Dec 20, 2014
Yummy Pear Pie
I am not much of a pie person I must confess. Not because I don't like it because I certainly do - it's one of my favorite desserts! I especially love it served a la mode - anything with ice cream is always better, isn't it? The truth is I don't make a lot of pies because I get scared I'll mess it up. It's just one of those desserts that I truly feel intimidated, I don't know why. That fear factor has certainly prevented me from trying to make pies.
Dec 17, 2014
Classic Glazed Ham
If you are a subscriber of our blog, then you probably already know that we are on holiday in Asia at the moment. I do try, when I get the chance, to spend the Christmas season with my family. There's just no place like home for the holidays. It doesn't hurt when you can spend Christmas season by the beach and enjoy the sun and the sea either! For me that's the ultimate holiday treat!!! :)
Dec 12, 2014
Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
Delicious wild rice soup with chicken and mushrooms simmered in a creamy wine-flavored sauce is easily fall and winter's comfort food!
Whether the weather is cold or hot a good soup is always a delicious option! When I was in the Philippines, I practically and literally knew only one kind of soup and that is "sopas" - the Filipino version of Macaroni soup. I don't know why. Perhaps because sopas is my family's perennial favorite and so it's the only one that I can remember eating while I was growing up.
Dec 6, 2014
Overnight Cranberry Eggnog French Toast Casserole
With sweet and creamy eggnog, tangy cranberries and crunchy pecans - this MAKE AHEAD Cranberry Eggnog French Toast Casserole is the perfect breakfast or brunch dish for Christmas, New Year and beyond!
Dec 1, 2014
Ginisang Munggo (Mung Bean Soup / Stew)
Nov 22, 2014
Apple-Pumpkin-Pecan Pie
So many desserts to make, too little time. Don't you often get the feeling that there are so many types of desserts or pies that you want to make for Thanksgiving but you simply don't have the time to make each and every one of them? Or perhaps, you are looking at the feast of pies in front of you during Thanksgiving and wish you can try each slice of pumpkin, pecan or apple pie - but feel like it's way too much to eat all three in one go! I hear ya! I know the feeling!!!
Nov 20, 2014
National Geographic - Eat: The Story of Food
We've been featured! As part of EAT: The Story of Food premiering on Nov. 21-23 (9/8 Central), National Geographic Channel is showcasing a fantastic collection of Healthy Recipes from Hollywood and sports celebrities, renowned chefs, food bloggers, artists, etc. It's our honor to be included in such an esteemed list. We are recipe #68 (arranged alphabetically). The awesome part - this digital cookbook is free for you to download and enjoy!
The variety of recipes in this cookbook are amazing! Not only that, as the title connotes, it's full of delicious and healthy dishes that are so good for you and your family. I can't wait to try some of them myself.
Check out the series here. Don't forget it's airing tomorrow night at National Geographic Channel.
Nov 15, 2014
Yummy Cranberry Cheesecake
Last year for the holiday season, I made a No Bake White Chocolate Cranberry Cheesecake as part of the 12 Cakes of December series. I joined 11 other food bloggers and we each took turn to make cakes that we felt best represented the season. I wanted a truly festive and lovely cake so I chose to make a cheesecake with cranberries - since cranberries have a deep red hue which of course is the color of Christmas. Besides, I truly love cheesecake!
Nov 12, 2014
Autumn in New York
Bow Bridge, Central Park
Nov 8, 2014
Best Banana Pecan Cake
I love baking with Bananas. The fact that I have many recipes here that use bananas is proof of how much I love this amazing fruit. It just adds so much flavor and moisture to any baked good. I love seeing the brown speckles in a banana bread. I often buy bananas just so I can make banana bread! Yes, I am truly bananas over bananas!
Nov 3, 2014
Green Mango Smoothie
When it comes to tropical fruits - the Mango reigns supreme in the Philippines. I grew up with mango trees in our backyard. I have memories of my grandma smoking the mango tree. She would rake the dried leaves and twigs in our backyard into a pile under the mango tree and light a small fire - the purpose is to get the smoke up into the tree. Some say it's because the smoke drive the bugs away from the precious fruits that they love to nibble on. I don't know if this is scientifically true but that tree has always given us bag loads of mangoes.
Oct 31, 2014
Ricotta Meatballs in Creamy White Wine Sauce
Today I felt like a contestant in that popular show from the Food Network - Chopped. I had some left-over ingredients which needed to be used up but they seemed to be an odd assortment. Initially, I felt like it would be weird to merge them in one dish, much like in Chopped (though perhaps not as extreme) where contestants are supposed to come with a yummy dish using a medley of ingredients which you don't normally put together. That was my challenge for the day - how to use in one dish a few pieces of sun-dried tomatoes, a little wine, two types of cheeses and ground beef.
Oct 29, 2014
Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Beef Stew
Fall is the time to make delicious comfort food that will help us cope with freezing cold winter nights. I often experiment on different types and flavors of beef stew so all throughout the season we don't get tired of the same old, same old recipe. This time, I fancied something with a bit of an Asian kick. For convenience I used the slow cooker so it's just a matter of dumping all the ingredients in and then it's ready when we are.
Oct 25, 2014
Cranberry Pecan Bread with Apple Cider Glaze
The other day I went to the grocery for some food shopping. I got excited when I saw some fresh cranberries already being sold. You see, I love baking with cranberries! I love the tangy flavor it imparts to baked goodies particularly sweet breads and cakes. I got myself a pack and decided that I should make my favorite Cranberry Orange Bread when I get home or at least pretty soon. However, as it sometimes happen, I forgot to buy some oranges. I was frustrated because I was really craving some nutty cranberry bread at that time. What was I to do?
Oct 22, 2014
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
My two kids were both born in the month of October and only 3 days apart. As you can imagine, this is quite a busy month for us. Thankfully, since they are still quite young they haven't really demanded their own separate birthday parties yet. For now they are quite happy to celebrate their birthdays in their classrooms with their classmates. There's only one condition I need to fulfill - that is, they want me to make something yummy for their class on their birthday.
Oct 18, 2014
Fresh Apple Cake
I walk my little boy William to school everyday and we are grateful that the school is less than a 5-minute walk. In our usual route, I pass through one of our neighbor's front yard which has a big Apple tree. One day in October I was walking back from school, I saw our neighbor picking up some apples that came from the tree. At this time she has placed a sign by the tree which asked anyone who happens to pass by to pick a bag of apples.
Oct 15, 2014
Pan-Roasted Brussels Sprouts in Garlic Butter
Ever since I made my post on Sauteed Brussels Sprouts with Garlic and Bacon, my family and I have totally fallen-in-love with Brussels Sprouts. Who knew this mostly-maligned and snubbed vegetable can taste truly yummy and quite more-ish! If you learn how to cook Brussels Sprouts properly, you will truly be rewarded with a delicious side dish that doesn't taste bitter or yucky but actually quite yummy and a little nutty (not the crazy kind!). :)
Oct 11, 2014
Beef and Beer Belgian Stew (Carbonnades a la Flamande)
Last year my family and I went to Brussels, Belgium to visit some friends and do some sightseeing. I have been to Belgium before so I was excited to go back and learn more about this beautiful country. I know Belgium is well known for its chocolates, waffles, fries and beer but beyond that I didn't know much about its culinary heritage. With influences from other neighboring countries - Netherlands to the north, Germany to the East and France to the South - its varied cuisine reflects that of its neighbors. I have read that Belgian food is served in the quantity of German cuisine but with the quality of the French! Having tested quite a few dishes there, I completely agree. The quality of food and the taste is truly superb! I can't wait to go back there again.
Oct 9, 2014
Gluten-free Apple Brown Betty
We went to Boston a few months ago at a time when we were considering whether or not we would move to Connecticut. Naturally, while there, we checked out some of the historical sites particularly the Old State House. There weren't many of us there as it was winter time - really just 4 of us in the museum including the tour guide. I tried to listen though I have done the tour before and occasionally nod when the guide said something to encourage her and let her know that at least one person was listening to her talk.
Oct 4, 2014
Country-Style Chicken Kiev
In our church in Holland, MI the ladies came up with a fantastic cook book that contained recipes that are not only family friendly and easy to make, they were also very much palate-pleasing, too. When I was just starting to learn how to cook - a little over a decade ago - this book was my companion and reference guide for meals that I prepared for hubby and the kids.
Oct 2, 2014
Cheddar Rosemary and Applesauce Loaf
When Fall season sets in and there's a sudden chill in the air, I can't wait to start baking again. I have given my oven a good rest last summer but it's time to crank it up again, put it in gear and let it bake me some delicious sweet and savory treats.
Sep 23, 2014
20 Delicious Sweet and Savory Pumpkin Recipes
Whenever Fall/Autumn comes around, I only think of one thing - Pumpkins!!! Yes, I love Pumpkin recipes both savory and sweet. I have made quite a few tried and tested recipes using this wonderful fruit. Below you can find some delicious sweet and savory recipes all utilizing the mighty pumpkin! Hope you get to try some if not all of them.
Sep 17, 2014
Best Pumpkin Pie
Like many of our American readers, I've had my share of tasting so many recipes and varieties of pumpkin pie. In the Philippines, we have a lot of squashes and they are a staple in my country but we don't really grow pumpkins. Perhaps it's the weather, I don't know. So, when I had my first Thanksgiving in Michigan back in 2004 - I was truly fascinated with the concept of using pumpkin (which back then I just thought of as a regular squash) in a dessert, especially a pie. I thought it was rather strange as we only use squashes for savory dishes and never for dessert. Squashes are considered vegetables and, as such, they are never used for anything sweet. Little did I know that both pumpkin and squashes (at least some!) are actually the perfect ingredients for desserts, too! So glad I finally know.
Sep 13, 2014
Baked Chicken with Olives and Zucchini
Yay for Fall! That means the weather is cooler and we can finally turn our ovens on to bake and cook delicious meals for our family. When I make a savory dish for my family, I try to use simple recipes that I can easily prepare and do not require too much fuss. After all, when school season begins, there are tons of activities to attend to and oftentimes, there isn't a lot of time to make dinner.
Sep 12, 2014
Classic Belgian Waffles
Hubby and I plus our whole family truly fell-in-love with the fantastic waffles we tasted in Belgium when we visited there in the summer of 2013. They were so good that to this day, more than a year later - I can still remember how yummy they tasted and how our noses were tempted and awakened by their sweet aroma. We thought, we better remember these delicious treats as we may not be able to find something similar when we go back to the US. So, we truly indulged while we were there and savored these fantastic Belgian delicacy.
Sep 6, 2014
20 Fabulous Fall Desserts
Fall is just around the corner. Here in Connecticut, though the weather is still quite warm, we have already seen some trees start to change colors and some leaves already on the ground - a preview of what's to come. As everyone knows, New England has some of the best Fall foliage. I haven't been here on an actual Autumn day or season but I have seen photos and movies which feature such gorgeous and vibrant colors. I am truly so excited to see and feel the change of season here. New Haven, also known as Elm City, because it's surrounded by so many large Elm trees, am sure would be so pretty during the Fall. I really can't wait to go up to East Rock Park and see the lovely colors atop this wonderful mountainous ridge.
Aug 30, 2014
Creamy Pasta with Pancetta and Mushrooms
You can never go wrong with bacon and mushrooms! This creamy and delicious pasta with pancetta is our comfort food for sure.
I am so happy to be living in New Haven, CT! Two yummy reasons are - Whole Foods and Trader Joe's! When we were in Michigan the nearest Trader Joe's was 3 hours away - to the west in a Chicago suburb and to the east in a suburb of Detroit. That means when we visit either store, we tend to hoard as we don't know when we will return. My hubby is such a huge fan of their salsas so we haul loads of them back home.
Aug 27, 2014
20 Wholesome and Delicious After School Snacks
Tomorrow my little boy begins his first day of school for the 2014-2015 academic year. He is going to 3rd grade. He's excited to go though a little bit nervous because this is a new school for him as we transferred from Holland, Michigan to Connecticut this summer. Thankfully, last week he already met two of his classmates during a soccer camp. With at least two familiar faces in a different and new environment, it won't be totally alienating or strange. I hope that he'll easily gain new friends like he did in his previous school. But, as you know, being a Mom, I worry more for him than he does.
Aug 26, 2014
Sauteed Chayote (Sayote Guisado)
When I was still in the Philippines and living with my family, this dish was on our table every week. We truly love all kinds of squashes especially Chayote (called Sayote in the Philippines). It such a well-loved dish that you can find Sayote Guisado in any cafeteria or canteen all over the country during lunch time. I often had this for lunch when I still worked for the Supreme Court. It's almost like a soup that you have on the side, though it really isn't a soup at all but more like a stew. And, you often serve this with rice. It's also pretty cheap to prepare yet quite nutritious, too. You can make this dish with just chayote on its own but you can certainly add other vegetables like cauliflower or broccoli to the mix.
Aug 21, 2014
Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread
We have been given some huge zucchinis by some friends from church and I didn't know what to do with them! Then I remembered that one of the ladies in our previous church brought some chocolate zucchini bread and I got to taste it there and couldn't believe it had vegetable in it! It was so moist and really tasty and with no hint at all that there's zucchini in it, just plain good chocolate yummy-ness in each bite. I was hooked!
Aug 13, 2014
Peach and Blueberry Financiers
A Financier is a small French Almond Cake traditionally baked in the shape of a gold bar, hence the name. Some say that it is called such because the cake became popular in the financial district of Paris surrounding the Paris stock exchange and was named after its wealthy bankers. Its main ingredient is the almond flour (ground or finely crushed) though it's distinct feature comes from the use of beurre noisette (brown butter).
Aug 9, 2014
Mango Raspberry Frozen Yogurt
Aug 2, 2014
Chipotle Copycat Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
This
week we relocated to New Haven, Connecticut and left Holland, Michigan, our home
for 10 wonderful years. It was bittersweet. While we are excited to start a new
chapter in our life as a family, it is truly sad to leave behind a place that
was truly our first home after we got married. There were so many memories both
sweet and sad that made our stay in Holland truly memorable. For this post, I
won’t dwell on this so much as I will make another one – pure reflections on
the 10 years we had in Michigan.
Jul 25, 2014
Dark Chocolate Banana Bread
Am always delighted to have left-over bananas as these yummy fruits provide us an excuse to make one of our staple quick bread recipes - Banana Nut Bread. My kids, however, are not always keen with the "bread with nuts" version so to accommodate them, I often make another version loaded with chocolate chips or chunks. However, since we are huge dark chocolate fans, we almost always use the 70% chocolate bar or the bittersweet chocolate for our baking, banana bread included. That way, it doesn't become overly sugary in taste but provides a nice yummy contrast to the sweet bananas.
Feel free to use either choco chips or chunks. But one tip I highly recommend to make anything you bake with chocolate yummy - make sure you use a good quality chocolate - preferably one that you actually eat, not the baking kind. With this you can be assured that your sweet creation is totally scrumptious and full of yummy chocolate goodness! Hope you enjoy this moist and delectable Dark Chocolate Banana Bread!
Ingredients
1 ½ cups flour
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 stick Butter, softened*
3/4 cup Sugar
3/4 cup Sugar
3 very ripe Bananas
2 Eggs, room temperature
2 Eggs, room temperature
3 Tablespoons freshly squeezed Orange/Lemon juice
Grated zest of one Orange or Lemon (optional but great for extra tang and flavor!)
8 oz (1 cup) 70% Dark Chocolate chunks or Chocolate chips
*To soften the butter, take it out of the fridge and bring it to room temperature about an hour before you need it. In case that's not possible here's a good link on how to soften a butter quickly.
Grated zest of one Orange or Lemon (optional but great for extra tang and flavor!)
8 oz (1 cup) 70% Dark Chocolate chunks or Chocolate chips
*To soften the butter, take it out of the fridge and bring it to room temperature about an hour before you need it. In case that's not possible here's a good link on how to soften a butter quickly.
Procedure
Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a loaf pan or you can use parchment paper to line your loaf pan, too. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Beat the softened butter and sugar until whipped-creamy roughly 5-6 minutes. A stand mixer would be quite handy with this.
Peel and mash the bananas. If you wish you can put the bananas in a food processor to hasten the process and make sure it's smooth. Do this while the mixer is beating the butter and sugar.
Add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture one at a time. Add the mashed bananas and continue to beat until smooth and no more lumps appear. Pour in the lemon or orange juice and the grated zest. Beat just until combined.
Fold in the dry ingredients (flour mixture). Gently fold in the chocolate chips or chunks. Pour into the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 50-60 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
Let cool in the loaf pan for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Enjoy!
If you wish to print the recipe, there's a print-friendly icon at the end of the post. Click on the "remove images box" for easy printing.
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Jul 22, 2014
EGG-FREE BLUEBERRY ICE CREAM
Organic Blueberries were on sale last week so I loaded up on them as that doesn't often happen. I decided to make some Blueberry Ice Cream as I made an egg-free version last year which the whole family enjoyed. I think summer was already over when I made it then, hence, I didn't immediately post the recipe but thought I would wait for the appropriate season.
Finally, summer is here and Blueberry season is at its peak! Since we are relocating to Connecticut pretty soon, I doubt if we'll get the chance to do some blueberry picking. I feel sad as Michigan blueberries at their prime are simply the best. The blueberries are plump, juicy and simply scrumptious! Oh well, I may not be able to pick them straight from the tree but at least I can simply find them easily and so cheaply at the grocery stores. So, this summer don't miss the chance to load up on this super-food! I know ice cream is a dessert but at least you have an excuse as you are also eating perhaps the healthiest fruit on earth! So, it's somewhat guilt-free, right? :)
Ingredients
1 1/2 cup Blueberry Puree (from fresh or frozen blueberries)
3/4 cup Half and half (or whole Milk)
1 1/2 cups Heavy Cream
2/3 cup granulated Sugar1/8 teaspoon Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
Procedure
Puree the blueberries. Strain. Measure about 1 1/2 cups.
Combine the half and half, heavy cream, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix using a wire whisk until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the pureed blueberries and vanilla.
Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instruction. I usually churn it for about 20 minutes on mine.
If you don't have an ice cream maker, pour the mixture into a freezer-safe bowl and cover. I use a metallic mixing bowl and cover it with foil. Place in the freezer. Take the bowl out every 30 minutes thereafter (for at least 3 hours) and stir the ice cream using either a whisk or a handheld blender or beater. It is necessary to do this to prevent ice crystals from forming. Freeze the ice cream overnight or until hard.
Enjoy this egg-free and truly creamy-licious ice cream!
If you wish to print the recipe, there's a print-friendly icon at the end of the post. Click on the "remove images box" for easy printing.
Jul 19, 2014
Sweet-and-Spicy Chicken and Steak Taco Bar
My husband and I love spicy food! We prefer food that has complex flavor, full of yummy spices that delight the taste buds. When we came to the USA, over ten years ago, one of the first things we looked for was a good Indian restaurant as we love Indian food. Unfortunately, at that time, there wasn't any reasonably good Indian restaurant where we resided so we were quite sad and thought we may no longer have our favorite food for a long time (unless we visited another city). Thankfully, the situation all worked out well as that motivated me to learn how to cook. If spicy food won't be readily available, then I must do something about it. I am glad that because of this I learned how to cook curry and other Indian and even Thai specialties. Necessity is indeed a good motivator!
Jul 17, 2014
Blueberry Pecan Coffee Cake
I got so excited the other day when I saw some Michigan Blueberries being sold at a nearby deli shop. It was a little more expensive than when you buy it in Holland (my former Michigan hometown) but I was desperately missing these yummy berries, I thought I'd indulge. Oh, they were so juicy and sweet! It's a shame that we were not able to go blueberry picking before we left for Connecticut. I heard that there are also some farms here where you can pick some berries but somebody told me it's so much cheaper to buy them from Aldi's instead of going through all the trouble of picking them yourself. Thankfully, Michigan blueberries were also on sale at Aldi's (and same price as the ones in MI) so I got myelf what is the equivalent of at least 2 buckets - perhaps even 3 so now I have some blueberries to enjoy for fall and winter!
Jul 16, 2014
Nanaimo Bars
About two weeks ago, we went to Connecticut where we are to relocate pretty soon. We went there to register our kids for the coming school year. It was a long journey from Michigan to New Haven. We knew it would take us two days to do so especially since we were travelling with our kids which necessitated frequent stop-overs. So it wouldn't be such a laborious trek, we decided to go via Canada instead of through Ohio and Pennsylvania. We thought it might be a more interesting and enjoyable to see something different along the way.
Jul 14, 2014
Slow Cooker Three Berry Cobbler
This cobbler is particularly lovely because you don't need to use the oven for it. It's cooked in the slow cooker which makes it so much easier; no need to preheat anything and most of all you don't need to sweat while doing it (no warm oven, right?). Also, it doesn't take that long to cook it, only about 2 hours or so which for slow cooking is rather fast!
This cobbler is great to eat on its own but if that's not enough, you may add your vanilla ice cream on top. We always do! Enjoy the rest of the summer with this yummy Three Berry Cobbler.
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1-1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
a pinch of ground cloves, optional
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons, half and half or milk
2 tablespoons, vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup each fresh or frozen berries (blueberries, blackberries and raspberries)
3/4 cup water
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream for topping, optional
Procedure
Combine the eggs, milk and oil then stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Spread the batter evenly onto the bottom of a greased slow cooker.
-
In a large saucepan, combine the berries, water, and remaining sugar. Bring to a boil.
Once it has boiled, remove from the heat and immediately, pour over batter. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 2-1/2 hours or until a toothpick inserted into the batter comes out clean.
Turn the slow cooker off. Uncover and let stand for 30 minutes before serving. Top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream!
If you wish to print the recipe, there's a print-friendly icon below the post. Click on the "remove images" box for easy and convenient printing.
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