funny side up

"Pansit for loooooong life!" is how we say it in my country, drawing a parallelism to the length of the noodle to the length of one's life. 😎 Pansit or pancit means noodles. The origin of noodles in Filipino cuisine can be traced back to the era in Philippine history when the early Chinese migrants, traded and then settled in the archipelago.   According to Wiki, the word pansit is derived from the Hokkien word "pian i sit" meaning convenient food, attributing to the ease and speed of preparing this dish. Since its introduction, noodles has been adopted and has evolved into its many variations islands-wide that are a staple today. As such, growing up, pansit was part of my family's tradition, as is typical in most Filipino homes. It is a regular in the family's menu. And how can a fiesta, party or special get-together be ever complete without it? It is just one of those dishes that someone in the family or clan prepares for sharing. Pansit canton...

There is the dilemma that some of us ask at some point in our life.... which came first, salted egg or chicken? ۟🐔 Harhar.  (But carryin' on... 😁) I will say they both came at the same time exquisitely! Here in merlion city, almost every type of food has got a salted egg version of it. No kidding! There's salted egg burger, salted egg prawns, salted egg pasta and even salted egg pastry. The latest fad, it seems, is the salted egg potato chips. I wonder what salted-egg-ish concoction will come up next! Despite the hype for some other salted-egg-ed things, this chicken recipe is more of a classic Singaporean dish. It is very tasty and, happily I learned, quite simple to make too. For this delicious food, i will gladly point you to Meatmen.sg's video recipe. I'm a huge fan. If you aren't yet, let me just tell you that their take on this is  e a s y  to follow. Their video is a feast for the eyes, the music will pump up your energy in the kitchen. 👍👍 ❣By t...

If I've not mentioned it already, my little family is in love with chicken  🐔  eggs. 😍 We do not have the  e99y as our beloved padre de pamilya for no reason at all.  Omelette, sunny side up, egg sandwich, deviled eggs, scotch eggs, adobo eggs, salted eggs, egg soup, oh the list does go on!  Another of our favorite take is steamed Eggy Pie . Much-loved by my brood, this one is perfect for merienda in school and at work or right in the comfort of home.  Dessert? Easily so! Simple and delicious, this is also a no-bake recipe. Instead of oven, only a steamer  is needed. And THAT makes it an absolute keeper in my recipe list!  😎 Steamed Eggy Pie Serving size: 8-inch pan 1+1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup cold butter 2 tbsp sugar 3 large eggs 1 cup evaporated milk 3/4 cup condensed milk Vanilla essence Prepare the crust: 1. Mash and mix the dry ingredients below.     1 +  1/2 cup all-purpose flour   ...

What's not to like with pesto? I say, "None!" I am certain there will be some of you with a ready answer.  And to that I say, "To each his own, my friend." :-) I am so thankful for my precious big sister who introduced me to this heavenly Italian sauce. She has lived in Italy for so many years, and when she came home for a vacation, she had brought so much Italian food to take our brood on an Italian gastronomic tour! I have to admit, i did meet my first green mix with a wary eye. I remember I gave a tentative taste to my very 1st  pasta la pesto, which   my sister had excitedly prepared for the family.  At that moment, my brain, together with all my tasting senses -- tongue, eyes and nose, reconciled to one wonderful fact -- what a pleasing pleasing pleasing thing this is indeed! From then on, i have tried many a jar from many brands.  Consistently, I have never been disappointed. Very recently, I made a batch from scratch, but with a spin. It was ...

Are you one of those who just cannot get enough of food of the purple hue? Grapes , yam , blueberries , eggplants and that red cabbage . Traditional Filipino snack recipes like Halaya and Sapin-Sapin .  Even Ube Ice Cream ! Refreshing Berry smoothie  and Grape juice slush ! The list can go on! I surely have a penchant for such.   To me, any dish with this bright shade never fails to turn up a notch in my yummy chart. 📈 So, sharing with you this colorful dish that my family gobbled up a few suppers ago. Hope you give it a try,  tweak here and there to your taste and let me know how your version goes! RECIPE:    Purple Omelette ☙ 2 tablespoons olive oil                                 ☙  1/2 onion minced                   ☙  1 russet potato, diced            ...

I n my little kitchen world, I dare say, SPAM is the next best thing that came "out" of World War 2.   Next, of course, and not saying this lightly or dismissively, but just in totality to what happened then, to the triumph of good over evil of that time. T astes differ, but personally, I like the taste of SPAM.  In this health-conscious generation, need I say that it is not organic?  Definitely lots of preservatives there.  But my oh my, what do i not like about that salty goodness? :)   And I am sure I have kindred palates out there. :)    I have fond childhood memories of my mom serving fried SPAM to our family.  It will be a rare occasion (as SPAM was very expensive then in the Philippines) and we are quite a large brood.  I remember while my Dad or Mom was saying grace, I would be peeping out to that plateful of SPAM on the table, getting ready to grab a slice or two right after the "Amen!". :)  I am pretty sure my sis...

E ggs are a staple in my pantry, and a favorite in my family.  My hubby, the padre de pamilya , isn't "E99y" (read: "eggy") for no reason.:-)  I know there must be hundreds of ways to serve eggs but I am always on the lookout for those simple recipes that still deliver a great punch!  So when a friend posted this on her Facebook timeline, I just had to try it!   Simple things are really the best, eh?   Easy to make, pretty to look at, and because it's tasty, it's pretty easy to gobble up too! ;-p    I wonder how I never thought of doing eggs this way!   I say, "Great job!" to whoever came up w/ this idea first.  I could just imagine him to be one artsy person, wouldn't you? S o without further ado, here's one pretty meal our family had a few weeks ago...       Bellpepper flower eggs       ingredients:             olive oil             bellpep...

L ately, my tastebuds are tickled with thoughts of tasty pork bits cupped in soft,yet firm white lotus buns and drizzled w/ rich brown satay sauce.   mmmm.   though i know of some Filipino recipes that use peanut sauce, like Kare-Kare (oh my, i should try that sometime too!), but what i am craving for now is that distinct taste of Thai pork bbq in satay.   And i've always loved pao... when i eat one, it feels like im transported to some place sunny, warm & happy.   H ey brain o' mine, this is some curious combo.. and y'know what?   the mix of flavors & textures may come out just right! S o to indulge...  i checked if i had pao in the freezer.  check.   i went to trusty google for an easy peanut sauce recipe that works.  check. and then, i racked my imagination & my food memories, for the pork filling.  check. ... A nd here's how it came out.   it was definitely good eats for family dinner :-).    ...

i & our achi are having a bout of colds & flu.  she got hers from school, i think.  and i got mine from hers, from the all-nighters i had taking care of her the 1st few days onset.    but by God's grace, we are better, it's just a matter of time :-).  our shobe is just like her papa, healthy as a horse, (er maybe pony would suit her better), and still all by God's grace! :-)    s o anyway, i just had to cook some soup for us.. something easy to swallow w/ our sensitive throats, not oily, and with a chock-full of vitamins to help our bodies in this battle with the virus.  to me,  tinolang isda (translation: fish) is just the right answer! t he last time i cooked tinolang isda was in Cebu 7-ish months ago.   when I and my family got here, i was hesitant to cook the same, because i was not familiar with the fresh fish in this region.  Always, all i end up buying at the grocery is the same packed frozen suchi fish.. and i h...

o h no...i got the overripe bananas situation!  i remembered i still have them, but too late!  they're now brownish and eeeky soft.  still, i dont want to just throw these away.   b anana cake sounds good, but i don't have an oven. got to think half-full...  what is my alternative?    could it be....my trustworthy microwave? <googling....> a ha!  here's one interesting recipe that just might be the solution. thanks to Avery at Avery Cooks for this recipe (refer to link below).   <cooking...> i tweaked a bit coz i wasn't sure of the banana size...  & i didn't have cinnamon on hand, as well as non-stick oil spray..  Didn't put Peanut butter toppings too.  And I nuked for an additional 30secs.                             Microwaved Banana Oats Cakes       1 banana, mashed       6 tbsp quick-cook oa...