Tempura

Tempura is a Japanese dish of seafood or vegetables dipped in batter and deep-fried.

My mom made it earlier for our lunch...... I love it! :)



1/2 kilo fresh shrimps

1 cup all purpose flour, sifted

1 cup water

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/4 tsp. salt



Shell shrimps, slit the back and open butterfly fashion. Devein and wash thoroughly. Dry. Set aside in a cool place. In a bowl, prepare the batter by combining water, egg, flour and salt. Stir 5 times. Mixture should be lumpy. Dip shrimps in the batter and deep fat fry. Serve hot with Tempura sauce.

Tempura Sauce

1/2 cup hot water

1 piece bouillon cube

2 tbsps. soy sauce

1 tbsp. sugar

1/2 tsp. vetsin

1 tsp. ginger, grated

2 tbsps. radish, grated



Combine all ingredients together and serve with tempura.

Kare - Kare

Kare-Kare is a Philippine stew. It is made from peanut sauce with a variety of vegetables, stewed oxtail, beef or pork, and occasionally offal or tripe. Meat variants may include goat meat or (rarely) chicken. It is often eaten with bagoong (shrimp paste). Traditionally, any Filipino fiesta (particularly in Pampanga region) is not complete without kare-kare. In some Filipino-American versions of the dish, oxtail is exclusively used as the meat.

It's my mom's specialty! :)

1 oxtail
1 pork pata
6 cups water
salt and peppercorns
1/3 cup oil
1/4 cup atsuete
1/4 cup crushed garlic
2 pieces onion, sliced
1/2 cup bagoong alamang ( shrimp paste )
1 cup ground peanuts
1 cup toasted ground rice
4 pieces eggplant sliced
1 big bundle sitaw, sliced
1 puso ng saging, sliced

Boil oxtail and pata in water with salt and peppercorns until tender. Cut meat in small pieces and reserve the broth. In a saucepan, heat oil then add atsuete. Stir until color is extracted.
Discard the seeds Saute garlic, onions, bagoong, peanuts and rice. Stir in broth. Bring to a boil then lower heat to simmer. Add meats and vegetables. Cook until tender. Serve with bagoong guisado.

Bagoong Guisado:

1/4 cup oil
1 head garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1/4 cup boiled pork, diced
1 1/2 cups bagoong alamang
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup white vinegar

Heat oil then saute garlic and onions. Add pork, bagoong and sugar. Add in vinegar and cook until dry.

Courtesy of The Maya Kitchen

Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Here's a simple snack for the whole family!

4 slices square bread

4 tablespoons butter

2 slices precut cheese (should be about the same size as the bread), or enough cheese slices cut to fit the bread

1. With serrated knife, trim crusts from the bread Or if you wish you may leave the crusts on.

2 Spread butter on one side of each of the bread slice. Arrange cheese slices on the unbuttered sides of two bread slices. Top each with another slice of bread, buttered side of the sandwich should be facing outward (sort of like a reverse sandwich).

3. Heat skillet over medium heat for one minute. Put a sandwich on skillet, buttered side down. With a heatproof spatula or pancake turner, press the sandwich down so it flattens a little. This also helps melt the cheese. Let sandwich heat one or 2 minutes or until bottom side becomes a golden yellow.

4. Turn bread over so that the top side becomes the bottom. Heat another one to 2 minutes. Remove from skillet and transfer to a clean plate Slice into two triangles. Repeat with the remaining sandwich.

Chocos and Candies :)

These are few of my favorite chocolates..... and love taking pictures of it! Yummy.......

Chocolate Mud Cake

I baked this cake on June 17, 2012.... it's a cake mix from Australia! :)

Puto Bumbong

Puto Bumbong is a type of Puto or Rice Cake named after the bamboo tube.  It is unusual among puto, being sticky and having a long thin shape and purple color.  Traditionally it is made of glutinous rice, soaked in salted water and dried overnight.  Pour in bamboo tubes or Bumbong and then steamed until done.  It is served with grated coconut, raw sugar and pinipig!

1  cup glutinous rice

2  teaspoons purple food color (ube)

2  cups water

Panutsa ( sugar cane sweet) or Mascuvado (raw sugar)

pinipig

• Soak glutinous rice in water overnight.
• Grind the soaked rice.
• Mix food color while the glutinous rice is being ground.
• Wrap the ground glutinous rice on a piece of muslin cloth and place it in a strainer to drain excess liquid. Another technique in draining excess liquid is by pressing a heavy object that has been placed over the muslin cloth.
• Once the ground rice has slightly dried, rub it against the screen of a strainer to produce coarse grained rice flour.
• The rice flour for making puto bumbong is now ready to cook.
• Fill each bamboo tube (bumbong) with just enough glutinous rice and put them into the steamer. See to it that the steamer contains boiling water.
• Steam rice flour in the bamboo tubes for 10 minutes.
• Once cooked, shake out the contents of each bamboo tube or remove the cooked glutinous rice from the bumbong with the help of a knife.
• Spread butter on the puto bumbong and place a small piece of panutsa (sugar cane sweets) or 1 tbsp. of mascuvado (raw Sugar)
• Add a small amount of grated coconut and pinipig before serving.
  
  
   

Shrimp Sinigang

Sinigang is a Filipino dish famous for the variety of ingredients. The Filipino's resourcefulness is best seen in his preparation of sinigang.  The choice of pampaasim or souring agent is vast - kamias, sampalok, tomatoes, ripe guavas, young pineapple or even kalamansi juice.  Sinigang often  incorporates fish, pork, beef or shrimp.  This time we will use Shrimps for our recipe!

2  cups rice washing or water
15  pieces kamias
1  small onion, sliced
1  tomato, sliced
2  pieces radish, quartered
1/2  kilo shrimps
1  bundle kangkong, cut into 2" lengths
1-2  pieces siling haba
salt or patis to taste

Put half or rice washing or water in a pot.  Add kamias.  Cook until tender then mash.  Add onions, tomatoes and remaining rice washing  Bring to a boil then add the radish.  Add shrimps, kangkong ang siling haba.  Let boil for 2 minutes.  Season to taste.

Courtesy of The Maya Kitchen

Milo Ice Candy

Ice Candy is one of the usual summer treats of the Filipinos, especially the kids. It is a frozen juice or shaked fruits in little ice bags where one would have to nibble at the end of the plastic to sip or bite the ice candy.

Ice Candies comes in different flavors. Most common are orange, mango, buko and grapes.

To make an ice candy, one needs to have ice candy bags, funnel and fresh fruits or juices, depending on the Ice Candy flavor you wish to make.

This frozen delight doesn't only keep one cool during summer days but it can easily transport him/her back to childhood in just one sip of its chilled sweetness.

Milo Ice Candy

I made these Milo Ice candies recently.... I just mixed 3 sachets of Milo with 2 glasses of water. Put it in the ice bags and freeze it. You can make 10-12 ice candies. Enjoy!

Cookies and Cream Polvoron

Polvoron is a powdery Philippine sweet. It is Spanish in origin (polvo is Spanish for "powder"). The original Spanish polvoron is a flaky, soft, rich, shortbread-type cookie made with flour, lard or vegetable shortening, powdered sugar and cinnamon. The dough is refrigerated, then rolled out, cut and baked. The Philippine version is very different, being made of a mixture of toasted flour, powdered milk, sugar, and melted butter. Other ingredients like pinipig, chocolate cookies or chopped nuts may be added. The mixture is molded into oval or round shapes with a polvorera (a special mold which allows the formed sweets to be discharged easily without crumbling). Once molded, polvoron is wrapped in cellophane or Japanese paper. The sweet powder may also be used to fill small barquillos (rolled cookies) for a cookie called barqueron.

Toasted flour

Powdered milk

Sugar

Chocolate cookies

Butter

Cookies and Cream Polvoron

1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup powdered milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup crushed chocolate cookies
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup butter, melted

Toast flour until brown in color while stirring constantly. In a bowl, combine the toasted flour, powdered milk, sugar and chocolate cookies Add melted butter and mix well. Using oval or round-shaped polvoron molder, mold and wrap individually in colored Japanese paper or cellophane.

* Do not crush the chocolate cookies finely or its color would dominate your polvoron. You want the polvoron to look like the classic polvoron with specks of cookies

Togue Guisado (Sauteed Bean Sprouts)

This recipe is quick and easy one. So, try it! :)

1/2 kilo pork or shrimps, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, thinly strips
1 red bell pepper, thinly strips
1 green bell pepper, thinly strips
2 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce (optional)
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 to 1 kilo togue (bean sprouts)
1/2 cup water or broth
chopped green onions, for garnishing


1. In a pan, heat oil over medium heat. Cook pork (if using) until it turns lightly brown.

2. Add garlic and onions; saute for a few minutes until onions are soft and translucent.

3. Add in carrot, bell peppers and season with soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce (if using), salt and pepper. Stir-fry until well blended for about a minute or two.

4. Add water or broth and togue (bean sprouts), cook for a few minutes. Correct the seasonings. Be sure not to overcook the bean sprouts it should be crispy. Immediately remove from heat Gently stir to blend.

5. Transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with chopped green onions (if using) and serve.

Grilled Banana

Ginanggang, guinanggang, or ginang-gang is a snack food of grilled skewered bananas brushed with margarine or butter and sprinkled with sugar. It originates from the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.

Ginanggang is made from a type of banana in the Philippines called "saba" ( A cooking banana also known as the Cardaba banana ). The banana is peeled, skewered and grilled over charcoals. When the outer surface is lightly charred , it is taken off the grill, brushed with margarine or butter ,and sprinkled with sugar.

Maruya (Banana Fritters)

Maruya (Banana Fritters) is a Philippine delicacy of fried bananas dipped in batter, usually served sprinkled with sugar. It is a popular street food too and it is one of the favorite snack of the Filipinos.

1/2 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 - 4 ripe saba or cardaba banana , peeled and sliced lengthwise or sliced and shape it like a hand fan
2 cups oil
flour, for dredging
sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk


1. In a bowl, sift together 1/2 cup flour, baking powder and salt . Add milk and egg, beat until smooth.

2. Heat oil in a frying pan (or a large saucepan ) over medium heat.

3. In batches, roll banana slices in flour and dip in batter. Fry in hot oil until golden brown.

4. Drain on paper towels. Roll in sugar.

5. Serve and enjoy!

Zesty Beef and Mushroom Spaghetti

My mom tried this recipe from Del Monte using Del Monte's Gourmet Beef and Mushroom Pasta Sauce. Try out this simple yet sumptuous recipe!

6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 piece small onion, minced
1/4 cup ground beef (50 g.)
1/4 cup canned sliced mushrooms
1 pouch Del Monte Beef & Mushroom Pasta Sauce (250 g.)
175 grams Spaghetti, cooked
pieces of hotdog, sliced
grated cheese

Saute garlic, onion, hotdog and beef in 2 tablespoons oil for 4 minutes. Add mushrooms, then saute for 1 minute. Add Del Monte Beef & Mushroom Pasta Sauce, Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour over cooked Spaghetti. Top with cheese.

Tortang Dulong or Dilis

Tortang Dulong or Tortang Dilis ( Anchovies ) is a very simple but tasty dish. It is one of the common Filipino dish that is easy to prepare. This is really goes well with ketchup as dip. Enjoy!

1/4 kilo dulong or dilis (anchovies)
2 eggs
a spoonful of flour
spring onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
oil for pan frying

1. Combine eggs, salt, pepper, flour and spring onion then mix it until everything is well incorporated.

2. Add the dulong or dilis.

3. Heat a frying pan and pour-in cooking oil.

4. Once the oil heats-up, scoop about half a cup of the mixture using a kitchen ladle and gently pour it in the frying pan.

5. Cook the first side for about 3 to 5 minutes then flip to cook the other side.

6. Turn off the heat and transfer to a serving plate.

7. Serve with ketchup.



Courtesy of Panlasang Pinoy

Corned Beef Casserole

This is a macaroni casserole with canned corned beef with creamy mushroom sauce and creamy cheese topping. We tried this recipe some time ago in our presentation in our Caregiver class. I found this recipe in the FOOD Magazine. It is just simple but delicious macaroni dish. Try it! :)

3 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
3 tablespoons oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 up chopped onions
1 425-gram can button mushrooms, drained and sliced
2 175-gram cans corned beef
1 290-gram condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose cream
1 225-gram bar quick melting cheese, grated

1. Cook macaroni according to package directions. Meanwhile in a medium size wok, heat oil and brown garlic lightly. Add onions and cook until transparent. Add mushrooms and saute for 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Add corned beef, stirring to separate the chunks. When liquid from the corned beef comes out, pour in mushroom soup and water. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

3. Drain the cooked macaroni. Stir macaroni into corned beef mixture and mix until thoroughly coated. Transfer to a casserole dish.

4. For the topping, place cream and grated cheese in a microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Repeat for another 30 seconds, stirring every 15 seconds until cheese melts and mixture is smooth. Pour over macaroni and serve.

Tikoy and Cheese Sticks

We made this Tikoy (Nian Gao) and Cheese Sticks on Chinese New Year 2012.

Just slice the Tikoy and cheese in strips and wrapped in lumpia or molo wrapper and fry it. The flavors of tikoy and cheese complement each other! Try it!

Durian Cake

My brother ordered a "Durian Cake" from Aleixa's Cakes and Pastries here in Davao. It's really delicious... We ate the whole cake in just one day! So rich and creamy .... sa susunod uli! :)