Lumpiang Sariwa

Nanang Osang, one of our oldies, would always make lumpiang sariwa when she was still able and young.  Old age got into her though, that sometimes she could not cook the same way anymore. 

The ingredients I have included in this recipe are all in her list except for the seafood mix (she used shrimps).  The taste is really yummy.  I should also add that this is a one healthy dish.  Instead of the egg roll wrap that I make, she would just use the ready made spring rolls that you can buy at the town center or if you are in another country, you can always get them from any Asian store of supermarket near you.  I, however, prefer to make my own wrap.

Ingredients
1/2 k pork, sliced thinly
200 g carrots, julienne
200 g baguio beans (green beans), sliced diagonally
250 g sweet potatoes, cubed
300 g cabbage, shredded
100 g chinese lettuce (optional)
1 tofu , cubed
300 g mixed seafood
1 medium onion, minced
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 chicken cube
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce

Sauce
2 C water
1/2 brown sugar
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 chicken cube
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp garlic, granules
2 tbsp cornflour
salt to taste

Wrapper
2 c plain flour
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 milk (fresh)
3 tbsp butter, melted

Procedure

Veggies
Sautee garlic and onions.  Add in the pork and seafood mix.  Stir until the meat si cooked. Add the chicken cube dissolved in 2 tbsp warm water.  Stir in the soy sauce and fish sauce.  Put in the veggies except for the lettuce.  Stir until cooked.  Add water if you need to.

Sauce
Whisk all the ingredients onto a saucepan before applying fire.  Make sure that the cornflour is completely dissolved. 
Bring to a boil until thick enough to your liking.

Wrapper
Whisk all the ingredients in a bowl just like how you prepare the batter for your pancakes.  Spray oil on your non stick pan.  Pour 1 c of the batter onto a pan and move the pan a little making sure that the batter is well spread onto it.  Remove the wrapper carefully from the pan when the top is dry. 
Put wrapper in a big plate.  Place the lettuce halp on top of the edge.  Put the veggie and wrap.
Pour the sauce on top and sprinkle with nuts (peanuts, cashew nuts or any nut that you fancy).

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Instant Pancit Canton with a Twist

Instant Pancit Canton is the easiest meal that one can have when there's no more time to cook or buy ingredients from the market.  Just boil some water, and put the noodles in..mix the sauce and presto!  You have one nice meal!

In the Philippines, Lucky Me, Maggie and other instant noodle meal are quite very popular.  If I can still remember it right, we used to buy Php2.50 per pack.  Now I am not that sure how much does it cost to buy a pack of instant noodles. 

Here in Australia, you can buy the Philippine brand instant noodles at any Asian-Filipino store.  Howevery, if you are far from those stores, there's no choice for you but to get anything similar to it.  Nanay was the one who told me about Mi Goreng instant noodles that my brother in law would always buy in Melbourne so my husband rushed to the shop to buy some. 

We used to have it just plain boil and mix the sauce then eat but I grew tired of it.  I decided that maybe I could add a bit of twist to it so the taste would be similar to the homemade pancit canton dish.  The result was really good that whenever we have them on my pantry, I would certainly cook them with a twist.  

Here's the recipe

Ingredients
3 packets of Mi Goreng (or any instant pancit noodle brand)
1 c of mixed chopped veggies
1 c mixed seafood
1 tsp garlic, minced
1 medium onion, minced
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp maggie or knorr instant savour
1 tsp of ginisa mix granules

Procedure
Cook the noodles according to packet instructions.
Set aside the sauce mix.
Sautee onions, garlic, ginisa granules, mixed seafood and veggies.
Pour in the sauces  (the ones that come with the noodles and the other sauces)
Turn the heat to low and put in the noodles.  Mix well and serve hot.
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Chocolate Brioche Cup

 Brioche is a French pastry which is highly enriched type of bread due to the amount of eggs and butter that you add to it. It has a dark and crispy crust caused by the eggwash which was applied.

You make it in the basic way that you make your bread but only adding more eggs and butter. Sometimes raisins, berries, chocolates and even meat are added to it. It's not as sweet as ordinary bread as you would only add a small amount of sugar to brioche. It is quite famous in France and even Jean Jacques Rosseau mentioned it in his autobiography. It is also recorded that the term "brioche" was first used in 1404 and it was of Norman origin. It is also interesting to note that Greeks make this bread every Easter Weekend.

Brioches come in many forms -- cup, muffin, braided, loaf, bundt but it doesn't matter how it looks like though.

At first I didn't know what a brioche was.  I didn't even know how to pronounce "brioche."  Good thing I am an avid fan of My Kitchen Rules Australia!  The other night the sisters, Carly and Emily, from Victoria, Australia, baked Blueberry Brioche Cup in Labneh Yoghurt, and that's where I've learned the correct pronunciation of brioche.  I would try their recipe which became the people's choice at that episode.  I would like to start though with the less complicated brioche recipe.  I got this recipe from one of my cookbooks that my husband subscribed for me as a gift more than a year ago (still receiving more copies).  My husband and I had brioche with vanilla ice cream and cream and it's quite a yummy combination.

Here's the recipe that you might want to try doing...

Ingredients

500 g white bread flour + extra for rolling

1 tsp salt

7 g easy - blend yeast

6 large eggs

75 ml milk plus extra to glaze

250 g unsalted butter

75 g caster sugar

200 g dark chocolate, chopped into chunks

Procedure

Place the dough, salt and yeast in a food mixer fitted with a dough hook (spiral looking one).  Beat eggs and milk in a jug and with the mixer low, pour onto the flour in batches.  Allow the mixer to knead the dough for 5 minutes

Meanwhile, beat together the butter and the sugar in a mixing bowl until creamy.  Add to the dough, a little at a time, with the machine still on a low setting.  Knead the dough for another 5 minutes in the mixer.

Cover the bowl with palstic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place for 2 hours until it doubles in size.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently for 1 minute.  Cover and chill for 4 hours until doubled in size.

Grease a 12 hole muffin pan.  Lightly knead the dough, then roll out into a 40.5 x30.5 cm (16x12 inches) rectangle.  Scatter chopped chocolates and roll up.  Cut into 12 equal portions and place in the muffin pans.  Cover and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 200C.  Brush the buns with the milk and bake for 18-20 minutes until risen and golden.  Allow to cool a little int he pans before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

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Smoky Beer Burgers with Creamy Mustard Sauce

This recipe is a contribution of Justine, my former student in Miriam College.  She got it from Rachael Ray's recipes.  She tried and tested it on her palate and she said it turned out really good!  I would try this one someday too...probably this coming weekend.

Ingredients

2 pounds lean ground sirloin

• 1/3 pound smoked Gouda cheese, diced into 1/4-1/2-inch cubes
• 1 medium onion or 1/2 large onion
• 2 teaspoons smoked sweet paprika (2/3 palmful)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin (1/3 palmful)
• Grill seasoning, such as McCormick brand Montreal Steak Seasoning
• Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
• A generous handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 bottle of beer (6 ounces)
• Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), for drizzling
• 1/2 cup spicy brown mustard
• 1/4-1/3 cup sour cream
• 2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried dill
• 4 crusty Kaiser rolls, split and lightly toasted
• Green or red leaf lettuce, for topping
• Sliced sweet bread and butter pickles, for topping

Serves 4

Preparation

Pre-heat the grill over medium-high heat.
Place the meat in a bowl and add the cheese. Peel the onion and halve it, if using the medium onion. Grate about 3-4 tablespoons of onion directly over the meat into the bowl. Finely chop the remaining onion and reserve for topping. Add spices to meat: paprika, cumin and about 1 tablespoon of grill seasoning and/or some salt and pepper. Add garlic, parsley and Worcestershire and beer then form 4 large patties making them a little thinner at the center than at edges. Burgers plump when you cook them so this will prevent burger bulge. Drizzle a little EVOO over the burgers then grill about 4 minutes on each side for medium rare, 5 minutes on each side for medium and 6-7 minutes on each side for well done.
Mix mustard and sour cream with dill.
Serve patties on bun bottoms and top with lettuce, pickles, chopped raw onion. Slather bun tops with sauce and serve.

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Chicken Kiev

Chicken Kiev originated in Ukraine.  Kiev is the capital of the country...so there goes the name kiev.  But Russians, however, claims that this dish has its origin in Moscow and that it was invented in Moscow Merchants' Club in the early 20th century. 

Later it became popular in Russian restaurants.  it was introduced in Britain in 1976 and became Marks and Spencer's first ready made meal.  Basically it's a boneless chicken, pounded and rolled around garlic butter and herbs which can be fried or baked.  (wikipedia, Ukraine food history)

This is one of my husband's favorite.  Early in our marriage, I have noticed that my husband would always order either chiken kiev or chicken parmigiana whenever we go out for tea (dinner) so I asked him why.  He said, "I've always loved chicken...with lots of garlic and butter on it."  So this is the reason why I really had to find out how this one would be cooked.  I think it's a bit complicated ...I mean the recipe.  I came across this recipe of Masterchef judge (UK) John Torode.  I think this is the easiest chicken kiev recipe that I have found...so I really have to test it.  The result was really yummy...juicy...oozing with butter and garlic.

Here's the recipe so you can also try it.

Ingredients
Chicken
4 chicken breast
1 large egg, beaten
100 g plain flour
1 tsp paprika
150 g fresh white breadcrumb
oil for frying

Garlic Butter Stuffing
150 g butter, softened
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 lemon, zested + 2 tsp juice
handful flat - parsley, finely chopped

Procedure
Mix the garlic butter ingredients and season with a little salt.  Put on clingfilm and roll into a long log, about the width of a very fat thumb.  Chill until firm.
Lay the chicken breast flat on a board  with the side  that had the skin on downwards.  Make a cut lengthways in from the edge. then keep gently slicing until you have a butterflied the breast.  Repeat with the other breasts.
Divide the butter into 4 smaller logs.  Put a log in the middle of breast then wrap the chicken around so it is still the same shape but a little fatter in the middle. 
Mix beaten egg with a splash of milk and season well.  Combine the flour and paprika on a large plate then put the bread crumbs on another.  Roll each breast in the flour, then in the egg and then in the breadcrumbs.  Put in the fridge for 20 minutes to set.
Heat a 1 cm depth of oil in a large fyring pan.  Gently cook the chicken for a few minutes until golden brown, then turn and color the other side.  Think about the way the chicken will be presented, and put the opposite side to the join down first, as once you start to turn the chicken, the breadcrumbs can get a bit messy.
Take the chicken from the pan and put on a baking tray covered wiht baking parchment.  cook in a 190C for about 15 minutes, until crisp and golden.

Note: cling film is cling wrap, and parchment is baking paper...




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Racquel's Sinigang na Ulo ng Salmon sa Miso (Salmon Head in Miso)

Miso is a traditional Japanese seasoning paste.  This is made from fermenting rice, barley and/or soy with salt and fungus.  The result is a thick paste used in sauces, spread, pickling veggies and meat. 

Miso is a staple ingredients in many Japanese dishes that calls for soup.  The earliest miso is made basically from grain and this is called "hishio."  It is believed that this grain and fish miso has been around Japan since the Neolithic Period.  However, there is also a study that miso has actually started during the 3 century BC or even earlier in China.  It is very interesting to know that it was later introduced in Japan around 6th century AD just as the same time when Buddhism was also introduced in Japan.  Miso is quite very high in protein, vitamins and minerals and had become a part of the nutritional diet of feudal Japan.
This miso soup is also popular in the Philippines.  I would remember my father cooking fish in miso.  He didn't use the ready made miso soup base but he would use the miso paste that you can buy from the vegetable stalls in Hagonoy Town Market or palengke.  Here in australia, you can buy miso from Asian Store at McWhirter's in Brunswick, Brisbane or any Asian stores around.  I am not that confident in using the paste though.  I think I have used it before when we were still in the Philippines.  The result was nice...but I must admit, my tatay's (father) and my Ate Susan's or her hubby's miso soup are better.  I have a number of Mama Sita's miso soup base in my pantry but I never had the time or the urge (?) to cook one.  I would probably cook one when my hubby's able to get me a nice fish head.

Racquel, a cooking enthusiast and a lover of food, has shared with me this recipe.  I should really try it!  I think you should too!

Here's the recipe...

Ingredients
1 k salmon head
30 g ginger (squashed)
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic
2 medium size tomatoes, diced
green chillis
1 horse radish (labanos), sliced diagonally
1 bundle spinach (mustasa)
30 g fresh tamarind (boiled, juice)
miso paste

Procedure
Boil tamarind and squeeze juice.  Remove the tamarind skins and seeds.  Add the miso to the tamarind juice and boil them together.
Sautee garlic, onions, ginger and tomatoes.
Put in the fish. 
Pour in the tamarind - miso soup mixture.
Put in the veggies. Simmer and serve hot.
I hope I did a good job in fixing and translating the recipe Racquel =)

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Si Marie,Ako at ang Puno ng Bayabas (Marie and I and the Guava Tree)

One of the childhood memories that I would always treasure was the time when I can still run and laugh and climb a tree with one dear friend, Marie.  Marie and I are childhood friends. 

Her mother is actually a niece of my mother thru her cousin so that makes her my niece?  We were classmates throughout elementary years.  We were inseparable.  We would always to school and go home together. On weekends we'll go to their house to get heko (a smooth fish paste) and go to our favorite tree --- the guava tree at the back of the bungalow of Anda Isko and Anda Ising.  We would climb the tree without any fear of falling.  All we cared then was the joy we got from climbing that tree, picking up the guavas and eating them while we sat and clinged to its branches.  Dipping the guava to our heko was sooo yummy.  We would stay up in the tree without a care...time was not important to us. I'm sure Marie still remembers how we would go down the tree whenever an old lady shouted at us.  She's not from the bungalow so probably she's a neighbor.  Well anyway, we would ran so quick with our pockets or plastic bags full of guavas. 

My parents had forbidden me to climb trees or go near the river but this rule was soooo difficult to follow.  I would always break the rules hehehe (the joys of childhood).  They would always look for me....and when I went home with guavas...they knew that I broke their rule again hahah.  Oh how I wish I could climb guava trees again.  We used to have 3 guava trees in our backyard. The guavas were soooo sweet and juicy.  I don't really know  what happened that they all died.  Nanang Abe and Nanang Osang said, Ate Susan (my oldest first cousin) craved for them when she was conceiving.  At that time I really tried to understand why...I mean what's the connection of the death of the guava trees and ate susan's craving during her pregnancy?  They said, "napaglihian".  How I wish we still have those trees. 

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Sweet and Sour Pork

My husband fell in love with my sweet and sour pork when I cooked it for the first time.  He said that's better than the ones from chinese restaurants.  Of course, my head swelled a bit hheheh!  My darling daughter who doesn't really like eating much except

when we have sinigang or nilaga loved it too so I thought it must be really good!  I thought this dish was a complicated one when I first tried it.  Maybe because I only see this dish on restaurants, or if the food is catered.  When I was still working in Miriam College, sweet and sour pork or fish would always be served whenever we have a celebration.  That's where I got this recipe...well not exactly the recipe from the caterer but the recipe according to what I have tasted and what I have seen in the dish before.  This one is tried and tested and tasted.  I hope you will also enjoy the dish.

Pork
500 g pork, cubed
1 capcicum (bell pepper), julliene or diced
1 medium size carrots, thinly cut (diagonal)
1 medium size onions, diced
1/2 C pinapple chunks
1/2 C cornstarch + 1/2 C plain flour
1 egg, beaten
soy sauce (to taste)

Sweet and Sour Sauce
1/3 c vinegar
1/3 c pineapple juice
1/2 c brown sugar
4 tbs ketchup (banana or tomato)
4 tbsp cornflour or cornstarch
1 tbsp soy sauce

Procedure
Pork
Marinade the pork with soy sauce for 15 - 20 minutes.
Beat 1 egg.
Mix cornstarch and flour.
Heat a pan with oil enough for deep frying.
Dip pork in the egg.
Roll the pork into the flour mixture.
Fry until golden brown.

Sweet and Sour Sauce
Mix all ingredients in a pot with a whisk except the cornstarch.
Heat over low fire until boiling.  Pour in the cornstarch dissolved in 1/2 c water.
Stir until thick.

Pour the sauce in a heated pan. Add carrots, onions, capcicum and simmer until half cooked.  Put in the pork. Add water if you must.  Simmer.

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Crumbed Beef Schnitzels

Let's go Austrian this time!  Schnitzels are meat without bones.  That's the wonderful side of it -- no bones!  So you can just dig in with all gusto without worrying about biting into bones. 

These are thinly sliced meat from the leg or round. They are made more thin by pounding the meat with a meat mallet or rolling pin.  By doing this, the meat doesn't need to be cooked for a long time.  In this recipe 2 minutes frying on each side is already good.  Since I do not have a meat mallet, I used my ever dependable rolling pin. 

This recipe is quite an easy one to follow. Try and enjoy your schnitzels!

Ingredients
2 pcs of beef schnitzel beef cut
1 egg, beaten
1 c breadcrumbs
1/4 c parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 c mint, minced
1/4 c parsley, minced
1/2 c plain flour
1/4 c mixed seeds (sunflower kernels,poppy seeds, mustard seeds,sesame seeds)
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Procedure
Combine the breadcrumbs and the herbs, mixed seeds and parmesan. 
Add salt and pepper to the flour.
Roll the beef into the flour.  Pat with the palms.
Dip the beef into the beaten egg.
Roll the beef into the breadcrumb mixture.  Pat with the palms.
Fry in the heated olive oil until golden in color.
Add parmesan toppings on your schnitzels and serve with side veggies and rice or potatoes.

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Mini - Fishballs (bolabola)

Fishball is one streetfood that you can't miss when you are in the Philippines.  Everywhere you go, you would always find a pushcart of fishballs.   I love them! 

I guess that's the first thing I bought before we took the Jeepney at Malolos Crossing.  I can't believe that after 2 years the same manong is still the one selling fishballs and samalamig in that place.  He also sells kikiam and chickenballs but still fishballs are the best....and the best seller too.  I would always buy Php10 and he would put them in a plastic cup.  It's funny that he didn't bother to ask me what sauce would I want for my fishballs.  His memory is amazing!  He remembers how I used to want them.  My husband, who never had one before in his life, gladly joined me in eating the fishballs and drinking the gulaman samalamig.  He loved them!  Hmmm wait til I take you hun to UP tusok tusok isawan at fishbolan haha!

I tried to find the recipe for the street fishballs on the internet and I did.  The problem with it is that it's a recipe for commercial purposes.  It has lots of preservatives which I don't think we would all like (e.g. phospate).  Since I am cooking for a big boy and 2 little girls, I'd rather use the healthy ingredients.  I remember my sister making fishballs for us when we were all still single and when we were still living in our old house in Sagrada.  They were so yummy.  I am not sure what kind of fish did she use but it's the one that's similar to bangus (milkfish) but with lots of bones though.  I would watch my sister painstakingly removing the bones one by one.  Goodness, I would definitely go crazy If I were the one doing that!  Well anyway, here is the recipe that I concocted that I hope is similar to the one that she made years ago. 

Ingredients
1/4 K Fish Fillet
1/2 bunch kinchay (parsley),minced
2 stalks spring onions,minced
1/3 c milk (fresh or evaporated)
6 tbsp plain flour
salt to taste
pepper to taste (optional)

Procedure
Flake the fish fillet or mince it.
Mix the fish with the dry ingredients in a bowl. 
Pour in the milk.  Mix well.
Cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate until it resembles a dough.
Make small balls (half a tbsp)
Heat a pan with enough oil to deep fry the fishballs.
Fry the fishballs and cook to your liking.

Note:  If kinchay is not available you can use the dried flake ones in small McCormick jar (which I used).  For the DIP , click the dip label.

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Fishball Brown Dip

Ingredients
1/4 c vinegar
1/4 c soy sauce
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c pinapple juice
2 tbsp cornstarch
Bird's eye chilli or cayenne (siling labuyo),minced
1 small onion (minced)

Procedure
Whisk vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, pineapple juice and cornstarch in a small pot before cooking it in a low fire.
Allow to boil, and add the onions and the chillis.  Continue stirring until thick enough to your liking.

Note:  It would depend on you how much chillis do you want to add to your dip.

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Rocking the Kitchen with Racquel

Having someone who would really cook the recipes that you have on your foodblog is quite flattering.  Hearing them say that the dishes are "masarap" "yummy" or "delicious" would really make your heart swell. 

Racquel is also a mother, a wife and a teacher like me.  She was my batchmate in high school in a Catholic School in Hagonoy.  She did a very good job in cooking 3 dishes. Hats off to her!  Just looking at the photos would really make someone ravenous.

“There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a beautiful woman in the act of cooking dinner for someone she loves.” (Thomas Wolfe)


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Pinoy Biko with a twist

I am not really a biko lover.  Even when I was younger, whenever my tatay or nanay or Nanang Abe would buy biko and kalamay hirin from the town center, I would always choose the kalamay hirin.  So when I decided to cook a biko, I was surprised myself maybe because the feeling of homesickness got into me? 

I've found this recipe at panlasangpinoy on how to cook biko the easy way using a rice cooker.  It's a great help indeed.  I was thinking though whether I would use caramel toppings but I decided that maybe I should try leche flan topping.  I just followed my recipe in making a custard but added coconut cream for more flavor.  This biko with a twist turned out really yummy that my husband and daughters couldn't stop eating.  I loved the taste too.  I would probably make more biko in the future.   Maybe next time I will use mangoes as toppings? hmmm....interesting!

Ingredients
Biko
2 c glutinous rice (malagkit)
4 c coconut cream (2 tins or kakang gata)
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
pandan leaves (2)

Toppings
Coco-Leche Flan
1 c coconut cream
1 c condensed milk
1 c evaporated milk
2 tbsp plain flour
5 egg yolks
lime rind

Procedure

You have the option to cook rice in a rice cooker with 1 1/2 c water or you can add the uncooked rice to the coco-cugar mixture and cook it together with it. 
Combine the coco-sugar- salt mixture in a pot before you put it on the fire. 
Make sure that the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is a little bit thick when you add the uncooked rice.  If you are going to add the cooked rice, the mixture should be thick enough to your liking. 
The important thing is the rice is cooked and the most of the liquid has evaporated. 
Remember to keep stiring the rice-coco-sugar mixture (put the pandan in) to make sure that the liquid is evenly distributed and that it doesn't get burn at the bottom.
Put the biko in a foil pan or any pan that is oven proof

Coco - Leche Flan
Beat the egg yolks and put the lime rind on it.  Set aside
Whisk the coconut cream, evaporated and condensed milk, and flour in a pot before cooking them.  Put the pot over  a low fire and continue whisking until it gets thicker.  Put the egg yolks (remove the lime rind) in and continue stirring until it's thick enough to your liking.

Spread the coco-leche flan into the biko.  Use a big spatula to do this (or a turner).
Bake the biko in a 175C preheated oven for 15 minutes or until the top is a little bit brownish in color.

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