Maja Blanca

A friend of mine came over for a cooking/baking session. We made Maja Blanca and Brownies (to follow). I got this recipe for the Maja from Rosemarie Lim's (demo) class on Native Kakanin. She's part owner of Caro and Marie, a well known school of cake decorating and culinary arts in Cebu.

On to the cooking!

We started with the Maja. My friend came with all the ingredients needed for the Maja and more. I was thinking it was high time for me to follow a recipe to the last dot. Or so I thought...

Maja Blanca




Mix together and bring to a boil:
3-1/2 coconut milk
3/4 to 1 c. sugar

Stir in: 3/4 c. cornstarch dissolved in 3/4 c. evaporated milk. Add in desired ingredient (flavor) and coloring and stir until the mixture is thick. Spread at once into a bilao. Top with latik. To make latik: put 1/2 c. grated coconut (sapal) with 1/4 c. sugar on a frying pan, cook over medium heat while stirring constantly until golden brown.

So much for following the recipe...We decided to double the recipe but since the coconut milk (canned) was not enough, I used fresh milk to make up the difference. My friend also brought along a jar of preserved langka, which she thought would make a good flavoring for the Maja. So I was thinking of two Majas with different flavors. When it was time for us to mix the flavoring ingredient, my friend thought it was too much trouble having to divide the Maja into two before adding the final ingredient and suggested to just add both! What a radical idea! hahaha

Finally, she won me over (didn't take long!).
And the result? Not bad, not bad at all!

Additional notes/comments:

Adjust amount of sugar according to the sweetness of the flavoring ingredient added. Flavoring ingredient is usually added at 1/2 c. per recipe (I forgot to adjust the sugar before adding the langka, hence the maja came out more on the sweet side).

I didn't use any coloring for this recipe, the cream-style corn (instead of kernel) plus the langka imparted this yellowish tinge, which I thought was just right.

Quantity of cornstarch may be increased up to 1 c. if a firmer and thicker maja is desired. Note that the cornstarch is added when the coconut milk is already boiling otherwise it will take a long time for the mixture to thicken.

Make sure that when using freshly grated coconut, there are no brown bits from the husk as this will affect the color of the maja.

Maja Blanca was originally made from fresh carabao's milk and was therefore very white.

Chinese Sausage with Basil

Chinese Sausage with Basil

Our neighbor came over with a bunch of fresh basil from her garden so don't be surprised when you see a lot of basil in my dishes these following days, starting with clams with basil, here's another one: Chinese Sausage with Basil. The Chinese sausage that I'm using here is made from pork (with a good amount of fat in it) and the texture is something similar to longganiza as opposed to the dried Chinese sausage that we commonly have in the Philippines.

To cook the sausage, I first boiled it. My sister-in-law once told me to fry it whole then slice into serving pieces but I prefer the insides to be browned as well. So after boiling, slice the sausage it into serving portions (about half an inch long). Heat wok, saute garlic in olive oil until fragrant, then add the sausage, and stir-fry until browned, the basil is added last. Dish out at once and serve.

Chunky Beef Spaghetti

Chunky Beef Spaghetti

I actually cooked this last week (or the other?) but didn't have time to post it. My son "ordered" spaghetti for lunch. A friend of mine came over that morning to confer with me on a project for the Women's Club here, so I didn't have much time to prepare for lunch. I didn't have any ground beef but I still had some of that beef shank which I had already simmered so that's how I came up wth this recipe.

Here's how I did it:


Heat wok, saute garlic, onions and tomatoes in olive oil. Add mushrooms, and stir-fry for a few minutes (you can add a little bit of butter in sauteing canned mushrooms, I think that gives it a special flavor) Add beef (shank plus a little bit of tendon). Then I added tomato ketchup and tomato juice with a little bit of beef broth. Tomato sauce is not available here, what they do have is spaghetti sauce which I didn't have naman, so lucky for me that I still had some tomato juice (my husband's favorite!). I added a bit of sugar for that special Filipino touch. Simmer. Top over pasta and serve.

Wonton Noodle Soup

Wonton noodle soup

I was in a rush! Picked up my kids from somewhere, drove my mother-in-law to the bank and did some grocery shopping somewhere in between. We got home at 6:30 pm and everybody was hungry so I got out some giant wontons, meat balls, instant noodles (chicken flavor) and put together this meal-in-a-minute (or two). Topped it with blanched camote tops, fried scallion and shredded pickled vegetable. Voila!

Stir-fried Clams with Basil

My mother-in-law taught me how to cook this dish. My husband and daughter both love seafood, and this dish is a particular favorite. On cleaning the clams, rinse with cold water and brush shells to remove dirt. Soak in salt water for a few minutes.

Cooking this dish is really very simple, just heat the wok, saute garlic and ginger. Drop in the clams, cover for a few minutes. The clams are done when the shells have opened. Drop in fresh basil leaves. I usually dish out those with opened shells first to pervent the clam meat from getting overcooked as this can get tough. A frined of mine cooks this dish with wine and a litlle soy sauce. You can also add chilli peppers for a spicy twist.

Stir-fried Asparagus with Mushrooms

I served this veggie dish with the Beef Mechado. Since my mother-in-law is not particularly fond of beef/meat, I would usually prepare a vegetable dish for her and (hopefully) for the kids as well. Most of the time I would just stir-fry whatever vegetable is available, paying attention to color (usually 3 ) and flavor ( should be complementary).

Anyway, here's how to cook this dish:

Heat wok. Saute garlic and onions in olive oil until fragrant. Add red bell peppers and asparagus cut in 2 inch pieces. Add a little hot water or broth and season with maggi(tm) seasoning, salt and pepper. You may add a little soy sauce or any favorite seasoning/sauce. Simmer for a few minutes. Add mushrooms last. Here I used two kinds of mushrooms, fresh shiitake and straw mushrooms ( you can also use any other desired vegetable). Dish out and serve at once.

My kids didn't like it and I'm not even surprised :=(

Beef Mechado

Beef mechado is a recipe that calls for beef with carrots, potatoes and tomato sauce. This recipe is adapted from beef mechado. I know it's a far cry from the original recipe with the conspicuous absence of potatoes and tomato sauce, which can be rarely found at grocery stores here anyway. But for lack of a better word, the name will stay, for now, that is.

I'm using the same beef shank and tendon which I have simmered (was that a week ago?). But don't worry, I cooked this dish days ago but just couldn't find the time to post.

Anyway, on to the cooking...

Heat wok, saute garlic, onions and red bell peppers. This is like my father's trademark. Almost always, he would saute garlic, onion and tomato at the start of his cooking (even in cooking beef nilaga) and this really brings out the aroma and taste of the garlic and onion.

Since my beef has already been simmered, I added the carrots at this point. Then the beef and a little of the beef stock. There was no need for any thickening agent (cornstarch) since the broth was actually thick enough. Season with salt and pepper, maggi(tm) liquid seasoning. And we're done!

You can actually season this dish with anything you want. You can also add tomato sauce, and a dash of italian seasoning or even add curry and coconut milk to make this beef curry. Scrap the carrots and add more onions then you have bistek. There are so many ways to work with beef, huh?!!

my husband and son loved it! but my daughter (the finicky eater), didn't so I guess this time I would qualify this dish as a partial hit! that's not cheating, or is it?

All About Sushi

California Roll is actually sushi with cucumber, crab (imitation crab will do) and avocado or mango slices for filling. My family loves sushi very much that a week seldom passes by without having it either at home or at our favorite sushi bar. I'm not an expert in making sushi, in fact, this is something I have learned by myself through trial and error and by surfing the internet for tips and how-to's.

First off, is to make the sushi rice. Short grain rice is recommended. There are a lot of recipes for sushi rice which I'm sure will work just fine, but what is important is that you find one that works for you. Check it out first to see if it is up to your taste, add more sushi vinegar if needed.

To cook rice, rinse first in cold water. Others recommend draining the rice on a colander and setting it aside for 30 mins to 1 hr, but for me I just add water (1:1 ratio) and cook it in my rice cooker right away. When the rice is done, transfer to a wooden bowl (or glass) then add the sushi vinegar working quickly and gently with blending/folding strokes, taking care not to mash the rice.Use a fan to cool the rice quickly and prevent it from absorbing too much moisture. Make sure that you have enough rice though, (a cup of rice would make roughly one roll of sushi) so you won't have leftovers as sushi rice tends to harden if refrigerated. Now we're done with the rice, let's roll on...

Rolling the sushi...

1. Take out your mat, place one sheet of nori (others recommend using half a sheet but when I tried this, the sushi did not close right, I guess I'm still at the beginner's stage huh?maybe next time!). If nori is not available, try using plastic wrap. This might be a little tricky since sushi rice won't stick to the plastic wrap as much as it does to nori. It is also a good idea to use a plastic wrap under the nori since rice has a nasty way to getting off the nori and onto the mat.

2. Spread sushi rice on top of nori (how much? that would depend on how thick you'd want your roll to be). Using your thumb, create a groove on the rice. This is where you put your filling, starting with mayonnaise , mango and the crab or whatever else you want to put inside your sushi roll, it's your call! I started with mango and crab but when I ran out of the crab, I substituted it with yu-ho which is dried fish flakes something like ba-ho (dried pork flakes sold in Chinese stores) BTW, it is also a good idea to wet your hands with vinegar to allow easier handling of the rice.

3. Slowly fold the mat over (away from you), hold the end of the nori (nearest you) and tuck that end of the nori to start a roll. Lift up the mat and plastic wrap and tuck as you go.Until you reach the other side of the mat, end with the seam down, you might want to dab a little bit of mayonnaise to seal it.

4. Finally take the roll out of the mat and slice it into desired thickness. You might want to dip your knife in water to prevent rice from sticking to it. You can also slice the sushi at an angle on one end for a different style. After all, a sushi can be a beautiful work of art too!

Enjoy!

the verdict? always a HIT!!!



special thanks to sassy for the lesson on links....

Beef Noodle Soup

Beef Noodle Soup

Beef Noodle Soup 牛肉麵 (niu-rou mian)is an all-time Taiwanese favorite, more so during the winter. Slices of tender beef shank and tendon with flat noodles served as a dish or with soup......

Noodles used can vary from thin or big flat noodles; dried or fresh. There is also the special fresh la-mian 拉麵 or pulled noodles, which can be machine made or 手工 (shou-gong), that is, handmade noodles. Most Taiwanese prefer the hand-pulled noodles.

Shandong da mian

cook noodles like pasta

arrange on a bowl

In this recipe, I used flat noodles (dried). As the name on the wrapper implies, the noodle is of the 山東大麵 Shandong da(big) mian(noodles) variety. Now, I am not an expert in noodles according to various regional areas in mainland China, but I guess Shandong is popular for their flat noodles hence the name. Anyway, in cooking (dried) noodles, it's pretty much like cooking pasta. Let water boil, add oil and salt, drop in the noodles, cook it to al dente, drain and rinse. Place noodles in a bowl. Set aside.Then on to making the soup...

beef & spice bags

inside the spice bag

mga sangkap

For this recipe, I used beef tendon and shanks. These beef cuts can be quite tough and thus needed to be simmered until tender. I don't have a crockpot nor do I have any pressure cooker, so on the whole it took me more than 4 hours to get it tender to my satisfaction (I wanted it to be extra tender because of the kids, especially my 3 yr old, otherwise you probably wouldn't want it too tender).

simmer till tender

reduce stock

add veggies

So here's how I did it:

I boiled the meat, discarded the first boil, boiled it again but this time simmered (low heat) it until tender (more than 4 hrs). Since my husband bought about 2 kilos of shank and 5 pcs of tendon, I decided to just boil everything together to conserve gas and time.

Meanwhile prepare ingredients for your soup. You can choose any veggie available, slice it to desired size (or shape for that matter). You can cube it, julienne it, slice it thin or in chunks you're on your own here. Anyway, for my recipe, I used onions, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, straw mushrooms, bean sprouts (I think you should skip this though), and bokchoy. You can also use celery, ginger, much like the beef nilaga that we have back home. For topping , I used cilantro and fried minced shallots.

Anyway, to get back to the cooking, I got another pot and placed some of tender beef slices I simmered, (how many?that would have to depend on how many are eating) from my wok and added beef stock. Since the stock was already flavored (used spice bags remember?) I just added a bit of the ever-dependable patis (fish sauce) and ground pepper ( no salt was added as the patis was salty enough) to taste.

Got it rock boiling then dropped in all the other ingredients. Now here's the trick. Drop in ingredients according to the time it needs for that particular ingredient to be cooked. Carrots for example, if sliced in big chunks needs longer cooking time, so I'd put it in first. Mushrooms cook real fast so you'll have to add it last. I think you get the point. Oh and don't forget that stone! (clueless?)

When you're all done, pour it over noodles, top with cilantro and minced shallots. and we're done!

the verdict? definitely a hit!!!

Stir-fried Camote tops

My mother-in-law picked some camote tops from her garden, so this came as a side dish to the Beef Ribs in A1 sauce.

How To:

Heat wok, add olive oil. Stir fry minced garlic. Add camote tops. Stir fry and do not cover. Takes about 2 mins or less. Do not overcook. Dish out and serve at once

Beef Short Ribs in A1 Sauce

Beef Short Ribs in A1 Sauce

My husband loves beef so much any way I cook it. Since beef cannot be usually found at our local market, whenever he gets the chance to drop by our suking beef vendor in Changhua City (about 15 mins away from our place)he would buy a lot! And yesterday, he did!

So I wouldn't be surprised if the succeeding posts here will be more on beef recipes...

Anyway, I started it last night with Beef Short Ribs. Most of the time, I just marinate the beef with soy sauce (we use low-sodium), pepper, worcestershire sauce and maggi(tm) savor. This time, however, I used Lee Kum Kee(tm)oyster sauce, soy sauce and pepper, but no salt since I didn't want the dish to get too salty 'coz I'll be adding on more sauce towards the end of the cooking. Why oyster sauce? Mostly because I ran out of my usual pang marinate and all I had was oyster sauce...so I thought I'd give it a swirl or two...

So here's how it went...

Heated my wok til it was smokin'hot...




...then dropped (gently!) rather, more like arrange the beef ribs on the wok.


Turn over to brown the other side.


Just before dishing it out, pour in desired amount of A1(tm) steak sauce on top



Mix well, dish out and serve at once while piping hot.

Note to myself: The disadvantage of using a wok in frying beef is that the juice tends to accumulate on the bottom of the wok, thus lengthening the browning time. So I had to let the wok heat up really hot!

Welcome to my Kitchen

I 've been cooking for almost half of my life. My father first taught me to cook. He didn't (still doesn't) use cookbooks, he plays it by taste and scent. Yes, by scent! With this kind of initiation into cooking I guess it is of little wonder then, that although I have quite a collection of cookbooks, I don't follow a recipe to the last pinch!

I improvise (in case some ingredients are unavailable) or adapt the recipe to my or my family's discerning(?!) tastes. Settling down in Taiwan has also provided me with more experience in working the wok! As a homemaker, I cook two meals a day. Although I have to admit I consider it a chore on some days but most of the time, I find it a challenge to satisfy my children's discriminatory taste buds!

I will be posting some recipes which have been tried and tested (hits!) through the years. This way, friends and family who ask for my recipes can have this resource readily available to them ( and to you too!) I will also be posting some new recipes which I am still working on, fine tuning the taste or whatever...this will probably where we'll see more misses than hits!

Either way, I welcome you to share this experience with me! Your comments or suggestions are most welcome and can even help tip the balance towards more hits (or more misses? nah)!!!

You may also notice that most of my recipes (except baking which require exact measurements) do not contain exact, measured ingredients (I will provide estimates), so you are free to do a little experimenting on the side to make this dish uniquely your own!