Sauteed Baby Potatoes

One of the easiest side dish I can get my hands on. Prepared this for the New Year Family Lunch and they liked it! My mother-in-law and a Tita asked for the recipe, so let me also share this to you.

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 kilo baby potatoes

1 tbsp olive oil (butter is an option)

3 cloves garlic, pressed and sliced

1/4 cup chicken broth

1 tbsp bacon bits (can use real bacon, minced)

parsley, roughly chopped

salt & pepper to taste

1. Soak potatoes in water for a few minutes. Then wash each potato in running water by gently scrubbing it with your hands, to make sure dirts are removed. Set aside.

2. Heat pan and put in olive oil. Add garlic and sautee until light brown.

3. Add potatoes and sautee with the garlic for about 2 minutes.

4. Gradually add in chicken broth, but just half of the mixture. Then cover potatoes and let it cook for 10 minutes.

5. Check potatoes once in a while, making sure it has not dried out. Add in remaining broth. Continue to simmer until potatoes are soft enough when poked with a fork.

6. Add a dash of pepper and salt, and taste accordingly. Then sprinkle bacon bits and add in parsley.

7. Prepare in a dish and serve.

Stuffed Bell Pepper

Found these colored beauties in the weekend market and decided to stuff it.

INGREDIENTS:
3-4 salad bell peppers
1/4 kilo ground beef or pork
1 cup bread crumbs
salt and pepper to taste
3-4 tbsp. barbecue sauce
1 medium onion, sliced
2-3 cloves garlic, sliced and minced
mozzarella or cheddar cheese (optional)

1. In a bowl, mix meat with garlic and onion. Add in bread crumbs and sprinkle salt and pepper according to taste.
2. Cut bell peppers on top, saving it for cover later. Clean inside and remove seeds.
3. Stuff meat in the peppers, careful not to overstuff it. Put barbecue sauce on top of meat, pressing a bit to squeeze it inside. Add a slice of cheese if using, before covering it with the top part of the pepper.
4. Arrange in a baking dish, and cook it in a pre-heated oven (350) for an hour.
5. Serve hot.

Brocolli with Sun-dried Tomato Pasta

I was surprised when my Tita told me what she just bought from the supermarket - sun-dried tomatoes! I've been looking for it all over.. and immediately got one myself. I saw mini fussillis still in the jar, and a bunch of brocolli should do good.

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups pasta of your choice
1 bunch of brocolli, sliced
4 tbsp. olive oil
4-5 pcs. dun-dried tomates, sliced
5 cloves garlic, sliced and minced
1 small onion, sliced
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat pan and add olive oil. Sautee garlic and onion.
2. In a separate deep pan, boil water and cook pasta according to directions. Add brocolli 2 minutes before draining pasta.
3. Add tomatoes to the pan and toss pasta and brocolli. Add salt and pepper according to taste.
4. Serve immediately.

Garlic Broccoli

One of the only few vegetables my little girl eats. And you can just prepare this dish in a flash, so that will give you more family time.

INGREDIENTS:
1 medium broccoli
5 cloves garlic
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
salt to taste

1. Wash broccoli and cut florets. Steam for about 5 minutes, or until cooked. Set aside.
2. In a pre-heated pan, add oil and then toss in butter. Sautee garlic until light brown.
3. Add broccoli and sprinkle salt, simmer for a minute.
4. Add 2 tablespoons water, and adjust taste accordingly.
5. Prepare in a shallow dish, and serve immediately.

Adobong Sitaw

Another Adobo favorite...
You can add small chunks of left-over meat ot about half a handful of ground meat. I liked it plain better.

INGREDIENTS:
8 pcs stringbeans, cut about 2 inches long
3-4 cloves garlic, minced and sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
5-6 tbsp. soy sauce
2-3 tbsp. vinegar

1. In a pan, sautee garlic and onion until slightly browned. Follow meat if using, and cook for 2 minutes.
2. Add stringbeans then pour soy sauce and vinegar according to taste.
3. Cover pan and let it simmer for 2-3 minutes. Adjust taste, adding more soy sauce or vinegar, if preferred.
4. Serve hot.

Saba

Saba is a native banana variety used mainly for cooking. It is also knows as banana musa. It is the only variety of banana I know of that cannot be eaten without first being cooked.

We call it nilagang saba, the most basic way to cook it, by boiling or steaming them with skin on. The raw saba can be sliced and cooked with a few ingredients to make Ginataang Halo-halo, another Filipino favorite. And a popular snack, banana in skewers, the banana cues. And there is also the banana turon, which is deep fried in lumpia wrapper. As an ingredient in main dishes, saba can be fried first before adding to Pochero, Arroz ala Cubana and one of my featured dish, Saba and Okra Medley.

Health benefits of bananas? From a health-ful site, a single banana contains 16% of the dietary fiber, 15% of the vitamin C, 11% of the potassium and 20% of the vitamin B6 recommended each day.

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.

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.

Mushroom and Cucumber Soup

If you want to go oriental, you can try this tasty soup, taken from one of my reliable cook books. This is a light, refreshing clear soup of mushrooms, cucumber and small pieces of rice noodles, flavored with soy sauce and a touch of garlic. I have added celery, to give it a more crunchy taste.

INGREDIENTS:

200 gms. flat or open-cap mushrooms

1 pc. small cucumber

1 stalk celery, sliced (optional)

1 pc. medium onion, sliced

3 pcs. garlic cloves, sliced

2 tbsp. vegetable oil

100 g. chinese rice noodles

3/4 tbsp. salt

2 tbsp. soy sauce

1. Wash mushrooms, slice thinly and pat dry on paper towels.

2. Halve the cucumber lengthways. Scoop out the seeds using a teaspoon, and slice thinly.

3. Heat the oil in a large saucepan or wok.

4. Add onions and garlic and stir-fry until soft. Add mushrooms and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.

5. Stir in 4-5 cups water. Break noodles into short pieces and add to the soup. bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.

6. Add the cucumber slices, salt and soy sauce, let it simmer for 2-3 minutes.

7. Serve in warmed bowls, distributing the noodles and vegetables evenly.

Saba and Okra Medley

This is another classic from my Mama. A sweet-veggie taste, even kids will surely love. "Saba" is a banana variety for cooking, which is used for the famous banana-cues.

INGREDIENTS:
6 pcs. ripe saba, cut in half
6 pcs. okra, cut in half
3-4 cloves garlic, minced and sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cups water
salt to taste

1. In a deep pan, boil okra until tender. Drain and set aside.
2. In a separate pan, heat oil and sautee garlic and onion. Add banana and water, let it simmer until cooked.
3. Add salt according to taste.
4. Lastly add okra and simmer for another 2 minutes.
5. Serve hot.