Iloilo Tortitas

I have read so much about tortas, a very rich sweet Visayan cakey buns loaded with egg yolks and butter, similar to ensaimada. I have never tasted them before, and when I saw the recipe in the FOOD magazine the hubby brought from the Philippines as one of his pasalubongs I was excited to be able to make them. The smaller buns called tortitas, adapted from the recipe of Mrs. Cosette Montelibano, are from Iloilo. The recipe has yeast as leavening making them bready and should not be confused with the Cebuano tortas which look more like a leche flan/cake combination. The Cebuano tortas have more egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and have baking powder or the coconut sap toddy called tuba as leavening agent. I'll also try to make the Cebuano version without the tuba just to compare them.

I made some flat-ish buns as described below and some I baked in lined cupcake pans. I can't tell if this is what they should look and taste like but I love that they are not overly sweet, they are very soft but not very delicate, they don't get crushed or get out of shape when you bite into them or cut with a knife. Preparing the dough is easy although the rising times are long, two 2-hour risings, but it's worth all the time I spent making them. They are perfect for Easter breakfast with sliced aged edam cheese and barako coffee or hot chocolate.

BTW, the 2 FOOD magazines have loads of yummy cakes and desserts that I am salivating just looking at the photos and will make them ASAP, the 7-layer toffee crunch cake and ube roll are two on the top of my list.:-)

Tortitasadapted from FOOD magazine
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup warm water
1 cup sugar
pinch of salt
12 egg yolks
1 cup butter, softened
6 to 7 cups all purpose flour
melted butter for brushing
sugar for dusting.

• In a small bowl, combine warm water and 2 tsp sugar, sprinkle yeast and whisk to mix. Cover with plastic film and leave in a warm place for 5 - 10 minutes or until bubbly.In a large bowl of stand mixer, mix together sugar, salt, and egg yolks. Add butter and mix until well blended. Add the yeast mixture. Gradually add the flour and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. (I finished kneading by hand for 3 minutes).
• Form dough into a bowl and transfer to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic film and leave in a warm place for 2 hours.
• Remove from bowl, punch down gently and divide into 60 -70 gram portions. Shape into buns and lay on a greased or parchment-lined baking pan. Cover with plastic film or cloth and let rise for another 2 hours or until double in bulk.Bake in a preheated 300 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly then brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with granulated sugar.

this is a very yellow dough

Pasalubong

sagada, benguet, and barako coffee beans from Baguio

I love getting pasalubong from the Philippines, who doesn't? It's exciting to open the box to find what goodies are inside. I received one such box from Texas today, many many thanks to my good friends Yoly and Joe L for the pasalubong they got for me on their recent trip to the Philippines. XOXOXO!

a cup of dark roast sagada which I believe is arabica

caycay - a yummy candy from Bohol
peanuty candies that resemble Butterfinger but better because they're less sweet

puto bumbong steamer made of tin or maybe steel

Pasalubong Part 2 (from hubby) tomorrow...

Yoly asked me to rate the coffee beans. I will have a taste test and compare them with my regular coffee beans and will post the result sometime this week.

Tokwa't Baboy (Fried Tofu And Boiled Pork)

tokwa't baboy and lugaw
Blogging makes me want to eat Filipino food that I did not eat frequently while living in Manila. The pork, which is usually ears and some meaty parts, in Tokwa't Baboy I probably ate just once. It's weird that when I chewed on the ear I felt like I was chewing my own ears, much like the way I feel when eating ox tongue, as if I'm chewing my own tongue. But I love fried tofu, one of my favorite food ever, specially with vinegar/soy sauce/garlic dipping sauce. I can eat them everyday without getting tired of them, seriously. A week ago I read about the tofu frites over at White on Rice Couple blog and made them yesterday. I convinced myself to buy a few pig's ears, and I also bought 2 thick strips of pork belly (in case I gag while eating the chopped ears), boiled them for almost 2 hours in water, salt, garlic, whole peppercorns, and bay leaves and ate them with lugaw (congee). My meal was just fantastic! I didn't mind the crunchy ears, they are actually very good with the excellent yummy crrrunchy tofu fries.:D

tofu fries with flaked sea salt

the pork does not look appetizing yet delicious

lugaw (congee) topped with fried shallots and calamansi juice

Lugaw (congee)
1 cup rice
6 cups water
1-inch piece fresh ginger, sliced
salt, to taste
topping: slivered ginger, fried shallots, sliced green onions, calamansi juice

• In a Dutch oven, boil rice, ginger, 1 tablespoon sea salt, and water for 2 - 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Taste and add more salt to taste.
• Serve with calamansi juice and choice of ginger, fried shallots, or green onions

Mint Chocolate Cupcakes

mint chocolate cupcakes with buttercream frosting
I have been making cupcakes recently. Cupcakes have been the "it" thing since the Magnolia Bakery cupcakes became famous. Many copycat bakeshops have sprouted not just in the USA but everywhere on the planet and I have been reading about them in several food blogs. Recently a very successful bakeshop that only sells cupcakes in Washington, D.C. was featured in the Washington Post which makes me want to open my own bakeshop, if only I can find a rich partner or financier or the courage to start a business. I have baked red velvet cupcakes before which were delicious but require a lot of work and clean-up. The latest I made was chai cupcakes which were just okay, the chai flavor was very faint and the recipe had loads of sugar. Next on my cupcake list is either chocolate or an alcohol drink inspired (margarita, zombie, etc.) but when I found online a really easy chocolate with mint cupcakes I knew right then the zombie cupcakes can wait. The mint chocolate cupcakes are a breeze to make, not excessively sweet, and have a super soft melt-in-your-mouth goodness. I iced them with my favorite buttercream frosting tinted with green food color gel. (Just in time for St. Patrick's Day celebration.) I have already devoured 3 of these delicious cupcakes, 15 more to go.:-)

Mint Chocolate Cupcakes
½ cup boiling water
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup grapeseed oil or butter
½ teaspoonvanilla extract
1 teaspoon finely minced mint leaves or ½ tsp mint extract
4 large eggs, separated
1¼ cup sugar
¾ cup flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
for garnish: small mint leaves, chopped roasted pistachio

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Line 18 cupcake tins with baking papers.
• In a heatproof glass cup, add cocoa powder to boiling water, stir until smooth. Add oil or butter, vanilla extract, and mint. Stir until mixture is glossy, set aside to cool. Stir the egg yolk with a fork until smooth, set aside.
• In a large bowl, sift together 1 C sugar, the flour, baking soda, and baking powder, set aside.
• In another bowl, beat egg whites with mixer on high for 1 minute, add 2 tablespoons of the remaining ¼ cupsugar and beat on high for 30 seconds. Slowly add the remaining sugar, beating until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes, set aside. Add the chocolate mixture and egg yolks to the flour mixture. Using a flexible rubber spatula, stir by hand until well combined, scraping bottom well. Add ½ cup of the whipped egg white and stir well to lighten the flour mixture. Gently fold the rest of egg white mixture until the batter is of uniform chocolate color. The batter will be light.
• Using a small ladle, spoon batter ¾ full. Bake for 15 minutes or until top springs back when touched. Cool in pans until ready to frost.

the softest velvety smooth chocolate cupcake

Buco, Pandan, And Sago (Tapioca Balls)

buco pandan salad with mini sago balls

Over a year ago I had buco pandan salad in a friend's house but I kept forgetting to make one at home. It's similar to the ubiquitous Filipino fruit salad made from canned fruit cocktail, canned cream, and sugar, some recipes add condensed milk which I find too cloyingly sweet. That fruit salad is a dessert that is both beloved by most and perhaps ridiculed by some Filipinos. I grew up eating them at parties, fiestas, or any get-together, and at home. The cherries were so special because there were very few pieces in a can and were divided among us when we were small. I don't know why as children we were attracted to those bright red things.:)

I can't remember the last time I made fruit salad, I normally eat just fresh fruits. Today I had a sudden craving for fruit salad but was not in the mood to drive for a can of fruits, and remembered I have both canned and frozen buco. So I finally made the buco pandan salad which I think is way much better than the canned fruit cocktail and I prefer the combination of buco and pandan flavors anytime anyway which is so much more Filipino, in my opinion. I love this dessert specially with the sago topping.

Buco Pandan Salad
5 pandan leaves, washed very well and snipped into 1 inch pieces
3½ cups water
1 agar bar, shredded
¼ cup sugar, more or less to taste
1 cup water of young coconut
meat of 1 - 2 young coconut, grated
12 ounce can Nestle cream
¼ cup sugar, more or less to taste
½ cup mini sago pearls

• Cook mini sago pearls in rapidly boiling 4 cups water, add sago pearls and let boil until transparent. Drain and transfer into a bowl of cold water; set aside.
• Blend water and pandan in a blender. Strain through a fine sieve into a medium saucepan. Add the shredded agar and let stand for 20 minutes. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally until all the agar has melted. Stir in sugar. Strain into an 8-inch square pan. Refrigerate until completely set, about 30 minutes. Cut into 1-inch squares.
• In a large bowl mix sugar and cream until sugar has melted, add the buco and buco water. Mix in the pandan gelatin squares. Chill for 2 hours before serving. Add 1 tablespoon of cooked sago on top of individual bowls.

I also made buco pandan sago drink which is also very good. To make: in a tall glass mix ¾ cup each buco and pandan water and 1- 2 tablespoons sugar until sugar has completely dissolved. Add ¼ cup cooked mini sago balls. Mix in ½ cup crushed ice.

buco pandan sago drink

Kue Kiam (Seafood Sausage)

Kue Kiam, also spelled quekiam and kekiam, is a Chinese Filipino fish and shrimp sausage with a slightly chewy texture, which I really love, btw. Kue kiam sausages are gently steamed, then sliced, dipped in beaten egg, shallow fried, and served with sweet and sour thinly sliced radish or sweet and sour chili sauce. I have never made kue kiam before but used to buy them from the store or had them at restaurants in Manila. I haven't seen them in Chinese restaurants here in the US. I made my own recipe by combining the kue kiam recipe in my cookbook and a recipe for seafood sausage I found at the Washington Post food section. I poached the sausages then fried the slices just like kue kiam. The ingredients that I omitted from the Filipino cookbook are cornstarch/flour and the pork fat which I substituted with heavy cream. The result is a lighter color and texture, but when fried becomes a teensy bit chewy like a fishball but very tender inside and sooo delicious.

Kue Kiam
8 ounces catfish fillet
8 ounces shelled medium shrimps, deveined
1 tablespoon finely chopped scallions, white parts only
1½ teaspoon sea salt
2 egg whites
½ cup heavy cream
saran wrap
1 egg, well beaten
light olive or grapeseed oil for frying

• Cut fish and shrimps into cubes. In a food processor mix the seafood, salt, and scallions. Process until mixture is smooth and sticky, scrape down sides. Add egg whites and process until mixed. Add heavy cream slowly while pulsing, do not over-process.
• Cut 3 pieces of saran wrap 8 inches long. Spoon the mixture in a freezer gallon bag and snip an inch off one corner. Form an 8-inch log on one short end of wrap. Or you can simply spoon a third of the mixture near one short end of the wrap, form into a log. Roll using the wrap as a guide, fold ends halfway through and continue rolling up to the end of wrap. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.

• In a skillet heat an inch of water to 180 degrees and poach sausages for 5 minutes on each side. Snip one end of the wrap and slip out the sausages. Slice sausages at an angle, set aside.

• In a non-stick skillet, heat 1 T of oil. Dip sliced sausages in beaten egg and fry until golden brown. Add more oil as needed.
• Serve with sweet and sour radish. To make: peel one medium daikon radish and cut into 2 inch pieces, shave using a vegetable peeler. Mix with 3 T cider vinegar, 2 T sugar, and 1 tsp salt. Chill one hour before using.

sweet and sour shaved daikon

My Sweet Loaf

I've been busy baking the last 2 weeks, the baked goods I post in my baking photo blog without the recipes, just the photos. The photo blog is for a future project with a friend and I'm not sure how long we'll keep it or how it will develop. Yesterday I made a sweet dough that I adapted from the March 2008 issue of Gourmet magazine which is also adapted from the recipe of French master baker Richard Bertinet. The dough is difficult to handle because it is very very sticky and it requires 3 risings. I followed the recipe to a T and the result is a very light and flavorful bread which is surprisingly not very sweet at all. I'm not sure though if I'll make it again because it took me 12 minutes for the dough to come together and took a total of over 5 hours from start to finish. I prefer using the machine to knead bread because it's faster and my arms don't get tired. Maybe if the time comes when I have the need to knead, feeling masochistic, or maybe mad and want to slap someone but can't, I'll prepare sweet dough using this method again.:-)
In case anybody is interested you can watch the video of Bertinet preparing the dough here.

I made one loaf using half of the dough and the other half into pockets filled with bucayo which are already almost gone. Bucayo, mint, orange..mmm


Sweet Dough With Orange And Mint
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons mint-infused whole milk*
1 packet active dry yeast
1 pound 2 ounces bread flour
½ stick unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
1 T cointreau or 1 tsp orange extract
1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt

• Stir yeast in flour in a large bowl. Rub in butter. Stir in sugar and salt. Fold in milk and eggs with a flexible plastic bowl scraper, rotating bowl, until the liquid is absorbed and a wet sticky dough forms. Scrape dough out onto an unfloured surface. Dough will be very sticky but don't be tempted to add flour. By working the dough through the process of repeatedly stretching and folding into itself, trapping air, the dough will become cohesive and supple.
• Slide your finger underneath both sides of the dough with your thumbs on top. Lift dough up (to about chest level) with your thumbs toward you, letting dough hang slightly. In a continuous motion, swing dough down, slapping bottom of dough onto the surface, then stretch dough up and back over itself in an arc to trap in air. Repeat lifting, slapping, and stretching, scraping surface with flat side of bowl scraper as needed, until dough is supple, cohesive, and starts to bounce slightly off surface without sticking, about 8 minutes to 12 minutes.
• Transfer dough into a lightly floured surface. Form into a ball by folding each edge, in turn, into a center of dough and pressing down well with your thumb, rotating ball as you go. Turn ball over and transfer to a lightly floured bowl, then cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled, about 1 hour.Stir zest and liqueur together. Gently release dough from bowl with scraper onto a lightly floured surface, then flatten slightly and spread orange mixture. Fold dough in half several times, then work, slapping and stretching as described above until zest mixture is incorporated. Form into a ball and transfer into a lightly floured bowl, cover with kitchen towel. Let rise again in a draft-free place at warm room temperature for 1 hour.
• Gently release dough from bowl with scraper onto a lightly floured surface, do not punch down. Divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten with heel of your hand into a rectangle, 8 x 6 inches. Fold a long edge into center and press seam down with heel of your hand. Fold opposite edge over to meet in center, press seam down with heel of your hand. Fold in half along seam, pressing edges to seal. Repeat with the other ball. Put, seam down, on a lightly buttered large baking sheet. Brush tops of loaves with egg and let stand a few minutes until egg feels dry. Cover with kitchen towel and let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until almost double and springy, about 1½ hours.
• Preheat oven to 425°F. Brush tops of loaves again with egg. Holding a pair of scissors at a 45 degree angle, make snips along top in a line down center of each loaf. Transfer to oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 400 degrees. Bake until dark golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.

*To make mint-infused milk, bring 1 C plus 2 T whole milk and 1 bunch mint to a simmer in a saucepan, then remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour. Strain through a sieve and return to saucepan, discard mint. Reheat to 130 degrees before using.

with mint butter

Almond BucaJoy Is Lasang Pinoy

bucayo squares, almond bucajoy, bucayo

I have always wanted to make dark chocolate coated Almond Joy candies at home and when I learned that the current Lasang Pinoy theme is coconut I immediately thought now is the perfect time to make them. The event is being hosted by Kai of bucaio and the name gave me the idea of filling the candies with bucayo instead of plain white coconuts. The candies are so delicious, I can eat them all day. I kept popping one in my mouth while photographing them. And for an interesting added flavor I toasted the shredded coconut in a 400 degree oven until it has turned dark brown and burnt at the top. This is called burnt coconut which I read about in Amy Besa's cookbook Memories of Philippine Kitchens. She writes "one of the most exciting discoveries of Filipino cooking techniques happened in Tiaong, Quezon" when she visited the potter/artist UGO BIGYAN who showed her how to prepare burnt coconut. He returns the freshly grated coconut back into the shell/husk and places a live coal on top to burn the coconut. The milk extracted from the burnt coconut gives a smoky barbecue flavor to any dish, dessert, or dipping sauce. I might try that in the summer and will make his suggestion of adding a little grated green mango and chiles before extracting the milk for a slightly tart, smoky flavor with a little bit of spice.
I made a second recipe of bucayo with plain grated coconut which is so good as pan de sal filling or to spread on toasts. Although the plain and burnt coconut bucayos are equally delicious, the burnt coconut is simply superb when paired with dark chocolate, they complement each other very well.

Almond BucaJoy

2 cups grated fresh coconut
2 cups packed dark brown sugar or 1 pair panocha
juice/water of 1 buco (young coconut), reserve 1 tablespoon
meat of 1 buco, cut into 1-inch strings
2 tablespoons cornstarch
toasted whole almonds
dark chocolate chips

• Put the sugar and buco water in a medium non-stick sauce pan and boil on medium-high heat, uncovered, until sugar has dissolved and the mixture has thickened, about 20 minutes. Add the grated coconut and cook for 20 minutes. Mix the cornstarch with the reserved buco water and stir in thoroughly. Add the buco meat, stir cook until coconuts are completely coated with syrup. Continue to cook while stirring until very thick, about 10 -15 minutes.
• Turn the heat off, transfer mixture into a shallow container and let cool for 10 minutes. Line an 8-inch square pan with plastic film. Transfer bucayo into the pan. Cover with another piece of film, press the mixture to compact evenly. Freeze for 1 hour. Remove from freezer and cut into 1-inch squares. Put one almond on top of each square, press slightly. Dip in tempered chocolate and let set on the counter.

bucayo squares for dessert or for snacking

Check out these coconut dishes and desserts from my archives:
Bicol Express
Laing
Maryland/Virginia Blue Crab
Coconut Leche Flan With Caramelized Macapuno
Guinatan Halo halo

5 Random Facts - A Meme

I got tagged by Dhanggit for a 5 random facts about me meme. It took me longer to come up with 5 things since I just did the 7 weird things less than a month ago.

1. Believe it or not, I hated HomeEc in High School specially cooking and sewing. I did not help my Mom nor did I show any interest in cooking while growing up. I volunteered to do household chores, shopping at the market, etc. but begged not to help in the kitchen. In college I learned to fry stuff, cook rice and other food because I had to. Most of the food I know how to cook now I learned mostly from cookbooks, magazines, and some from both my mother and mother-in-law. For someone who was averse to cooking for more than half of her life, I never thought I would enjoy cooking and baking as much as I do now.
2. I don't have a single picture of myself as a baby. My mother probably destroyed them or did not allow anyone to photograph me. And I know why, when I was about a month old my maternal grandmother declared that I was the ugliest baby ever. When I was in HS my Inana (grandma in Sariaya, Quezon) described to me what I looked like at 1 or 2 months old: bald, neckless, fat lips, cheeks drooping and almost resting on my chest similar to, say, a bulldog, and to add to the unprettiness my Mom dressed me in bright red clothes which to my grandma was a no-no and I totally agreed with her. She was not being mean, she was just trying to emphasize her amazement that I was transformed from being an ugly duckling or bulldog into a movie star beaut, just kidding about the movie star, heheh.
3. I went to sing on TV once in HS in a noon-time variety show: sing, dance, skit, games, etc. Every day a singing group from various High Schools in the Philippines was invited to perform and they were cheered on by 2 busfuls of their classmates. I remember we were dressed like sailors, white blouse and skirt trimmed with navy blue collar. Don't ask me what year, it was many many many moons ago.
4. To continue being baduy, which roughly translates to unfashionable or for the masses, I once had a blind date with that comedian Jimmy Santos. I was living in Cebu and he was a student and player for the Jose Rizal College basketball team. My best friend at the time was dating another player, Norbie Rivera. When their team came to Cebu for college tournament games Norbie arranged the blind date. To my dismay the guy was too tall, thin, extremely awkward, very shy, and mumbled...all the time. My friend and I were annoyed with her boyfriend for playing a joke on me. When he became a TV personality/comedian after his pro basketball stint I couldn't believe he was the same ungainly guy my friend and I endlessly made fun of as soon as we got home. BTW, he was and still is not qualified as a hottie, faaar from it.:D
   
5. I don't think reading about me being a neat *and control* freak will be interesting so I decided to make a treat for you instead: Calamansi and kumquat chocolate filled turon (fried lumpia). Enjoy!

Calamansi And Kumquat Chocolate Turon
2 calamansi
3 kumquats
8 ounces dark or milk chocolate, finely chopped
½ C heavy cream
1/8 tsp salt
1 egg yolk
1 T cointreau, optional
1 T soft butter
Filipino lumpia wrapper (do not substitute with the Chinese egg roll wrapper)
grapeseed or canola oil for frying

1. Place chocolate in a food processor or blender.
2. Remove seeds from calamansi and kumquats and reserve juices. Slice the rinds.
   
3. In a small sauce pan, mix cream, juices, rinds, and salt. Heat mixture until bubbling at the sides.
4. Pour into the chocolate in blender and leave for 2 minutes. Blend on medium until smooth and glossy. Add egg yolk and liquor, if using, until incorporated. Blend in soft butter.
5. Line an 8 x 4 inch loaf pan with plastic film. Pour chocolate mixture and let cool.
6. When cooled put in freezer for 20 minutes. Remove from freezer, remove plastic film and cut crosswise in half. Slice into 36 pieces, about 2 x ½ inches.
7. Wrap in small pieces of lumpia wrapper and freeze for 10 minutes.
8. Heat oil and fry until golden brown. Serve immediately.
   

I'm passing this meme over to marvin, g_mirage, caninecologne, Ruy or Liv, and raissa. Thanks dhanggit for making me reminisce once again.

Bicol Express

I wrote the draft for this dish/post the second week of January and forgot about it. I have several drafts that I fail to go back to for posting. I recently cleared all my posts in draft but kept this one so I'm posting it rather late.

Bicol Express is one of the simplest but yummy Filipino dishes you could make. The dish, named after the train that goes to the province of Bicol where they like their dishes super spicy, was invented by the owner of The Grove restaurant in the Philippines. I had visited their Makati branch countless of times and loved their buffet lunch (see photo below), and Bicol Express is one of my favorites along with guinataang kuhol (snails in coconut cream ). The chiles usually used in this recipe are the long thin light green medium hot ones. I used a combination of green, orange, and yellow and included 1 red for color. I made it with lots of sauce, almost soupy which is so good poured, not drizzled, over steamed rice. I also prefer Bicol Express with very little pork, you can add more if you want it meaty.

Bicol Express
¼ pound pork shoulder, sliced thin and julienned
1 tablespoon grapeseed or light olive oil
1 tablespoon finely minced garlic
1 tablespoon finely minced shallot
2 tablespoons shrimp bagoong
3 cups sliced or julienned green long chiles
3 cups coconut milk
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil, add and stir fry pork for 5 minutes. Add garlic and onion and saute for 2 minutes. Add the shrimp paste and coconut milk, cook for 1 minute before adding the chiles. Taste and add salt if needed. Turn heat down to medium low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. If you want the dish drier, simmer until sauce is very thick and the oil separates from the cream. Serve immediately with steamed rice.

The photo below from one of my Filipino cookbooks is a small portion of The Grove restaurant's buffet table array. This was taken most probably in 1976, I'm not sure if the retaurant still exists and if it is I can't be sure if it still offers this lunch buffet.

Food and iPod

a Filipino breakfast of chicken tocino, garlic fried rice and fried egg

My regular readers may have noticed that I have been cooking food that I have seen in movies or songs I recently played from my iPod list. I have written about The Beatles' Savoy Truffle and Cibo Matto's Le Pain Perdu and very recently Puerco Pibil and Crepes. Some bloggers include the songs they were listening to while preparing the food for their posts which gave me the idea of associating my song list with food. The songs should not necessarily be about food but have the potential to be associated with food. My daughter suggested that I set my iPod to shuffle for the surprise aspect, then choose one of the songs out of the first 5 or 10 songs and prepare a dish for that song. To my utter surprise the 5 songs have food or at least subjects that can easily be related to food.

1. Umaga (morning), Susie Ibarra - breakfast
2. Big Eater, The Bad Plus - a dinner of T-bone steak, mashed or baked potato, Elaine's The Big Salad, and a slice of apple pie a la mode fit for a king, i.e. David King of TBP
3. Criss Cross, Thelonius Monk - hot cross buns or chocolate pretzels
4. Beef Jerky, Cibo Matto - beef jerky
5. Midnight, Jimi Hendrix - a light snack or a nightcap

Choosing which song was sooo easy, of course it's Umaga by Susie Ibarra, a Filipino-American avant/free jazz drummer and percussionist. The song is from The Susie Ibarra Trio album FOLKLORIKO which is a tribute to Filipino migrant workers. To hear samples of her songs click on the album title. On this CD she plays the kulintang in one song and in the second part of the CD titled Lakbay (journey) the drums and percussions accompanied by piano and violin.

Umaga (morning) of course starts with a substantial breakfast and for Filipino workers it means fried rice and meat or fried dried fish such as danggit from the Visayas. I myself did not eat fried rice for breakfast while growing up, we ate pandesal and sliced bread and up to the present only eat it on weekends, sort of a special treat when we are more relaxed and do not have to hurry for school or work. I decided to make chicken tocino because I wanted to try the homemade anise liqueur I recently made and because someone asked for the recipe.

Chicken Tocino
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, sliced thin
¼ teaspoons pink salt (Instacure #1)
1 tablespoon sea salt
2 - 4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoon anise liqueur or red wine
1 tanlespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon ground white pepperMix seasoning ingredients. Rub chicken pieces well with the mixture. Place in a ziploc gallon freezer bag and refrigerate for 3 days.

• To cook: in a non-stick skillet arrange a few pieces of the cured meat with 2 tablespoons each of water and vegetable oil. Turn heat on to medium low, cover, and cook until all the liquid has evaporated. Uncover and shallow fry until browned on both sides. Serve with garlic fried rice, fried eggs, diced tomatoes, and vinegar dipping sauce. Freshly brewed Barako coffee is optional.

Fried rice: In a non-stick wok, heat 2 tablespoons light olive oil, add 2 cups warm cooked rice, sprinkle with 1 - 2 teaspoons crumbled fried sliced garlic (available from Filipino/Asian stores), and 2 teaspoons sea salt. Stir fry for 2 minutes or until rice is heated through. You may also use fresh garlic. Fry it first in the oil until golden brown before adding rice. I prefer using the fried garlic from the Philippines for the convenience and stronger garlic flavor.

I think this would be an interesting food meme exercise. Go ahead and try it for yourself, food and music association will occupy your time and mind instead of agonizing on whether your favorite candidate will lose to the opposition.:D

Across The Universe

Across The Universe A++

There are very few movies I've seen that stay with me hours after I've watched it, ACROSS THE UNIVERSE is one of them. I was blown away by the awesome, psychedelic, trippy visuals and of course its music. I am a die hard Beatles fan, own almost all of their CDs and their movies Help, A Hard Day's Night, and Yellow Submarine. I have seen Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band movie a gazzilion times ignoring the fact that some of the songs are performed by a group I never ever listen to (The Bee Gees).
Across The Universe, a rock musical drama is the story of a young man from Liverpool, Jude who comes to the United States to find his American father. The movie is set in the 1960s during the growing protests to the Vietnam war featuring the songs of The Beatles sung by the actors. They are all good with the exception of Evan Rachel Wood who is just okay, not bad but not exceptional. I love the different arrangements/interpretations of the songs and how they are used according to the scene, most especially Stawberry Fields Forever which will never be the same the next time I listen to it. 9 minutes into the movie a cheerleader, Prudence played by T.V. Carpio, more on her later, sings a thoughtful I Wanna Hold Your Hand as she looks with longing at the love she would never have, the song has a completely different meaning. The characters in the movie are all named after TB's songs: Jude, Lucy, Max, Sadie, Jo Jo, Prudence. My favorite characters are Sadie, the up and coming rock star, and her love interest JoJo. There are cameos by Joe Cocker (Come Together), Bono (I Am The Walrus), multiple Salma Hayeks, and Eddie Izzard as Mr. Kite. I highly recommend this movie whether you are a Beatles fan or not.

T.V. Carpio as I have guessed is of Filipino descent. She is the daughter of the half-Filipino Hong Kong singer Teresa Carpio who became famous in Asia in the 1970s. I honestly can't remember what Teresa Carpio looks like or what she sounds like. T.V. Carpio as Prudence appears only 3 or 4 times times, she also sings in the beautiful "Because" scene with the other characters and roller skates in Mr. Kites bigtop show. She also has a very good voice, IMHO.

Robert Rodriguez's Puerco Pibil

I make this super delicious dish at least twice a year since I first saw it featured in Robert Rodriguez's 2003 movie ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO with Antonio Banderas as El Mariachi, Salma Hayek, and Johnny Depp. Johnny Depp's character loves this dish, orders it all the time. He deems the pork dish is so good that he has to shoot the cook, and after eating he went to the kitchen and shot the cook. Yeah, it's crazy, but it's Johnny Depp, how can I not like the movie, which is really really good, IMHO. Robert shows how to prepare his recipe in one of the extra features in the DVD, watch it at the bottom of the post.

Puerco Pibil is very versatile. You can have it with plain white rice, or shredded in tortillas with some salsa and avocado, or as taco filling. Good to have while watching Eli kick Tom's butt this coming Sunday, just kidding. I'm not a sports fan and I don't care who wins the super bowl.

Robert Rodriguez's Puerco Pibil
5 pounds pork butt, cut into 2 inch cubes
banana leaves
½ cup orange juice
½ cup vinegar
2 tablespoons salt
juice of 5 lemons
8 cloves garlic
2 habanero peppers, chopped
1 tablespoon tequila
annatto paste: in a coffee grinder finely grind 5 T annatto seeds, 2 tsp cumin, 1 T black peppercorns, 8 pieces allspice, and ½ tsp cloves

• In a blender, blend annatto paste and the rest of the ingredients except banana leaves and pork. In a large bowl mix pork and annatto mixture until pork is evenly coated. Line a deep roasting pan with banana leaves, put the pork mixture and cover with another layer of banana leaves. Cover tightly with tin foil and bake in a 325° F oven for 4 hours.

Here is the video of Robert Rodriguez making Puerco Pibil

How To Cook Adobong Muh-Knock

A friend emailed me this video of a white guy cooking chicken adobo. I wonder if he had a script or he really knows how to speak Tagalog. It's fun to hear a white guy say "sangkuchahin". Adobong muhknock - ang suhrap suhrap. Enjoy!

Pata Tim

 pata tim and steamed baby bokchoy

Pata (pork hocks) Tim and Pato (duck) Tim are Filipino dishes that are similar in taste but cooked in different ways. Pata Tim is stewed in a pot and Pato Tim is steamed. I have never eaten both outside of the Philippines, not in Hong Kong and not here in the US. Filipinos know these are Chinese in origin but from which region is not clear. Some say it's from Guangzhou (Canton), others from Fujian (Fukien). I consulted my cookbook CHINESE REGIONAL COOKING by Deh-Ta Hsiung and the closest and the only entry is from Sichuan, a duck dish called SOY BRAISED DUCK which is first deep fried then steamed for over 2 hours. The ingredients and cooking method are very very similar to Pato Tim. The cooked duck is then served on a bed of blanched seasonal greens much like the Tims I remember eating back in Manila. The following recipe which is my entry to Lasang Pinoy 23: Crock Pot Cooking has all the seasonings from this cookbook. I stewed the pork hocks until the meat is coming off from the bones. Dining on a plateful of the fatty meaty gelatinous pork, baby bokchoy, and steamed rice was like being transported back home. Delicious!

Pata Tim
2 ½ pounds pork hocks
2 T chopped scallions
1 T chopped ginger
¼ C hoi sin sauce
¼ C soy sauce
¼ C dark brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1 C rice wine or sherry
1 C water plus more if needed
baby bokchoy, well cleaned and dried

1. Place all ingredients except bokchoy in a pot and bring to a boil, skim off top.
2. Turn heat to very low, cover and simmer for 3 - 4 hours or until meat is very tender. Once in a while check and add water or sherry if needed. There should be about a cup and half of sauce.
   
3. Steam bokchoy for 3 minutes, set aside, keep warm.
4. Turn heat off and transfer cooked meat into a serving platter.
5. Remove bones and discard. Arrange cooked bokchoy around the meat. Pour the sauce all over the meat.
   
6. Serve with steamed rice.

7 Things Weird About Me

This is a 'weird' meme that I got from Dhanggit. I was not sure if there are enough weird things about me because I view myself as rather blah and dorkish. I have an obsessive personality, yes, but that's about it. Examining myself closely I found out I am kinda weird after all, or maybe not.

1. I have a medicine phobia, particularly for aches and pains and for the last 21 years have not taken any. I seldom get headaches but when I do I refuse to take them and just wait for bedtime to sleep it off. The mild headache usually disappears by the next morning.
2. I like quirky, foreign language, and slasher movies specially the Japanese ones; the bloodier, the better. I can't stand sappy love stories and girlie flicks.
   
3. I love doing assorted crossword puzzles, play Nintendo DS (favorites: Animal Crossing, Phoenix Wright Series) and Wii games. This may be an indication that I'm approaching my second childhood, not actually weird, but because of my age it may be weird.:)
4. I am addicted to two things: reading and watching movies. I don't know if this is considered weird but I read an average of 3 books and watch 3 movies on DVD per week. The books I read are mostly fantasies, fantastical, mysteries with real life people in it, already dead or still alive, British mysteries, paranormal. I particularly dislike self-help books and romance novels.
   
5. I have an obsessive compulsive personality with regard to washing hands most specially when cooking. A Filipino couple who came for dinner observed that I constantly wash my hands in between chopping/preparing the ingredients, they actually counted the times I washed my hands. I thought this is the norm but they told me it is not.
6. My clothes have the same color/shade (brown skirt/pants and off white, blue, light pink, or purplish tops for winter) and linen material with similar color combination during summer. When I was still working at the Asian Development Bank (25 years ago) a co-worker commented and asked why I wear linen everyday.
   
7. I have an aversion to diamonds. The reason is a long story and I will not bore you with the details. Let's just say I don't want to look like a Christmas tree, heheh. The few tiny ones I own have been buried in a drawer for the past 18 years. Occasionally I would wear my mikimoto choker at weddings and anniversaries but for everyday I use the jewelry (natural stones, leather, crystals, rice pearls, etc.) that I make myself.

I'm also not tagging anyone but feel free to examine yourself and do this weird meme. You might surprise yourself.

Crêpes

crêpe with sweetened cream, sliced bananas, and chocolate sauce

2 weeks ago I watched the Japanese movie Linda Linda Linda about a High School all-girls rock or J-pop band. The movie is about a tradition in Japanese schools' fall or holly festival where they have a number of food and souvenir booths and the highlight is the performance of several rock bands towards the end of the festival. The drummer of the group is working in a booth that sells crêpes, the most popular are the banana with chocolate sauce on a bed of sweetened whipped cream. It made me crave for the banana chocolate combo which I used to have in Hong Kong in one of the Japanese coffee shops where the coffee machines look like they belong in a laboratory, see photo below. Those machines make really good coffee, btw. That was nearly 20 years ago when I developed a taste for anything Japanese. Our apartment was a few minutes from the Causeway Bay area where there were (I'm not sure if they are still there) 4 Japanese department stores: Sogo, Matsuzakaya, Mitsukoshi, and Daimaru, and several coffee shops. Daimaru was the one I went to regularly because of their bake shop which is located at the entryway on the ground floor. When I was done with the grocery and household shopping (my first santuko knife which I still use, a pair of leather gloves which I still use, and a 3-fold umbrella that, you guessed it, I still use after almost 20 years!), I stopped by the bakeshop watching and waiting for the still warm milk loaves being sliced by a machine and for the buns (kashi-pan) filled with chocolate or vanilla cream and sweet azuki bean paste. In my honest opinion the Japanese bakeries make the creamiest, softest, most delicious breads and buns. I miss those breads, but at least I had my fill of choco-banana crêpes today. Mmmmm.

Photo: Peter DaSilva for The New York Times

Crêpes
7/8 cup flour
¼ cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons cognac
2 tablespoons melted butter
1½ cups milk

• Sift flour, sugar, and salt into a bowl. Add eggs, one at a time and mix until free of lumps. Mix in lemon zest, cognac, and melted butter. Slowly add milk and mix until batter is consistency of thin cream. Let it stand an hour or two before making crêpes. Heat a crêpe pan or a 10-inch non-stick skillet and rub with a little butter. Pour some batter on the pan and tilting about to let it run over the bottom in a fairly thin layer. When lightly browned at the bottom, turn carefully and brown on the other side. As each crêpe is cooked, remove to a hot platter and keep warm. Re-butter pan as needed.

Filling suggestions:
- sweetened whipped heavy cream, sliced bananas, chocolate sauce
- sweetened cream (or pastry cream), sliced strawberries and Nutella

Bulalo (Beef Shank In Onion Broth)

bulalo in onion broth with cabbage, corn, and baby bokchoy

I went out late this morning to buy a few staples from the store, I was there for less than half an hour and when I came out it was snowing heavily. I knew it was going to snow later in the day but did not expect it to fall before 12 noon and THIS heavy. The meteorologists or weather people are sometimes, if not always off the mark in their forecast. I hurried home but can't really drive fast because the roads are already very very slippery and the falling thick snow is diminishing my visibility. I love snow, it's beautiful to look at and it's fun playing with it but not when you are driving, and when it's been plowed to the curb they become muddy and yucky.

Anyway, as I was driving (very slowly like a little old lady that I am) I was already dreaming of the bulalo soup I was going to have for lunch. I had this dish just once in a restaurant, about 20 years ago or so, have never cooked, seen, or ate it since, can't explain why. My mother also never cooked it because I can't remember eating it at home growing up. Maybe my father didn't like it, I should ask her one of these days.

Making this dish was brought on by a Filipino instant noodle soup with bulalo flavoring that I had recently. The instant soup is flavorful and has the bulalo taste but the chewy fake meat thingies, which I think are vegemeat bits, floating on the soup are quite disgusting. So I bought beef shanks and made my very first Bulalo In Onion Broth, the recipe adapted from my cookbook FLAVORS OF THE PHILIPPINES by Glenda Rosales-Barretto of Via Mare restaurants. I love this dish which is almost a complete meal in itself with meat, vegetables, and carbs. But of course I ate it with steamed rice and patis with calamansi dipping sauce. I am so full I think I'll take a nap.:D

Bulalo
3 pounds beef shank, bone in, pre-cut with marrow
½ pound onions, quartered
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
2 tablespoon sea salt, or to taste
4 pieces corn on the cob, cut into 4 - 5 pieces
½ pound baby bokchoy, well cleaned
½ head cabbage, cut into chunks

• Place the beef shank, onions, peppercorns, and salt in a large pot. Add enough water to cover. Bring to the boil, skim off top, then reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 5 hours. Add the corn and cook for 10 minutes, then add the cabbage and continue to cook for a further 3 minutes. Add the bokchoy and cook for another 3 minutes. Transfer to a large dish and serve with a mixture of fish extract and calamansi juice.

A rather blurry photo I took this morning from inside the car

Mulligatawny Soup

mulligatawny soup with buttered pumpernickel toast, yum yum

Our area had an unseasonably warm temperature which went as high as 65 degrees. Winter is back after a 2-week vacation and I'm glad I can finally make soups. Winter in my house means oceans of soup for dinner. First in my soup repertoire is mulligatawny. I haven't made this soup with a funny name in a while. It is supposed to be Indian in origin, it has curry powder as flavoring so I believe it is. The recipe I always use is from Betty Crocker cookbook because it is the simplest and I like simple. Other recipes I found online have lentils, rice, heavy cream, or coconut milk which in my opinion will make the soup heavy. Some puree the soup which makes it look like baby food and unappetizing. I don't really care if my soup is not authentic, I love it and with a slice or two of buttered pumpernickel toast it makes a delicious satisfying dinner.

Mulligatawny Soup
2 pounds skinless chicken breasts with bones, cut up
4 cups water
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 teaspoon lemon or tamarind juice
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground mace
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon light olive oil or grapeseed oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 large apple, cored and coarsely chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, diced

• Heat chicken, water, salt, curry powder, lemon juice, cloves, and mace to boiling in a Dutch oven, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove chicken from broth, leave until cool enough to handle.
• Remove chicken from bones and cut into bite-size pieces, set aside. Skim fat from broth and add water, if necessary to measure 4 cups.
• In a skillet, heat butter and oil over medium heat and cook onions until soft, remove from heat. Stir in flour, gradually stir in some broth. Add the flour mixture into the Dutch oven and mix well. Add the chicken pieces, tomatoes, apple, carrot, and green pepper. Heat to boiling, reduce heat. Cover and simmer until carrot is tender, about 10 minutes.

Ghosts, Ghouls, Zombies, And A Succubus

What a way to start the new year: a book and a movie with ghosts, ghouls, zombies and a she-demon.

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW by Mike Carey A
Mike Carey is the creator of the character Constantine in his graphic novel Hellblazer which was made into a movie with Keanu Reeves as Constantine. The Devil You Know is his first novel published in 2006. The hero, Felix Cantor, a semi-retired freelance exorcist, after a botched job exorcising a demon from his best buddy, is working as a magician in birthday parties to pay his bills. That was until the day he was asked to banish a female ghost in the Bonnington Archive. He could not resist accepting it because he needs the money and gets curious when the ghost would not show herself to him. He wants to know who the ghost was and why she is haunting the archive. The story becomes a murder mystery with Eastern European mafia in the middle of it. Our hero employs a Hawaiian-shirt clad computer expert zombie, gets help from his Catholic Wiccan landlady, falls in love (lust, actually) with a succubus named Juliet (who in the movie version should be played by Angelina Jolie), and almost gets killed by the mafia. Very entertaining, excellent story and writing style. Highly recommended. I can't wait to read the sequel VICIOUS CIRCLE.

RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION B
Milla with machetes in both hands fighting superzombies! Not an intellectual film, just entertaining. I liked it!

3 Pizzas

duck confit and roasted cherry tomatoes

I don't own and have never read any of Donna Hay's books but have been enjoying reading the HHDD events in several food blogs. It's the perfect time to check out her books and join because I love making and eating pizzas, both savory and sweet, and because Joey of 80 breakfasts is hosting this HHDD #17 edition.

Pizza dough from Modern Classics I by Donna Hay
1 teaspoon yeast
pinch sugar
2/3 cup warm water
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon olive oil

• Place the yeast, sugar, and water in a bowl. Set aside until bubbles form. Add the flour, salt and oil and mix to form a smooth dough. Knead for 10 minutes or until smooth. Place in a clean, oiled bowl, cover and allow to stand in a warm place until it has doubled in size, about 20 minutes (mine took 40). Makes one pizza dough.

This dough is very small and should be done by hand. I can't remember the last time I kneaded by hand, I normally use either the food processor or stand mixer and it was nice to handle, knead and slap the dough on the counter for a change, good stress reliever.:)

I halved the dough and halved the other half, 3 doughs in all. The half dough I formed into a 12-inch round and topped with duck confit and roasted cherry tomatoes which is my entry to the HHDD #17, and the quarter doughs I made into two 7-inch dessert pizzas, one I topped with PB & J which I really really love, and the other with cream cheese and sliced apricots.

Duck Confit and Roasted Cherry Tomatoes Pizza
half a pizza dough
2 duck legs confit, sliced thin and cut into 1 inch pieces (duck confit recipe below)
fresh mozzarella balls marinated in olive oil, Italian parsley, and spices
cherry tomatoes, halved and roasted in olive oil, garlic and salt
1 tablespoon crumbled goat cheese, optional
Place pan or stone on the lowest rack in the oven. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Form the dough into a 12 inch round. Transfer to a piece of parchment. Arrange mozzarella balls with some olive oil, herb, and spices evenly on the dough. Add the roasted tomatoes, duck pieces, and goat cheese if using. Slide the pizza onto the stone or pan and bake for 20 minutes or until edges are medium brown.

PB & J Dessert Pizza

1 quarter pizza dough
about ¼ cup grape jelly mixed with 1 tsp cornstarch
2 tablespoons reduced sugar creamy peanut butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped peanut brittle

• Form the dough into a 7-inch round. Prick all over with a fork. Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 8 minutes. Remove from oven and spread with the grape jelly leaving ½ inch off the edges. Place the peanut butter in a small freezer bag and snip off one corner. Starting from the center, pipe a thin spiral strip of peanut butter on top of the jelly up to near the edges. Return the pizza in the oven and continue baking for 10 -12 more minutes. Let cool until set. Sprinkle the chopped peanut brittle all over.

Apricot And Cream Cheese Dessert Pizza

1 quarter pizza dough
half a can apricots in syrup, well drained and sliced
3 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature and mixed with 1 T sugar
1 tablespoon raw coarse sugar
Form the dough into a 7-inch round. Prick all over with a fork and bake for 8 minutes in a preheated 425 degree oven. Remove from oven. Spread the cream cheese on the baked dough, leaving ½ inch off the edges. Arrange the sliced apricots on top of the cream cheese. Return the pizza in the oven and continue baking for 10 - 12 more minutes.
Sprinkle raw sugar all over.

Duck Confit

¼ cup kosher salt
½ tablespoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon white peppercorns
1 bay leaves
6 whole duck legs (leg and thigh)
8 garlic cloves, peeled
21 ounces rendered duck fat (may substitute half with olive oil)
½ cup water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• Finely grind first 4 ingredients. Rub salt mixture all over duck legs. Layer legs and garlic in a large freezer bag. Refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
• Thoroughly rinse legs and discard garlic, pat dry. Place duck legs in a deep roasting pan.
• In a large saucepan, heat the duck fat and pour into the roasting pan, the duck should be covered completely with fat. Roast for 4 - 5 hours. Let cool slightly. Refrigerate overnight.
• Before using duck confit, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove duck from fat and scrape some fat into a skillet, add the vegetable oil. Heat over high heat and fry duck, skin side down, for 1 minute. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Roast until skin is crisp, about 15 minutes.

Kumquats And Star Anise Rum

Kumquats, one of my favorite citrus fruits, are now in season. I candied some last year and paired them with gingerbread cake. This time I used them to make flavored rum which can be enjoyed right after preparing. I like the combination of the slight citrus, anise, and vanilla flavors.

Kumquats And Star Anise Rum
1 cup water
2¼ cups sugar
1 pint kumquats, well scrubbed and well pricked with a fork
½ vanilla bean, cut in half and scraped
4 star anise pods
750 ml white rum
375 ml dark rum

• In a medium saucepan, boil the water, sugar, vanilla bean, and kumquats. Reduce heat to low and simmer until liquid is reduced by half. Add anise and leave to cool to room temperature. When completely cool, transfer to a clean glass gallon measuring cup and mix in the rum. Divide the kumquats and spices and put in two 750 ml bottles. Fill the bottles with the rum mixture. Enjoy! I really love the star anise which is used to flavor Pernod and anisette wine. I am making star anise liqueur as my next alcohol project.:)

BTW, kumquats and calamansi taste almost identical with a slight difference, the kumquat rind is sweet. I eat cold kumquats like candies. Rub them between your palms to soften and to release the oil, then pop them in your mouth. It's sweet and tart and absolutely wonderful.

New Year's Eve 2008 Recipes

A few recipes from our New Year's Eve 2008 dinner menu.
Deep Fried Adobado Cornish Hens

2 Cornish hens, about 1 pound each

½ cup white or coconut vinegar
½ cup dry sherry
6 cloves garlic, smashed
1 small onion, thinly sliced
¼ teaspoon whole black peppercorns, cracked
1½ tablespoons sea salt
2 bay leaves, crumbled
¼ cups extra virgin olive oil
peanut or light olive oil for deep frying

1. Rinse and pat dry the hens, set aside.
2. In a gallon freezer bag, combine all the ingredients except hens and oil for frying. Mix until salt is completely dissolved.
3. Put the hens in the bag making sure they are equally coated with the marinade, refrigerate for 24 hours, turning once.
4. The next day, remove hens from marinade, pat dry. Tie legs with kitchen twine.
5. In a deep pot, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add the hens, cover the pot, and fry for 30 minutes, turning once. Increase the heat to medium-high and fry until hens are golden brown.

Embutido

2 lbs lean ground pork, or combination pork and chicken
1 Spanish chorizo, finely minced
1 cup Vienna sausage, finely minced
2 slices white bread, finely cubed and mixed with 1 C milk
½ cup sweet pickle relish
½ C finely minced raisins or sultanas
1 cup grated aged edam or aged cheddar cheese
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons sea salt or to taste

1. Mix all ingredients gently in a large bowl. Fry a small portion, taste, and adjust salt seasoning.
2. Divide meat mixture into 3 portions.
3. Spoon each portion on a piece of non-stick aluminum foil and form into a 2½-inch thick log. Close the foil tightly making sure there is enough foil all around. Twist ends.
4. Bake in a 350 degree oven or steam for 1 hour.
5. Let cool completely, cut into ½ inch thick slices, fry in lightly oiled non-stick skillet until brown.

Pão De Queijo (Brazilian Cheese Puffs)
These rolls are so delicious and quite addicting. I can't stop eating them!

500 gms tapioca flour (manioc)
250 ml skim milk
125 ml vegetable oil
12 gms sea or kosher salt
2 large eggs
50 ml skim milk
350 grams cheese, finely grated

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Put the flour in a stand mixer with paddle attachment.
3. In a small pan, boil the 250 ml milk, oil, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, drizzle the milk mixture slowly into the flour and stir until all the flour is moistened.
4. Add the eggs and mix well. Mix in the 50 ml milk, beat well. Stir in the cheese, making sure it is well distributed.
5. With oiled hands, form into walnut-size balls and place on a cookie sheet 1 inch apart.
6. Bake for 10 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees and bake for another 15 minutes or until light brown.

Note: This is half a recipe I got online and I did not bother to convert from grams to U.S. cups. I used my kitchen scale to be able to make the recipe as accurate as possible. Conversion table is here.

Ube Kalamay With Latik

8 oz frozen grated ube, thawed
8 oz glutinous rice flour
1 large can coconut milk
2 cups sugar
banana leaves
1 can coconut milk for latik

1. Line a 9-inch cake pan with wilted banana leaves, set aside.
2. In a medium non-stick saucepan over medium-high heat, mix ube, glutinous rice flour, coconut milk, and sugar.Bring to a boil , lower heat to medium, cook, stirring constantly to prevent the bottom from burning until the mixture becomes sticky, about 15 minutes.
3. Spoon mixture into the prepared pan and bake in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes. Serve with latik.
4. To make latik, cook 1 can coconut milk over low heat in a non-stick skillet.
5. Let the milk simmer for around 30 minutes until very thick. Increase the heat to medium and continue cooking, turning the coconut as it gets brown. Cook until slightly dark brown and crumbly.