Food articles posted in Feb 2006

Tinapa (smoked fish)

When you’ve been eating too much meat (which is usual at this time of year) for days, you start dreaming of something simpler, something more basic… like tinapa. Tinapa is the Philippines’ smoked fish. It is a popular breakfast item served with fried eggs and salted diced tomatoes.

Almost any fish can be made into tinapa. [...]

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February 19, 2006 | Food trips & events

Pili nut butterscotch brownies

Until about two weeks ago, I used to bake butterscotch brownies using boxed brownie mixes. The Maya brand, in particular, is reasonably priced and it’s all just a matter of adding eggs, water, oil and mixing them all together. Not that ready mixes taste bad or anything but one has to progress somehow, right? So, [...]

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February 19, 2006 | No-fuss cookies, The amateur baker

Pili nuts

Shaped like almonds but superior to the almond, pili nuts are crunchy without the hard texture of almonds. They are soft (similar to the texture of macadamia) and sweet with a very delicate flavor. Pili nut is the nut of any tree of the genus Canarium (family Burseraceae) and has the highest oil content among [...]

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February 19, 2006 | Asian Pantry

Gatas ng kalabaw (carabao’s milk)

When I was a kid, fresh carabao’s milk was sold in long necked bottles with the opening stuffed with rolled banana leaves. I remember refusing to drink it unless heated because the milk fat would solidify and I hated the sensation of semi-solid fat in my mouth. My father would dutifully heat the milk and [...]

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February 18, 2006 | Food trips & events

Japanese sweet corn

I’ve mentioned Japanese sweet corn in some of my recipes but it is so special that I want to post an entry exclusively about it.

We first discovered Japanese sweet corn years ago in makeshift stalls along Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City between Ateneo University and Miriam College. From the first time we sampled them, we [...]

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February 18, 2006 | Asian Pantry

Assorted Nestle Crunch chocolates

The Nestle Crunch chocolate I grew up with was the chocolate bar–rectangular, rather thin with lots of rice crispies. That was the Nestle Crunch that we introduced to our kids when they were old enough to enjoy chocolates. And they loved it as much as my husband and I did when we were kids.

Being such [...]

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February 18, 2006 | Food trips & events

Fish fillet with corn sauce

fish fillets with corn sauce You can cook this dish with fresh corn kernels or you can use canned corn kernels. If you opt for fresh corn kernels, I suggest Japanese sweet corn. Local white corn may be good for boiling and making soups but not for a dish like this one. This fish dish requires crisp and sweet corn kernels…

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February 17, 2006 | Asia & beyond, Cooking for one, Fish & other seafood

Betty Crocker’s blueberry muffins

Taking the kids to the supermarket is fun. They discover food products that I’d never take a second look at. It also means that the bill can double or even triple. Anyway, it was one of my daughters (can’t remember now which one) who discovered Betty Crocker’s blueberry muffin mix a couple of years ago. [...]

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February 13, 2006 | Muffins & cupcakes, My kids cook too!, The amateur baker