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Filipino food

Getting the kids to like ampalaya (bitter gourd)

13 September 2021 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

I can say I like this horrible thing now, as an adult, but as a kid there was nothing I hated more. I guess after repeated exposure – it’s a staple food item in Asia – our palates can’t help but adjust to it.

Ampalaya (Filipino word for it) is a tropical vine, related to the squash. To blunt that sharp bitter taste, some people like to cut it up (remove the spongy middle and seeds), rub with salt, and leave it in salty water for half an hour before cooking with it. It’s a great source of vitamin C, folate and antioxidants. There’s growing evidence in western literature supporting what indigenous populations around the world use it for. It has cancer-fighting properties, helps lower cholesterol and controls blood sugar.

This vegetable is so ubiquitous in simple Filipino foods, that I try to have it around for the kids so they get used to it too. I’ll saute thin slices of it with onion and scramble eggs into the pot (add a teaspoon of fish sauce for every two eggs). I also add chili flakes or hot sauce here but that’s not a Filipino thing.

The purple vegetable are banana buds (flower buds).
To get rid of the sharp bitter taste, rub with salt and soak in saltwater for half an hour.

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Filed Under: Life Tagged With: ampalaya, bitter gourd, Filipino food, scrambled eggs

Filipino snack

11 December 2020 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

It’s Friday night, before Monday, 14 December when the electors submit their votes. The Supreme Court just tossed out the Texas lawsuit seeking to reverse the election outcome in four states won handily by Biden, saving the constitutional representative republic we know as the United States of America.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) was clearly trying to obtain a pardon with this pathetic stunt, yet people and the media continue to give these people credibility.

I know I have another bottle of champagne somewhere around here. Hard to keep them in stock when we keep winning all the time. (Where are trump and his seditious GOP followers? 1-57? They are has-beens and losers to the core and we all need to move on.)

In the meantime, I need a good snack to go with a mindless action movie that I still need to find.

Pronounced bago-ong, it is a shrimp paste that serves as a dip.
Here it is baby eggplants and cherry tomatoes.

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: bagoong, Filipino food, snack

Filipino food: Buko Pandan

17 August 2013 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

Buko Pandan

As with any recipe, there are so many creative ways to have this dessert. It can be a drink or a thick creamy dessert. I first had it at Nathaniel’s Bakeshop on Timog Ave in Manila. (If you are in Manila, you have got to make a stop at this shop to try all manner of Filipino desserts and food. It’s on a foodie strip, so there are other restaurants and chains on the same road).

Again, I haven’t the foggiest clue how to make this since Openg our helper in Manila whipped it up often while I was busy with a newborn. So here again is a recipe straight from Jun-Blog, below. His pictures look more like the creamy dessert than a drink. Check out his range of Filipino food recipes. I think I can spend hours drooling over his pictures. [Click! Add rss feed!]

Buko Pandan Recipe, makes 6 to 8 servings (recipe from Jun Belen)

2 3-ounce packages Alsa green, unflavored gulaman
4 pandan leaves, washed and tied into a simple knot
1 12-ounce jar nata de coco, drained
1 16-ounce bag frozen, shredded young coconut, thawed and drained
1/2 cup Nestlé cream
1/3 cup condensed milk

Prepare gulaman according to package instructions. Dissolve gulaman in a pot of water, add pandan leaves, and bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Remove pandan leaves and pour gulaman into two 8×8-inch glass baking pans. Once gulaman has set, cut into 1/2-inch cubes.

Combine gulaman, nata de coco, young coconut, cream, and condensed milk in a large bowl and mix well. Serve chilled.

Filed Under: Travels Tagged With: buko, buko pandan, coconut, dessert, Filipino dessert, Filipino food, Manila, pandan, Philippines, recipe

Filipino food: Sago at gulaman

17 August 2013 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

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While in Manila I became a huge fan of these coolers. Depending on the amount of syrup it can be sinfully sweet, but that can be adjusted. It’s refreshing and perfect for those hot Manila days (which was everyday)! Once I found out our incredible friend and helper, Openg, can make them I asked her to make it quite often.

As I have no cooking skills whatsoever, I copy a recipe below in entirety from Jun-blog, a Filipino food blog. You must check out his post on sago and gulaman coolers for great pics. His recipe below looks like what Openg made, with some adjustments. She put pandan leaves in the water when simmering the sago pearls. And she added coconut milk to the drink. The batches are stored in separate containers in the refrigerator, to be mixed fresh for each glass. Fresh coconut milk doesn’t last very long so when it ran out I added regular cow’s milk.

Sago and Gulaman Coolers, makes six to eight servings (recipe  from Jun Belen)

For sago pearls

1/4 cup dark brown sugar
6 cups water
1/4 cup sago pearls

For gulaman [Read more…] about Filipino food: Sago at gulaman

Filed Under: Life, Travels Tagged With: drink, Filipino dessert, Filipino food, gulaman, Manila, Philippines, sago, sago at gulaman

Filipino food: Arce Dairy has got the BEST tropical ice cream flavors

15 June 2013 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

I love ice cream. One of the things I was looking forward to most when I went back to Manila after being away for over 20 years is  the ice cream. Mango, ube (purple yam), macapuno (a type of mutant coconut with soft meat inside instead of water), atis (sugar apple), nanca (jackfruit), pinipig (pounded glutinous rice) – just to name a few of the more interesting tropical flavors. Back when I was a kid there the brand to get was Magnolia, but the line seems to have faded a bit. Towards the end of our stay in Manila I had to binge on this one premium brand, Arce Dairy. It’s less sweet but packs a denser taste than other brands cuz (or so I’m told) it’s made with carabao milk and more natural ingredients.

Arce Dairy Ice Cream
Photo from www.fewsimplethoughts.com

 

Filed Under: Life, Travels Tagged With: Arce Dairy, atis, Filipino food, ice cream, ice cream flavors, macapuno, mango, Manila, nanca, Philippines, pinipig, tropical ice cream flavor, ube

Filipino food: Mango Bene and Hot Tsokolate

21 March 2013 by Nathalie Abejero Leave a Comment

I’m not into sweets so much, but I love love LOVE mangoes, especially the sweet Philippine varieties. Someone made this dessert at a family event and my son didn’t finish his so, thanks to my habit of polishing off his leftovers, I discovered this great dessert, Mango Bene. (If you are looking for a recipe try searching for Mango Float). This one below is from Mary Grace, a great cafe chain in Manila. It consists of layers of meringue, homemade cream and sweet mango slices in between, and is served frozen at this cafe. At my family gathering it wasn’t served frozen, and I thought it was perfect for the hot summer day in the province.

Whenever we had Mango Bene, I had to order a cup of traditional tsokolate too. If at home we drop a couple of tsokolate tablets into a small cup of hot water and milk. Perfect combo!

Mango Bene from Mary Grace Cafe

Hot Chocolate (Tsokolate) Philippino style!

Filed Under: Life, Travels Tagged With: Filipino dessert, Filipino food, hot chocolate, Mango Bene, Mango float, Manila, Mary Grace Cafe, Philippines, tsokolate

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Those little feet pitter-pattering about rule our lives lately. But on the occasional free moment I get to tap out scatterbrained bursts of consciousness about raising toddlers in Cambodia, traveling with them and working abroad. These posts are my personal updates to friends and family. But since you’re here, have a look around. Thanks for stopping by…

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