Pandan Chiffon Cake

This is a very light and fluffy cake. You will enjoy it as is .. or if you want a fix of cream, you can use the ready to squirt cream. Or whisk some double cream and serve it with perhaps strawberries or raspberries. Sky is the limit. I just enjoy it by itself. Once you have a slice, you can't stop.

Ingredients:

1 cup cake flour (I used sponge cake flour)
½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
8 egg yolks
300 ml coconut milk/cream
1 tsp pandan extract
¾ cup caster sugar
9 egg whites
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

Pre heat the oven to 160 C or 350 F

Preparation for the Batter

1. Pour the coconut milk into a saucepan and add the caster sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring slowly to dissolve the sugar. Set aside to cool.



2. Sieve the cake flour, baking powder and salt.



3. In a bowl, combine the egg yolks, coconut mixture, pandan essence and drops of food colouring. Use food colouring so that your cake is green, which is the colour of pandan. But if you don’t use colouring, the taste of pandan is still there.



4. Whisk lightly, and then add the flour to the egg yolk mixture. Mix until the batter is smooth. Set aside.



5. Whisk the egg whites lightly and add in the cream of tartar and the caster sugar. Continue to whisk until the mixture is stiff. Do not overbeat or allow the mixture to become dry. Set aside.

Baking the Cake

1. Gently fold half of the beaten egg whites into the egg yolk mixture and blend well.



2. Fold in the remaining egg whites and work very lightly with a spatula. Make sure the mixture is well mixed.



3. Place the finished mixture in an ungreased 10 inch chiffon cake/tube mould. Level and bake in the oven until golden brown (about 45 minutes)



4. Remove the cake from the oven and invert the mould. I usually invert it onto a bottle with a long neck/handle. Allow it to cool completely. Do not remove the mould while the cake is still hot.



5. When it has cooled, use a long, fine palette knife to loosen the sides of the cake to remove it from the tin.
   

Penne pasta with Seafood

This is another favourite in our house. When pasta is cooked like this, then I love it. I love it even more if it is spicy. But of course, you don't need to put the chili if you don't like it spicy. There's no set rules in cooking any food. You cook it the way you want it. Or at least, that's always been the rule I live by. After all, it's me who is cooking it, and eating it.

Ingredients:

500 grams of Pasta Penne (cook as per direction in the packaging)
3 tablespoon of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 medium onion, chopped finely

2 - 3 medium tomatoes, chopped
200 grams of prawns (frozen is quite ok)
200 grams of scallops (again, frozen is ok)
Salt
Pepper
Chili flakes (to taste)

Directions:

Sauté the garlic in the olive oil until fragrant
Add the minced onions; keep stirring until it’s translucent.

Add the tomatoes, stir until cooked.
Add the prawns and scallops. Stir for a minute. Do not overcook the seafood as they will turn rubbery if they are overcooked.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add chili flakes if you like a bit of spice, or more if you like it spicier.
Mix the pasta, and mix well.

Brownies (Microwaved)

Brownies come in a variety of forms. They are either fudgy or cakey, depending on their density. They may include nuts, icing, cream cheese, chocolate chips, or other ingredients. Brownies are typically accompanied by either milk or coffee. In our house, it doesn't matter whether they are fudgy or cakey, they will be gone in a jiffy. Sometimes we just eat it as is, especially if they just came out of the oven, sometimes, we serve it with whipped cream or sometimes, just dust with icing sugar. One thing is definite, whatever we put on top, it will be eaten, because it's one of our favourites. This recipe is a very simple one and a quick one too. If you need a quick fix of chocolate, this is for you. Enjoy ...

Ingredients:

METRIC/IMPERIAL

75 g/3 oz plain chocolate, broken
100 g/4 oz butter
2 eggs
225 g/8 oz sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
100 g/4 oz plain flour, sifted
100 g/4 oz mixed nuts, chopped

AMERICAN

3 squares semi-sweet chocolate, broken
½ cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
1 cup chopped mixed nuts

Directions:

Line a 20 cm/8 inch square box or dish with plastic cling film. I used a rectangular pyrex dish.

Put the chocolate and butter in a bowl and Microwave on high for 1 ½ minutes until the chocolate is melted.

In another bowl, beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla essence (extract) together until thick and creamy. Fold in the flour and chocolate mixture in alternate spoonfuls. Fold in the nuts.

Turn the mixture into the lined box and spread smoothly. Microwave on high for 5 – 6 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean; give the dish a quarter turn every 1 minute during cooking.

Leave in the box or dish until cold, then turn out and cut into squares.

MAKES 16 TO 20 BROWNIES

Peach Kuchen

This is a very refreshing cake. Considering the amount of sugar I used in this recipe, surprisingly, it's not very sweet. It's best to eat when it's been in the fridge for 2 hours or so. Of course, that's not a rule, if you want to eat it as soon as you finished decorating it, go for it. Alternatively, you can use mangoes when they are in season. That's also very very delicious. It will be called mango cake then, right? Left, my sons will tell me. Hope you enjoy this as much as we enjoy it. Cheers!

Ingredients

10 egg whites
1 cup caster sugar
10 egg yolks
¼ cup water
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 cup caster sugar
2 cup sifted self raising flour

Directions:

Preheat oven to 180 C/350 F. Spray a square or round pan.
Beat egg whites until foamy.
Gradually add 1 cup of sugar, continue beating until very stiff but not dry. Set aside.
Beat egg yolks with water and vanilla until creamy.
Gradually add the other cup of sugar, beating well until thick and lemon coloured.
Fold half of the egg whites into the egg yolks. Mix well.
Then, fold the egg yolks mixture alternately with flour into egg whites.
Pour in the prepared baking pan and bake for 20 -25 minutes or until done.
Cool. Ice and decorate.

To decorate.

Beat/whip some double cream (I use 400 ml) until thick and spreadable. Or you can buy the ready mix stuff.
Split the cake in the middle. Make the cut even as much as possible.
Spread the whipped cream on the bottom cut layer. Arrange the slices of peaches.
Place the other half of cake on top and spread the remaining whipped cream. Sometimes I also spread whipped cream on the bottom side of the top cake before I lay it on top so that the peaches are sandwich with whipped cream.
Garnish with the rest of the peaches. Chill and serve.

Beans with Meat Balls

This dish is my experiment. I had this spice - Chinese five spice powder - sitting in my cupboard for a long time and I don't know what to do with it. So one day I tried mixing it with this dish and it worked so well. My family just loved this dish. Even friends of my kids enjoy this one. I like using frozen baby beans because I find them handy and they work well in this dish as well. And one seldoms find fresh baby beans in the supermarket anyway. Usually, the beans in there are old and stringy, unless of course, one spends heaps of time picking all the small beans. And one advantage of using frozen beans, I can cook this dish anytime I want, I don't need to wait until the beans are in season. Clever!!!

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:

500 grams minced beef or pork
1 onion, minced
1 tsp of minced dried garlic
Salt to taste
Pepper
1- 2 eggs, whisked
2 – 3 slices of bread, soaked in water, squeezed out extra water

Mix all ingredients. Make small balls and bake in 180 C oven until cooked.

For the beans:

2 tbsp olive oil
2 500 grams packet of frozen baby beans (or fresh if you prefer – top and tail)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped finely
1 tsp five spice Chinese powder
1 – 2 tsp of fish sauce
1 400 ml can coconut milk/cream

Directions:

Sauté garlic in oil.
Add onions, stir until translucent.
Add the five spice powder, stir thoroughly.
Add the beans, cooked until soft.
Add the fish sauce.
Pour the coconut milk and let simmer.
Add the cooked meat balls, stir through. Remember, the meatballs are cooked already.
Thicken the sauce with corn flour dissolved in water if necessary.

Pavlova

Pavlova is a meringue dessert named after a Russian Ballet dancer Anna Pavlova. The dessert is believed to have been created to honour the dancer during or after one of her tours to Australia and New Zealand. Australians say it's an Aussie dessert, New Zealanders say it's a Kiwi dessert. One thing is for sure, it's a popular dish and an important part of the national cuisine of both countries, and is frequently eaten during celebratory or holiday meals such as Christmas dinner. But we don't have to have something to celebrate to eat pavlova, I just have to be in the mood to make one ...

Ingredients:

6 eggs separated
1 ¼ cups caster sugar
2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp white vinegar
300 ml thickened cream
Any fruits you want to decorate it with. I used peaches (from a can) and fresh bananas.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 120°C.
2. Line an oven tray with foil. Brush with melted butter and dust with cornflour, shaking off excess. Mark a 24cm-diameter circle on foil.
3. Use an electric mixer to whisk egg whites in a clean dry bowl until soft peaks form.
4. Gradually add sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition, until meringue is thick and glossy and sugar dissolved.
5. Rub a little meringue between fingers. If still "gritty" with sugar, continue to whisk until sugar dissolves.
6. Add cornflour, vinegar and vanilla and whisk until just combined.
7. Spoon meringue onto the foil, using the marked circle as a guide.
8. Smooth sides and top of pavlova.
9. Use a small spatula to forms little peaks around edge of pavlova.
10. Bake in oven for 1 ½ hours or until pavlova is dry to the touch.
11. Turn off oven.
12. Leave pavlova in oven with the door ajar to cool completely.
13. When completely cold, transfer to serving plate or store in an airtight container until required.
14. Use an electric mixer to whisk the cream in a medium bowl until firm peaks form.
15. Spoon cream onto the top of pavlova.
16. Decorate pavlova with peaches and bananas,

Spaghetti with Oil and Garlic sauce with Parsley

Aglio ed olio con prezzemolo spaghetti. That's how you say it in Italian. Not that I speak Italian but it just sounds so authentic if one says it in Italian.

This is a very simple way of cooking spaghetti. No fuss at all. It's also the most delicious spaghetti I have ever tasted. Eat it by itself or with some bread, it is just simply divine.

Ingredients:

½ cup olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, whole or minced
1 cup of fresh parsley, chopped
500 grams of spaghetti
Salt
Pepper, chili or cayenne (if desired)

Directions:

Brown garlic, minced or whole, thoroughly in olive oil.
Stir the chopped parsley through. Add salt to taste.
Boil spaghetti 10 – 12 minutes in salted water or cook according to the packet’s instructions.
Drain very dry.
Add to oil, garlic and parsley mixture in the pan and turn until thoroughly moistened.
Add pepper (if desired) or serve pepper separately.
Turn out in platter and serve.

You can also use spaghettini, fettuccini or linguine instead of spaghetti.

Sweet and Sour Pork

This is one of our favourite meal. My family likes eating this with fried rice, but I prefer simple steamed rice. However you want to eat it, it's just simply divine.

Ingredients:

½ c. all purpose flour or corn flour/starch
2 eggs, slightly beaten
½ tsp. salt
1/2 k. lean pork, cut into 1" cubes
Cooking oil for frying
1 c. broth or water
1 c. pineapple chunks or rings then cut into pieces
1 green or red capsicum, diced
1 carrot, cut in rounds
1 clove garlic, chopped finely
1 onion, chopped finely
Sweet and sour sauce
1 tbsp. cornflour dispersed in
1 tbsp water

Directions:

1. Make a batter with flour, eggs and salt.
2. Dip pork cubes in batter one at a time.
3. Fry in hot cooking oil until golden brown.
4. Remove and drain in absorbent paper.
5. Fry garlic and onion in oil, add pineapple chunks, capsicum, carrot and ½ cup broth.
6. Stir fry for few minutes. Add the pork pieces.
7. Prepare Sweet and sour sauce and pour in saucepan.
8. Let boil uncovered for 5 minutes. Thicken with cornflour. Serve hot.

Sweet and Sour Sauce

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup vinegar
the juice of the pineapple

Combine all ingredients

Mamon Cake

Mamon is an all time favourite snack/merienda. This is a very easy recipe. I made a cake instead of putting them in individual molds so that there's less washing, LOL. The taste is still there. This is very popular to family and friends because it's not very sweet.

Ingredients:

6 eggs (separate yolk from white)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup white caster sugar
1 cup plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Spray cake tin or mamon molds (you can use regular muffin pans if you don't have molds)

Directions:

1. Sift plain flour and baking powder in a bowl and set aside
2. In a separate large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until very foamy like meringue but not stiff
3. Add sugar gradually and continue beating
4. Add vanilla and vegetable oil
5. Add egg yolks one at a time and continue beating
6. Add plain flour and baking powder and continue mixing
7. Spray the cake tin or molds or muffin pan and pour mixture about 2/3 full
8. Bake in preheated 160 C oven for approximately 12-15 minutes for molded mamon or 25 minutes for the cake or until golden brown

Spaghetti - Filipino style

What makes spaghetti filipino style? It's the putting of the sugar, of course. Oh, and don't forget the sausages or as we call it in the Philippines, the hotdogs.

For me, spaghetti is not spaghetti unless it's a bit sweet. Not very sweet, mind you, just sweet enough. And I have been cooking this kind of spaghetti in my kitchen eversince, that my family is quite used to eating this style. When we were in Italy (many moons ago) I ordered spaghetti and they only put tomatoes and some herbs in there, I couldn't eat it. I wanted to ask for some honey or sugar to put in my spaghetti but I didn't know how to ask. Just as well, otherwise, I'm sure, they would have kicked me out of their restaurant or maybe their country. I guess for them, it would have been a sacrilege to put sugar in pasta.

I only ever put sugar in spaghetti though, I don't do it in other pasta dishes. And this kind of cooking spaghetti is like being back in the Philippines.

Ingredients:

1 kilo packet of Spaghetti (cook as per direction)
500 grams to 1 kilo of minced beef (depending on how meaty you like it)
4 pieces of Hans Sausages (American sausages), sliced lengthwise then sliced thinly and diagonally
3 tbsp of olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 medium onion, chopped finely
2 cans (400 grams) of tomato soup (yup soup)
½ tsp. salt or to taste
2 tbsp of raw sugar (or to taste)

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a big saucepan
2. Sauté the garlic until fragrant
3. Add the onions, cook for a minute.
4. Add the minced beef and keep cooking until it changes in colour.
5. Add the sliced sausages and season with salt. Cook for 2 -3 minutes
6. Add the tomato soup. Let it simmer for a while.
7. Add the sugar. Taste for seasoning. Mix the cooked spaghetti noodles or serve the sauce on top of the noodles

Kaldereta Beef using Mama Sita’s Caldereta mix cooked in a Slow Cooker

We call it Kaldereta, others call it beef stew. However one wants to call it, we call it yummy in our house. I use Mama Sita's Caldereta mix in this recipe. I also cooked it in a slow cooker. The meat is so tender when it is cooked in a slow cooker, and it doesn't lose its shape as well. Unlike if you simmer it for a long time in the stove or oven top. Since my friend Jing told me to buy a slow cooker, it's been an important gadget in my kitchen eversince. One can make a cheap cut of meat into something classy if one cooks it in a slow cooker. And I find, when I use the slow cooker, the meat absorbs all the ingredients around it.

I used Mama Sita's mix because it is quite handy, and it gives that certain Kaldereta smell. I did not put liver spread or any liver ingredient in this version because my family does not like it. Some might say it's not Kaldereta without the liver spread but it works fine with us. I substituted grated cheese instead to make it thicker towards the end of the cooking. Oh, the pictures does not have green peas, I've run out ... hehehe.

Ingredients:

1 kilo of beef, cubed
3 tbsp of olive oil

3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 medium onion, sliced finely
½ tsp of salt or to taste
3 – 5 medium potatoes, cubed in big pieces (1 inch by 1 inch)
2 medium carrots, chopped round or diagonal
1 capsicum (bell pepper) sliced the same size like the carrots
a handful of frozen green peas (or fresh if it is handy)
2 tbsp of tomato paste
½ cup of grated cheese (optional)
1 cup of water

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a sauce pan.
2. Sauté garlic in the olive oil until fragrant
3. Add the onions, stir until translucent.
4. Add the beef. Cook the beef until it turns a different colour, greyish.
5. Season it with salt, and then add the carrots, capsicum and the potatoes. Mix it through.
6. Mix the Mama Sita Caldereta mix.
7. Put the tomato paste and add the water.
8. NOW transfer everything into your slow cooker.
9. Set the slow cooker in automatic and cook for about 4 hours. Stir it occasionally.
10. Add the peas when you have been cooking it for 3 hours.
11. Half an hour before serving it, add the grated cheese.

Ginisang Ampalaya (Sautéed Bitter melon/gourd)

It's only once in a blue moon that I get to cook ampalaya or bitter melon, sometimes called bitter gourd. They won't grow in this part of the world, at least, I can't grow them. I tried. Very seldom that they sell them in the supermarket or in the asian shop, and when they do, it's like buying gold. That's how expensive they are. But since they're good for our health, and my honey knows I love them, we buy them, although it's like buying gold or maybe silver. When we buy ampalaya, we pick the lighter coloured ones. I believe they are less bitter than the darker green. Don't take my word for it, but I've never been wrong (in this theory). I don't like putting meat with it, maybe few shrimps, but most of the times I just cook the ampalaya by itself, then I will have fish on the side, in this case some smoked herrings (tinapang tawilis). So, here goes ...

Ingredients:

2 medium size ampalaya
2 tbsp of olive oil
2 cloves garlic, sliced finely
1 medium onion, sliced finely
3-4 big tomatoes, chopped
3-4 eggs, depending on the size
fish sauce to taste

Directions:

Slice the ampalaya (lengthwise) then scrape the seeds in the middle. Sliced them very thinly/finely. Put the finely sliced ampalaya in a bowl of water with salt. Leave it soaking in the salted water while preparing the other ingredients. Don’t squeeze the ampalaya when you take it out of the water, I don’t. Just drain the water and wash it again in running water.

1. Sautee garlic in the olive oil
2. Add the chopped onion, stir until translucent.
3. Add the tomatoes; cook until tomatoes are very soft.
4. Season with fish sauce.
5. Add the drained ampalaya, and mix it through. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT stir the ampalaya, once it’s mixed through. When it’s half-cooked, add the beaten eggs, then you can stir it until the beaten eggs is mixed through. Remove from the heat and serve with rice.

I had fried smoked fish with it. I bought them in the pinoy shop in Melbourne.

Coconut Crème Caramel (Recipe best made a day ahead)

Leche Flan is an all time favourite in our home. Whenever I bake this dessert, it's guaranteed to be eaten up to the last morsel. I was so proud of myself the very first time I ever baked this. I always thought it is a very difficult dessert to tackle. The leche flan I used to eat was the one steamed and only with egg yolks and condensed milk. Ohhhh cholesterol! Luckily, I found this recipe in "Australian Women's Weekly" published in August 1994, and it's been my version of leche flan ever since. With a bit of adjustment of course. It's also very popular with friends because it's not very sweet.

Ingredients:

½ cup (110 g) caster sugar
½ cup (125 ml) water
6 eggs
1/3 cup (75g) caster sugar, extra
2 tsp vanilla essence
1 cup milk
1 can (400 ml) coconut cream

Directions:

1. Combine sugar and water in medium pan, stir over heat, without boiling, until sugar is dissolved. Boil uncovered, without stirring, until mixture turns golden brown. Keep your eye on it, because it might burn. Pour caramel over base of deep 20 cm round cake pan.
2. Whisk eggs, extra sugar and essence in medium bowl until combined. Bring milk and coconut cream to boil in pan, allow bubbles to subside.
3. Gradually whisk milk mixture into egg mixture; strain into jug then pour over in pan with caramel. Place pan in big baking dish (roasting pan or a bigger round cake pan is ideal) with enough boiling water to come halfway up the side of pan.
4. Bake in a moderately slow oven (160 C) for about 40 minutes or until the centre is just set.
5. Remove pan from water, cool; cover, refrigerate overnight. Invert onto rimmed serving plate.

Mussels (Tahong)

I love mussels. When I went to New Zealand, I saw the biggest mussels ever. I was really awestruck with their sizes. I couldn't stopped talking about them. Not only were they really, really big, they were also meaty. Sometimes, the shells of ordinary mussels are so big, then the meat inside were very small. But New Zealand Mussels are really big and meatier. Here I am again, all agog about New Zealand mussels.

We're lucky living in Tasmania, because we're surrounded by water. Whenever we have the time, we go for a drive and collect mussels, oysters and if I'm lucky some crabs. But this time, these are bought mussels and they happened to be New Zealand mussels. And boy, did I enjoy eating them ....

Ingredients:

1 kilo mussels
2 tbsp oil
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
1 onion, chopped finely
1 inch ginger, thinly sliced or 1 tsp minced ginger from a jar
4 – 5 tomatoes, chopped
fish sauce to taste
a bunch of spinach or pechay or silver beet

Directions:

Clean the mussels thoroughly if they are not clean yet. Remove the moustache-like sticking out.
Sauté the garlic in the oil until brown.
Add the onion and ginger.
Stir for a minute then add the chopped tomatoes.
Add the mussels. Mix thoroughly then cover it. Let it simmer for few minutes.
Season with fish sauce. Be careful with your seasoning. Mussels have a natural taste of the sea, more often than not, they are salty already. So keep tasting the sauce. Put water if there is not enough sauce, or if you want your dish soupy. Let it boil.
Put the leaves in, mix and let it boil until the leaves are tender.
Serve with rice.

Rule of thumb with mussels. When they are open before you cook them, throw them away. If they don't open when you finished cooking them, throw them away.

Pancit Guisado

Pancit, the versatile food. One can eat it at breakfast, lunch, dinner even during merienda (morning tea or afternoon tea here in Oz). I think this is more popular during merienda. In our household, it is always a meal. This is what we had for lunch yesterday. I must have hit it right because there was no left-over. Poor dog didn't have any tucker afterwards. I was so busy taking a picture of it, by the time I sat down on the table it was almost gone. So this is the only serving I had ... but it was worth it. Calamansi were from the garden. I have heaps in the garden, I wonder if I can sell them ... hmmmmm.

Ingredients:

1 500 grams packet of rice vermicelli noodles (bihon) Soak the noodles in hot water before preparing all the ingredients
1 cup of shredded cooked chicken or pork (left over bbq chicken is ideal)
a handful of shrimps
2 tbsp of cooking oil
2 cloves garlic, minced finely
1 onion, chopped finely
1 carrot, sliced thinly, julienne
50 - 100 grams of beans (Baguio beans) sliced thinly and diagonally
1 – 2 cups of shredded cabbage (I like cabbage, the more the merrier)
2- 3 tbsp of soy sauce
1 – 2 tbsp of sweet soy sauce (kecap manis), optional

Directions:

Heat oil then sauté the garlic until brown.
Put the onion and stir for a minute.
Mix the carrots and beans.
Mix thoroughly, then add the cooked chicken and shrimps.
Season with soy sauce and sweet soy sauce.
Keep stirring then add the cabbage. Stir until the cabbage is well coated with the sauce then add the noodles and mix thoroughly.
Serve with calamansi, pepper and extra fish sauce on the side.

Left over Chicken BBQ omelette

Breakfast is always a family meal in our household. I always want my boys (I have twins) to have a proper breakfast during school days. They only take sandwiches to school, so I make sure they eat a hearty breakfast as often as possible. This morning, it was omellette with left over bbq chicken. One of them had rice, the other one had bread rolls like his daddy. Of course, I had some rice too. You can also have this at lunch time, have some salad on the side or still serve it with rice. Or even for a light dinner, again with salad and rolls or rice again ... lol.

Ingredients:

1 cup of left over bbq chicken (bought from the supermarket is fine)
2-3 tbsp of cooking oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
4 medium tomatoes, finely chopped
6 -8 eggs, beaten
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Heat oil and sauté garlic until brown
Put onion and cook until onions are soft.
Add the tomatoes, cook until tomatoes are cooked.
Add the chicken, stir and season with salt and pepper.
Pour the beaten eggs and make sure the beaten eggs are spread out evenly.
Cook on the stove without stirring so that it will set on the bottom.
Finish cooking the omelette under the grill so that the top part is also cook.

If you haven’t got a grill, you can try flipping the whole omelette onto a big plate when the bottom is set. Then slide it back onto the pan. I wish you good luck when doing this. Or if you don’t want to be bothered flipping it and making the presentation nice, just turn the omelette portion by portion. The taste will still be there.

Misua with Zucchini

The humble misua. I remember when I was little, we only get to eat misua when we're sick. I guess because it's easy to eat. It slides down your throat so easily. You don't need to chew it. I never liked the patola (bottle gourd) that went with it, too. But now, I am missing that patola. I wished I have eaten all those patolas served to me when I was a little girl. Very seldom that I see patola being sold in the asian shops here. I have mentioned in a previous post that we only have 2 chinese shops in this part of the world, and that they don't sell everything I need and I want (it's all about what I want and what I need, LOL). What we have here is an abundance of zucchini. Especially when they are in season. They are easy to grow as well. So instead of using patola, I used zucchini in my version of misua.

Ingredients:

2 thin rolls of misua noodles

2 tbsp cooking oil
2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
1 onion chopped finely
50 – 100 grams of shrimps (or pork or chicken)
2-3 small zucchinis, sliced thinly (round)

2 cups of water
fish sauce to taste
pepper


Directions:

Heat oil in a sauce pan. Add garlic, sauté until brown. Add onions.

Put the sliced zucchini and cook for 2 minutes.

Add the shrimps and season with fish sauce.

Add the water. Boil until the zucchinis are tender.

Put the misua noodles. Stir thorougly.

Serve immediately.

Lomi

It's getting cold in this part of the world and Lomi is one of my favourite foods in winter. I have to credit my sister for this recipe, she was the one who taught me how to do it. Of course, I put a different spin on it but fact remains, she told me how to do it. So thanks Lhie.

Ingredients:

1 packet of fresh egg noodles (choose the fat noodles)
1 tbsp. of cooking oil

3 cloves of garlic, finely minced

1 onion, sliced thinly

1 c. of shredded cooked chicken meat
1 carrot, julienne
5 c. of chicken broth (unsalted) (or thereabouts)
2 eggs, beaten
salt and pepper to taste
spring onions sliced very small

Directions:

In a sauce pan, sauté the garlic and onion until fragrant.
Add the julienne carrot and stir for 30 seconds.
Add the chicken meat and continue cooking over high heat for another 30 seconds.
Pour in the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Alternatively put water and 1 cube of chicken seasoning. Just watch your salt seasoning.
Add the egg noodles and simmer for 10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper.
Pour in the beaten eggs in a thin stream, stirring continuously.
Turn off the heat and serve hot.

Laing using Silverbeet/Swiss Chard

I love Laing (Ginataang Dahon ng Gabi). Just a pity we can't grow Gabi in here. Too cold. We can't buy it that often in the chinese shop as well. FYI, we only have 2 chinese shops here, and they don't stock everything. So I make do with what is available and what I can grow in the garden. And that's Silverbeet. Silverbeet is like spinach, the bigger variety. I put it in soup, in ginisang Munggo and I also use it instead of spinach in spinach pie.

Here is my version of Laing using this versatile vegetable.

Ingredients:

Bunch of Silverbeet (as much as you like)
500 grams of pork, sliced (parang pang gisa)
2 tbsp of oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced finely
1 medium onion, sliced finely
2 cm ginger, sliced thinly or 1 tsp. crushed ginger from a jar
1 can of coconut cream
fish sauce to taste
chilli, as much or as little as you like


Directions:

Wash the Silver beet thoroughly. Separate stalks from leaves, then cut into 1 inch pieces. Set aside.
In a sauce pan, heat oil then sauté garlic, onion and ginger. Add pork and cook until tender. Add the desired amount of chilli or you can omit it altogether if you don’t like it spicy.
Season it with fish sauce. Add in the silver beet. Stir for a few minutes. Add the coconut cream. Simmer until oil comes out from the cream, stirring it once in a while. Serve with rice and maybe fried fish.

Notice I did not use bagoong in cooking it because my family does not like bagoong. But of course you can use bagoong if you so desire. I was able to introduce many and varied Filipino dishes to my family; it just a pity that bagoong is one food/condiment that they don’t like.

No Fuss Pancit Luglug/Palabok

I always liked Pancit Palabok. Whenever I go to a party and there's pancit palabok on the table, it's always the first thing I eat. I like all the many ingredients and I always thought it's a very difficult dish to cook. I am always impress with someone who can cook pancit palabok. Until one day I decided to cook it myself. I gathered all the filipino cookbooks I have, even searched for a recipe on the net. Ang guess what, it is a very difficult dish to put together. You need this, you need that ... etc, etc, etc. So I cooked a very simple version where the ingredients are readily available. And I came up with this ... And now this is a family favourite. My boys refer to it as ... the noodles with the yellow sauce. The colour of the anatto powder I get in here is yellow, that's why.

Ingredients:

1 packet bihon (rice sticks) or alternatively use a packet of thin spaghetti (I usually use spaghetti, my family prefers it. And there's not much fuss in preparing it, once it's cooked as per the direction, you need not soak and boil it like the bihon)

2 tbsp oil

1 head garlic, minced (we love garlic, the more the merrier)

1 medium onion, minced finely

500 grams cooked pork, diced (minced chicken or pork works as well)

300 grams small shrimps, shelled ( or thinly sliced squid tubes)

½ cup pork broth or water

salt and pepper to taste

2 hard-boiled eggs, coarsely chopped

½ cup pork rind cracklings (chicharon), crushed
2 tbsp fish sauce (patis)

2 tbsp chopped spring onions

calamansi or lemon wedges

Ingredients for the Palabok (Red Sauce)

2 tbsp achuete/anatto oil

½ cup corn flour (corn starch) or plain flour

2-½ cup pork broth or water

Juices from sautéed pork-shrimp mixture

Directions:

1. Soak noodles in water for 30 minutes. Drain. If using spaghetti noodles, cook as per the direction in the packet.


2. Over medium heat, sauté garlic in skillet in 2 tbsp oil for 1 minute or until brown. Set aside and use for garnishing.


3. Sauté onion and pork in remaining oil for about 5-7 minutes. Add shrimps and ½ cup broth and let simmer for 5 minutes. If using water instead of broth, season with salt and pepper to taste. Strain pork-shrimp mixture when done. Set aside. Save juices.


4. In a big sauce pan, bring water to a boil. Place a handful of drained noodles in a strainer and dip in boiling water. Boil for 2-4 minutes or until tender. Lift strainer out of water; drain noodles thoroughly and transfer to a serving dish. Cook rest of noodles in the same manner.


5. Pour red sauce over noodles. Top with the pork-shrimp mixture and the rest of the ingredients (brown garlic, spring onions, boiled eggs, chicharon). Serve with calamansi and a small bowl of patis for further seasoning if desired.
   

For the Red Sauce (Palabok):

For achuete oil ... Heat 2 tbsp oil, sauté achuete/anatto powder, keep stirring until oil turns red

• Add a little broth (1/4 cup) to the flour to make a thin paste. Stir rest of broth in.


• Add the mixture to the achuete oil and enough water to make 3 cups of sauce including the reserved pork-shrimp broth. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Keep stirring the mixture to get a smooth sauce.


• Correct the seasonings.

The typical pancit palabok in the Philippines has tinapa (smoked fish). I did not include it because my family is not very keen on smoked fish. More often than not, we also do not put chicharon, again, they are not very keen on it. But, if I have some in the cupboard, I put some on mine. The crunchy texture of it adds another flavour in the pancit.

Pinangat na Ulo ng Isda sa Kamatis (WARNING: Others might find these pictures gross)

I have an abundance of tomatoes from the garden and I still have one fish head left in the freezer. I was wondering what to do with the tomatoes, and it just so happened I was chatting with a friend and I asked her how to cook Pinangat using tomatoes. I am so used in cooking/eating the one with tamarind and she gave me an idea how to cook it. And this is how I did it.

Ingredients:

1 fish head (it's better if the belly is still attached to the head)

5 - 6 pieces of ripe tomatoes, roughly sliced

1 medium to large onion, sliced

ginger, sliced thinly ( I used 2 tsps. crushed ginger from a jar, works perfectly as well)

salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp of olive oil

some bok choi or pechay (optional)

Method:

• Place the rougly chop tomatoes, onions and ginger on the bottom of a sauce pan.
• Lay the fish head on top of the mixture.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Cover and simmer the fish for roughly 5-7 minutes.
• Check the fish and turn it over so that it will cook on the other side. Be careful.
• Cook for another 5 minutes.
• If it doesn't have enough sauce, add water then add the pechay.
• Put a dash (1 tsbs) of olive oil before switching off the stove.

Serve it with steam rice and fish sauce on the side. If you like chili like me, spice it with chili or just mix the chili with your sauce. Enjoy.

About this Blog

My name is Lory. I currently live in Australia. I have been living here since 1989.



This Blog is about FOOD. The food I like to eat, the food I like to cook and the food I like to share around.



I am from the Philippines. I came from Pampanga. A place known for its food or rather the ability of the locals to be able to cook food. Once I introduce myself as coming from this place, the first thing someone asks is, "so, you must be a good cook then?" Well, I try to be.



I know there are so many blogs already about pinoy cooking, I hope I will be able to offer different way of cooking pinoy food. Especially, all the ingredients are not readily available where I live, I hope I will be able to justify the recipes using the alternative ingredients.



Happy Cooking and Happy Eating Everyone.