CHEESY TUNA LASAGNA ROLL UPS

If you have gone through my blog, you would see that I already have a Three Cheese Tuna Lasagna Recipe posted. However this recipe may be similar, there are elements that are a bit different as well. Typical lasagna like my other lasagna recipe, are arranged in layers of the protein, pasta and cheese and then baked. This dish, however, is more labor intensive but the end result is always more than worth it.

Ingredients:

12 lasagna noodles
2 cans of tuna
1 can condensed cream of mushroom
1/4 cup whole milk
1 cup cottage cheese
1 egg 
1/4 cup scallions/green onions
1 medium onion minced
2 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 cup of grated cheddar cheese
2 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees C.

Cook the lasagna noodles as per package instructions.

For the sauce/filling, sauté the minced onions in a sauce pan then add the tuna. Pour in the cream of mushroom and milk. Season it with garlic powder and dried parsley.

Take it off the stove and add the scallions/green onions, egg and 1 cup cottage cheese and cheddar cheese.

Line the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish with the filling enough to cover the whole surface.

Arrange one cooked lasagna on a flat surface. Cover it with the filling and roll. Repeat the step on the remaining 12 noodles leaving enough filling to drizzle on top of the arranged lasagna later.

Arrange the rolled lasagna on the baking dish as shown in the photo.

Top it with the remaining filling and cheddar cheese. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and garnish with dried parmesan.

Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until the cheese has melted.

Easy to serve in individual portions. Pair it with garlic herb toast and you have one tasty filling meal. Enjoy.

EASY CHOCOLATE CHUNK COOKIES

Whenever we need snacks at home, we don't go out and buy stuff from the store anymore. For one, what we can buy commercially for snack like cookies, cupcakes and other treats, have ingredients that we're not sure is healthy for us. Next, they don't taste like what they're supposed to taste. And if you want to get the ones that are delicious like Keebler's Cookies, they're quite expensive.

Might as well make our own at home, right? We can control the ingredients that we know is good for us plus we can make it taste the way we want them.

So here's one easy recipe. Once you're done, you can have these cookies at home to snack on especially the kids. They will surely love it.

Ingredients:

1 cup of butter, room temperature
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
2 tbsp. vanilla
21/2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 cups chocolate chunks or chocolate chips (preferably dark or semi-sweet)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Line your baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat for the cookies not to stick and easy clean up.

Cream the butter with the 2 sugars until well blended. You can use any type of mixer or you can do this by hand.

Add the eggs to the butter mixture one at a time and then the vanilla. Mix well but do not over mix.

Sift the flour, baking soda and salt together using a sifter or just by whisking it. Pour it in the butter mixture a third of the whole dry ingredients at a time. Mix until there is no more flour sticking to your mixing bowl.

Add the chocolate chunks into the cookie dough and mix it by hand until the chunks are distributed all throughout.

Using an ice cream scooper to make sure all cookies are of the same amount plus uniform in shape, place a scoop of dough on the cookie sheet with 3 inches in between each cookie as the dough will spread in the baking process.

Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the edge of the cookies have browned. It's better to take them out of the oven a little underdone as it will continue to cook while being cooled down.

Let it cool on the sheet for about three minutes then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack with a metal spatula.

Once the cookies have cooled down enough, you can enjoy the homemade goodness of this treat while enjoying the smell of freshly baked cookies all over your kitchen.

Enjoy. :)

SIMPLE THREE CHEESE TUNA LASAGNA

I've been really off schedule when it comes to my blog posts. I apologize to all of you who regularly check for new recipes. My health issues have thrown me off my routine and it took a while to get things back in place.

Now, I'm trying to catch up on all the recipes especially those that have been requested.

This has shown to be one of the favorites among my Facebook posts. The Three Cheese Tuna Lasagna. Three cheese because of the cottage, parmesan and cheddar or mozzarella.

The traditional lasagna uses ground beef and ricotta cheese. In this recipe, we have way healthier alternatives and yet the taste is still as amazing.

Ingredients:

2 cans of solid tuna in oil
1 can of condensed cream of Mushroom soup
1/2 cup of whole milk
1/4 cup scallions or green onions
1/4 cup of fresh or dried parsley
1 tbsp. dried oregano
1 medium onion, minced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups of grated or shredded mozzarella or easy melt cheddar cheese
1 cup of cottage cheese
12 pieces of lasagna noodles
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Cook the lasagna noodles first according to package instructions.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, mix first 8 ingredients together and add 1 cup of the grated mozzarella or easy melt cheddar cheese.

In a greased 8x11 baking dish or pan, arrange 3 lasagna noodles to line the bottom. Pour a third of the tuna mixture over it and then spread a moderate layer of cottage cheese on top. Repeat the steps twice. To finish, add the last three lasagna noodles and top it with the remaining 1 cup of grated mozzarella or easy melt cheddar. Then, sprinkle the 1/2 cup of grated parmesan cheese and some chopped fresh parsley on top.

Bake it in the oven for 25-30 minutes, usually when the cheese has completely melted and slightly browned.

Take it out of the oven and let it sit for about 15 minutes for the dish to settle and can be sliced easily.

Serve and enjoy!

ROSEMARY CHICKEN WITH LEMON BUTTER GLAZE

I just had a fairly huge grocery haul when I came up with this recipe. I had good finds at the supermarket and wanted to make use of the rare ingredients I got. So I came up with this dish.

What we need:

500g chicken legs

1 tbsp. rosemary

1 small container of plain yogurt

freshly ground pepper

sea salt, to taste

Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Canola Oil

juice from half a lemon

2 oz butter (around 1/4 of a regular brick of butter)

fresh basil, for garnish

 

Marinate the chicken in yogurt, rosemary, salt and pepper the night before and keep in the fridge out of the freezer.

 

On the cooking day, drizzle a fair amount of extra virgin olive oil on a skillet to prevent the chicken from sticking on the pan plus adding more flavor to the meat. On medium high heat, sear the chicken until golden brown. For those new to cooking, the best indication any meat is ready for turning is when you lift it with a flat spatula, it easily gets off the pan surface.

 

After all the chicken is cooked, keep the pan in heat but put it on low. Deglaze the pan with the juice from half the lemon, incorporating the oil and juices left by the chicken on the pan by mixing it with the spatula. Then, add the butter and mix it well. You can add a teaspoon of mustard to thicken as well as add more flavor to the glaze.

 

Once the glaze is thicker and blended, pour it on the chicken and serve with fresh basil.

 

Eat it with rice, corn or a mix of different vegetables. Enjoy!



CALIFORNIA MAKI IN PINAS

This recipe has been requested from a while ago and has been long overdue.

Filipinos have now adapted to more authentic Asian cuisine specifically Japanese and Korean food. What with the increasing number of expats all over the islands thus causing a mushrooming of establishments selling not only these types of food but ingredients as well.

I believe it is a very good thing that we now love sushi and kimchi because they are actually beneficial to our health.

For now, we start with the growingly popular California Maki. Fun fact though is that this dish may have been created by a Japanese but he made this for Americans to cater to their taste. Traditional Maki used fatty tuna, but it was replaced by avocado and for this recipe, mango. Also traditional Maki is made with the seaweed on the outside, the California has it inside out.

What we need are:

1/2 lemon or 1 whole calamansi, juiced

1 medium avocado/mango, peeled, pitted, and sliced into 1/4-inch thick pieces
4 sheets nori
4 cups sushi rice, cooked (Sushi/Japanese Rice cooked-2 cups rice in 3 cups water)
1 tbsp. rice wine/rice vinegar
1/3 cup sesame seed, toasted
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into matchstick-size pieces
4 crabsticks, sliced lengthwise

wasabi, for serving
soy sauce, for serving

If using avocados (which is preferred because it has the best texture to replace the protein in traditional sushis which is the fatty tuna), squeeze the lemon juice over the avocado to prevent browning.

 

Place the freshly cooked rice in a bowl and mix it with rice wine or rice vinegar. Set aside.

 

Cover a bamboo rolling mat with plastic wrap or cling wrap.

Cut the nori sheets in half crosswise. Lay 1 sheet of nori, shiny side down, on the plastic covered mat.

 

Wet your fingers with water and spread approximately 1/2 cup of the rice evenly onto the nori. Sprinkle the rice with sesame seeds.

 

Place the second plastic covered bamboo rolling mat on top and flip the two over so that the rice side is down.

 

Place 1/8 of the cucumber, avocado/mango and crab sticks in the center of the sheet.

 

Grab the edge of the mat closest to you, keeping the fillings in place with your fingers, and roll it into a tight cylinder, using the mat to shape the cylinder.

 

It's just simple and easy especially if you have prepared all ingredients and materials you need beforehand.

 

You can make this and have California Maki in the comfort of your own home.

 

Enjoy!

 

OH SO TENDER BAKED LEMON PORK CHOPS

 

Ingredients

 

3 regular sized pork chops

juice from half a lemon

1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper

salt to taste

dried oregano

chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup salted butter

 

I am very particular with the way meat is cooked particularly pork.

Here in my area, you can find pork chops sold anywhere and most of us think that if it's seasoned well, that would be enough. It should not be just that, the meat itself has to cooked perfectly - brown and caramelized outside while tender and juicy inside. Most eateries here, cook the pork chops fried, with a lot of oil.

Pork has a tendency to get overcooked fast if not thick enough and kept in the skillet for more than the needed time. Don't fry the pork, sear it. Put just a little amount of oil, enough for the meat not to stick to the pan (if you don't have a cast iron, copper, or ceramic skillet). And make sure you time it perfectly not to leave it dry.

Well, if you have no patience to sear the pork perfectly, the best solution is to bake it.

For this recipe, get your chops marinated with the lemon juice, salt and pepper the night before you plan to cook it. Put it back in the fridge but out of the freezer.

On the day of cooking, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line your baking dish or tray with quality foil long enough to fold the foil back to cover the chops when prep is done. Make sure that the foil does not have a weird smell (the smell may sometimes indicate the presence of toxic materials).

Place your pork chops on the foil, making sure each is evenly distributed for even cooking in the oven.

Season each chop with the dried oregano and fresh basil.

For the finishing touch, equally distribute the butter on all the chops like in the picture. Now cover the chops completely with foil and bake in the oven for 30 minutes.

After the half an hour passes, keep the oven on but open the foil allowing the top part of the chops to be exposed and leave in the oven for another 10 minutes or until the meat is brown.

Serve with a side of vegetable salad or buttered steamed vegetables.

Enjoy!

SIMPLE CHOCOLATE MARBLE BREAD PUDDING

INGREDIENTS:


6 slices stale or day-old bread                                            
2 tbsps. butter, melted                                              

4 eggs beaten                                                                 

2 cups milk                                                                   

3/4 cup white sugar                                                                     

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon                                                                     

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup Dutch chocolate chunks

 

This dish wasn't part of my weekly meal plan. One night, my mother just turned over less than half a loaf of Wheat Bread from the pantry. She said it's gotten stale and I found out the expiry date was that same night or the next day. So I just put it on the table where I was working on something online. As it got later, I noticed it and thought of what to do with it. and of course, you can imagine the light bulb moment.

 

It's actually been years since I last made bread pudding and that kind of food brings back childhood memories where my Papa would bake them and I would come home from school, smelling the deliciousness and love awaiting for me.

 

This time, since I have my precious block of Dark Dutch Chocolate, I thought of revising the recipe and add some taste of chocolate in it.

 

It's actually very easy to prepare.

 

Just set aside one 8-inch deep baking dish. You need something deeper than a regular pie plate or brownie pan.

 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

 

Break bread into smaller but chunky enough pieces into the baking dish. Add the chocolate chunks and spread evenly to distribute the chocolate when it cooks creating a good marble.

 

In a mixing bowl, prepare the custard by mixing all the remaining ingredients. Once mixed well with a whisk, pour it over the bread in the baking dish. Use a fork to slowly flatten the bread a bit to soak in the custard. Set it aside for a few minutes, which is enough time for the bread to absorb the creamy liquid.

 

Then bake it in the oven for 40-45 minutes or until the top of the pudding springs back when you lightly tap it. 

 

Let it cool and enjoy!

 

 

OH MY DELICIOUS FUDGE BROWNIES!

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sifted all purpose flour

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. salt

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate (dark Dutch chocolate is preferred)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

I have made these brownies over and over for years and have loved it every single time. When I make this, it doesn't last more than 24 hours in our house of two adults and one child.

 

For me, one indication that you have very tasty brownies is once you smell it while in the oven until you've taken them out, you can almost taste how chocolaty it is.

 

Start by preheating the oven to 325°.

 

Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with butter.

 

Sift together dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, and salt. 

 

In a double broiler or a thick saucepan, melt the butter with the chocolate under low heat.

 

In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar, and eggs together until light and fluffy.

 

Beat in melted butter and chocolate; stir in flour mixture.

 

Pour batter in prepared pan; bake for 25 to 30 minutes. I usually check after 25 minutes and every time, it's perfectly cooked and ready by then.

 

While waiting, you can lick the spatula and mixing bowl clean. It makes baking brownies a perfect experience.

 

Cut brownies in squares while still warm; cool brownies completely in pan.

 

Always remember that even if you have the perfect recipe, having the best ingredients will give you the best results.

NOT YOUR ORDINARY COOKING SHOW

I thought all cooking shows are the same. I mean I love them, I look forward to practically all of them and my eyes get glued to the TV as soon as they are on. Sometimes though, I can't help but develop favorites. Some shows are more focused on the food and the cook's passion for it. Others just play a lot of drama and sell the program by featuring the contestant's backstories. I am one of those viewers who tune in to watch good food being cooked with passion and skill.

"The Taste: Tuesday at 8|7c on ABC" is that kind of show, and more. It's the cooking counterpart of "The Voice." The judges blindly taste the food prepared by contestants and sometimes, they have no idea that the person they're sending home is part of their team. For me, this is a fresh approach in the cooking show genre.

What keeps me looking forward to the next episodes is the fact that they have a good combination of judges who are undoubtedly authorities in the culinary world. Both Anthony Bourdain and Nigella Lawson are among my favorites. They have influenced me in my pursuit for having good food on the table whether I get my ingredients at a boutique deli, Trader Joe's or at a local supermarket in a tiny island of the Philippines.

"The Taste" is also one show that gives amateur cooks like me inspiration that if we love what we do, it doesn't matter if we have culinary degrees or not, great food comes from the heart.

If you're a foodie, a chef, an aspiring cook, or someone who just loves to eat, I recommend you watch this show.

LEBANESE INSPIRED CHICKEN WRAP

Ingredients:

Pita Bread
Garlic Ranch Dressing (please see previous recipe)
Lettuce Leaves
3/4 cup Diced Tomatoes
1/2 cup Minced White Onions
1/4 kilo Chicken fillet
125 g Plain Yogurt
1 tbsp. Cumin
1 tbsp. Paprika
Salt
Pepper
Aluminum Foil

This was inspired by the popular Lebanese food "Shawarma." However, I can't easily find lamb in my area as well as Tahini Sauce to make an authentic copy. I don't want to call this dish as Shawarma because I did not use both lamb and tahini. I just searched for a better alternative in terms of ingredients; ones that are readily available to me.

I replaced lamb with chicken and instead of tahini, I made my own Garlic Dressing but with a twist.

To make the wraps, start with the chicken fillet. Put it in a bowl and mix in the yogurt, cumin powder, paprika, salt and pepper. Put it in the fridge and let it marinate for at least an hour ( the longer, the better).

Then get the frozen pita bred and thaw it a bit to room temperature and then warm it on a grill. Once you touch the top side while it's on heat, and it's warm, flip it and in seconds, it is ready.

Cook the chicken on a skillet or frying pan with a little bit of olive oil (extra virgin olive oil is healthier and tastier).

Place a lettuce leaf in the middle of the pita bread, shred the chicken and arrange on top and add the minced onions and diced tomatoes as shown in the picture. The amount of chicken, tomatoes and onions per wrap depends on how much you want them to be.

Generously pour the Garlic Ranch Dressing on top of the meat and vegetables. Generous because, it's what gives your whole wrap, the character and the zing.

Then slowly roll it like you're folding a shirt, three ways. Place aluminum foil on the bottom third part to secure the wrap.

The whole process in making the wrap is simple but the key ingredients here that will bring character to the food is the marinated chicken and the sauce or dressing. It has to explode in your mouth to be perfect.

Being prim and proper has no place when eating this food. In order to enjoy it, leave all your inhibitions behind.

Enjoy!

GARLIC RANCH DRESSING

I love Ranch Dressing as it is, because it's just the kind of taste I like - a perfect blend of mild garlic and onions with a tangy hint and bite from the sour cream and different herbs at the same time very creamy. If you love to eat vegetables like carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber and zucchini; this is the perfect pair to match them. Also, use it as a dip for chips. It will make meals and snack time special.

In the US, the most popular is the Hidden Valley Ranch. It is good and if you rave for that taste, you'll get some satisfaction.

In the Philippines, they don't sell that brand in supermarkets. I found a local brand Lady's Choice with different variants of dressings and one of them is Garlic Ranch. I tried it and it's ok although I did not detect any garlic and onion combination. For me, it was just a tangier mayonnaise. However, it's better than other alternatives like plain mayo.

I knew then that I could have a better ranch dressing if I make it myself. I can make it taste the way I'd want it and believe me, I'm really very particular to flavors.

So I tried it and it was a success. It's like an explosion of flavors in your mouth.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup crushed roasted garlic
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tbsp. onion powder
1 tsp. dried basil
fresh ground black pepper
salt


In a blender or food processor, mix all the ingredients except the salt and pepper. Add them last and put enough according to your taste.

If you have more dressing than what you immediately need, store them in jars or recycle those old ketchup bottles like I did.

In one of my next blogs, this garlic ranch dressing that I made almost from scratch will play a very important role. It will make or break the success of my next dish.

EASY MAKE YOUR OWN PIZZA

 

Ingredients:

Pizza Dough from the Supermarket

Mozzarella Cheese (quantity as desired)

Tomato Sauce

Pizza Seasoning (Dried Oregano and Basil,
   Crushed Marjoram, Minced Onion,
   Granulated Garlic, and Black Pepper)
Fresh Parsley
2 Ham Slices
Olive Oil (preferably, Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
Salt and Pepper, to taste

This recipe is for a quick and easy pizza you can make at home where you can put ingredients you love and easily find and don't have the luxury of time.

Of course, it's a lot better if you can make your own pizza dough and we will do that in this blog in the future for when you are not in a hurry.

In the meantime, you can make this with your kid and eventually, they can do it themselves especially kids like mine who love eating pizza often.

You can get prepared pizza dough from the supermarket in packs of 2. In La Carlota, you can buy them at Piazza, two for 60 pesos.

Make sure you preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Get a pizza pan, drizzle it very lightly with extra virgin olive oil, just enough to grease the bottom before putting the dough to prevent the pizza from sticking once it's done. The olive oil also adds an exotic subtle savor to the pizza plus it's a healthy kind of oil that's beneficial to the body.

In a small bowl, mix around a tablespoon of pizza seasoning with a 1/2 cup of tomato sauce. With a large spoon, drizzle it on the dough and spread evenly using the back of the spoon. You can add as much sauce as you prefer as long as you leave an inch allowance from the edge.

Then, generously  and evenly distribute mozzarella cheese on the pizza.

On top, arrange ham slices (you can also cut them in circles if you want) all over on top of the cheese.

For the final touch, garnish it with some coarsely chopped fresh parsley.

Place in the oven for 8-10 minutes.

Enjoy!

STRAWBERRY MANGO SMOOTHIE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

3 ripe mangoes
3/4 cup frozen strawberries
125 g of vanilla or mango yogurt
3/4 cup full cream milk
4-5 ice cubes
sugar (optional - if you want a sweeter taste but it's healthier without)

Put all the solid ingredients in a blender arranging them with the ice cubes at the bottom, frozen strawberries next and the mangoes on the top. Then pour all the liquid ingredients last. Having them in that order makes sure that the ice cubes and the frozen strawberries get blended fast and will mix well with the rest.

If you don't have frozen strawberries you can substitute it with frozen bananas. If you have leftover bananas that is going overripe, peel them and store in the freezer. Use them when you feel like having some rich and thick smoothie.

This will provide you your daily need for vitamin C plus calcium and fiber.

Enjoy!

Makes 2 generous servings.

GROCERY HAUL

Grocery shopping is just my favorite thing to do along with eating.

The supermarket is my favorite place. There is just a thrill in what kind of finds I would have at the end of the day. Of course I have my list all ready and I know exactly where to go. But then, there are times when you wonder if that carton of milk, brand of peanut butter or the kind of herbs and fruits you've been looking to get but has not been available for a while, would be there.

Well, for this particular haul, I found some items I've been checking on regularly in the past few months that I couldn't find. Maybe because during the holidays - Christmas and New Year, stocks have ran out and it's just now that the supplies have arrived and it's slowly being put back in shelves or freezers again.

Here are the finds that got me excited:

FROZEN STRAWBERRIES. For this particular item, it's been years since I last saw this in the frozen fruits and veggies section. In fact, the last time I was able to buy strawberries from SM Supermarket was years ago and they were fresh. But fresh or not, strawberries just give me the opportunity to make a tasty combo of mango and strawberry smoothie or as people commonly call it here - fruit shake. Tomorrow, at the top of my "To-Do List" is to make that.

HARVEY FRESH FULL CREAM MILK. This is just the best tasting milk I have tried in the country in comparison to local brands like Selecta, Magnolia, Bear Brand and Alaska among others; and imported brands which they sell locally - Dutch Lady, Meiji and Paul's. I used to buy warm skimmed milk from Café Bob's while working the mid-shift before and loved it so I asked what brand of milk they use and ta' da', it's Harvey Fresh. I just hope that  SM would be able to regularly carry that and make it available for people like me when I run out.

BOTTLED RANCH DRESSING. I have to accept the fact that there is not much of a choice when it comes to picking a good Ranch Dressing here. Last time I checked at the grocery, I did find a bottle of ranch dressing (among plenty of different kinds of dressings) and it was the Lady's Choice brand. It wasn't as good as my expectation of how ranch should taste. In fact, it almost tastes like their Thousand Islands and Caesar Salad dressing. So I'm glad that I found American Brand US Ranch this time and though it's not the same as Hidden Valley Ranch, at least it tastes better. But if you see in my grocery cart, I got some fresh parsley. I'm contemplating on making Ranch Dressing from scratch then maybe I'll get my craving for ranch satisfied. We run out of the dressing because we use it as a dip when we're snacking on carrot sticks. It's just perfect together.

PITA BREAD. I love Shawarma! But in my town, they don't have carts that sell that here. Thus, I'm glad I found Pita Bread at the supermarket because like the ranch dressing, I plan to make my own version of the Shawarma at home. I could use the plain creamy yogurt that I got as well as the tomatoes I have stored in my fridge.

DARK PREMIUM CHOCOBAR. I've been looking for a good reasonably priced block of dark chocolate that's primarily good for baking or making desserts. Before, I'd use Antonio Pueo but lately, I haven't seen that on the shelves of the stores. Bittersweet chocolate chips are good but they practically cost twice the price of this chocolate. This will be good for making chocolate fudge.

I could go on and on about grocery shopping and my haul but I'll save that for more posts soon.




 

PICO DE GALLO Filipino Style

This dish is a Mexican favorite and has been loved by other people around the world.

It is a fresh and chunky version of the Salsa and you can eat it with tortilla chips, wrap a soft tortilla around it with chicken or beef or use it as a side for steaks, ribs or chicken wings.

I gave it a Filipino take by mixing in green onions as a substitute for cilantro which is not readily available even in supermarkets in the Philippines; and by making red bell peppers as one of the main components.

Also, lemons or limes are hard to find in the country, so we can just settle with good quality vinegar, preferably apple cider, balsamic or coconut vinegar (from tuba) because they have a strong yet natural acidity that will give the recipe a kick.

Just remember, the fresher the ingredients, the better.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup diced tomatoes
3/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1 tbsp. minced red onions
1 tbsp. diced green onions (sibuyas dahon)
1 tbsp. balsamic or apple cider vinegar (tuba nga langgaw is good)
1/2 tbsp. lemon or lime juice
salt and pepper (to taste)
jalapeno pepper (tahod ilahas - to taste)

Just mix all the ingredients and taste as you go.

If you have any questions about the recipe, kindly leave a comment and I will get back to you.

Life is Good

Celebrating the new year is still fresh for all of us. A lot of people are still feeling the cold weather even in a tropical country like the Philippines. Just the other night, I had to put on leg warmers and a hoodie while working at home.

This gives us a reason to whip up some heart warming and comforting food like chicken and pork adobo that's just so savory, you'd end up eating tons of rice with it. And the house is filled with the aroma of rich vinegar and soy sauce boiling with chicken and pork juices blended with plenty of onions and garlic mixed with caramelizing pork and chicken meat - the smell of a home filled with love.

Is it me or don't we just have crazy appetites when the weather is cool? I know I feel like munching on anything good I find in the fridge or the pantry every hour practically.

One of my favorite things to do while devouring on the sumptuous meal is to sit comfortably with a blanket while watching videos of  Judy and Benji on their YouTube channel eating adobo themselves.

That, for me, is a perfect day and a perfect way to welcome the year ahead.