Chantilly Cake

I have never heard of Chantilly cake which I read about recently. The most popular apparently is the one that Whole Foods Market bakes and sells. Well, I hardly go to that store anymore. I used to more than 20 years ago when it opened in Reston, VA.

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Portuguese Style Spicy Sardines

I can't explain why I suddenly have an appetite for spicy Portuguese sardines. I seldom ate them. Recently, I found out I really really like them on toasted crusty bread and also with steamed rice. Suddenly, the stores don't sell the Nuri Portuguese brand anymore. Any other brand of spicy sardines is not good enough, not even the ones made in the Philippines. The Portuguese Nuri brand is available from Amazon but I find the cost too steep at $5.00 to $6.00 per tin. That's $1.00 for each tiny baby sardine! I don't know about you but I'm not willing to pay that much for tinned sardines.

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Mango Chiffon Layer Cake

 

One of the food favorites I sorely miss living here in the USA is the Philippine mangoes. The hybrid mangoes from Mexico are not as good both in flavor and texture but I buy them as substitute because I have no other choice. In the Philippines, mangoes are used extensively  in cakes and other desserts and what I can never find where I live is the mango chiffon layer cake. I searched for similar cakes in my area and all the cake shops have terrible and less than mediocre cakes, IMHO. Nothing can compare with Filipino cake bakeshops. I even tried the much loved Korean bakeries but they are also sub par. There are Red Ribbon shops but they do not deliver and the locations are too far from my house, about 7 to 8 hours to drive. No way!

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Fathead Pizza

I haven't heard of fathead dough. I read about it a week ago from someone who lost a lot of weight by partial fasting, that is, not eating anything after dinner until lunch the next day. He combined the fasting with low carb diet recommending the fathead pizza dough. I tried it but it was not satisfactory because it came out too pale and soft.

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Curried Okra

I rarely buy okra because I can't stand its slimy texture. When I do cook them, it's on a very high heat dry cast iron pan which somehow reduces the slime. Yesterday, I asked an Indian lady at the store for recipe recommendation and she said to saute sliced onions, add the okra and stir fry over high heat, then add add a little curry powder just to flavor it a bit. Some coarsely chopped different colored cherry tomatoes make the dish colorful and add nutrition too.

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Buco (Young Coconut) Sherbet

I've made lots and lots of ice cream since I bought my Italian ice cream maker but I haven't made sorbet/sherbet in it until today. I used frozen buco (young coconut) because there aren't any fresh ones lately.

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Homemade Coconut Jam

Several months ago, I bought from a Filipino grocery store a jar of the best [IMHO] coconut jam. The label says it's from Quezon province. The jam is very dark and thick but surprisingly not very sweet. It's too far to drive to the store and the Filipino online store has sold out.

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Low Carb Brownies

These flourless low carb brownies are really good specially with a glass of iced whole milk. If you are craving for chocolaty fudgy brownies but trying to cut down on carbohydrates intake, this recipe will satisfy you.

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Pork Belly Vindaloo

I was watching Jamie (Oliver) and Jimmy's cooking show on Netflix. The first episode, Season 1 has Pork Vindaloo. I'm not fond of Indian cuisine but the bright red meat stew looked really good, I just had to try it. I adapted the recipe the show used which is available on their website.

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Peach Lemonade

I keep reading about Chick-Fil-A's newly added drink to their menu, Peach Lemonade. It sounds peachy! I have to try it one of these days.

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Frittata Muffins

I was reading The Clever Gut Diet Book and the author suggests eating plenty of a variety of colorful fruits and vegetables. They contain beneficial phytochemicals. I have been cooking dishes that have a combination of colorful vegetables. Baked layered rattatouille was one and it was delicious.

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Pumpkin Cheese Layer Dessert

For Thanksgiving this year, I didn't want to make pie nor bake pumpkin cheesecake. It's just too much trouble preparing crust, etc. No bake was the only way to go. I used the mashed sweet baby pumpkin I had in the freezer to shorten the prep. Canned pumpkin is also good for this recipe.

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Pumpkin Bread

It's Autumn and pumpkin season. I've used pumpkin puree in many different ways but not in a yeasted bread loaf. It has been a long while since I baked bread but the currently airing Korean Drama, My Golden Life, sort of enticed me to bake a loaf or two. One of the main characters is working in a bakeshop that bakes loaves with pumpkin both in the dough and filling.

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Green Jackfruit In Coconut Milk Sauce

A few weeks ago, I went to check out the new Filipino restaurant Bistro 1521* in Arlington, VA. The bistro is run by the same people at the permanently closed Filipino Bistro 7107. The menu has been expanded but one of my favorites at 7107, Green Jackfruit In Coconut Milk is missing.

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Baumkuchen (Tree Cake)

I've seen homemade Baumkuchen (tree cake) on several Asian blogs many years ago but never had the energy to make although I have a rectangular tamagoyaki pan.

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Fava Beans Salad

Fava beans are supposed to be nutritiousand therefore good for you. I like them because of their buttery texture and good flavor. They are available fresh still in pods at Korean grocery stores but when aren't in season, I get the frozen ones usually from India or Portugal. I steam them for 3 minutes, peel them, then leave in the refrigerator until I'm ready to season them in butter, garlic, and sea salt.

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French Tarragon And Chicken

French tarragon herb is hard to find in the stores. Once in a while stores sell the bland Russian or Mexican tarragon and they aren't as good as the French variety which has more slender leaves than the 2 mentioned. One time I found a true French tarragon and it was a bit of a head-scratcher because it came from Morocco or maybe Turkey.

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Malted Walnut Pie

Nut pies don't appear often in my house. I made pecan pie once and was not wowed. I love nuts as snack but not in a pie. Until today.

I was clearing the cabinets of old stuff and discovered a jar of barley malt syrup leftover from making bagels many years ago. I've never used it as sugar substitute for baked sweets or desserts. The thing is super thick and very verrry sticky. Taking it out of the jar for measuring takes extra effort.

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Pork Ribs With Fermented Soy Beans

I grew up eating fermented salted black soy beans. In the Philippines it is called tausi and sold at wet markets. They are also sold in cans and plastic pouches. My mom used to add it to sauteed bitter melon or fish. This type of fermented soy bean sauce with whole beans is no longer available here in the US although years ago I bought the canned variety from China or maybe Taiwan but couldn't find the same thing recently. Or maybe I don't know the label.

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Key Lime Pie

sweet and tart Key lime pie

For π Day I made sweet and tart Key lime pie. I don't use the bottled juice because I don't find it authentic enough. It's a pain to juice the tiny fruits but it's worth it. Besides, the zest is also great to infuse into sugar for later use or caramel custard or fizzy kefir water.

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Choc*Nut Ice Cream

I have a small bag of peanut powder and didn't know what to do it with. The suggested banana peanut smoothie sounds yucky to me and cookies aren't appealing either. Last week, I used a little of the peanut powder to make chocolate and peanut candy similar to King™ Choc*Nut, a Filipino peanut and chocolate candy that isn't too chocolaty nor overly sweet and has been a favorite of every Filipino I know. This idea of milk chocolate and peanut combination produced a delicious ice cream flavor.

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Puchero Filipino

One of our favorite soup/stew dishes is Puchero or Pochero which is the Filipino version of another favorite, Spanish Cocido. The difference is the added vegetables: Filipino cooking bananas called saba, sweet potatoes, and bokchoy. The Filipino puchero is served with tomato sauce and/or sauce made with mashed boiled or roasted Asian eggplant seasoned with vinegar, garlic, and salt.

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Homemade Chili Powder

Lately, I have been making my own powdered spices. It started with cumin. I can't eat any store-bought cumin powder in jars because it tastes raw as if I'm eating dirt or something. Cumin seeds IMHO should be toasted first before grinding to release their aroma and flavor. The store-bought spices, including the expensive ones, are also almost always stale and lacks flavor.

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Sous Vide Pork Tenderloin And Chicken Thighs

As usual, I'm late for the party. Sous vide cooking has been around cooking blogs for many many years already and although I have cooked homemade sausages sous vide style in very low temperatures, I didn't want to buy yet again a cooker that will occupy a large area of my kitchen counter. Also, they used to be pricey.

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Spanish Polvoron

with cinnamon

with powdered milk

I love Filipino Polvoron, homemade or store-bought. I haven't tasted its Spanish parent which is made with powdered almond. Spanish polvoron, unlike the Filipino cookie which is simply molded after mixing, is baked in a low heat oven for 30 to 45 minutes. They are not as crumbly and therefore easier and neater to eat.

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Salted Caramel Apple Butter

I made [reduced carbs] salted caramel sauce yesterday and added a little of it to pan-browned apples. The result, in my honest opinion, is an improvement on the usual spiced apple butter recipe which I made once before. It pairs very well with toasted challah. If you like apple caramel candy, then this is the apple butter recipe for you.

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