FAT is NOT the Enemy

Fat is good! I am not making this up! Scientists have backed this theory by research.

No wonder when I was eating eggs and butter and lechon for 3 months, my cholesterol was lower than normal.

Carbohydrates can kill you. You have to read more on the subject. I know you can't eat FAT in combination with carbs.

But everybody loves carbs! There were times when I was so tempted to give up and eat bread, rice and other food bad for me!

Everytime I would pass by Yabu in Rockwell, my self control was being tested.

Good thing my friends are my anchor, encouraging me to hang on and resist temptation.

Since FAT is not the enemy...... My experiments today were cholesterol overload!

Homemade Chicharon!

I found a recipe online.

But instead of one and a half hours, I had to bake the rind for 3 hours!

Baked chicharon ready for frying.

I do not like to eat chicharon but I cooked it for Tita Nene. I know she absolutely loves it! I just hope it passes her standards.

I ate the small leftover bits and I was surprised I liked it! It was crunchy and the chicharon was not tough.

Another experiment rich in fat was Squash Soup with Bacon.

I used my frozen chicken stock.

I almost removed the fat!!! Sacreligious!

Squash Soup with Bacon

3 C. Chicken stock or Knorr Chicken cube with water

2 C. Squash, cut into small cubes

1 potato cut into small cubes

Boil the squash and potato in stock until soft. Let it cool and transfer into the blender. Purée and set aside.

4 strips bacon

1 onion, minced

1/2 C. Stock or water

1/4 C. Evaporated milk

Knorr chicken powder, salt and pepper

Fry the bacon slices until crispy. Set aside the bacon.

Caramelize the onions in bacon fat.

Deglaze pan with stock. Add a bit of the puréed squash/potato then pour back into the soup pot.

Add milk and seasonings. If the soup is too thick, thin it down with water.

Serve with crumbled bacon.

 

 

 

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KFC - Korean Fried Chicken

I was able to cook Korean Fried Chicken from scratch! I told Jing and Mayette the boys will like it.

The taste somewhat resembles Bon Chon chicken but it is home made!

Less preservatives and additives but more importantly, less the cost!

Hooray!

Korean Fried Chicken

1/2 K. Drumsticks or wings

1/4 C. Thai fish sauce

1/4 C. Rice Flour (or cornstarch if you don't have rice flour.)

Marinate chicken in fish sauce for 30 minutes.

Roll in rice flour then deep fry.

Drain and set aside while you make the glaze.

Glaze

1/4 C. Korean soy sauce

1/4 C. Water

4-6 T. Brown sugar

1 T. Grated ginger

1 T. Grated onion

1 T. Grated garlic

1 t. Rice flour(cornstarch) diluted in 1 t. Water If glaze is too watery.

Put the soysauce, sugar, ginger, onion and garlic in a saucepan. When it boils and sugar has been dissolved, add the rice flour slurry. Boil until thick. Pour in a big plastic container with lid.

Heat the cooking oil again until it is hot and flash fry the chicken.

Remove from the frying pan and put in the plastic container with the glaze. Shake the chicken pieces and put on a serving platter.

Very easy!!!!!

You can buy rice flour, not glutinous rice flour, in Landmark supermarket.

I also experimented with Bibingka using the rice flour but I will perfect it before sharing the recipe.

It was also easy, just like making pancake batter.

Bibingka experiment.

I will also try to make pancakes made from rice flour!

I know I should not indulge because it is not grain free but I just want to learn how to cook some alternative to wheat.

 

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Very Easy Pancit Sotanghon Guisado

Pancit is my Waterloo.

My friends and family know that. It is my favorite but I do not know how to cook good pancit. It is either too salty or does not have any taste at all.

When my Mom was still alive, she would often beg me to stop experimenting.

"Lia! Stop cooking Pancit! Hindi masarap!!!!"

Hahahahahaha. Just like this afternoon, I told PD that I would send her Pancit.

She declined the offer but I said, "I am experimenting with a new recipe!"

Her reply was, "Do I have a choice?"

I think I redeemed myself!

The Pancit experiment was a success! PD even called to say it was good!

I was browsing online the whole day for a very uncomplicated recipe and I found one!

It was from filipinofoodrecipes.org. I took screen shots of the recipe.

Uh OH! Hahahahahaha

I did not follow the measurement of the meat because I like more noodles than "other things" in my Pancit.

Pancit Sotanghon Guisado

2 C. Water

200 g. Chicken breast

100 g. Chicken liver

1/2 t. Rock salt

100 g. Peeled shrimps

250 g. Sapporo noodles

5 T. Cooking oil

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 onion, sliced

1 carrot, cut into matchsticks

10 pcs. Green beans, cut into 1 inch lengths

1 C. Chinese cabbage, shredded roughly

3 T. Lee Kum Kee oyster sauce

2 T. Dati Puti soy sauce

1/2 C. Broth from the boiled chicken and liver

1/4 C. Kinchay, chopped

Soak noodles in water for 10 minutes then cut into 2-3 inch lengths.

Drain and set aside.

Bring water into boil. Add the chicken, liver and salt. Cook for 15 minutes. Let the meat cool then shred the chicken and slice the liver.

Heat the oil in a wok. Saute garlic and onions until soft.

Add the chicken, liver and shrimps.

When the shrimps are cooked, add the carrots and green beans. Cook for a minute then add the cabbage.

Add the oyster sauce and soy sauce. Continue stir frying for a few seconds.

Add the noodles. Toss the noodles continuously. Add broth 2 T. At a time if noodles are not yet cooked.

Add the kinchay and serve with Calamansi.

I wish Mom were still with me. She would have loved my Pancit!!!!

 

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My Weekend in Paranaque

I just spent my weekend with Ate and her family in Paranaque!

For someone who lives in the main hub of the city, the suburbs are like "probinsya" to me!

It was so quiet over there compared to the noise I hear from EDSA (My street is parallel to EDSA.).

I can hear the buses and the MRT all day long and sometimes when the traffic is really bad, up to midnight.

When I told PD I was spending the weekend with my sister, she asked me what am I going to do there.

I said, I will just laze around, eat, nap, take a dip in their pool

and browse the Internet with my iPad.

Hahahahahaha! She said it was not her cup of tea. She does not like to spend her days lazing around.

My Ate and her helpers cooked food for me!

She said I was her guest and it was their turn to feed me!

And feed they did!

They cooked Homemade Sisig!

From scratch! I was so impressed!

I got the recipe she used from a food magazine. I cannot recall if it was FOOD or Yummy.

Ate also cooked my favorite Chicken Tiim - braised chicken in wine and patis with olives, mushrooms and asparagus.

It is a recipe shared by Glenda Baretto a long, long time ago. I have been looking for it. Good thing Ate has a copy.

Her Ginisang Kang Kong was very good!

Ginisang Kang Kong

4 bunches Kang kong, leaves and stems separated

2 T. Cooking oil

2 T. Garlic, chopped

2 T. Oyster sauce

2 T. Brown sugar

1 T. Fish sauce

Combine the oyster sauce, brown sugar and fish sauce in a bowl.

Heat oil in the wok and saute the garlic until fragrant but not brown.

Add the stems and continue stir-frying.

Then add the leaves. Stri-fry for a minute more.

Push the vegetables to one side of the wok then add the sauce. When it boils, toss the vegetables into the sauce.

Ate also cooked Binagoongan Baboy with Gata.

Pork-Ginger Meatballs

The highlight of my weekend in Paranaque was the pork barbecue!

I ate 4 pcs on the first day.

Then 6 pieces on the second day. (Hahahahahaha it's not that I don't know how to count but I already ate 1 stick of bbq as soon as we bought it.)

It was sooooo good! I loved it especially while it was still hot off the grill!

I actually burned my lips but it was worth it.

The name of the bbq store is Porcue. (823-9424)

You can find it right at the entrance of Marcele Green Village.

One of my favorite activites in Ate's house was browsing through her food magazines,

Look what I found!!!!!!!

Stainless steel straw for eating bulalo.

This is how they should market it.

I cannot wait to buy my own stainless steel straw and then I will buy a beef shank as long as my forearm!

The weekend was so relaxing and enjoyable for me!

Thank you, Ate! Until the next time!

 

 

 

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Tita Josie's Birthday Lunch

Tita Josie celebrated her birthday with us today at Peking Garden. I was with my senior friends.

She ordered our favorite Peking Duck!

Good thing it was a "wrap your own" affair.

I did not have to remove the pancake.

I have been almost (still can't give up soy sauce and communion wafer) wheat free since September 1.

I had a funny conversation with my Kuya this morning.

"Kuya! I lost 8 lbs. already since I started wheat free last September 1!"

"It doesn't look like it.... Looks more like you lost 8 grams!"

Ahahahahaha hahahaha

He is so funny! Reminds me of Jing who can think of a nice "come-back" in a second.

Tita Josie also ordered Wintermelon Soup.

Prawn in Red Egg Sauce

Steamed Lapu Lapu with Scrambled Egg White Sauce

E-Fu noodles. I only ate the mushrooms and quail egg.

Mashed Bean cake for dessert. I only ate the filling.

Our group was the very first customer in Peking Garden and we were the last to leave.

As usual, lots and lots and lots of stories.

Imagine... The stories started before the Second World War up to the present.

3 hours are not enough!

Always a pleasure to spend time with my Senior Friends.

Happy birthday, Tita Josie!

 

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Brined Pork Chops and Garlic Mashed Potatoes

I have been eating potatoes for 4 days since I've gone rice-free.

It is a challenge to make a grain-free menu. I just need to research for more recipes online.

I cooked Brined Pork Chops and Garlic Mashed Potatoes today.

Pan-fried Brined Pork Chops

1/2 K. Pork chops, set aside the fat

Brine solution

4 C. Water

1/4 C. Rock salt

1/4 C. Brown sugar

1 head garlic, peeled

1 t. Peppercorn

Mix all ingredients in a bowl for the brine. Stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved.

Lay the pork chops in a Pyrex dish and pour the brining solution. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Drain the chops, rinse and pat dry with paper towel.

Remove the fat from the rind of the pork chops and cut into small pieces.

Put in a frying pan and cook until oil has been rendered from the fat. You may use butter if you are "health conscious".

Pan-fry the chops until golden brown. This step should not take long or else you will get a chewy rubbery piece of pork.

Garlic Mashed Potatoes

2 pcs. Medium potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes

1 head garlic, peeled and each clove cut in half

1/2 t. Rock salt

2 T. Butter

2-4 T. Milk

Boil the potatoes and garlic with salt until the potatoes are tender.

Drain and return potatoes and garlic in the pot. Mash with a fork then add butter and milk.

Season with pepper. Taste the mashed potatoes and if you want to add salt, then do so.

 

 

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My Baby is an Old Man.

The Spirit is willing but the body is not.

Wrigglyboy turned 16 today! I almost forgot it is his birthday.

Corry treated everybody to celebrate his birthday.

But... The birthday boy did not have any.

There were times when I thought that Wriggly was so tired already and wanted to rest in peace.

But then, miracle of miracles.... He would get up and bounce back like a puppy!

He cannot see so well anymore. Sometimes, I would call out his name,

"Wriggly! Here Wriggly Boy!"

And he would just look around... Trying to find the source of that annoying voice.

When I want him to go outside the yard, I would either walk beside him or place my hand in front of his nose.

People often say if you have a senior dog, get a younger dog and the senior will feel rejuvenated.

I did not want to believe it but......

It is so true!

Since I rescued Lizzy....

Wriggly became more active and had more appetite to the point that he would eat Lizzy's food!

I just realized that Wriggly and I both love bone marrow!

Look at the big smiles on our faces!

Lovely!

A couple of years ago... I wrote a prayer to God that I was not ready to let Wriggly go.

But now.... my prayer is...

Dear God,

I am so grateful for giving me a four-legged son. He has brought me so much joy!

He has been with me for more than 1/3 of my life, 16 years.

That is a very long time, more than I could ask for!

When the time comes that you are about to welcome him in heaven, just make it easy for him.

And most especially for me.

I know I have little time left with him so I will make the best of it.

Thank you, dear Lord and please hear my prayers.

Amen.

 

 

 

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