Baked Herb Salmon

This is one of my dad's favorite dishes so I always bake extra for him.  I buy my salmon fillets at Santis; they slice up the fish for me and they remove the skin too.  Very convenient.  This fish is quite pricey but considering it's a super healthy food, it's still much cheaper to have this at home than at a fine dining resto.


Baked Herb Salmon
(Serves 4)


Ingredients:
4 pcs. skinless fresh salmon fillets
(each piece approximately 200g)
5 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. fresh basil, chopped (or 2 tsp. dried basil)
2 Tbsp. fresh dried parsley, chopped (or 2 tsp. dried parsley)
4 Sprigs of dill weed (or 2 tsp. dried dill)
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
Juice of half a lemon





Procedure:
Make the marinade by combining garlic, olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper. 
Place salmon fillets in a shallow baking dish then pour marinade.  Marinate for about three hours (or more if you like), turning the fish every hour. 
Just before baking, pour the lemon juice over the fish. (I used to combine the lemon juice with the marinade but it "cooked" the surface of the fish, giving it a dull pink color.  It also made the fish more sour than it should be, so just add the juice at the last minute.)
Cover the baking  dish with foil, then bake in a pre-heated oven at 350F for 30 minutes or until done.  Be careful not to overcook this delicate fish. 

Tip:  I added plenty of herbs for that extra flavor, but just put in whatever you have.  I also think it would be more special with melted butter poured on the fish as a finishing touch, but then again it will make it less healthy that way.  Have it your way. :)

Whole Wheat Waffles

Inspired by my health-buff Atsie, I decided to tweak a typical waffle recipe and make it extra healthy with whole wheat flour, soy milk and unrefined sugar.  The result?  Still soft and fluffy waffles with a distinct flavor from the muscovado sugar and cinnamon.  It was a nice breakfast treat :)  But I have a confession to make- this is even better with butter and syrup.


Whole Wheat Waffles
(Makes a big batch enough for two breakfasts for 3)


Ingredients:
2 eggs
125 g whole wheat flour
125 g all-purpose flour
1 3/4 c Silk Plain Soy Milk
1/2 c vegetable oil
40 g muscovado sugar
4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1 t vanilla


Procedure:
Using a stand mixer, beat eggs in a large bowl until light and fluffy. 
Add the oil.  Combine thoroughly.
In a separate bowl, combine the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon--- or basically all the dry ingredients.  Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture alternately with milk.  Add vanilla.  (I did this to prevent lumps in the batter.)
You can store this waffle mixture in the fridge for about a week.  
Cook waffles in a waffle iron until golden brown.
Have a healthy and happy breakfast, everyone!

Beef Salpicao

This is simply beef bliss.  This has become one of our favorites when we just want to enjoy really good food right at home.  The key to making good salpicao is to allot enough time for the garlic to infuse the beef, and of course, using top quality meat.  I always buy US Angus Beef Tenderloin cut into cubes at Santis.  Believe me, it's really worth it.  The beef is so tender that even Trixie doesn't have trouble eating the entire beef cube.  I once joked Brandon that he'll love me even more because of this dish, haha.  I'm happy to share this recipe with you.


Blissful Beef Salpicao
(Serves 4)

Ingredients:
400-500g beef tenderloin, cut into cubes
1 whole garlic, roughly chopped
3 Tbsps. extra-virgin olive oil
Salt, pepper and paprika to taste
1/8 cup Lea and Perrins Steak Sauce (You can also use liquid seasoning, but I find it adds unnecessary saltiness to the dish)
1.5 Tbsps. oyster sauce

Procedure:
Combine olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and paprika.  Add beef to this garlic-oil mixture and marinate overnight.
Using a heavy-based pan heated until very hot, saute the beef including the marinade.  The pan should be very hot to sear the meat.  Toss the beef until light brown in color; do not lower heat.  Add steak sauce and oyster sauce then cook a little bit more.  Serve immediately.

Baked Pork BBQ and Garlic Java Rice

I discovered a very nice marinade for barbeque- Mama Sita's Barbeque Marinade (I heard that this product came from the family who opened Aristocrat's), and so I thought of making pork bbq at home.  But instead of going through the hassle of grilling (but I'm sure Brandon wouldn't mind doing it if I asked him to), I decided to bake them using a Turbo Broiler.  The result?  Really nice and flavorful barbeque.  Not oily at all and no burnt bits.  Here's the very easy recipe:

Baked Pork Barbeque



Ingredients:
Fresh Pork Kasim, fat portion removed and cut into small cubes
Mama Sita's Barbeque Marinade

Procedure:
Marinate the pork cubes in Mama Sita's Barbeque Marinade overnight.  Place meat through skewers or barbeque sticks.  Bake in preheated turbo broiler at 375F for 10-15 minutes (or until done), turning each stick halfway and brushing the tops with remaining marinade.



Just before dinnertime, I decided to whip up a very easy java rice as the perfect accompaniment to any barbeque dish.

Garlic Java Rice 

Ingredients:
Cooked plain rice
Cooking oil
Star Margarine
Lots of minced garlic
Minced onions
Tomato Sauce (I used Hunt's)
Salt and Pepper

Procedure:
Place oil and Star Margarine in a pan (both oil and margarine were used to prevent margarine from burning).  When hot and ready, saute the onions and garlic until very fragrant.  Don't let the garlic turn brown and bitter.  Add the cooked rice.  Combine thoroughly.  Add the tomato sauce little by little (too much tomato sauce will make the rice sour), then toss well until rice turns into a nice light orange color.  Season with salt and pepper.  If desired, add more margarine as a finishing touch to make rice glossy.  Serve with pork barbeque.  (I wish we had atsara and java sauce!) 


Note:  I'm sorry that these recipes don't contain exact measurements, but that's how I usually cook.  Just trust your tastebuds :)    

Chicken Teriyaki

Here's another winner recipe for chicken teriyaki.  I got the recipe from Pinoy Cook, but I added some elements to our liking.   This is one satisfying meal; next time, we will try grilling the chicken instead of frying it in a pan.

Chicken Teriyaki
(Serves 3)


Ingredients:
About 400g chicken thigh fillets, skin-on
1/4 c light soy sauce
1/4 c of mirin (sweet rice wine)
1/4 c of sake
2 Tbsps. sugar
Ginger strips
Cornstarch Slurry (1 Tbsp cornstarch mixed with 1 Tbsp cold water)
Toasted sesame seeds (I did this in the oven toaster.)


Procedure:
Combine soy sauce, mirin, sake and sugar then marinade the chicken fillets for several hours in the fridge.  (I did it in three hours and it was enough.)  Drain the fillets and save the marinade.
Add oil to a pan and when hot, add the ginger stips until fragrant.  Add the chicken pieces with the skin side down and fry until brown, then flip to the other side.  Drain excess oil if necessary.   Add the marinade and simmer until chicken is cooked through.  Remove chicken pieces from the pan (leaving the sauce in the pan) and cut into slices.  Put the chicken on top of hot rice. 
Let the remaining sauce in the pan boil then add the cornstarch slurry and cook until the mixture thickens.  Lower the heat to prevent the sauce from boiling over.  Pour the teriyaki sauce on top of the chicken slices then top with toasted sesame seeds.


Tip:  Save remaining teriyaki sauce for another dish; i.e. Pan-seared/ Baked Salmon with Teriyaki Sauce (Yum-yum!  Will do this soon.)

Rainy Day Bread Pudding

What to do on a stormy day—this is one question I have an easy answer to.  Aside from keeping updated on the latest weather bulletin, I just find it so enticing to make something rich yet comforting on any rainy day.  We were lucky enough to experience only an hour of blackout, so while Brandon and Trixie practically napped the whole day, I made Chocolate Bread and Butter Pudding.  I got the recipe from Periplus’ Crazy for Chocolate Cookbook (gift from Stew from way, way back) and the result was just what I wanted.  It’s really rich and satisfying being made from dark chocolate, yet it’s so homey and so easy to prepare since the base is just white bread.  It was great served warm with vanilla ice cream but it tasted heavenly served cold the following day.  I’m posting the recipe here for you to enjoy this on your rainy days! 

 

Chocolate Bread and Butter Pudding

60g butter (I used only half)

6 slices fruit-loaf bread (I used soft white bread)

½ cup milk

2 cups thick cream

½ cup caster sugar (Plain white will do)

100g dark cooking chocolate, chopped (I used bittersweet couverture)

4 eggs, lightly beaten

½ cup dark choc bits (I used less than a half cup of Hershey’s semi-sweet choc chips)

2 tablespoons golden syrup (I didn’t have any so I omitted this)

 

Procedure

Preheat oven to 160C/ 315F.  Brush a 4-cup capacity baking dish with oil or melted butter.

Spread butter on bread.  Cut bread into diagonal quarters.  Place bread in dish in single layer, overlapping it.

Combine milk, cream and sugar in medium pan, stir over low heat until sugar dissolves.  Bring to boil, remove from heat.  Add chocolate; stir mixture until melted and smooth.  Cool slightly; gradually whisk in eggs.

Pour half the custard mixture over bread, stand 10 minutes or until bread absorbs most of the liquid.  Pour over remaining custard mixture.  Sprinkle with choc bits.  Drizzle with golden syrup.  Bake 40-45 minutes or until set and slightly puffed and golden.  Serve warm or cold with cream or ice cream.

Fruity Prawn Salad

There are days when you just want to indulge.  After a busy day at home, I was in need of something rich, creamy and refreshing, but I also needed to keep my toddler busy with a fun activity for her to do.  And so I thought of making this quick salad to satisfy my craving and get my daughter involved in the kitchen.  I might as well call this “Trixie’s Fun Salad” because she basically did all the mixing, while snacking on the fruits and having oodles of fun!   

 

Fruity Prawn Salad

(Serves 8)

1 can Fruit Cocktail (My favorite is Del Monte Fiesta Fruit Salad.  The fruits are crunchy and not too sweet.)

½ kilo Fresh Prawns

1/2 cup real mayonnaise

1/4 of a big can of Condensed Milk (or approximately half of a small can)

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Procedure:

Drain the fruit cocktail and reserve the syrup.  Set aside.

Place the syrup in a sauce pan and boil the prawns in it, until fully cooked.  Remove heads and shell of the prawns then cut in half through the back of the prawns, then remove the veins.

In a bowl, combine the mayonnaise and condensed milk.  (If you want a sweeter dressing, add more condensed milk.)  Season the dressing with salt and pepper.

Add the fruits and prawns.  Toss well then serve. (You may opt to chill the salad, but I liked it at room temperature.)

 
Tip:  Make this salad even more colorful by serving it on lettuce cups.  Now that will be more impressive!

 

 

Recipe for Cooked Play Dough

This home-made play dough is just fantastic.  It's very easy to make, safe and non-toxic (it's edible but I wouldn't risk tasting it) so soft and fun to use, it lasts quite a long time (as long you keep it in a sealed container), it's so much cheaper than the commercial brand and most of all, the fun starts in the actual making of the dough.  I got the recipe from the book "Wonderplay" from the 92nd St. Y Parenting Center that I bought years ago from Books for Less.  I'm sharing this with you so you could share this with your kids.   There's another recipe for play dough in the book which is an uncooked version recommended for older kids.  I'll try that when Trix gets older.  Remember, a fun activity + an active child = a happy mom :)

Cooked Play Dough














Ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 tablespoon oil
1 cup water


Procedure:

Combine the dry ingredients and put in a sauce pan.
Mix together the wet ingredients then add to the dry ingredients.
Cook over medium flame while stirring vigorously until the entire thing comes together like a sticky ball.  Turn off heat.
Knead the dough until smooth- you may opt to use your hands but the dough will be hot!  So I just used a spatula to knead the dough while still in the pan.
Transfer to a plate then cover with plastic.  Let cool.  (You can put the dough in the freezer to speed up the cooling, but don't forget about it!)
As soon as the dough is cool enough to handle, divide it into portions and start coloring them with food color. 
Have fun with the dough and place in a sealed container after using to keep the dough soft and nice.

Tip:  You may add drops of water to the dough and knead it if it becomes a little hard when exposed to the air for a time.

A Better Gyudon

I’ve cooked Gyudon several times already with different types of beef, from local beef sukiyaki to Australian beef tenderloin.  I found out that the best beef to buy for this Japanese Beef Rice is US Rib-eye, cut sukiyaki style.  It’s a bit pricey, but hey, it’s for your family!  It’s really tender and flavorful; my toddler didn’t have any trouble at all eating the beef, so I'm posting again the same recipe for Gyudon.

 

 

 

Gyudon Once Again

Serves 2

 

 

 

 

(Photo by Brandon)

 

Ingredients:
200-300g US Rib-eye Beef, sukiyaki style
1 whole white onion, cut into big chunks
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup Kikkoman soy sauce

 

Procedure:
Combine water, mirin and soy sauce in a sauce pot and let it boil.
Add the onions, and cook until half-cooked or near transparent stage.
Add the beef and cook for about 2 minutes or until meat changes color.  (Overcooking your beef will make it tough, so be careful.)
Serve on top of rice bowls.

 

 

Optional Condiment:

Half Ginger, cut into thin strips

Reserve some liquid from the cooked beef.  Boil the ginger strips in it until cooked but still crunchy.  Serve along side the Gyudon for those who like it hot!

 

 

Recipe for Finger Paint

Weeks ago, I was searching for finger paint in bookstores and toy stores in malls, and I had a hard time doing so.  If not out-of-stock, it's way too expensive (imagine, 4 tiny cups put in a fancy box sold at P600 plus!!!).  There must be a home-made version of finger paint that's cheap and non-toxic.  A quick search led me to www.creativekidsathome.com, and Trixie and I made the original fingerpaint.   Bottles of Wilton food color from my cake decorating days came in very handy, and I was able to make six full cups.  A note though, this finger paint is best used the day it was made--- the paint thickened and jellied up a day after.  It's still fun to use, but it wasn't gooey anymore.  Since the recipe below contains a bit of sugar, store the paint in tightly sealed containers to keep them from nasty ants! I'll make a different version next time to see which is better.  For now, I hope this recipe will help moms like me keep their young ones happy and busy!

Original Fingerpaint

Ingredients

1/2 cup cornstarch
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups cold water
food coloring

 

Directions

In a medium pan, mix all the ingredients together to make the finger paint. Cook over low heat 10 to 15 minutes. Keep stirring the finger paint mixture until it is smooth and thick. After the finger paint has thickened take the pan off the stove and let the mixture cool.

After cooling, divide the finger paint into storage containers depending on how many colors you would like. Add a few drops of food coloring to each container. Stir the coloring in to the paint to determine the shade of color. You're ready to finger paint! Cover tightly when storing.

A Good Day for Baked Pasta

Today indeed started good for me.  There's no tinge of morning sickness today (well, none yet!) and to celebrate, I thought of cooking up a wonderful lunch for Brandon and Trixie.  It has been very difficult for me the past weeks because of all-day-sickness (hence, the lack of acitivity in my site...), but I'm hoping for better days ahead.  I decided to make Baked Pasta today, and I'm sharing with you this fabulous cheese topping recipe that I adapted from PinoyCook.  I've done this several times already, making changes every time and finally, this is the tweaked recipe that truly satisfied me.  You can use this cheesy topping for any type of pasta to be baked, i.e. baked macaroni, spaghetti, ziti, lasagna.... This topping truly makes a big difference, kicking the pasta up a notch.  It really makes the pasta more special.  Here's the recipe:



Cheese Topping for Baked Pasta
Yield:  Just enough to top pasta in a big rectangular baking dish

Ingredients:
40g unsalted butter (3/4 of 1/4 cup butter)
1.5 tbsp. flour
1/2 cup water
1 cup fresh milk
1/2 bar Philadelphia cream cheese, cut into small cubes
1/3 bar Eden cheese, cut into small cubes
Salt and Pepper
Dried Basil or Fresh Basil

Procedure:
Melt butter in a small saucepan until frothy.
Put in all the flour and cook until light brown and until flour exudes a nice smell (but not burnt).
Add in the water without lowering the heat.  The mixture will suddenly boil up or bubble up but don't worry and keep on stirring.  Add the milk and continue stirring.
Add the two cheese and cook until melted and thick.  I use a silicon spatula for cooking this cheese sauce so I can scrape the pan properly to prevent burning.  As soon as the cheeses melt, turn off heat and season with salt and pepper.  Add lots of dried basil.

Place cooked pasta in a big rectangular baking dish (I usually combine the pasta and the sauce already) and pour this heavenly cheese sauce on top.  Be sure to cover the pasta completely by spreading to the edges.  Bake for 25 minutes at 350F.  The pasta will become bubbly and wonderful.  The cheese sauce will kinda set and I don't bake my pasta until golden brown, but it's up to you. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. 

Pork Steak ala Pobre

We had this very healthy, light, yet fulfilling dish for dinner.  Trixie and Brandon kept on picking on the onion rings!  They do have plenty of similarities when it comes to food.  Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
1 slab/ piece of pork tenderloin, white skin removed then sliced into about 1/2 inch pieces
3 pcs. calamansi, juiced
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 white onions, sliced into rings
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Procedure:
Combine calamansi juice and soy sauce, then marinate the pork tenderloin pieces in the mixture for about 1 hour.
In a medium saute pan, fry minced garlic in enough oil until light brown.   Note:  Garlic frying can be pretty tricky, so as soon as the garlic changes color, lower the heat and keep watch!  Turn off the heat before you reach the desired color because it will still continue cooking in the hot oil.  Remove crunchy, golden brown garlic unto a plate then set aside.
In the same pan, saute onion rings until caramel in color.  You can undercook the onions if you like them slightly raw, but personally, I love onion rings that are well-done.  Remove from pan and set aside.
Still using the same hot pan, dump the pork tenderloin with the marinade and cook until done.  Make sure not to overcook the pork or else they'll turn tough.
Assembly:  Place tenderloin on a plate then top with onion rings and garlic.  Serve right away.
Serves 4-6. 

Gambas

Here is my recipe for Gambas that I submitted to Mom Exchange :)

Gambas

Serves 2-3

Ingredients:

300g medium sugpo, shelled, then sliced in half (slice through the back of the shrimp, see inserted photo of raw prawns)

Half clove of garlic, roughly chopped, about 1 Tbsp.

Pinch of salt, pepper and paprika

3 Tbsp. water

1 Tbsp. sweet chilli sauce from bottle

 

Procedure:

Saute garlic in oil until aromatic but not brown.

Add in the prawns.

While moving the prawns around the pan, add the salt, pepper and paprika.  (Add more to taste.)  At this stage, the prawns would be changing color and curling up nicely!

Add the water without lowering the fire.  Scrape off the bottom of the pan using the water to moisten everything that’s stuck there- this is important because all the nice flavors are there!

Add the sweet, chilli sauce.  Again, add more to suit your taste.  The more you put, the spicier it will be!

Serve at once.

 

Tip:  You can go fancy with this dish by serving it on a sizzling plate.  But then again, who would keep a sizzling plate at home? J

 

Check out Mom Exchange!

Everyone, do check out Mom Exchange :)  Just click on the link in my Multiply site.  My recipe for Gambas is now posted there.  More recipes coming!   

Beef Gyudon

We've been having chicken for two days already and it's time to have a beef break!  I cooked this Gyudon for dinner, to Brandon's delight :) 
I got the recipe from Recipe Zaar web-site, that I tweaked a bit to our liking.  I used Australian Beef Tenderloin instead of the usual sirloin or sukiyaki cut for Gyudon.

Ingredients:
Approximately 500g of Australian Beef Tenderloin, cut into cubes
1 whole white onion, cut into big strips
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup mirin
1/4 cup Kikkoman soy sauce

Procedure:
Combine water, mirin and soy sauce in a sauce pot and let it boil.
Add the onions, and cook until half-cooked.
Add the beef and cook for about 3 minutes or until medium well.  (Overcooking your beef will make it tough, so be careful.)
Put on top of hot rice and serve to your hungry husband!!! Hahaha!
 

Prawn Pomodorro

I just love pasta.  Here's my recipe for pomodorro- this one's light yet flavorful.  The sauteed prawns are optional.

Ingredients:
Cooked pasta (I prefer Angel Hair)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Minced garlic, about 1 tablespoon, depending on the quantity of prawns
Sliced garlic, the more the better
Shelled and deveined prawns (Please leave the tails intact for presentation)
Chopped fresh, ripe tomatoes
Sliced olives or mushrooms (optional)
Del Monte Spaghetti Sauce, Italian Style
Freshly grated parmesan cheese
Paprika (optional)
Salt and pepper

Procedure:
Season prawns with salt, pepper and paprika.  In a large pan, add olive oil and saute prawns in minced garlic until pink and tender.  Do not overcook.  Remove prawns from pan and set aside.
Using the same pan, add lots of olive oil and saute garlic until aromatic.  (It's important that you add a big amount of olive oil, about a half cup, because the pasta should not be dry.)  Do not cook until brown so as not to make it bitter.  Add chopped tomatoes and saute until half-cooked only.  Tomatoes should remain firm.  Add olives.
Add the cooked pasta; toss it so as to be completely coated by the olive oil.  Add about 1/4 cup Del Monte Spaghetti sauce for a bit of color.  If the pasta appears dry at this point, you may add more olive oil or spaghetti sauce.
Lastly, add parmesan cheese and toss again until the cheese melts and disappears.
Put pasta in a big bowl and garnish with cooked prawns.  Enjoy!

Tip:  Store left-over pasta in a sealed bowl.  It actually tastes better the following day when the garlic becomes more flavorful.