Home-cooked Adobo and Other Things

Steve made chicken adobo for the first time last night and I was really impressed with how good it turned out to be. I've been bugging him to cook some Filipino dishes and so he finally relented. We decided to use a recipe in an Asian cookbook that my cousin had given to us as a wedding gift. I told him I wanted to see if the recipe was any good so that way we know if the cookbook is any good. I told him that if it turned out to be a disaster, we can always use my mom's recipe next time we make it.

I was curious if it was going to taste differently since we used a different brand of vinegar and soy sauce (I'm used to Datu Puti and Silver Swan - lol). We also decided to use only ground pepper instead peppercorns (I dont' really know if that was going to make a difference - as you can probably tell, I can't cook so everything is foreign to me). But alas, it tasted just as good. Steve liked it a lot and he kept saying it was super tasty. I think we will add it to our weeknight dinner rotation.

I should have taken a picture of it but I forgot! It would have been nice to post the end product.

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While listening to my iPod, Lea Salonga's song, "Two Words" came on and I can't help but reminisce about the time we were planning our wedding. I considered walking down the aisle to it at one point. I just love the lyrics and how well she sings it.

In a while, in a word,
Every moment now returns.
For a while, seen or heard,
How each memory softly burns.
Facing you who brings me new tomorrows,
I thank God for yesterdays,
How they led me to this very hour,
How they led me to this place...

Every touch, every smile,
You have given me in care.
Keep in heart, always I'll,
Now be treasuring everywhere.
And if life should come to just one question,
Do I hold this moment true?
No trace of sadness,
Always with gladness...
'I DO...'

Now a song that speaks of now and ever,
Beckons me to someone new,
Unexpected, unexplored, unseen,
Filled with promise coming through.

In a while, in a word,
You and I forever change,
Love so clear, never blurred,
Has me feeling wondrous, strange,
And if life should come to just one question,
Do I face each moment true?
No trace of sadness, always with gladness,
'I DO...'

Never with sadness...
Always with gladness...
'I...DO....'

I eventually decided to walk down the aisle to Pachelbel's Canon in D because I felt it was more appropriate for our setting.

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I miss watching music videos. Yesterday morning I heard on the radio that MTV will no longer be called Music Television and it will just be known as simply MTV. They said that it probably meant that MTV will no longer be playing music videos and will instead stick to their other programs and reality shows. That SUCKS! I don't know how others feel about this but I, for one, will be sad. When I was still living in the Philippines, I remember watching music videos all the time! Now we'll have to rely mostly on YouTube.

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I love love love watching Modern Family. OMG it's hilarious! I know some people will disagree with me on this but I actually like it more than the Office (please don't hit me! lol). I don't know, maybe I just haven't watched enough episodes of the Office to really like it? It's not to say I hate the Office... Basta, I like Modern Family more.

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I realize that having a shopping budget prevents me from buying impulsively. Now, before I buy something, I really think about it. I consider how much the item is, if I really need/want it or if I can do without it. Knowing that I only have so much money to spend, I hesitate on spending it right away. Ngayon, if I see something I like in a store, I look around other stores first and if at the end of the day I still want it, then I come back for it. That's how I know I really want it. But if after walking around for a bit, I forget about the item, then that means I didn't really want it that bad. I figured, if it wasn't memorable to begin with, then it's probably not worth spending the money on it.

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It's so nice and sunny outside! Although it's still very cold, it's nice to atleast be able to look out the window and get some sunshine. The last thing we need during the winter months is really cloudy weather. It just makes everyone feel gloomy.

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I borrowed the Wii from my family and I am considering using the Wii Fit again. It's been a really long time since I last used it. I bet when I turn it on, it's going to scold me and tell me I've been very lazy. Better late than never, right?

Yummy!

My co-worker has an entire jar of pistachios on his desk and man, they’re so addictive! I always find myself gravitating towards that dumb jar. They’re just soooo good! But really salty too which is why I am trying to stop myself from devouring too much of it. I have a bag of frosted flakes hidden in one of my drawers which I snack on every now and then. I don’t like eating my cereal with milk so I eat cereal the way I eat potato chips. Since the pistachios are so salty, I usually follow it with my frosted flakes and because it’s sweet, I end up getting really thirsty so I’ll drink several glasses of water through the course of the day and in turn end up having to go to the washroom so often. So there... there’s the vicious cycle that’s been going on at work. By the end of the day, I’m all snacked out that I’ve lost my appetite for a proper meal.

I ate THE perfect mango last night for dessert. Steve had come home from playing basketball with his friends and I was watching the finale of The Bachelorette (I’m disappointed she didn’t pick Kiptyn by the way!) and he peeled and sliced a mango for me. It was soooo good! Just the right amount of sweetness and firmness. It kinda reminds me of an Indian Mango common in the Philippines and it tasted just like the Indian Mangoes that grew in our backyard when we still lived there. I kept telling him over and over again how delicious it was and he kept telling me he doesn’t like mangoes because to him, it tastes like soap. Don’t ask me why because I don’t understand how it could possibly taste like soap. Weird! If I had bagoong (shrimp paste), it would have been heaven. Yum yum!

Another co-worker told me that there's a Bario Fiesta here in Toronto too. I just don't know if it's the same as the one in the Philippines or not. But she said they have halo-halo there so I think I'm going to check it out. Steve always asks me what halo-halo means in english and I tell him it literally translates to mix-mix. Hahahaha! He doesn't really like any of the Filipino desserts. But I think it's just a matter of him trying as much as he can until he finds one he actually loves.

All this talk of food is giving me some massive cravings. I want to go on a food trip!

Frosted Flakes and Fairy Dust

So I finally decided to make some minor changes to my page layout. I call it “minor” because I basically re-used one of my former templates and tweaked it to make the design a bit better (I hope!). It didn’t take me a long time (surprisingly!) since I was able to find the things I needed quite easily. I know, the colors are somewhat “childish” – light blues, pinks and greens – but it’s easy on the eyes so I figured why not?

To the people that developed Adobe Photoshop, a BIG THANK YOU!! I love it more each time I use it. I always learn something new.

Looks like there won’t be any furniture shopping this weekend... BOO! We’re extremely busy so I don’t think we’ll have time to look around. Le sigh...

We have to go somewhere tonight for dinner and it doesn’t look like we’ll be able to go home early. That means we also won’t be able to go to bed early. Which means that we’ll be up early tomorrow and I’ll be bobbing for apples by mid-day. Yeesh. I just hope nobody notices... I think I’ll have to buy me some gum. Actually, maybe I’ll buy me plenty o’ gum.

When we went grocery shopping two weeks ago, I bought a big box of Frosted Flakes. Steve kept asking me if I’d be able to finish it since it doesn’t look like anyone else will be eating it but me. He kept reminding me that it would be a waste of money for me to buy an entire box and not eat it (I suddenly felt like a five-year old again). I told him I honestly don’t know if I’m going to be able to finish the box but I love Frosted Flakes so I don’t think I’ll have a problem eating plenty of it. He says he doesn’t understand how I can eat cereal without milk. I told him milk ruins it. I love my cereal plain. Like eating a bag of potato chips except they’re not made of potatoes and they’re sweet. I’ve been eating it little by little and the box is now half-empty. Hey maybe I will be able to finish it after all!

Oh and by the way, I didn’t necessarily find a “creativity” store. But I did borrow some fairy dust from a pixie this morning. Hopefully it's working!

Johnny Rockets!

On Saturday, while the family and I were downtown, we decided to eat at this new place that opened along Dundas and Yonge called Johnny Rockets. According to Steve, they’re a chain and quite popular in the States but I’ve never been in any of them. I’m not too crazy about burgers but since my dad really wanted to try it, I gave in.

As soon as we entered the place, I was instantly amused. It was classic! I loved the Juke Box, the old Soda machine, old-style Coke glasses, stainless counters and old-style diner decor. The servers were super friendly and they even did a dance number when the Donna Summer’s Last Dance came on the Juke Box! It was soooo CUTE!

Anyhow, here are some of the photos I took of the place... my apologies if they’re a bit fuzzy since I only used my phone camera to take these...

My brother holding the menu

A view of the restaurant and that's our server (her name's Lola) walking away from us

Little Juke Box on our table (there's a bigger one that actually plays music)

Old-style Coke glasses!

Stainless counters

Sweets

The culprit: a pack of gummy watermelon candies.


A co-worker bought a bag of these yesterday and gave me a few in a small plastic bag. I haven’t been able to stop myself from devouring them and it is making my teeth hurt. Steve has taken and hidden them away from me just so I would finally stop eating. Of course, it doesn’t help that I know exactly where he hid them. This morning, I went to his desk, opened the first drawer and there they were – yummy, gummy watermelon candies.

I was able to eat two of them before Steve caught me. He once again sternly reminded me that I shouldn’t eat them because they’re not good for me. He’s actually threatened to throw them out. I’m just surprised he hasn’t done it yet... I have seen him throw out an entire plastic container half-filled with sour keys so if he says he’ll throw them out, I believe him. Maybe he’s worried I will get upset? Possible. I do get pretty cranky when something I love gets wasted. Particularly food that I like.

I love gummy candies. I never feel good after but I eat them anyway. I used to be able to eat a lot of candy and be fine afterwards. Now, if I consume an entire bag, I get sick. I remember watching Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when I was a kid and envying the kids in the movie who got to go inside the big candy factory. I watched the remake of that film a few years ago... the one starring Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka and I did not envy the kids at all. Just thinking of all that sugar makes me feel a bit nauseous. Last night while watching Jeopardy, a TV commercial for Werthers came on where it showed this little girl going into a Werthers shop and they were showing different kinds of Werthers candy (soft, chewy and hard) and of course caramel dripping slowly into a container. Steve said he’d love to be in that Werthers shop tasting all those delicious caramel candy. I couldn’t help but laugh because he keeps reprimanding me for eating sweets and yet he eats more chocolate and caramel than anyone I know! I’ve actually witnessed him eat more than 5 mini chocolate bars in a row! I can only eat one of those and I’m good. I find them too sweet. I love Maltesers though... I can finish an entire pack in one sitting.

I’m trying to think which brand of candy/chocolate I like the most but I can’t think of any one brand in particular. I used to be a really HUGE fan of Twix but now I’m not as fond of caramel anymore. I guess our taste when it comes to candy/chocolate changes with us as we grow older.

Sarap.

I’m currently at work and I can smell food being cooked… weird but it smells like sisig. I know it’s very unlikely and almost impossible but that’s what it smells like. I just had waffles for breakfast but the smell of sisig is so enticing right now that it is making me feel hungry. I haven’t had sisig for the longest time and I remember my college days having lunch at Almer’s or Wok With Me. I heard they’re both out-of-business already which I found quite puzzling as they were always so crowded whenever we went there. I always thought they’d be around for a really long time. They had the best sisig I have ever tasted. Haaay… I really miss it.

There is a Filipino Restaurant here called Jesse Jr. where we sometimes go to. They have good food, fairly affordable and they have that Filipino vibe. I took Steve with me there once and whenever he tells someone else about it, he always mentions how weird it is that the place had that cafeteria style setting with chairs designed to face a big plasma TV showing Filipino variety shows. He said every person eating there was facing the TV. I told him it is most likely because they miss the Philippines and you just have to admit that a big plasma showing Willy lip synching and dancing is just so hard to ignore (Hahahahaha!). He said the variety shows we have in the Phillipines are somewhat similar to Greek shows. I am not sure what that means but I am guessing that he probably means a lot of dancing and some really corny stuff. Wehehehe.

I tried the sisig at Jesse Jr. and although it is okay, it’s not better than that of Almer’s or Wok With Me. Mahirap kapag nakatikim ka na ng talagang masarap..everything you try after just seems mediocre. I love Jesse Jr. still though because they have really good food and I can even buy Filipino snacks and desserts like leche flan and sansrival. Our local Filipino food heaven.

Labsyu Cheesecake!

I’m such a sucker for CHEESECAKE.

My favorite is one with strawberries on top. SARAP to the max!

I had just finished gobbling down the last few slices of my leftover cheesecake from the other day and I loved every slice. Yes, every teenee, tiny, little piece of it. I am going to be satisfied for the next few minutes while I digest. Ehehehehe

Is that a tummy ache I’m beginning to get from all that cheesecake? STILL, labs ko pa din ang cheesecake ko. Me and my cheesecake together forever... Hahahaha

Steve (passing my office and catching me reading a blog): Take it easy with the blogging. Blogging ALL day!

Me: But honey, I HAVE to blog about my love for cheesecake! It’s important!

Steve: You mean OBSESSION… forget love!

Napagusapan namin ni Steve that we should both start going to the gym and eating healthy. Of course, it’s easy in theory but hard in practice. Going to the gym after work or going home to sleep? Uhh… going home to sleep please! ERK! Wrong answer Karina!

Kasi naman, nakakatamad naman kasi mag-gym eh…

Anyway, after having my cheesecake I headed towards the kitchen and I passed by Steve’s office on the way…

Me: Stevie I ate my cheesecake already… it was SOOO GOOODDD!!

Steve: Honey, what did we say about that??

Me (smiling sheepishly): Ehehehe that I’m not supposed to eat anymore sweets because it’s bad for me?

Steve: Yes honey…

I figured when I grow old there will be so many things that I won’t be able to do anymore and so many foods I won’t be allowed to eat so my philosophy is to enjoy it while I still can…Habang bata-bata pako. At least someday when I’m no longer allowed to eat sweets, I can reminisce about the times I had so much of it.

Hey, at least sweets are the only form of unhealthy addiction I have. I don’t drink, I don’t smoke and I don’t do drugs.

Sushi = Yum.

There is a sushi place along Bloor Street West called Momiji Sushi and it's REALLY GOOD. I accidentally discovered them when one day I was in the mood for fish and chips and the fish and chips place was closed and it was a choice between Swiss Chalet and Sushi. I wasn't particularly in the mood for Swiss Chalet so I decided to go for sushi. In the past, whenever Steve and I would go to Swiss Chalet for take out, we would pass the sushi place on our way to the parking lot and we'd often remark on how many people were going in and out of the restaurant.

Anyhow, it doesn't look much on the outside but it's really quite nice inside. We haven't really sat down and eaten in the restaurant since we often just take food out and eat at home but one day we will sit and eat inside. It's got a great ambiance.. very clean and warm and the service is great. Steve often comments on how their food looks like a work of art. It really looks like they spend a lot of time in preparing their food.

I always order rolls and tempura and they're the best among all the sushi places I've been to in Canada so far. A bit pricey I have to say but it's worth the money. I was looking for a link to the place but couldn't find one. I wanted to post it here so you guys could check it out. Too bad I couldn't find their website... I don't even know if they have one. But yeah, sushi lovers out there, be sure to check them out if your ever in town.

Pinoy Food at Last!

My left arm feels a little sore from the flu shot I got yesterday... and yes, I still get shots at my age. If you must know, my mom is very diligent when it comes to getting her kids vaccinated. Regardless of how old her kids may be.

The government of Ontario provides its residents with a free flu shot each year and all you really need to bring with you is your Ontario Health card. The health card is also free... you just apply for it at the Ministry of Health and they mail it to you after a couple of weeks. I think it’s a privilege that people should take advantage of.. I mean, other provinces in Canada charge you for a flu shot.. you might as well take advantage of something that is being given to you for free.

After getting the flu shot, we went to a Filipino Restaurant called Jesse Jr. I’ve never been there before, although I’ve heard of it, and I don’t really know a lot of Filipino restaurants in town so I was a little excited to see what they had. I was really craving for sisig! I can’t even remember the last time I had it back home!

So off we went and Steve came with us. The place was decent and they had a big menu to choose from. It was quite cheap considering how much food they give you. To be honest, I don’t know a lot of Filipino foods by name so most of the time I just point at whatever looks good. Poor Steve was relying on me to tell him what they were and all I could do was ask the server because I had no idea what they were either! The food was great and I was surprised that Steve liked it too since it’s his first time trying Filipino food. It’s definitely going into our list of good places to eat at.

Kitchen Duty

We have kitchen duty at work. Our small company provides us with lunch and so we come to work everyday without having to spend lunch money. It is pretty convenient and the food is always good. The one downside to it is that we all take turns doing kitchen duty. Normally, we’re grouped together into smaller teams and each team gets a week of kitchen duty every month. It rotates so we often find ourselves in different weeks of the month and in different teams. It’s not the idea of kitchen duty that bugs me. It is the fact that some people are plain lazy. I don’t understand why some people leave their dirty dishes and utensils on the sink when the dish washer is right beside it. How hard could it possibly be to put your dirty dishes away?

Another thing that bothers me is the fact that not all team members do their part. We all don’t like it but we still gotta do it… We get free lunch everyday and not just any food but really good food and our kitchen is always full of snacks and fruits. The least we can do is to help keep the place clean.

Just because it isn’t your week to do kitchen duty doesn’t mean you have to be a slob.

Top 10 Most Bizarre Foods

Yey Friday!!

I came across another interesting article on MSN this morning. Click here to read it.

I'm familiar with some of them although the only one I've ever eaten out of the 10 as it is, is Durian. A couple of them I think I've also eaten although not exactly with the same ingredients.

1. Durian
Location - Pinang, Malaysia
An extremely odoriferous (some would say noxious) fruit with custard-like flesh. Native to Malaysia, the oblong, thorny fruit can be deep fried, formed into cake and candy, or made into flavorings for ice cream, beverages, and other food items. Durian is considered a delicacy in some parts of Malaysia, and has been known to sell for $50 (U.S.) for one fruit. Many people love the taste of durian, but its powerful aroma is so offensive to some that airplanes, trains, and buses often prohibit the fruit in passenger areas.

I had no idea Durian originated in Malaysia. We have it in the Philippines too although I only eat it as a fruit and I don't really like it as an ice cream flavor or anything else. I have to agree, it does smell bad but man, it tastes good!

2. K'lia
Location - Marrakech, MoroccoAlso spelled khlea, this meat (usually lamb) is salted, dried, and preserved in its own fat. A traditional specialty of Morocco, k'lia is often served with lentils and spices at the outdoor market, Djemma al Fna in Marrakech, Morocco.

I don't think I'll like it. I'm not so huge on Lamb.

3. Mangrove Worms
Location - Palawan, Philippines
Worms that live off dead wood pulp. Eaten raw. Popular in Sabang Beach in the Philippines, these long, slimy worms are said to be high in iron and taste similar to oysters.

I have to ask, WHY? Why oh why? I wouldn't eat it even if it did taste like Oysters. I wouldn't eat it if my life depended on it! They're worms that live off dead wood pulp people! The first person to ever try it must have been extremely desperate.

4. Callos
Location - Taberna de Antonio Sanchez in Madrid, Spain
A casserole made with blood sausage and tripe, which comes from the intestines of various domestic animals. This dish is popular in Taberna de Antonio Sanchez in Madrid, Spain, where it is often served as tapas, small dishes designed for sharing.

My grandma makes this although slightly different. Not too sure if she makes it with blood sausage (whatever that is). Would I eat it? I think I already have... I knew it, sometimes ignorance is bliss.

5. Coconut Grubs
Location - Coca, Ecuador
Larvae that live in dead palm trees. Zimmern tried the dish in the home of a member of the Pilche community in the Amazon rain forest.

One word: Larvae. Can I just say yuck?

6. Menudo
Location - Motes de la Magdalena in Quito, EcuadorSoup made with tripe and beef hearts. This soup is also popular in Mexico, where it began as a peasant dish. Menudo in Mexico can refer to "raw stomach meat" as well as the stew. The recipe for menudo varies in different regions of Latin America.

My mum makes this at home although differently. Mum makes it with pork instead so no harm there! No strange, disgusting ingredients either.. just pork, green peppers, potatoes and green peas i think. Whew!

7. Goose Intestines on Bean Sprouts - Goose guts.
Location - New York's Chinatown
Served at Congee, a restaurant in New York City's Chinatown. Goose intestines are not uncommon fare in China, but then again, neither are duck feet or frogs.

Stick with chicken. I personally don't eat goose, duck nor frogs. I've heard it tastes really good but I just can't. eat. it.

8. Nutria in Sauce Piquant - a large semiaquatic rodent.
Location - Morgan City, Lousiana
Eaten in the home of a trapper in the bayou in Morgan City, Lousiana. Dining on nutria is not for the faint of heart. The rodents resemble large rats with bright orange incisors. Still, the nutria is probably safer on your plate than alive in your yard—the animals are a host for a nematode parasite that can infect human skin. Yummy!

Um... yeah.. sure.. excuse me while I go vomit.

9. Soup No. 5 (Yes, that's the real name)
Location - Balaw Balaw in Luzon, Philippines
Soup made from the back and testicles of a cow is eaten at Balaw Balaw in Luzon, Philippines. In the United States, cow testicles are also sometimes referred to as "Rocky Mountain oysters" and can be prepared in a batter and then fried in oil and eaten with hot sauce.

"Rocky Mountain Oysters"... funny. No thanks!

10. Haggis - Assorted sheep parts mixed with oatmeal and stuffed into a sheep stomach.
Location - Edinburgh, Scotland
This traditional Scottish dish was originally a common peasant meal, but can now be found in grocery stores year round all over Scotland and other areas of the United Kingdom.

Let's go take out some Chinese instead..

Maybe the foods mentioned above aren't as bad as they seem. I mean, it's different when the recipe is written down as opposed to seeing the finished product. Although I have to ask, the people who first tried/made these dishes... why? Was there a lack of food that they started eating whatever they could find??

Yum!

3/4 cup butter or margarine
1 cup brown sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups oatmeal
1-1/2 cups mango jam

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
2. Mix butter, sugar, flour, baking soda, and oatmeal in a bowl. Blend well using your hands. Press half of mixture onto a 13-by-9-inch rectangular pan.
3. Spread mango jam on top of crust.
4. Sprinkle the remaining half of the mixture on top of jam.
5. Bake for 35 minutes or until golden.
6. Cool and cut into squares.

Chef’s Tips: You can also use strawberry jam, pineapple jam, guava jelly, langka jam, or orange marmalade instead of mango jam.

I found this recipe on a website and it looks so yummy! I will give this a try one day...

Cooking and I

In case you didn’t know, I can’t cook. I mean, I can but I’m not very good at it. I can probably cook an estimated 10 dishes or less and that’s about it. I used to brush it off like I didn’t need to learn how to cook because I figured I’ll survive (somehow). I grew up with a maid to do all the cooking in the house so I didn’t feel the need for it as much as I do now.

Now, I’m in my early twenties and I really feel the need to be good at it (especially since I have a BF who insists on me learning and being a good cook). No more maids to do the cooking and sooner or later I will have to cook for myself and my family. My great aunt was kind enough to lend me some of her recipes which I wrote down in a notebook and brought with me. I just need some hands-on practice and I know I’ll eventually be able to do it really well. I just have to get over the fear of being burned. Have you ever seen me cook? There’s a very obvious distance between me and the stove.

Jerry’s been pushing me to cook… oh sorry babe, I meant to say “encouraging” me. LOL! And so far, I have managed to cook him 3 different dishes all by myself. –GRIN- I’ve been looking at recipes I come across in magazines and websites but maybe I’m getting ahead of myself here. I should probably start with the basics… learn how to cook the dishes my mom and grandma prepares at home. My dad has always hoped I’d be a great cook but I think it’s my brother Miguel who is more keen on it than me. The other day Miguel said he wanted to become a chef someday. I don’t have to be a chef… I don’t want to be one either… I just really need to learn how to cook good food!

on the subject of cooking...

Friday (finally!) and I’m off to the watch MI 3 tonight with Jerry =)

It’s almost noon and I’m on a 45 minute break from a training session. My boss had decided that I should probably handle all training for this company so I am learning the other system from the tech manager. I kind of like this other system better than the one I am currently assigned to because I think it is more intuitive, easier to use and in a sense built to be more logical. In any case, it is still training and being a trainer can be draining and occasionally sucks. I wasn’t even hired to be a trainer but it is somethig that was designated to me as part of my job (-sigh-) since one trainer quit 2 weeks after I started and another was let go.

Moving on, the birthday dinner we had last night for lola was good. She prepared so much food and being the excellent cook that she is, you can’t help but eat a portion of everything. Tito had bought a birthday cake for her as well from a Filipino bakery and it was good too. Unfortunately we didn’t have any birthday candles but we still sang happy birthday for her and she pretended to blow out candles afterwards. I remember when we were still young and back when we all lived in the Philippines, she would bake a cake for every birthday celebrant. My family lived in a different city and we lived about an hour away but she would bake a cake and have the maid deliver it to us. I remember she would call my mom a few days before and ask me what cake I preferred. I loved it when she made sansrival. It’s the best! (-sigh-)

Here is a brief list of the food that she makes that I like:

· Cakes
· Embutido
· Fruit salad
· Garden salad
· Turbo-broiled chicken
· Soups
· Arozcaldo
· Pansit
· Kare-kare

And a whole lot more! Too bad I didn’t inherit her love of cooking. Sadly, I have always been afraid of getting burned while cooking. I don’t like it when hot oil starts flying everywhere. I do cook but very seldom and I can’t really say how well I cook. I do help out once in awhile when I’m home though. Growing up, I’ve never really had the need to cook since we had a maid when we were still living in the Philippines and when we moved here to Canada, we stayed with lola and tito for over a year so lola did all the cooking. Since we no longer live with lola and tito, mama does the cooking since she’s home well before me. I know I should really get into it. I think I need to be exposed more into the world of cooking. Jerry cooks better than I do! He cooks all the time and he actually experiments and his food is amazing! It’s embarassing enough that my mom asked him to teach me some of his cooking skills. Lolz!

I miss restaurants and fast food places in the Philippines…going to these places will definitely be on my agenda when I do get the chance to visit. =)