Sibuyas Republic

All’s finished as per my planned scheduled after a busy week. House chores were much easier and faster when kids would helped in the work. Yipee!

House is clean and fresh. Laundry’s finished. Did my marketing earlier in the morning. But didn’t cooked anything special for the kids. They have been screaming for “chickenjoy” since yesterday. We promised to tote them along tomorrow for our usual grocery shopping in the city. They can’t wait.

So, I made this simple lunch earlier for the kids. In a way, thanking them for their help. (once in a blue moon^_^)

Of course, granting their fried chicken (wings) meal...

Complete with potato cream gravy…

But of course, some fried potato, in case the youngest misses her French fries...

So, there. The kids’ fast food favorites. Laden with fats, as the chicken and potatoes were fried. But, knowing the products used and IT IS HOME COOKED, it’s a healthier option.

With ripe mangoes as desserts? It’s my kids favorite.

*Dining out means shelling out extra money. Homemakers (mommies) should think about ways to curb extra or unneeded expenses.

*When going out  with my family, we always make sure we go out after lunch, thus, we only need to have a snack at the city mall. Or, maybe, going out late in the afternoon. Missing out on snack time, instead, a dinner before going home.

*Harder times, plus the fact that we should consider that most food kiosks or restos does not offer healthy foods these days. Instead, most are laden with fattening ingredients. Great to lure cravings but not so good for the kids.

Ooppsss, messy. This is what happened when mommy’s not around to feed her kids. We were busy attending to visitors who came at my mother-in-law’s wake. Her untimely passing last Black Saturday sends us to her house almost everyday, and every night…for six days.

Glad that we live in the same barangay.The kids were able to go home every night. The Ate was to take charge of her two siblings. On the second night of their granny’s wake, we coached them go home and reheat the left-over chicken adobo on the fridge.

Guess, that didn’t happen as manifested by this photo. We had tacos the week before and so there’s still one box left of taco shells and salsa dip which I happen to stacked up on the fridge. The youngest, as seen in this photo, filled her shell with the dip and cheese only. She didn’t like cucumber and romaine lettuce. AW! The Ate and the Kuya, enjoyed the 2 veggies. They missed out preparing diced onions and tomatoes, they didn’t like them on their tacos, obviously ^_^

Can you imagine the mess when we came home later in the evening? Yes, the piles of dishes in the sink, the table mess in the front porch… The Ate was telling me, they couldn’t stand up the heat, thus, they went out to to eat in the porch. Aw!

Never mind the mess…at least the Ate did took charge of her two little ward. And, a simple taco dinner creates bonding moments between them.

Glad that I was able to engage the kids in helping me with some of my “general cleaning” schedules in the house. Anyway, it is vacation month. All it takes for them to get their muscles moving were a promised of sweet treats ^_^

My three “piggies” were screaming their lungs out for ice-cream. We bought a half gallon Selecta and it seems, it didn’t quite reached their intestines ^_^.

Luckily, when the lad were sweeping out dried leaves in the backyard, he found these…

Chicken eggs gone astray in the backyard. As I said, hubby have quite few native chickens roaming around the perimeter of our yard. He has provided nesting baskets with rice straws in them, but this one quite didn’t enjoy her place…Where else should these eggs be? The kids were thinking the same thing as mine…Leche Flan!

Here’s my simple HOW TO:

-INGREDIENTS FIRST:-

• eggs
• condensed milk
• evaporated milk
• white sugar
• brown sugar
• vanilla
• lime rind (or kalamansi rind would be just as good)

*First step: Beat in the eggs slowly. I did mixed in the eggs whites, anyway, it’s just a dessert for my kids to indulge. I prefer to manually beat the eggs, as placing them in an electric mixer will make the eggs foamy. Remember, it is a custard cake, not a sponge cake…

*Next, after beating the eggs, add in all the ingredients. Milk, white sugar, vanilla and the kalamansi rind. Mix thoroughly until sugar is fully dissolved and well blended.

*Meanwhile, onto to custard mold (llanera as we locals call the aluminum pan used for steaming up leche flan), place a teaspoonful of brown sugar and carefully set the mold in low fire. Wait til the sugar caramelized…

*Set aside first the pan with caramelized sugar…

*Then, pour into the molds the egg mixture, cover with foil or plastic to avoid moisture spilling into the small pans. Place the molds in steamer and cook in very low fire for 45 minutes. If a toothpick comes clean, then the custard is good to go…Hmmm, looks like I had made few llaneras here…

There’s the sampler. The minute I’ve taken it out of the pan, and, still smoking hot…IT WAS GONE…Kids do really have sweet tooth, just like meeee^_^

We’re planning to have halo-halo this Good Friday…Forgive us, O Lord for taking too many sweet indulgences this day…

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Yesterday was my brother’s 39th birthday. He and his wife had decided to mark the event with the Christening of their 6 month old daughter, Adrienne. Double celebration it was! Saving them on money, plus the time. It is too tiresome hosting an event. Too many preparations and minute details should be taken care for. Budget wise, they decided to host the event just at their house. Anyways, it is summertime and what could be a better way to arrange the yard into a party place.

There’s my bro and my niece posing beside the buffet table

Of course, party will never get to start without me ^_^. I was part of the planned “budget cut”. They didn’t hire any cook. Instead, asking me to cook few dishes. I was hesitant, of course. Imagine, cooking for many visitors???

But, good heavens, with the help of an aunt and a cousin who butchers the pig and the goat, we manage to create dishes fit for a town’s feast!

That’s me, holding a serving spoon beside the food-laden looong buffet table.

I became an instant chef and and event organizer, cum waitress, cum dishwasher in the end. All rolled into one!

So, there’s my relleno bangus, menudo (don’t know how to cook 10 kilos of menudo, it was aunt’s dish). There’s also my cordon bleu, then lumpiyang shanghai which is super easy to do, and the creamy mashed potato which served as dippings. Whew!

Onto the right side of the table were my beef broccoli. There were many Baguio vegatables that came in because my SIL’s kins arrived from Baguio City. Gising-gising was also served, a mixed veggies known for it  super hot, hot, hot taste. Brother cooked this also with the goat dishes such as papaitan and kaldereta. Served as pulutan, too. Hmmm

Bro rented a videoke which runs since Saturday afternoon til late last night. Spare myself from singing and drinking. Not just my thing:) I guess, my only relegated place were the kitchen sink, where piles and piles of dishes never stopped to keep coming.

Today’s Holy Monday, I think I needed a full day’s rest! Don’t you think?

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December was the busiest month for most people, and so, is for my family. Eldest daughter and hubby were both born on December. Celebrating both their birthdays separately with Christmas in the middle, how would you imagine my tiredness? Preparing foods on so many occasions. Yay!

Here’s daughter on her 18th birthday. It’s her debut, but no grand celebration for her, because, at first, daughter wanted to “cashed out” the allotted budget of  her birthday fund. Saying she’ll just save the money into her account. That’s how “wise” she is with regards to money.

But, it turned out, relatives were visiting and preparation was in haste, literally.

Lechon (thanks to my “alaga” in the backyard, we didn’t have to buy one) and cake were the “bida” foodies, of course…

Hubby gamely pose for photo ops beside his cake. He said he rarely remembers his birthdays when he was a kid because having a large family, his father’s income could hardly eke out a living. Thankful for his parents for sending him to a state university, he was able to find a good job that  earn him a penny to buy himself a birthday cake ^_^

Both cakes were made by my talented friend who made beautiful and decadent cakes and pastries.

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We had a haste trip to Baguio City last Friday and because it’s an emergency (ouch!) trip, we have no time to roam around. Shall I say, I am too emotional to go about the city. But, I managed to squeeze in a little market rendezvous.

Though, I got only few because at 6 in the morning, Baguio City market is still yawning. Vendors were still starting to open their stores and vegetables were just starting to be wheeled in.

Here’s my little veggie loots:

Fresh mushrooms, cucumbers for five pesos^_^, broccolis and ice lettuces. I really don’t know why they call it ice lettuce, thought they were called Romaine Lettuce…What do you think? I was looking for  “real lettuces”, but, I said, maybe I was too early, fresh vegetables were just arriving.

And, here’s the broccoli the next day we return home…

I got half a kilo of beef loin in the freezer and also found half pack of Knorr Cream of Mushroom in the pantry. I try not to cook beef because as I always said, I m not into beef recipes. Beef usually turns to rubber when I cooked it. Luckily, I the beef turned out to be edible.

WHAT I DID?

-marinade the beef in Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper

-meanwhile, mix a spoonful of olive oil and few drops of lemon with the broccoli and microwave for 2 minutes at high temp.

-remove the broccoli in the microwave and transfer it to a bowl of iced water. Let stand for a while.

-saute the beef in oil or butter (I used butter) for three minutes.

-dissolved the cream of mushrooms in half a cup of water, then slowly whisked in to the sauteed beef.

-simmer no more than 10 minutes.

-add the broccoli. And, it’s a ready meal.

BROCCOLI TIPS:

-Broccoli’s rich in Vitamin C and said to contain anti-cancer compounds.

-Heat reduces the potency of the anti-cancer compound in broccoli. Steaming is best when preparing broccoli.

-After steaming, placing the broccoli in iced water will make it more crunchier and the broccoli more greener. I have watched that in Food Network.

And, I thought beef’s not my thing…

POSTED THIS TRY-OUT DISH AT

Cheese are essential in my family’s diet. Kids love cheeses. I adore them especially the creamy and softer cheeses. Cheese is a very versatile cooking companion, too. One can create thousand of cheese recipes.

Too bad, hubby can not share our passion for cheeses. We must take notice that anything that comes from four-legged animals contain saturated fats. It is imperative that cheese intake should be tolerable especially for those who were maintaining a low cholesterol diet.

For the meantime, my super active kids deserved this simple and easy to cook pasta recipe. I incorporate this Danish White Cheese to the pasta dish because the kids wouldn’t want this in their sandwiches because it’s a bit salty.

I prefer to cook this pasta twist for a change to the usual spaghetti

I cooked this dish this morning after sensing that the kids were whining about the usual egg-and-hotdog breakfast menu^_^

PROCEDURE:

-saute garlic and onion (and red bell pepper if you wished)in butter

-add in the chicken chunks and sweet ham

-add 2 cups of chicken broth, let simmer for a while

-add in the cream and evaporated milk

-then, this is where I add in the Danish White Cheese, it is a bit salty, thus, I omitted the salt.

-add a dash of ground pepper

-AND, IT’S GOOD TO GO AT BREAKFAST TIME!

There’s my plate with my cafe au lait!

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MERRY CHRISTMAS!

c

Sorry! I was dreaming it was Christmas already. I missed the variety of foods during holiday season. The long celebration we Filipinos have, the fun, although our family can have zillion of fun even on a plate of “fried gg” (galunggong or esp. the round scad) and fish paste with kamias as dippings. Hmmm.

Last weekend the lad was telling me to cook halayang ube (purple yam). He said my home made halo-halo isn’t complete without the ube yam and leche flan. Ouch! I’ve been virtually staying in our kitchen whole morning of each day thinking what to cook for this family who’s hunger were never satiated. I couldn’t sleep at night thinking what menu should I be preparing the next morning. That’s how it is being a busy mom!

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Yup, it’s not a typo. I meant to post this last Thursday at Ms. Kaye’s Girls Talk meme, but due to the “urgency” of the call I had received while I was writing the post, I had to saved it instead. I had to travel off to Baguio that day, THAT HOUR. THAT MINUTE. If only I have the power, I should have teletransported instead. That’s how urgent the call was!

For the meantime, I do not have the courage to write how the “urgent call” had me hit the road in a jiff. As life is a mystery, I have learned (for the nth time) that,

“NO BURDEN IS TOO HEAVY THAT WE CAN NOT CARRY”

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Sorry, I know, food is the topic here….I’m being carried away by my emotions again…STOP!

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MY LATE ENTRY FOR

Since hubby started to have cholesterol issues, I was too eager to help him understand about good fats and bad fats and what it can do to our body.

First, let us get to know how FAT functions in our body.

-FAT helps in absorbing nutrients from the food we eat. They are converted to different enzymes by the liver and stored as energy needed by our body.

-Fats play a vital role in promoting healthy cell function.

-Fats served as a buffer to other diseases.

-Because of this function, it is unhealthy to remove fats totally from our diet.

BUT, when fat is consumed excessively, it can contribute to obesity which can lead to heart diseases and certain types of cancer.

Therefore, we must know what is good fat and bad fat.

THE GOOD FATS:

-MONOUNSATURATED FATS which can be found in nuts, avocado, canola oil, and olive oil, can helped lower LDL (the bad cholesterol) and increased HDL (the good cholesterol)

-POLYUNSATURATED FATS like omega 3 fatty acid is a popular goo fat substitute.

THE BAD FATS:

-SATURATED FATS which are found mainly in animal products and animal by-products. There were high concentration of saturated fats found in plant products such as coconut oil and palm oil. SATURATED FATS comes mainly from four-legged animals and some poultry and poultry products.

-TRANSFAT are commonly found in commercially prepared foods as fat is “hydrogenated” to provide longer shelf life for commercial food products.

There are more products in the market now that promises good health. Take time to scrutinize before cashing it out.

I did my weekly marketing last Friday and I included in my lists just few ingredients to make halo-halo. I did bought bananas (saba), sweet potato, sago, gulaman, rice crispies (which were readily available in the market). I forgot to buy white kidney beans and red mongo beans, anyways, the kids didn’t like them.

Here they are, after sweetening up the bananas, sweet potato, sago and gulaman (i used a pack of Mr. Gulaman which costs only ten pesos)…Since, we had an emergency last Friday, my mother-in-law was admitted to the hospital, it is only yesterday that i got to take photos when the sago and the gulaman were nearly empty!

This is the ice shaver. Cool pink color, e^_^. Our ice shaver broke two years back, couldn’t find a decent one (note: cheaper one) in the market. So, I settle for this olden way to have ice shavings. Anyway, the kids were courteous enough to helped in the preparation…

There’s my niece enjoying her halo-halo at yesterday’s swimming in our front lawn via rubberized Intex pool. You may wanna peek at their swimming fun HERE.

AND, there’s my blue halo-halo cup, courtesy of Alaska Evaporated milk, which were given free few years back.

ENJOY YOUR SUMMER FOODIES

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