Alugbati

I have even 'yahood' the name, but all I was able to get was the scientific name - Basella alba Linn.

Alugbati is commonly used in stews, which makes a good substitute for spinach. It is said to be an excellent source of calcium and iron and that it has the high roughage value characteristic of leafy vegetables. It is also a good source of vitamin A and an excellent one of vitamins B and C.

It is a native vegetable, for I have grown to see it anywhere in the backyard. Oh, that was back in the province. One can just insert a stalk in a pot of soil, water it regularly and you can have a healthy stew in about a few weeks. Though most people don't like the 'glutinous' nature of this leafy vegetable, it tastes better when you learn to eat it, and smells good too.

The Shoe Tag

Got this tag from Carol.

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What’s your shoe size? Are your feet the same size as your mom’s feet? How about your sister’s feet? Can you borrow shoes from each other?Post a picture of your latest shoe buy. Tag the number of women of your shoe size, i.e. size 5 = tag 5 friends. Don’t forget to drop a line in this blog when you’re done.

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I'm a size 7, that sometimes go on a 7-half or sometimes 8. Though I'm a size 6-half in Janylin. Sizes vary I think, which could be American, European or could also be Asian.hehe.

I have the same size with my Mama, and I usually borrow some of her flat pairs. Same goes ith some of my shoes which she sometimes borrows. But not the closed ones, I think her feet is a little 'fatter', if I put it that way. My sister has a smaller size, 5-half to 6. No chance for exchanges.
The latest pair I bought was this one, which I bought online. Size posted was an 8, but a little small for me. It fits but after about 30 minutes, I could feel my feet screaming out, grasping for air. I have to give up, and thinking of listing it back online. :-) Cute pair, though.

What's your shoe size Mayet, Ummascorner, Sab, Swennerholm, Maicel, Nellypie, and Superguy?

Tofu Steak

Tofu - a good and healthy alternative to meats... especially for those on a diet. Tofo, a soybean product, is rich in protein, unsaturated fat, and a good source of calcium, iron, phytoestrogens. The protein in tofu or soybean is complete with all the amino acids, which makes soybean protein comparable to animal protein.

Realized that we were eating meat straight these past few days, so I decided to cook one tofu meal earlier.

INGREDIENTS:

1 pack tofu, cut into triangles

300 gms. shitaake mushrooms

2-3 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. butter

1/2 medium onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, crushed and sliced

1. Clean mushrooms in a bowl of water and discard stem. Cut lengthwise.

2. Heat oil in a skillet and add butter. Sautee garlic and onion until tender.

3. Toss mushrooms and simmer for 2 minutes.

4. Add in soy sauce and mix well. Gather mushrooms on one side of the skillet, placing the tofu triangles on the other.

5. Let tofu simmer for 2 minutes on each side, giving enough time to absorb the sauce.

6. Place tofu triangles on a serving dish, pouring sauce and mushrooms over. Serve warm.

The Net

One can recall having used this kind of covering on a newborn baby. But you are wrong... This is the net that we use at home to cover food or what-have-you's in the table. A helpful tool, to keep flies and other crawling things away. Mama got this from a Japanese thrift store, where you can find interesting things that you can really use at home. For just below P100. Nice, huh? :-)

Beef Caldereta

One of my special favorites. I prefer the meat with less "litid", since I like it all tender. To get that ideal tenderness of the meat, I use my ever-dependable pressure cooker. I pre-cooked it for about 45 minutes and it was just perfect!

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 kilo beef
1 small can, liver spread
1 small can, cooked green peas
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/4 cup cheese, (cut into small subes if not quick-melt)
2-3 pcs. potato, sliced
1 pc. medium carrot, sliced
1 pc. medium red bell pepper, cut into squares
1 pc. medium onion, sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed and sliced
salt to taste
chili powder (optional)

1. Pre-cook meat until desired tenderness. Reserve cooking liquid.
2. Heat oil in a pan and sautee garlic, onion and bell pepper. Follow meat.
3. Pour about 1 cup of the cooking liquid and add in carrots and potatoes. Add the cheese. Make it to a boil and simmer for 2 minutes.
4. Add liver spread to the concoction and follow the tomato sauce. Add salt according to taste. Add more cooking liquid of desired, and simmer for a few more minutes until vegetables are tender.
5. Add a dash of chili pepper, if using. Pour cooked green peas just before serving. Serve hot.

Bee Zee

Haven't been able to cook lately until today, when I prepared lunch. It has been a busy week for me. The past few weeks were just crazy. I didn't have the time to hold any of my kitchen utensils, and was stuck with office work.

It was a sigh preparing lunch earlier. A sigh of relief from stress... from the paper works... from the computer... from all the clutter in the office... from everything...

Fastfood fast food!

Was in the office today. I know, it's a Sunday! Oh well, not an ordinary Sunday for me at work. Did a lot of errands, trying to catch up the last day of submission of reports. Whew! And since the Cafeteria upstairs is closed on Sunday, or should I say-only left with one store open with re-heated food from last night's, we didn't have any option left but to go out to grab a meal. Unless you want bread and just about anything edible at Mini-Stop. The nearest fastfood that we can find is Mc Donald's. After deciding to a 'no' at KFC. Tough choice. Oh yeah, had a meal of burger and large fries and a Coke float. Burp!

My hubby, with my little girl picked me up at work and had to meet a friend for a business talk. Have to go by a drive-thru for a quick bite, and guess where?!? Another McDo meal. Gosh, twice in a day. That, after another yum at Jollibee yesterday, from my daughter's kiddie meal.

Gotta lose those calories. I wish...

Why Do We Need Friends?

Got this from Carol, thanks for tagging me. :-)

We need friends for many reasons,

all throughout the season.

We need friends to comfort us

when we are sad,

and to have fun with us when we are glad.

We need friends to give us good advice,

We need someone we can count on,

and treat us nice.

We need friends to remember us

one we have passed

sharing memories that will always last.

Spread the poem of friendship. 1. Everyday Life 2. Words of Love 3. Sheng's Simple Thoughts . . . 4. Insights from the Grocery Cart 5. dHomemaker in the Kitchen 6. Your Blog Here

I am passing friendship poem to everyone in my blogroll. Thanks for making my blog life fun.

Honey Grilled Pork Chops

I had 4 tenderloin chops to prepare for lunch. As I was thinking on what to do with it, I happen to see the glass of honey. And that gave me the idea. An easy recipe with less ingredients, simple yet sumptuous.
The chops can be grilled or baked in the oven. I used my convection oven to grill it, then pouring the drippings over the cooked chops just before serving. One important thing to remember though, discard the marinating liquid, and do not use it for basting or gravy, as it contains raw pork juices.

INGREDIENTS:
4-6 pcs. pork chops
1 cup honey
1 small onion, chopped (optional)
soy sauce

1. Pour honey in a bowl and add in soy sauce. The amount of soy sauce can be depending on your taste, more if you want to balance the sweetness of honey. Stir mixture until sauce has a syrupy consistency.
2. Add onions if using, mix well. Separate about 1/4 of the mixture, for basting later.
3. Let chops marinate in a bowl or cake pan and cover with the sauce. It can be marinated for as long as you wish, for stronger flavor, but can also just be dipped before grilling. Either way works.
4. Place chops on grill, basting with the remaining sauce as needed, until cooked.
5. Serve warm.

Practical

I was reviewing my blog today and was able to modify some things, including my ads. I finally got my PayPerPost code added, and hope that it would work. Have started my blog around a couple of months ago and didn't really have the time to fix the extra-curriculars. Now that I have added PPP, I'm gonna log in to my account to check for available ops that I just can't wait to get. It's not that I am not only after of the amount I would be getting for making this blog, but more of being so curious to see what it's like to be sharing your thoughts and skills to other people in the blogosphere. The money is just part of the package, as you go along.
So for those who would wanna try PPP, now's your chance...

Sauteed Baby Shrimp and Veggies

A good way to cook fresh "alamang", together with your favorite veggies. Here, I have mixed string beans and ampalaya. Just a little sautee and you'll get yourself a nice and healthy meal.

INGREDIENTS:

1/8 kilo fresh alamang, washed

1 pc. medium ampalaya, cut into strips

5-6 pcs. string beans, sliced into 3" long

1 medium tomato, sliced

2-3 cloves garlic, minced and sliced

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

salt to taste

1. Heat oil in a pan and sautee garlic, onion and tomato until tender.

2. Add alamang and add about 1/2 cup water, let it simmer for 3 minutes.

3. Mix vegetables wth the shrimp and add salt according to taste. Add another half cup of water. Simmer for another 3 minutes.

4. Serve in a shallow dish.

08.08.08

Today is the 8th day of the 8th month, August, of the year 2008. 8-8-8... To Chinese philosophy, it's a sign of infinity. Never ending. Forever. It might be a significant day to some of us but not for me, except that I attended a relative's wedding. Surely you have heard about almost a hundred or even a thousand of weddings today. They say it's "masuwerte", lucky to have started a new life with three lucky number "8's". The wedding was in San Juan and it was unusual not to see traffic on a Friday morning, especially in EDSA. So we arrived in the church almost an hour early. :-) The bride was pretty in her very simple gown, with their 4-year old daughter as the little bride. Cute. Wonder why I didn't think about that on our wedding, maybe because my kiddo was just too young to be walking down the aisle alone. I even doubt she would do it. So I guess it was better that way, making her the only flower girl. With her flowers on a silver tin can. . :-)
After the ceremony, we then headed to Edsa Shangri-la for the reception. It was great, the table centerpieces and the ceiling draperies, the cake, but not so good for the food. I would just maybe rate it a 6 out of 10. But was able to stuff my empty stomach. Hubby even went for the second round. The host of the program was good, a professional maybe. Everyone seemed crying hearing the bride thanking everyone and her parents for everything. That was quiet a speech. Spontaneous but was really heart-felt. Sigh!
It was quiet a good day. Not bad for celebrating the 8th day of the 8th month, year '08. :-)

Yummy Fried Rice

My little girl loves this yummy fried rice. Paired with her all-time favorite boiled egg, she always ends up finishing her meal. And even asks for more. Good girl. :-)
It's also a good way for you to make use of your left-over rice the night before. A tip to avoid rice from sticking each other forming lumps, sprinkle a little water and using your hand, squeeze rice until grains separate. I used a sweet corn-flavored hotdog on this one and found out that it tastes yummier than the regular one. Its sweet smell adds a delicious twist to the rice.

INGREDIENTS:

4-5 cups cooked rice

2-3 pcs. hotdog, chopped into small pieces

1/2 pc. red or yellow pepper, chopped into small pieces

2-3 tbsp. vegetable oil

3 cloves garlic, minced and sliced

2 tbsp. soy sauce

salt to taste

1. Heat oil in a pan or skillet. Sautee garlic until brownish in color.

2. Add rice and pan-fry for 2 minutes.

3. Add hotdog and pepper, follow soy sauce. Mix well.

4. Adjust taste, can add salt if preferred.

5. Serve warm.

a girl's room

I was blog hopping, when I found this cool site Desire To Inspire, a blog about inspirational design photos. Nice photos, that made me salivate over home designs and what-have-yous. Frustrated that we have yet to move to our new place, excited as well to use some of these photos as inspirations.

I have been thinking and been extracting my brains out of nice ideas for the new house. Living room, 2 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, dining area and the kitchen. That's everything I need to get in order, since I was the one tasked to do it, Hubby as the financier. LOL! I already have bits of ideas on how and what to present, and I just can't wait to move in. The house is all ready, but I guess we have to wait for a month (or a few more) for the power line to get connected.

Look at this little girl's room here (pic), cute! I will see if I can possibly manage to turn my kiddo's room into this (wish), or even just a portion of it. The curtain effect (how do you call that?) over the bed is just magical. One of my frustrations maybe, getting a nice pink bedroom. Why pink? It's hard to find a non-pink girl's room, they say. I agree...

Grocery Saturday

It's finally weekend, my off! And I'm scheduled to do the grocery today. Hubby is not around, in Davao attending an office event. Came home around 2pm (since shift ends at 1-on a Saturday), finding my kiddo taking her afternoon nap. Might as well get a few minutes myself before heading to the supermarket. Had about 45 minutes...
Had to take my Mama and Yaya with me since finding everything in your grocery list with a 3-year old is just way too time-consuming. On the list were the basics: meat, some veggies, eggs (my little girl is an egg monster), the dairies, toiletries, laundry aids, kitchen knick-knacks. And the bread supply for the week, grabbed a few pan de sals. We usually buy bread for the week's consumption but I usually end up buying some more by mid-week. Storing it inside the ref is a good way to keep its freshness, just make sure you toast it before taking a bite.
Went home nine-ish, since we strolled a bit in the mall and bought some personal stuff. Got myself 2 pairs of pants, one slacks (for the office) and another one for dress-down. Good buys. :-) Went to bed at 10pm, had to make sure my li'l girl doesn't stay up late. Due to a call of nature, woke up 3am to go to the bathroom and here I am doing this. Have to get a couple more hours of sleep before officially starting my weekend.

Broiled Dory Fish

Got this recipe from one of my Titas. Tasted it last weekend and I just could'nt wait to prepare it myself. You can find dory fish fillet in the frozen seafood section of the supermarket. To add that sour tangy taste, you can use the 'sinigang' mix (tamarind), or kalamansi juice. Read on...

INGREDIENTS:
1 pc. medium dory fillet
1/2 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. sinigang mix or 1 tbsp. kalamansi juice
1/2 tsp. rosemary
salt to taste

1. Prepare fish in an aluminum foil. Pour olive oil over.
2. Add sinigang mix or kalamansi oil, scatter over fish. Add minimal amount of salt if preferred. Follow rosemary.
3. Fold foil to enclose fish inside.
4. Place fish in a broiler, about 130-150 degrees, for 20 minutes.
5. Open foil and transfer fish in a serving dish. Squeeze in lemon (optional).
6. Serve warm.