Squash Lumpia

During squash season in the Philippines, farmers find it difficult what to do with their extra squash. If they dump their extra squash in the market, it would terribly lower the price. Many farmers would just leave the squash to rot in the gardens. Well, here's one recipe idea to try in your kichen, squash lumpia:

Ingredients:
2 cups squash, grated
2 tbsp kinchay, chopped
lumpia wrapper
salt to taste
msg (optional)
cornstarch paste

Lemon sauce:
3 tbsp calamansi juice
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/3 cup sugar
1 piece siling labuyo, crushed
1 drop yellow food color (or atchuete extract)

Mix together squash, kinchay in a bowl, season with salt, msg and mix well. Put a tablespoon of mixture in lumpia wrapper and roll. Seal edges with cornstarch paste. Fry until golden brown. Serve with lemon sauce or catsup.

To prepare the lemon sauce: Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and cook until thick

Banana Flan

It has been a long weekend. So many chores to do until I stumbled upon a plastic bag containing bits and pieces of papers with recipes scribbled on it. I cannot remember where I copied this. Well, this is just one of them... one of my favorite dessert recipe. I did this last Christmas and my kiddos love it. This is the banana version of mango float. Mango is a seasonal fruit while bananas are always available in the market (in tropical countries like the Philippines) and much cheaper than mangoes. Well here it is........The Banana Flan! Tsong! (photo coming up)

1 tbsp butter
32 pcs butter cookies or Graham crackers (you can actually use slice bread, other types of crackers or cookies)
2 tbsp unflavored gelatin, softened in
1/2 cup water
1-1/4 cups condensed milk
2 cups water
2 eggs, well beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
6 banana lacatan, sliced thinly diagonnaly

Grease 9"x9" ovenproof dish with butter. Lay half of the butter cookies or graham crackers at the bottom of the pan. Set aside. In a saucepan, dissolve gelatin with milk, water and eggs. Put over medium heat,stirring constantly until mixture thickens. Add vanilla extract. Pour half flan mixture over cookies. Let cool till half set. Layer up the bananas on top of the cookies of graham crackers. Press them lightly onto the flan. Chill and serve. Mmmmmwah!

Peanut butter

2 kilos roasted peanuts
1/2 kilo refined sugar
1 kilo cooking oil

combined and pass through a grinder (or blender) a number of times depending on the smoothness you desire. For crunchy peanut butter, set aside some roasted peanuts, crush and mix well with peanut butter.

This is the basic ingredients and instruction. From my own experience, peanut butter taste better if you add a pinch of salt before grinding.

Meal planning

Pointers to ensure meal-planning success

1. Avoid preparing foods of the same food group in one meal, such as starches - pancit, spaghetti and rice; or proteins - beans, pork, beef, chicken.

2. Have a good balance between soft and solid foods. A meal of arroz caldo, ginataang camote, and macaroni soup is far too soft. Likewise a meal of fried fish, pancit bihon and cuchinta is intolerably dry.

3. Avoid preparing highly seasoned foods at one meal. Seasonings should be used sparingly.

4. Serve only a few varieties of food at one meal. Two or three kinds is enough.

5. Consider the cost of the food. Food not in season is always more expensive. There is enough variety among the inexpensive ones.

6. Observe food color harmony as much as possible.

7. Plan for a substantial breakfast. A good diet for the day begins with a good breakfast. The body is in greater need of food then than at any other time. If one is not hungry at breakfast, the cause should be sought out and corrected.

8. Supper should consist of the simplest meal of the day. If a hearty meal is planned, it should be served as early as possible.

Pancit canton

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Ingredients:
1/4 kilo chicken (or pork)cubes
1/2 cup chicken (or pork) liver, cut in strips
1/2 cup shrimp, shelled.
1/2 cup shrimp extract
2 Tbsp cooking oil
1 small piece carrot, sliced
10 pcs. Baguio beans, sliced diagonally
3/4 cup sayote, cut into strips
1 cup cabbage, strips
2 cups water
200 grams canton noodles
2 Tbsp kinchay, coarsely chopped
1-2 Tbsp cornstarch, dissolve in 1 Tbsp water (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

For the shrimp extract: remove shrimp heads and mash using mortar and pestle until well shredded. add some water and strain. save the water for broth.

In a hot oil stir-fry carrots, baguio beans, sayote and cabbage. remove from hear and set aside.

On the same pan, sautee chicken, liver and shrimp. Add shrimp broth and water. Let it boil. Add a pinch of salt to taste (be careful canton noodles are already salty) and pepper. Add stir-fried vegetables and kinchay. Mix well. Thicken with cornstarch if desired. Serve hot with sliced calamansi.

Egg sarciado

Egg sarciado (Saucy egg?). Whatever its English name, that’s it. It taste good if paired with prito nga uga (fried dried fish) especially uga nga sapsap or pinakas. Sapsap is a flat roundish fish about 3” diameter, silvery in color, I dunno it’s English name. Pinakas is some kind of tuna fish cut half across from the backbone to its belly. [read more...]

Lapú or Laswa

Lapú (with stress at the last syllable), or linapwahan or laswa is vegetable stew.  There are numerous versions of linapwahan, depending on your preference. Here’s the basic recipe:

Boil 1 cup of water with sliced onions (bombay) and some dilis (dried anchovies). Add sliced squash, cover and simmer for a minute. Then add string beans (cut to 2 inches long) and crushed garlic, cover and simmer for another minute. Then add tagabang  [read more...]