pandesal. Put a slice of butter on the cut side and some condensed milk. Spread them together until mixed. Toast the bread.

Variation: You may sprinkle cinnamon powder on top to make cinnamon toast.

Herb Butter-Garlic Pandesal

Soften some butter and chop a couple of cloves of garlic. Season with a little salt and sprinkle with some dried basil. Mix well.

Use this a spread on the pandesal slices and toast.

Cheesy Herb Garlic

Following the recipe above for the herbed garlic pandesal, add some cheese spread on top after toasting. We usually have Arla cheese spread around so that is what we used.

Ham and Garlic Toast

Again, slice the pandesal. Mix sandwich spread with some chopped garlic and spread on the bread. Top with ham bits and toast.

Salted Egg Bruschetta

Slice some tomatoes, cucumber, onions, and salted egg. Mix well and toss in a mixture of a little olive oil and apple cider vinegar. You may add a pinch of salt, if desired, remembering that you already have salted egg in the mixture. Set aside.

Spread a thin layer of butter on the sliced pandesal. Toast well until the bread is slightly browned. Top with your salted egg salad mixture and consume immediately (after picture-taking, of course).

Kitchen Hack

Tip: Extend the expiry dates of your bread by storing them in the freezer. Since these creations require toasting anyway, you Merzci pan de sal will be good as new.

Enjoy these pandesal creations at home. Remember, your imagination and the ingredients in your kitchen are the limit.

• Related: Labadoracay: Beating ECQ Boredom With Humor and Creativity

Other homecooking recipes

Meanwhile, here are other homecooking recipes you may try at home. Tried and tested in my kitchen and enjoyed by the family. 🙂

• Arroz Caldo Recipe: How to Liven Up This Comfort Food
• Easy to Cook Homemade Pork Sisig Recipe
• DIY Shabu-shabu Hot Pot Recipe for the Family
• How to Cook KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, Langka): Ilonggo Comfort Food
• Health Benefits of Oyster Mushrooms + Recipe
• Suaje on the Rocks Recipe
• Creamy Baked Scallops with with Sliced Potato Recipe
• Balut Recipes for the Craving Mama
• Cha Misua | Chinese Birthday Misua Recipe
• Baked 40-Clove Garlic Chicken Recipe (Modified)
• Cooking with Crab Fat Paste (Aligue)
• Cooking with Chorizo | Cocina Estella Spanish Chorizo
• Shrimp Etouffee: A Cajun Seafood Recipe

Budget Meals for the Family

In another light, are you looking for budget meals for the family during quarantine? Here are P50-meals using sardines.

• Sardine Java Rice: A Filipino Family Meal Below P50
• Frittata: 50-peso-Dish for a Family of 5 from Covid-19 Relief Packs
• Sardine Spaghetti Aglio Olio Recipe: 50-Peso Dish During Family Quarantine