Chicken Pastel

This is one of my mom's specialties. The Chicken Pastel. Why is it called Pastel? That means lightly colored and creamy. And so the soup is very creamy and tasty. Basically it uses milk and cream as one of the main ingredients. It's a good source of protein since we're just using just the lean meat of the chicken breasts. We removed all the skins in it. Any meat will do for this recipe however Chicken is still the best meat to use for this, And Did I mentioned that the butter also makes it more flavorful and appetizing? Yummy! Have one today.

Ingredients:

1/2 kl Chicken breasts, skins removed, sliced in small portions
1/4 c butter
1 small can evaporated milk
1 c all purpose cream
1 medium carrot, sliced in cubes
2 medium potatoes, sliced in cubes
1 c button mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 c water

Procedure:

1. In a pan, melt the butter and add onions and garlic. Saute it then add the chicken and mushrooms. Saute it until chicken turns light brown.
2. Pour the water then add the carrots and tomatoes. Simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Pour the All purpose cream and Evaporated milk. Give it a good stir. Simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add the red bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Stir until all cooked.
5. Remove from heat. Arrange it in a platter and garnish with some finely chopped Parsley. Get your camera ready and snap a few good shots. Happy clicking and eating! Enjoy!

Tip:

For a more flavorful soup, substitute the water with chicken broth.

Lumpiang Shanghai

Whenever I attend birthday parties or some special occasions, this food will never go out of the list of  Filipino feast. This is a good suggestion for a low cost recipe in which you can fed a lot of your guests with this. I like it to be dipped with banana catsup. One thing about Lumpiang Shanghai is when you just leave it on the table over long hours, the spring roll wrapper will lose its crispiness when exposed to air so better consume it while it's hot.

Ingredients:

1/2 kl Ground pork
Spring roll wrappers
1 white onion, minced
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium carrot, minced
1 large potato, minced
3 tbsp soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste
oil for frying

Procedure:

1. In a mixing bowl, mix all the ingredients except for the wrapper.
2. Scoop a tablespoon of the mixture and place it in the wrapper, spread it evenly. Roll and wrap it.
3. After wrapping, heat oil in a deep fryer over medium heat. fry it until golden brown. Avoid burning the wrapper.
4. Place the Lumpia in paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Serve hot with banana catsup or your favorite dip. Enjoy!

Creamy Avocado Shake

Avocados are widely used in different cuisines usually combined with salads or it is used as a dip or spread but when you turn Avocados into a puree, you'll have a very smooth, creamy, buttery and refreshing drink perfect for hot summer days. My mom always makes this smoothie for us whenever this fruit is on its peak season. There are absolute health benefits you can get from an Avocado shake. A glass of Avocado shake will give you a good amount of dietary fiber as well as Vitamins, A, C, E and K. But somehow just be a little cautious as Avocado has also fat contents in it.

Ingredients:

4 Avocados, peeled and cubed

1/2 c white sugar or use Honey as sweetener

1 small can evaporated milk (147 ml)

1 c All purpose cream

1 tsp lemon juice

3 c ice cubes

Procedure:

1. Prepare all your ingredients. In a blender, put the Avocado cubes, white sugar, milk, cream and the ice cubes.

2. Shake until it becomes smooth.

3. Serve it cold and Enjoy!

3 Ingredients Nutella Brownies

I've got a bottle of Nutella Spread in our fridge and I'm thinking what are the best desserts I could make out of this ingredient? Then I found out that there's a very easy 3 ingredients Nutella Brownies! It's so easy and yummy you should try it too with your kids and loved ones.

Ingredients:

1 1/4 c Nutella
2 eggs
1/2 c all purpose flour

Procedure: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a bowl mix all the ingredients until smooth. If you don't want your brownies to be too sweet reduce a few tablespoons of Nutella.
3. Grease your baking pan. I use 6x4 pan. You can also use 9x9. Pour the mixture and smooth the top with spatula.
4. Bake it in the oven for 15 minutes. Insert a toothpick into the brownies, if it comes out clean then it means it's done. Let it cool before slicing it. Serve and enjoy!

Tip:

• You can also use other Chocolate Spread as a substitute.
• If you don't have an oven, you can also bake this through an oven toaster for 5 to 8 minutes. just make sure to check it occasionally.

Imbao Soup

Imbao is a filipino term for seashells. This type of seashell is a common delicacy in some parts of the Philippines mostly in places where they have a bountiful sea foods catch everyday and sell it straight to the market for a lower price. This shell is very high in Iodine and has a very rich distinctive taste of sweet and salty. Although the flesh may be a bit gooey when chewed, it's not that bad when you pair it with lots of rice. This is a very refreshing soup and it's best paired with grilled dishes.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo Imbao shells
2 pcs ripe tomatoes,  deseed and quartered
1 inch ginger, sliced thinly
lemon grass, knotted
chopped onion leaves
1/2 c malunggay leaves
salt to taste
 4 c water

Procedure:

1. Clean the shells by brushing and washing it in a running water. Set aside.
2. In a pot, Pour the water and put the tomatoes, ginger and the lemon grass. Let it boil.
3. While it's boiling add the imbao shells. Boil for 5 minutes until the shell has opened.
4. Add the malunggay and onion leaves. Season a bit of salt to taste. Cover and let it simmer until the liquid has turned cloudy white. Remove from heat. Serve hot!


Tips: 

• For a more flavorful soup, you may saute the Imbao shells in a butter along with onions, garlic, tomatoes and ginger before adding the water for its soup.

• Chili leaves may also be used as a substitute for malunggay leaves.

Chicken Sotanghon Soup

Sotanghon or also known as Cellophane noodles are transparent noodles. This are made from starch. Sotanghon is geneally used in stir fried dishes or soups like this one. We mixed it with chicken and some vegetables to make it healthier and flavorful. But eventually as you leave it aside for long hours, its liquid are slowly drying out leaving just the sotanghon along with the other ingredients so be sure to consume it while it's still hot.

Ingredients:

200 g sotanghon noodles
200g chicken breast, sliced in small pieces
1 medium carrot, sliced in strips
1/2 c corn kernels
1/2 cabbage, shredded
8 c water
1 onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 bell pepper, sliced in strips
spring onion, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
cooking oil for sauteing

Procedure:

1. In a medium pot, saute the onion and garlic then add the sliced chicken breast. Cook until light brown.
2. Pour the water, Cover and let it boil until the chicken is cooked.
3. Then add the corn kernels. let it simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Add the sotanghon, carrots and the cabbage. Simmer again for 3 minutes. Add more water if necessary.
5. Lastly add the red bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper stir well. Sprinkle with some spring onions. Simmer until cooked.
6. Remove from heat. Serve it while it's hot.

Fried Chicken (Wet Batter)

Who doesn't love fried chicken? the crisp and juiciness in every bite makes you want to have more. But did you know that some other way of preparing the batter is just as easy as dipping it to your favorite sauce? No need for flour dredging, just dip it into the wet batter and your chickens are ready for frying. Sounds easy? Try it.

Ingredients:

1 kilo Chicken (Wings/Drumstick)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup water
Salt & Pepper

Procedure:

1. Mix water, all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt & pepper in a mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly.
2. Dip chicken on wet batter until it is completely covered.
3. Tap chicken for excess wet batter.
4. On a deep fryer, fry chicken for 15 minutes until crispy.
5. Serve hot with your favorite sauce and enjoy.

Sweet style Spaghetti

Why is this Spaghetti is such a big hit specially among kids and the kids alike? Probably because of the tempting sweetness of the sauce, the sliced hotdogs and the cheese toppings that most of us can't resist. Every Birthday party should have this. Here's the most favorite style of Spaghetti that we all love! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 kl Spaghetti

1/2 kilo ground beef

1/4 kl hotdogs, sliced diagonally

4 pouch of sweet style tomato sauce (250 g each)

1/2 c evaporated milk

1/4 c white sugar

5 cloves onion, minced

1 medium onion, minced

salt and pepper to taste

grated cheese for toppings

cooking oil for sauteing

Procedure:

1. In a pot of boiling water add some 1 to 2 tbsp of salt then add the pasta. The salt gives the pasta a flavor. Don't put too much water on the pot, just enough to boil the pasta.

2. Stir the pasta during 1 to 2 minutes of cooking to prevent the strands from sticking together. Putting oil doesn't help with this concern, instead it only slides the sauce into it.

3. When it's al dente, remove from heat and put the pasta into the strainer and add some water into it. Set it aside.

4. In a skillet over medium heat, put the oil and saute the onion and the garlic then add the ground beef. Cook until the pinkish color is gone.

5. Pour the tomato sauce and add the sliced hotdogs, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

6. Add the evaporated milk and the sugar, stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Give it a taste and adjust the sweetness of the sauce according to your preference by adding more sugar. Simmer for 3 minutes.

7. Remove the sauce from heat. You can either mix all the sauce with the pasta or just top some enough sauce to a plate of pasta and sprinkle with grated cheese. Garnish with a little parsley on top for a final touch and for some Instagram worthy picture! Enjoy!

Calamares

Calamares or deep fried squid rings is one of the top favorite appetizers in the Philippines. Its easy to prepare and cook. The secret to a delicious Calamares is the softness of the squid while its crunchy on the outside.

Ingredients:

1/2 kl squids
1/2 c bread crumbs
1 beaten egg
salt and pepper
cooking oil

Procedure:

1. Clean the squids by removing the skin and the innards. Wash well. Slice it into rings.
2. Season the rings with salt and pepper.
3. Dip the rings into the beaten egg and dredge it into the bread crumbs.
4. Heat the oil in a pan over low heat. Deep fry the squid rings until golden brown. Do not overcook the rings as this will make the squid tough.
5. Remove from heat and drain the excess oil in a paper towel.
6. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

Morcon

Morcon is indeed a festive dish in the Philippines. It's traditionally meat rolls stuffed with eggs, cheese, pickles, ham and a lot more. You can choose your stuffed fillings. This dish may take a long time to cook but its worth the wait after you taste all the flavors packed in it.

Ingredients:

1 kl beef sirloin, cut into morcon style

200 grams sliced ham or sausages

1 cup cheese, sliced into strips

2 hardboiled eggs, sliced into quarters

1 medium carrot, sliced into strips

1 pc pickle, sliced into strips

1/2 c soy sauce

2 tbsp Calamansi juice

1 white onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 bay leaf

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 red and green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 c liver spread

3 tbsp flour

water

cooking oil

salt and pepper

Procedure:

1. Season the beef with soy sauce, Calamansi juice and pepper. Marinate and refrigerate for about an hour.

2. Prepare the stuffed fillings for the morcon. Arrange the ham, cheese, eggs, carrot and pickle into the marinated beef. Roll it and secure it with a string.

3. Dredge the beef roll into the flour.

4. Heat the oil in the pan and cook the beef rolls until brown. remove from heat and set aside.

5. Meanwhile, saute the garlic, onions then add the red and green bell peppers And bay leaf. Return the beef rolls into the pan. Add some water and let it simmer until beef is tender. Stirring occasionally.

6. Lastly add the liver spread and the tomato paste. Stir well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for 5 minutes until cooked.

7. Slice into serving size and serve with the sauce. Enjoy!