Princesi s Kaima i Kashkaval
Принцеси с кайма и кашкавал·(prin-TSEH-see s kai-MAH ee kash-kah-VAL)
Bapche's Breakfasts & Popara Mornings
Born in the mid-century school canteens and cramped apartment kitchens of Bulgaria, the Princesa is a utilitarian masterpiece. It's a dish engineered by thrifty grandmothers to stretch a meager ration of meat and cheese into something magnificent, traditionally blistered under the intense, top-down heat of a specialized countertop appliance known as a parti gril. The scent of rendering pork fat mingling with the piney, earthy aroma of baking chubritsa on a Saturday morning is a direct, unapologetic mainline to the motherland. It is working-class comfort food at its absolute finest—no pretense, just a perfectly engineered, savory crunch.
Before you start
Preheat the oven to 400°F and prepare your hardware.
Line a large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire cooling rack inside of it. Elevating the bread allows the ambient heat to circulate underneath, perfectly mimicking the radiant heat of a traditional parti gril and saving the bread from a soggy bottom.
Mix the kaima.
In a large bowl, aggressively mash the ground pork, beef, cheese, eggs, milk, chubritsa, paprika, salt, and pepper until it forms a uniform, slightly wet paste. The egg and milk are the grandmother's secret to ensuring the meat stays fluffy and binds to the bread rather than shrinking into a dry meatball.
Ingredients
- standard sandwich bread10 large
- unsalted butter2 tbsp
- ground pork1/2 lb
- ground beef1/2 lb
- Monterey Jack or young Gouda cheese1 1/2 cup
- eggs2 large
- whole milk2 tbsp
- chubritsa (summer savory)1 tsp
- sweet paprika1/2 tsp
- kosher salt1/2 tsp
- black pepper1/4 tsp
Method
- 01
Seal the bread with a butter barrier.
Spread a paper-thin layer of softened butter across the top of each slice of bread, ensuring you go all the way to the crusts. This creates a waterproof barrier so the raw meat juices won't turn the bread to mush before it has a chance to bake.
- 02
Frost the bread with the meat mixture.
Divide the meat evenly across the slices, using about 2 to 3 tablespoons per piece, and spread it out evenly like frosting. Crucially, push the meat completely over the edges of the crust to protect the bread from burning under the intense heat of the oven.
- 03
Bake until caramelized and sizzling.
Place the loaded slices onto the prepared wire rack and bake for 12 to 15 minutes. The meat should be cooked through with beautiful golden-brown caramelized spots from the melting cheese. For a final crisp, hit the broiler for the last 60 seconds, watching them like a hawk so they don't scorch.
Notes
Do not substitute the chubritsa.
If you swap out the summer savory for generic thyme or oregano, you're essentially just making an American patty melt. The piney punch of chubritsa is the non-negotiable soul of the dish.
Serve immediately with a cold, savory drink.
Let them cool for exactly one minute so they don't blister the roof of your mouth. Hit them with a final dusting of sharena sol (Bulgarian mixed salt) if you have it, and wash it down with a cold glass of ayran or milk.