Not too long ago, Rowena had an obsession with oxtail soup that also piqued my own obsession. Our local Costco just started carrying oxtails in their meat section and I immediately snagged a pack with this particular soup in mind. Whenever I can get ahold of some oxtails I inevitably plan on cooking kare-kare, a peanut butter based stew with vegetables. Now with this soup, I have added to my oxtail prep repertoir.

Whenever I visit my sisters in Los Angeles, one of our stops is King's Hawaiian Restaurant and Bakery in Torrance where one of us (mostly me) would almost always order the oxtail soup. The Hawaiian oxtail soup, I learned is a Chinese recipe adapted by the Hawaiians. My version, admittedly, is not half as good as King's; I don't know what their secret is but their soup is just wonderfully flavorful.

This was quite flavorful too, what with the addition of the herbs and spices, the smell was delicious. Rowena provided two links for recipes, here and here, which I combined to make this version. I was intrigued by the addition of whiskey but unfortunately it was a Sunday when I decided to cook this soup and the state run liquor stores were closed (that's a law here, no liquor sold on Sundays).

INGREDIENTS:
2-3 pounds of oxtails
1 cup dried shiitake mushrooms, soak in hot water for 10 minutes
1 piece gow pee(Chinese dried tangerine peel), soak in hot water for 10 minutes
1 tablespoon Szechuan peppercorns (wrap in cheese cloth)
2 inch fresh ginger peeled and sliced into rounds
2 whole star anise
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 lb. mustard cabbage, cut in 1-2 inch lengths

Garnishes:
Thinly sliced green onions
Chopped cilantro
Chopped serrano chilis

Dipping Sauce:
Grated fresh ginger
Soy Sauce

In a stock pot, parboil oxtails for 30 minutes. Rinse the oxtails and the pot and add more clean water to the pot. Bring the water back to boil and add oxtails back in along with the Szechuan peppers (wrapped in cheesecloth so they are not floating all over the soup), shiitake mushrooms, gow pee, star anise, and ginger. Salt & pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer until the oxtails are falling off the bone tender, about 2-3 hours. Replenish the soup with additional broth or water if it starts getting too low. Skim as much fat as you can from the surface as the soup cooks. Just before serving, add the mustard cabbage and cook just until it wilts and changes color.

Serve with the garnishes to be sprinkled on top and rice.

The thing about being under the weather is, you turn into a big baby and start to want all the comfort foods your mommy gave you when you were sick. That's been the case in our kitchen lately what with one of us getting the cold one right after the other with moments of overlap in between cases. So lately there haven't been any new experiments in our kitchen. We've fallen back to old comforting favorites like sinigang or 'sour soup' as the girls like to call it, rice porridge or lugaw, and lots of soft rice dishes like the malagkit na bibingka below. This is the Southern version of our rice cake, the rice pudding.

We've made this at least twice since I've been sick. Mainly because the girls have been doing some cooking for me while I rest. Aren't they just wonderful? I loved being pampered. The drawback though is with my novice cooks, sometimes put a little too much water on the rice and we end up with very sticky rice that is not exactly gruel but close to it. I don't want to discourage them from cooking, so rather than cooking a new pot of rice and discarding the sticky rice as my aunts used to do when I was growing up, we grudgingly eat it anyway. Of course, none of us end up eating much of it as we all still prefer perfectly cooked and fluffy rice. What to do with an almost full pot of rice? Rice pudding!

Most rice pudding recipes, especially the Southern versions include raisins, which I love but my family hates. So this version is as plain as you can get. If you are feeling more adventurous though, this rice pudding is very receptive to just about any topping you can think of including fresh fruits. Try it with some very ripe peaches, strawberries, or blueberries and you'll be in heaven.

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cooked rice, soft
2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
dash of salt

1/2 cup cream or milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp. Butter

Combine the rice, milk, sugar and salt in a pot and slowly bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionaly to keep from sticking. When it comes to a boil, keep stirring and cook until it starts to thicken. In a bowl, combine the egg, cream and vanilla and mix well. Add this mixture to the rice, stirring to blend in thoroughly. Add a tablespoon of butter, mix and remove from the heat. Let it cool, it will thicken some more as it cools. Can be served warm, but better when completely cooled or slightly chilled.

This is a short cut to making the traditional Philippine rice cake which usually labor intensive when made from scratch and thus was reserved for special occations. I have to admit that it isn't as good as the 'made from scratch' version, but when hungry for some comfort food fast, then this will do. This recipe is based on the Baby Rambutan's Bibingka recipe.

3 cups sweet rice, cooked
1 can coconut milk plus 1/2 can of water
1/8 tsp. salt

Coconut jam topping

For my really short cut version, I did away with the soaking part and just put the rice, coconut milk, water and salt in the rice cooker and hit the button. I opened it midway and stirred as the coconut has a tendency to float to the top. Once cooked, I transferred the rice into a square pyrex dish and topped with the bottled coco jam that sisterO sent me. I only put about a third of the jar. Baked in the oven an additional 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees F or until the topping starts to bubble. Cool, and serve.

I have been hacking and coughing for a week now, and just hadn't had much energy nor inspiration to cook. The only thing that feels good on my throat is something soupy, sour and hot. I think I've posted enough sinigang recipes on this blog for everyone to drown in, but I love soups, so what the hey! Anyway, my girls were looking a bit pitiful without anything homemade for days now, so we decided to make these quick and easy cookies for comfort. And guess what, they have lemons! Just what the doctor ordered for a cold. Well, not really, but they were great anyhow.

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup (1 & 1/2 sticks) of butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. poppyseeds
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 egg
3 tsp. lemon juice
2 cup flour

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the poppyseeds and lemon zest, then the egg and lemon juice. Mix until well blended. Slowly mix in the flour until the dough holds together. Divide dough in half and roll each half into logs using either wax paper or plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

When ready to cook, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Slice dough rounds into 1/4 inch thick. Dip top surface in sugar and bake for 12 minutes or until edges start to brown.

Great served with hot tea or cold milk.

I was dreaming of summer the other day and discovered this unposted photo of last summer's tomato gazpacho. Gazpacho is a Spanish derived cold soup which is just the thing when you have perfectly ripened tomatoes that are just brimming with natural sweetness. My girls, upon seeing this dish, exclaimed, but that's just watery salsa, mom! But upon tasting it, they have become gazpacho addicts. They can drink up this stuff.

I make a very basic blend to start with. In a blender or food processor, combine ripe tomatoes, sweet onion, 1 clove of garlic, a sprig of basil, salt and pepper to taste. Blend until everything is crushed together. If the tomatoes are not juicy enough and you would like a 'soupier' mix add some broth or just plain water to loosen it.

When you serve, you can plate it as is, or you can embelish with any of the following: sour cream, chopped cilantro, chopped chili peppers, cubed avocado, crispy fried tortillas, cubed cucumbers, or anything else that suits your fancy.

In the Philippines, this dish is also called 'binagoongan'. Translated loosely as something cooked in bagoong, a term used for fermented fish or in this case shrimp paste. While I have heard of this dish for years I have never made it myself nor have I ever tasted it, I don't think. I was intrigued by its description though, and I have heard of how delicious it is from other people, I just had to try it out.

Plus, for some reason, I have had the weirdest craving for something fatty and salty lately so could anything be more perfect than this dish to sate my craving? The more I researched how to cook this dish, the more I realized how many different versions and variations there are. It's almost like our beloved adobo. Everyone has their own version of it. So even though I didn't at first plan on associating this dish with the traditional 'binagoongan' as I didn't really follow any of the recipes I looked at but rather did one of my cafeteria methods again by picking and choosing elements that I liked from each recipe, I supposed I can honestly say this is my version of 'binagoongan'.

Ingredients:
1 lb. pork belly, cut into chunks or cubes
6 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
1 large onion, sliced
1 inch knob of ginger, sliced
2 serrano chilis, chopped with seeds
2 Tbsp. cider vinegar
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. shrimp paste
1/2 cup water (or more as needed)

Place the pork belly chunks in a pot over medium heat and lightly brown the sides until some fat have been rendered. Add the garlic, onions, and ginger. Saute' with the pork for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Add the chili peppers and vinegar, cover and cook for a couple of minutes until the vinegar has almost been absorbed and the dish starts to sizzle again. Add the soy, shrimp paste and a half cup of water. Mix, cover and simmer until the pork is tender and almost all of the liquids have been absorbed. Check every 20 minutes or so and if the liquid is almost gone but the pork is not as tender you'd like it to be, add another half a cup of water. Keep repeating this until the pork is fork tender and the liquid has been reduced. This shouldn't be soupy.

Good luck, and good eating :) Make sure you have lots of steamed rice on hand.


Filipino Cookbooks

This was another happy accident that came about when I couldn't decide what to make for dinner, didn't feel like looking for a recipe to try, and was just plain tired of the usual fried and baked dishes. I had some of the boneless and skinless chicken thighs in the freezer so I decided to simply stir fry them with some chinese broccoli. However, as I started chopping the ingredients, I changed my mind midway and decided to cook them as separate dishes. The broccoli, I simply pan friend with olive oil and garlic. For the chicken, here's what I did.

INGREDIENTS:
3 packs of boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 15 thighs)
1 large onion, sliced
1 cup of dried Shiitake mushrooms (soaked in hot water)
1/4 cup diced red bell peppers
1 hot chili pepper, sliced (optional)
Oil

Marinade:
1 Tbsp. ginger, minced
1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
1 teaspoon hot sauce (add more or less to your taste)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp. Chinkiang Vinegar (black rice vinegar)
4 Tbsp. Oyster Sauce

Slice up the chicken thighs into bite sized pieces and mix with the marinade ingredients. Let stand for 15 to 30 minutes while you get the rest of the ingredients ready and cook the vegetable. Once you start stirfrying, things start cooking really fast so save the stirfying of the chicken until you have everything cooked and are almost ready to eat.

When you're ready, heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok and stirfry the chicken in batches so that it sears rather than stews. I stir fried this batch of chicken in four batches since my stove doesn't get quite hot enough to maintain a high heat in my wok. The marinade should caramelize nicely to coat the chicken pieces. When you're done cooking the chicken, add two more tablespoons of oil to the wok and stirfry the mushrooms (squeeze out the liquid first) and onions for a couple of minutes then add the chicken back in. Mix well, add the diced bell peppers, stir and take off the heat. If you want the dish to be spicy, stir in the hot chili pepper slices along with the bell pepper. Since I have to make this less spicy for the girls' sake, I just topped my serving with the hot peppers instead.

I cooked a lot because the girls needed something to bring for their lunch. They said this dish was even better the next day.

How do I love adobo? Let me count the ways....there's chicken, beef, pork, liver, ribs, and vegetables too! Yes, you can adobo vegetables and yes, adobo can be a verb :)

When you're tired of the vegetable stews, soups, steamed, and stirfrys, vegetable adobo can be a very good option and quite easy too! You can cook almost anything in the soy and vinegar mixture that makes adobo. I just had some long beans okra and peppers on hand so that is what I used.

INGREDIENTS:
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 onion, sliced
3 tomatoes, sliced
3 Tbsp. vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
vegetables: long beans, okra, peppers
1 Tbsp. oil

Heat the oil in a pan and saute' the garlic, onions an tomatoes until they have softened and are fragrant. Add the vegetables and stir. Pour the soy and vinegar and simmer until all the vegetables are tender.



Filipino Cookbooks